News

THE LAND OF GOLDEN OPPORTUNITIES !

It was recently publicly reported that:
"Queensland currently has 11 fossicking areas, 9 designated fossicking lands, and 21 General Permission Areas (GPA's) for fossicking - totaling more than 20,000 hectares"

In reality, 20,000 Hectares is only 0.01% of the total land area of Queensland.

Western Australia is nearly 50% larger in area than Queensland. However in W.A., there is nearly 10,000 % MORE (i.e. 100 TIMES MORE) land area available (via "Pending ground") for fossicking/prospecting for someone who holds a W.A. Miners Right. This equates to about 1% of the total land area of W.A. In total, about one-quarter of the land area of W.A. is generally under Title re: tenements for exploration, mining, prospecting, etc. So, there is generally far more ground available in W.A. to lawfully hunt gold, than in most of the other States.

It's no wonder that so many thousands of people have been/continue to go to W.A. annually to hunt gold, especially during the winter months. These people also spend significant amounts of time and money in W.A.

It is also no wonder then why so many large gold nuggets have been detected in W.A. in recent years - no doubt, also due in part to the excellent (World-Patented) technologies incorporated within Minelab detectors.
It is also great for detectorists/prospectors to have the choice of any of Minelab’s extensive range of eighteen (18) different models of detectors that are currently on the market – the biggest range of detectors Minelab has ever had in its nearly 40 years of operations.

In terms of commercial production of gold, Western Australia produces nearly 70% of the annual national total of gold production (Qld only produces about 5%).

The reality in Qld is that the cost of a 'Fossicking Licence' (at a considerable expense of about $60 for an individual EVERY YEAR) is by far the most expensive of any State in Australia (in W.A. it only costs about $30 FOR LIFE !). Some States DO NOT require a licence or Miner's Right to fossick/prospect.

In Victoria a Miner's Right only costs about $30 and is valid for 10 years. In Victoria recreational prospecting is permitted under a Miner's Right across most of the state’s 3.1 Million hectares of state forests as well as other public lands. This equates to about 10% of the total land area of Victoria. The Geological Survey of Victoria estimates there may be as much as 75 Million ounces of undiscovered gold in northern Victoria – almost as much gold as has been discovered across the entire state since 1851.

In order to increase regional and remote tourism in Queensland, and in particular, encourage more recreational activities, including for families (e.g. bush exploration, camping and prospecting/metal detecting), perhaps the Qld Govt. should seriously consider designating far more new areas of land (i.e. in excess of an additional 100,000 Hectares), preferably within known gold-bearing regions, for recreational prospecting by holders of a Qld Fossicking Licence.

Over the past two centuries, many State Governments, and towns too, have been saved from financial ruin via the discovery of goldfields, and the subsequent, many benefits of exploration, prospecting and mining.

For example,
In 1866, nearly a decade after its formation, the Australian colony of Queensland was experiencing a recession, exacerbated by a prolonged drought. Queensland was on the edge of bankruptcy. The discovery of significant amounts of gold near Gympie saved Queensland from financial ruin.

With respect to Western Australia - Gold’s value had increased significantly, and between 1886 and 1900, 88% of W.A.’s export income was attributed to gold.

The gold industry in W.A. survived the challenges of the First World War, which saw mining activity and investment decline. However, the Great Depression in the 1930's brought revitalisation to the gold industry with a rise in the gold price and an increase in foreign investment.

It was the discovery of the largest-recorded gold nugget in Western Australia (1,136 Ounces = 35KG) , the ‘Golden Eagle’ (in a hole in the road in Coolgardie in 1931) that created a national interest and saw many prospectors return to W.A.

As the saying goes, "history often repeats itself", and likewise, the discoveries of significant gold nuggets will continue.

The 23.2Kg  "Ausrox" nugget - discovered in W.A. in 2010

In recent decades there have been several large nuggets found in Western Australia - that have not been publicised - and such nuggets have either been hidden in safe storage or sold and/or melted down.
In recent decades there have also been many gold patches found in Western Australia, many in remote areas, producing up to hundreds of nuggets totaling tens-of-kilograms of gold, that have also not been publicised.

Over the past four decades, many different Minelab detectors have been used in the detection of such large gold nuggets & specimens within our awesome continent of Australia !

Based on my research, and also my gold prospecting experiences, I suspect there remains hundreds-of-Millions of ounces (i.e. THOUSANDS OF TONNES) of gold yet to be discovered in Western Australia.

From about 1980 until about 2005 the price of gold was roughly around AU$500 per ounce (31 grams). Over the past 17 years the price of gold has increased significantly  (about SIX FOLD)  to about  AU$3,000 per ounce. This is a great incentive for people to get out there and hunt gold !

