Opposing Battle Lines

David Shackleton

I am very lucky to be surrounded on all sides by land which has witnessed incredible and historic events. However, luck has its most definite limits, and for a metal detectorist, some luck is best reserved for the field.

A golden day in California

Chris Ralph

California is famous for its moderate weather, but it isn’t always that way, especially in the high country of the Sierra Nevada Range. In early summer, I tried to take a friend over to a patch where I’ve pulled some nice gold. The weather was unusually cold and we were actually blocked by late season snow on the roads. I never got the chance to return during the rest of the summer, but after my visit to Australia, I was motivated to get back up there.

The GPX 5000 compared

Nenad Lonic

When the GPX 5000 metal detector was released, some existing GPX-4500 users questioned whether it was a GPX-4500 with a new Timing for very small gold, and a make-over in the colour department. While these were true, the GPX 5000 has a few extra tricks up its sleeve!

Understanding & setting the Sovereign GT controls - Part 2

Gary Drayton

The basic Sovereign GT metal detector control settings are in my opinion the corner stone of any serious beach or land hunter. Before moving on let us revisit the basic control settings and examine the reasons why learning these basic control settings are so valuable before moving on to more advanced manual Sovereign GT settings.

The path of maximum resistance

Nenad Lonic

I was recently reading the blog by Kevin Hoagland titled “Your Best Metal Detecting Critic”, and in it he mentioned "the path of least resistance". Being humans, this is the natural path we always take, but when detecting you should sometimes think the complete opposite! I thought this was a fantastic topic to explore further, as it really depends on whose path of least resistance you are referring to, and often the path of max resistance is the way to go! Here are a few scenarios to explain...

Bringing the history of an era back to life

Mark Williams

I am an Adelaide boy and I love South Australia’s history, it simply oozes out of every little nook and cranny in our small country towns. Although, each one has its own unique story and there always seems to be a connection somewhere that brings it all together. I thoroughly enjoy coin & relic hunting because for me, there is nothing better than gathering together many facets of information and weaving it all together with the bits & pieces that you find to bring the history of an era back to life.

Mark Williams - Introduction to Treasure Talk

Brenton O'Brien

Mark Williams as far back as he can remember has always been fascinated with old bric a brac from bygone eras. He grew up in Adelaide, South Australia, but his ancestors were some of the first people to settle in the far north of the state. He spent much of his young life visiting his grandparents in the country and it was not unusual to find Mark at some old dump site or ruin full of old relics that he could spend hours rummaging through and trying to work out what they were used for.

At the age of 25 Mark bought his first Minelab Eldorado MkII and with grand visions of great riches to be found he was hooked well and truly on metal detecting.

The West Australian Adventure Video Blog - Part 2

Jonathan Porter

 Detecting a Gully/Wash

Our first week ‘Out Bush’ was an eye opener for everyone, for me because I was seeing my homeland through the eyes of others and for Chris and Steve because even though metal detecting is a familiar pastime the world over, Australia’s particular brand of geology is pretty unique due to the sheer age of our rocks and more particularly the oxidisation of those rocks through eons of weathering.

The Lost Bullet Boat Incident

David Shackleton

Being a good relic hunter also means being good at conducting investigative historical research. The two go hand in hand, especially when you’re tracing the steps of battle lines that moved around the countryside frequently.

During the Civil War, both armies utilized natural waterways as a means of transporting troops, supplies, and equipment...

Your best metal detecting critic

Kevin Hoagland

Video cameras are pretty inexpensive these days. I just bought an underwater camera capable of depths up to ten feet for under $150.00 which I plan to mount on the stem of my Excalibur II the next time I am surf detecting. I think it will be a bonus to see how good my underwater coil control is in the surf.

If you really want to improve your detecting technique...