Which gold detector to buy?

[trents99]

Hi guys, after some help please, new to this game and looking at purchasing a detector without spending to much first up.
was looking at the ex army F1A4, are these units any good? or would I be best of spending at bit more and getting a SD2200 or a GP3500?
appreciate any feedback guys, as I said new to the game, but very keen to get started.
cheers

 

[Guest]

Whites SPP very impressive' quiet smooth audio, works under bad EMI and a price hard to beat actually you can't compare the machine to anything ATM. Unfortunately there out of stock till next month but well worth the wait.
Only drama is the battery pack only lasts about 4 hours but the machines light and you can take a second battery for the day, most people only last 4hours this time of year.

If your in Victoria I'd be happy to demonstrate the SPP.

 

[trents99]

hi, thanks for your response
this sounds great, is there anywhere on the web I can download a brochure on this model or check it out?
yes I am located in VIC, Melbourne east.

 

[Guest]

Have a look at goldsearch Australia's web site they are the dealer for whites in Australia.
Im a few hours from you let me know if you want to try one.

 

[Ronk]

i would think a ml3500 would be the way to go for gold in oz if your on a budget

 

[Jon]

Im with Ronk. The best of the list is for sure the Minelab 3500, it will kick the SSP and f1a4'S buts.

 

[Guest]

Jon maybe for depth' but you won't be running a mono in high mineralization like you can with the SPP also the SPP works in EMI and still detects tiny targets' you can't hear them over the noise of the F1A4 or 3500.

I'm not getting into another debate on whites Vs Minelab good advice to a newbie just starting out is buying a SPP and I'm sure a lot will agree. $1250 brand new with warranty?

 

[trents99]

appreciate the feedback guys.
thanks.

 

[Jon]

I tried the TDI (which is actually the SSP's bigger brother) side by side in the goldfields here in Vic in a number of places against the 3500 and a 4500. The TDI with a mono coil, the 3500 with DD, we'll leave the 45 out. Was chalk and cheese. The 3500 was quieter everywhere and beat the Whites by a good 4 inches on a 59 gram nugget. Nowhere did the Whites outdo it. In high mineralisation at St Arnaud the 35 cruised, the Whites couldn't handle it until the gain was dropped down so low that depths between the two were poles apart. So the 35 won hands down with a DD coil.
If someone had a low budget and all they could afford was the Whites then yeah, why not, its Pi and gonna be better than any VLF out there and it does work ill admit. I even found some gold with it. Ill say it, its not a crap machine at all so im not in effect bagging it. If a person asked me "iv only got $1500 budget, what can I get that works in bad ground?" Id say a Whites PI.
But if someone is asking which is better between them, like the person who posted the original question, Trent, then the honest answer is the 3500.
Yeah, ok, the EMI issue. Lets face it, you go out in the goldfields, 99% of places wont have any issues with power lines or the like. Only the places near roadsides.
You can go into cancel with a 35 if there is need to. Atmospherics, you tune them out. If someone got a machine solely for the EMI issue they would soon run out of places where there was any advantage.

 

[dazza513]

I've got a spp and have to say that it is a whole lot more capable than I expected for the $1200!
Comparing it to the older minelabs I'd have to say the spp is easier to use.
Regards Daryl

 

[k man]

F1a4 all the way

 

[Jaros]

Yes k man, let us know how you go with the F1A4M2.
Jaros

 

[Guest]

I tried the TDI (which is actually the SSP's bigger brother) side by side in the goldfields here in Vic in a number of places against the 3500 and a 4500. The TDI with a mono coil, the 3500 with DD, we'll leave the 45 out. Was chalk and cheese. The 3500 was quieter everywhere and beat the Whites by a good 4 inches on a 59 gram nugget. Nowhere did the Whites outdo it. In high mineralisation at St Arnaud the 35 cruised, the Whites couldn't handle it until the gain was dropped down so low that depths between the two were poles apart. So the 35 won hands down with a DD coil.
If someone had a low budget and all they could afford was the Whites then yeah, why not, its Pi and gonna be better than any VLF out there and it does work ill admit. I even found some gold with it. Ill say it, its not a crap machine at all so im not in effect bagging it. If a person asked me "iv only got $1500 budget, what can I get that works in bad ground?" Id say a Whites PI.
But if someone is asking which is better between them, like the person who posted the original question, Trent, then the honest answer is the 3500.
Yeah, ok, the EMI issue. Lets face it, you go out in the goldfields, 99% of places wont have any issues with power lines or the like. Only the places near roadsides.
You can go into cancel with a 35 if there is need to. Atmospherics, you tune them out. If someone got a machine solely for the EMI issue they would soon run out of places where there was any advantage.

Agree - forget the F1A4 & SPP.
You could get a GP3500 cheap at the moment by shopping around a bit & it would be a better option.
The SPP & even the TDI appear to require too much mucking around testing & modifying to be viable for a newby.
Check out the SPP threads on the hiccup, quirk & battery mods.
Even Reg recommends in there somewhere that you need to know what you doing to solder these things etc.
They are a cheap PI though if you have time to muck about.

 

[Northoz]

Get a GP 3500,you won't look back

 

[Fabos]

Hi Trents99.

I personally use a Minelab SDC 2300 and I am very happy with it. I used the Garrett Infinium LS before and there is a world of a difference in relation to detecting gold. But so is the price...Infinium LS - $1800 SDC2300 - $4000. I guess it comes down to how serious you want to get into prospecting, how often you want to get out and prospect and what you are prospecting for. Great advise from other members here too about other good detectors.

 

[Moneybox]

I just bought Sandra the SDC 2300 on our way to Hawaii. Bad move it's useless here unless we have something wrong. EMI seems to be the killer. I'm purring along silently the Garrett ATX and she's thrown the SDC back in the boot. She wants the White's back. It will be interesting to see what happens when we're back in WA next week.

 

[Heatho]

I just bought Sandra the SDC 2300 on our way to Hawaii. Bad move it's useless here unless we have something wrong. EMI seems to be the killer. I'm purring along silently the Garrett ATX and she's thrown the SDC back in the boot. She wants the White's back. It will be interesting to see what happens when we're back in WA next week.

Hey MB, is the SDC making a lot of noise on the ground or when you hold the coil in the air? If it's noisy in the air it's EMI, if noisy on the ground while swinging it might be a layer of magnetic Black Sand on the beach messing with it.

Have you tried it away from built up areas? Some EMI can really mess with the thing where as generally it's very EMI resistant in most cases.

Just my thoughts.

 

[goldred]

Hi guys,

New to prospecting and see huge uses a Garrett ACE 400i (i see member NUGGEt uses this), - i want to know if this can be used for gold detecting or if it is just a relic metal detecting toy? To be clear , I'm not after relics, i want GOLD!

Being new i don't want to go out and spend a fortune, thousands of dollars, at least until i get into this in a heavy way.

What are the pros and cons of each detector and what are good detectors to start on which will find gold?

How to learn to use them?
Are there training courses , good online material?

Also i want to move to Bathurst for 3 months and metal detect, are there places you can hire detectors and get a feel for what ones you like?

thanks for any info

 

[old hand]

If you are looking for gold then a SDC or a new 4500 both are good money for value detectors regards john

 

[RM Outback]

If you are looking for gold then a SDC or a new 4500 both are good money for value detectors regards john

Beat me to it old hand. The bonus with this approach is if you find it's not for you, you will be able to sell either of these machines without to much hassle.