Fitting Coiltek Extreme Coils to the Minelab SDC 2300 detector + Warranty

The Minelab SDC 2300 detector was released in 2014, and it is still in production nearly a decade later in 2023. Minelab have only ever offered the 8” round monoloop coil on this pulse-induction detector. Minelab states that the SDC 2300 detector (including the Minelab 8" coil) is "Fully submersible to 10’ (3m) for detecting riverbeds and shorelines, allowing you to transition with ease from land to water."

In recent years, Minelab have offered an "upgraded" SDC 2300 which includes a Lithium-ion battery (it can also operate on 4 C-cell batteries too), and a coil joint ("knuckle") protector.

In 2020, Australian company COILTEK released a range of three larger/different sized monoloop coils – named the ‘Gold Extreme’ - for the SDC 2300 detector.

These three coils are the elliptical 14x9”, the elliptical 10x5”, and the 11’ round – priced from about $400.

It should be noted that the Coiltek Extreme coils are Water Resistant, NOT WATERPROOF !

In September 2020 Minelab issued an updated Product Notice & Warranty Statement regarding the fitment of Coiltek coils to the Minelab SDC 2300 detector. This advice from Minelab states:
“SDC’s  with Coiltek  aftermarket  coils  fitted  by  the  user  REMAIN  WARRANTED  by  Minelab. That is, SDCs that may be experiencing issues can be repaired (under warranty if applicable) via the normal Minelab sales and support channels in your region.

If the issue is related to failure of the Coiltek Coil itself, then this is covered by Coiltek separately. Any damage which is assessed by Minelab or its Authorised Service Centres (ASC's) as having resulted from such modification will not be covered by the Minelab warranty. SDC’s should be reinstated to the original format (i.e. with original coil fitted) prior to returning to Minelab.

The aftermarket coils have been developed independently of Minelab therefore Minelab cannot provide any information or support regarding the use or performance of these coils. SDC’s with Coiltek coils experiencing issues related to the coil should contact Coiltek support.”

Fitment of a Coiltek coil also requires the use of a Coiltek Gold Extreme SDC Accessory Pack (costing approx. $90).

The Coiltek coils are simple to fit to the SDC 2300 – taking only several minutes to do so – as per this Coiltek instructional video.

The Coiltek Gold Extreme coils have a 2-Years Coiltek Warranty from the original date of purchase.

SCARCE  &  RARE  AUSSIE  COINS  TO  HUNT

Many Aussies have heard of the rarity of the well-known 1930 Australian Penny, and its investment value depending upon its condition and provenance. It is believed that only about 1,500 such 1930 Australian pennies were put into circulation during the Great Depression. In 2021, a 1930 Penny sold for nearly $200,000.

There are several other Australian coins that are rarer, and not well-known. I am sure that many such rare Australian coins are still out there, some buried in the ground, near to cities and large towns, after being lost up to a century ago.
In recent years there have been many sales of such rare/scarce Australian pre-decimal coins fetching up to hundreds of thousands of dollars per coin.

Other scarce/rare Australian coins include:

HALF PENNIES
1923 Half Penny – only about 15,000 of these coins were made at the Melbourne Mint. One sold in 2022 for about $85,000.
Other years when the Australian Half Penny were in very low mintage include the extremely rare 1916 “Mule”-type (only 5 known specimens), and 1931 (only 350,000 made).

PENNIES
After World War 1, from 1919 to 1921, seventeen (17) different Types of square-shaped “Kookaburra”-design Pennies & Halfpennies were made. A total of only about 200 of these coins were minted. Most of these “Prototype” coins were distributed to government officials, dignitaries, and VIP’s (not released into general circulation). Most of these coins contained mostly Nickel (some were mostly silver), and most weighed between about 3.8 and 4.7 grams. Most had sides about 18mm long (some had 14mm long sides), and featured a picture of a kookaburra on one side, with the coin date on the opposite side. Some of these coins have been valued at up to a few hundred thousand dollars. A 1919 square silver Penny sold in 2021 for approx. $295,000.

THREEPENCES
No Australian threepences were minted in 1913, 1929 to 1933 inclusive, 1937, 1945, 1946, and 1965.

In 1942 only 528,000 threepences were made at the Melbourne Mint. That year in 1942, many Millions of threepences were also made in the USA (at two other Mints in San Francisco and Denver).

In 1915 and 1923 only approximately 800,000 threepences were made in each of those two years.

The 1922/21 over-date threepence is extremely rare (only about 900 minted), and the 1934/33 over-date threepence is also considered quite rare.

SIXPENCES
No Australian sixpences were minted in 1913, 1915, 1929 to 1933 inclusive, 1937, 1947 and 1949.
In 1935 only approximately 392,000 sixpences were made. Other low mintage years of the sixpence include 1911, 1918M, 1924 and 1934.

