Ive posted this letter to each detector forum listed at this site in order to catch those that may only read one forum.

I have no experience with any detectors except a goldmaster made in 1972 which I got disgusted with by 1973 and it has sat unused ever since.
Having no experience makes it pretty hard to know whats important for me to look for in a detector .

I have read recent months postings to the various forums on detecting. What I may want Ive narrowed down to as many as 7 or so that have been discussed in the forums. They are the GMT,MXT,DFX,TorosoLST,Shadowx5,GB2,Falcon 2.


Given that,mabe I should tell you my basic interests and expectations. You could then narrow this above list for me or even add another detector I havent listed.

I plan on searching desert areas primarily nearer where I live which is the S.Eastern California desert. Occasionally I head up through central and northern Nevada (I assume the mineralization is essehe same in the desert .

At this point I will be interested in Old Habitation sites prior to 1925 along with trails traveled in the 19th century.
I will also be interested in prospecting for gold nuggets etc.
I generally will search tailings,camps . I will also search uninhabited ravines with no junk lying or buried about.

When searching habitation sites prior to 1925,my expectation is to find personal caches that may have been lost or forgotten
by the owner. I assume gold was the chief currency.If this is true ,then would a gold detector made specifically for gold as opposed to coins be a better choice? Or would an all purpose such as
the ones I've Listed above be a fine choice.

Thanks for
TommyGunn

In response to Reply # 0

I've been using the Troy Shadow X-5 for a couple months now, and it's truely a great machine! VERY lightweight, has a 5" coil availiable now which I just bought but haven't used yet but should be killer on small gold. Lifetime warranty, exellent on coins, uses one 9volt batt., go to Troy's forum and read about the relic and coin finds, very impressive. Alaska gold forum has some posts about it's small gold capabilities too.
I can even manually ground balance my machine, although I don't ever need to with the fixed GB, it has a pretty short learning curve. Weatherproof too, just not submersible. For the extra money, I'd take it over the Whites, although the readout must be helpful at times.
That's my 2 cents. Good luck with whatever you choose!
Doug

"All laws, which are contrary to the
Constitution are null and void."

Marbury v. Madison § 5 US 137, 176:

www.freegift.net

"All laws, which are contrary to the
Constitution are null and void."

www.freegift.net

In response to Reply # 1

I have a Garrett Grand master CXIII, Whites GMT, Falcon MD10 and the new Troy X5. Go with the Troy X5. It is light weight, has a nice smooth tone and will find the deep stuff. I have used all the other units and they kill your arm after a while, not the X5