5000(Fine gold) + 8"commander

Just wondering if anyone has a good setup that works with this coil on fine gold.I've been doing some in ground tests with small nuggets but
in the actual field I'm getting mixed results.
Steve

G'day Steve

Personally i dont see any point in using a smaller coil than the 11" commander mono, on the 5000 it has
lethal power to pull the smallest of gold as long as you run it right.
With the new "fine" timing and the steadier ground balance, of course with a few extra tweaks mate
she kills all gold, bar using a bloody pan..

Have you tried the new "salt gold" timing ? its a bloody ripper, no need to be on a WA salt lake neither,
This year, and for the next few years,we have, and will be experiencing some of the worst salt interference in detector
history, caused by the breaking of the draught in most districts, and the salt rising to the crust...




Pete in WA "salt capital of the goldfields"

"Personally i dont see any point in using a smaller coil than the 11" commander mono"

G'day Pete
I have a great reason - I find the 11" round too damn heavy !
Jig.

I'm with you on that one Jig. I tried the 11" commander mono the other day and soon had it off again. Compared to my favourite coil the 14x9 coiltek mono it felt like a brick on the end of the stick. It did peform well being very stable and quiet but I soon got sick of the weight and went back to my old favourite. I might addd I have been using the same 14x9 CT mono since it first came out about 3 to 4 years ago and it is still working very well, as is Cheryl's that is the same age. And that time frame includes 4 WA trips with a total time of 14 months detecting nearly every day. And its not simply the weight difference, I find the 14x9 to be beautifully balanced. This allows me to detect for longer periods with less fatigue.

We are hoping to head up to Tibooburra next year where we will use the CT 10" eliptical mono on the little stuff. I have that coil for ten years and when ever I put it on I find it is dynamite on the tiny gold with very good depth on anything bigger as well. I found a 9 grammer with it at Tib last time we were there at ten inches on Tipperary diggings. Not only is it extremely sensitive to small stuff due to its narrow width but it covers more ground than either a 6" or 8" mono. I wouldn't go past one for the little stuff whether at Tib or elswhere.

Cheers, Jim

I forgot to add that the 10" CT eliptical is very light, if anything it is too light and you may have to adjust the control box if you have it out to the rear to compensate for heavier coils. Not really a problem, simply loosen your control box bolts and slide the box as far forward as you can and the balance will be pretty good. You can swing the little bugger all day and won't need any help such as okky straps or hip sticks, ideal for the missus.

Cheers, Jim

The 8" mono would have to be the best coil for small gold. Very sensitive but punches deep as well. Works well in tight areas. Just get your setting right and you won't look back.

One thing I forgot to add was I prefer the older minelab monos compared to the 8" commander. I reckon the older ones were quieter and just as good. Maybe the litz wire on a small coil made it too sensitive.

for a bit of a change yesterday i actually used the 8" commander on the 5000 in heavily flogged ground and got 8 pieces for 0.8 gram. gain on 14 , stabiliser on 9 , worked sweet. like Jig said , i like the 8" because its lighter , but like Pete said , the 11" finds small enough but with a bit more depth
dave

The best part of using the 8" or the CT small elip is being able to get in tight areas. Found some nice gold this way.
Paul.

Thanks for the replies,I,ve been using the 11"mono and as you said Pete it is very capable on the small stuff.I have the 14"x9"NFA and the 8"mono but the 11" runs the quietest of all 3,I think this is why its so easy to hear the small nuggets.
A lot of the guys here have now stepped down to the smaller coils like the 12"x7" etc and using them to extract the last few tiny bits over old ground or using the 14"rounds for the deeper bits.
Thanks Phoenix for the info could you tell me what target volume you use.I was using the same settings yesterday they seem to be ok but I'm still finding the 8" a bit noisy which seems to outweigh the benefits sometimes.
Steve

hi Steve
i use headphones, volume limit 5 , target volume 7.
cheers dave

Thanks Dave,I'll try these out now.
Steve

Hi Dave
Worked great on those settings,ran nice and quiet,thanks.Tried some really well worked ground that hasn,t produced anything lately,about 4hrs work.

good stuff Steve
well done
dave

Well done Steve. They look nice and rough - perhaps close to the source.
Jig

Hi Jig
The last few picked up at the intersection of 3 gullies,now to back track a bit and hope theres more.
Steve

I've learnt a good lesson here in that with the new setup the detector now picks out the targets far better from the background noises.Initially I setup the detector over my small buried nuggets but found the settings didn't really make a big difference as the detector is quite good at finding them,however the settings made a huge difference in actual operation as I'm now digging more targets and less ground noise or hot rocks.
I've also noticed that fine gold requires ground balancing more often than with the enhance on the 4500 much like the sensitive extra timing.Haven't really given the new enhance a good run yet still learning on this one.
Steve

Steve,
I basically only alter one thing on my 5000. I leave it in fine gold , leave the stabilizer on 10 and vary the gain between 12 and 16 - it's always on 16 unless the ground is REALLY noisy. Occasionally I will raise the target volume when wind noise gets bad. Apart from that, be it WA, NSW or Vic, I leave it alone.
Cheers,
Jigalong pella.

Great finds there Steve You are getting to know your new machine better all the time,and the results show Well done mate.

Cheers Bill.