Hello, and a question about nasty-cheap detectors

Hi there,

My names Oliver, have been looking to get into some panning for some alluvial gold around the barrington tops area as a fun way to spend the weekend. I have looked around and found some spot's I want to try based on old claims etc.. Planning to pan as the area is only really accessible by hiking.. However I wanted to use a classifier to reduce the amount of material to pan, and had a few questions I was hoping someone could answer (thanks in advance!)

Any sort of real minelab even an exterra 705 is way over my student budget. Honestly I wasn't too worried about a detector in the first place, however someone mentioned using them to check over the larger material discarded by the classifier in case a big nugget gets sifted out. In terms of this, would any one of these cheap sorts still be able to pick up a big nugget anyway?

(sorry had to disable links as new users can't post them for 7 days)
www[dot]ebay[dot]com[dot]au/itm/Deep-Target-Sensitive-Metal-Detector-Snoop-LCD-Display-/390524847343?pt=AU_Gadgets&hash=item5aed1844ef&_uhb=1
www[dot]ebay[dot]com[dot]au/itm/MD-3010II-Metal-Detector-Gold-Digger-Treasure-Hunter-/221144762119?pt=AU_Gadgets&hash=item337d414707&_uhb=1
www[dot]ebay[dot]com[dot]au/itm/NEW-BOUNTY-HUNTER-TRACKER-4-IV-METAL-DETECTOR-ALL-METALS-/300831584090?pt=AU_Gadgets&hash=item460af5af5a&_uhb=1
www[dot]ebay[dot]com[dot]au/itm/Seben-Extreme-Power-Metal-Detector-Treasure-Hunting-New-/380284886134?pt=AU_Gadgets&hash=item588abedc76&_uhb=1


The rocks in the area look like this mw2[dot]google[dot]com/mw-panoramio/photos/medium/2128382.jpg would have no idea how hot they are.

I understand that they won't be as sensitive as better machines, but will they work at all? Would they pick up a large nugget in a spread out pile of discarded stones? At the price of the Minelabs, finding gold in the first place is going to be a matter of research and test pans not a detector..

Please substitute . for [dot] in all the above links, sorry for the hassle!

If your hiking in & panning then a pinpointer may be ok to check thru your discarded material. They only cost about $160 & you can carry it on your belt.
http://www.garrettaustralia.com.au/products/Pro-Pointer.html

I believe you will probably see the nugget if its of decent size. When I started panning I was really scared of missing "gold", until the first miniscule piece stood out like a cheese and bacon ball on a plate so to speak. Sure if its attached to something else but I wouldn't worry too much about missing a big nugget as long as you keep your eyes open! If a 1k detector is too much id suggest a little sluice - you may find it more fun then panning everything and thus keep you interested in the hunt. I think a lot of people like the idea of panning until you do it and realize it can be hard work without much to show. A sluice will prob get you more colour and thus keep you interested. Possibly better to carry a small one of those than a detector that may just be getting in the way. I think detecting and panning are separate tasks, u don't need a detector if panning is your thing. My two cents worth!

Peter

Thanks for your advice. I'm taking the pans out this weekend. If I do get a bit of colour, a sluice box is definitely the next step in my adventures.

FYI just got back from a weekend session, test panned a spot that showed decent colour and confirmed you just have to find the right spot when panning and it will be clear as a whistle when you are there. More colour in one test pan than a whole bucket washed thru a sluice from another area!

All I can say is a test pan takes like a few minutes and you know if ur in the right spot when those little specks appear very quickly.

Good luck, there's lots of gold out there just keep looking and soon you will get the big "wow" as you do that back wash to reveal NICE COLOUR! Great feeling!!

Peter