SHILLINGS
In some years (i.e. 1910, 1919, 1923, 1929, 1930, 1932, 1937, 1945, 1947, 1949 and 1951) no Australian Shillings were made.
The 1933 Shilling was of extremely low mintage - with only about 220 coins minted.
Other very low-mintage years of Shillings include - 1921 (522 made), 1924 (673), 1928 (664), 1934 (480), 1935 (500) and 1940 (760 made).

FLORINS
In some years (i.e. 1920, 1929, 1930, 1937, 1948, 1949, 1950 and 1955) no Australian Florins were made.
The 1934-35 Melbourne Centenary Florin was of very low mintage - with only about 54,000 coins circulated (based on 75,000 coins being minted, and then 21,000 of those coins were melted down). A specimen sold in 2015 for about $17,500.
Other low-mintage years of Florins include:
1911 (about 1 Million made), 1912 (about 1 Million), 1914H (about 500,000), 1915L (about 500,000), 1932 (only about 188,000), 1933 (about 488,000) and 1939 (about 630,000).

Like all other pre-decimal Australian coinage, the Florin coin (which was worth Two Shillings, and commonly referred to as “Two Bob”) was based on the silver standard. The 28.5mm, 11.3gram coins were minted in sterling silver (92.5% silver, 7.5% copper) from 1910 until 1945. In 1946 the Florin coins were debased to a lower silver content, consisting of 50% silver, 40% copper, 5% nickel, and 5% zinc.

CROWNS
Australian Crown coins were only made in 2 years during the Great Depression - in 1937 (only about 1 Million Crown coins were made) and in 1938 (only about 101,000 were made). These Crown coins (which were worth 5 Shillings in their day almost a century ago) are large (38.5mm in diameter) and weigh about 28 grams each, with a composition of 92.5% silver content. A 1938 Crown in excellent condition, of ‘Uncirculated Grade”, can fetch up to about $1,000.

In my opinion (after nearly 50 years of collecting Australian pre-decimal coins), I reckon that the 1938 Australian Crown is an under-rated coin, and it should be worth more than it generally sells for – particularly given its age, general scarcity, size and silver content. I have several in my collection – which are my favourite Aussie pre-decimal coins.

MODERN, scarce Australian decimal coins to hunt include the Year 2000 $1 “Mule Error” coin, and also the Year 1992 $1 “Five Roo’s” coin – which the Royal Australian Mint claim that only 8,000 were made, however negligible have been seen in circulation (In 2012, such a 1992 $1 coin sold at auction for about $1,000).

Another rare, modern Aussie coin - that was issued under mysterious circumstances, the 1977 fifty cent coin with the coat of arms "reverse" - was minted in extremely low numbers. The exact mintage is not known, but “fewer than ten” is the often reported number. One of these coins sold at auction in 2009 for $8,600.

There are also several other modern, decimal Australian coins that are scarce or rare, some having errors caused when they were minted.

Here is a link to  the  NUMISTIP  website  - which is easy/handy to use for obtaining more information about a coin, including it's likely value. 

MINELAB  COIN  &  RELIC  DETECTORS
Minelab recently released a new, lightweight, VLF-technology detector designed for hunting coins & relics. It is named the ‘X-TERRA PRO’ and it costs only $499. This detector features ‘PRO-SWITCH’ (Switchable Frequency Technology) - so that you can set it to operate on either of four single frequencies of 5kHz, 8kHz, 10kHz or 15kHz.

It has 6 pre-programmed Search Modes for three different terrains of Park, Field & Beach, with 30 segmented notches of discrimination capability (1 notch represents a range of 4 Target ID numbers). This detector also features an LED flashlight for night-use, and handle-vibration capability. It is rated as fully waterproof to 5m depth, and has a quick-collapsible length of only 63cm (2-foot) long for ease of storage & transportation. It also has an armrest that is adjustable for the length of your forearm.

I recently had the opportunity to use the new Minelab X-TERRA PRO for my first time, on an old school oval in Brisbane (with the very kind permission of the school Principal). Within half-an-hour of turning this detector on (and setting it on Parks 1 search mode + 5kHz frequency + Sensitivity 22 + Recovery Speed 3 + Auto Tracking Ground Balance) - I found my first coin. It was a tiny, old Australian threepence (92.5% silver content) dated 1910. YUP - an Aussie silver coin that is 113 years old (Australia commenced it's own currency in 1910, about 9 years after Federation).

WOW ! I am impressed by the performance of the new Minelab X-TERRA PRO detector, for a cost of only $499. Over the next few hours I proceeded to detect another 8 coins, including a modern English Twenty Pence coin dated 2016, and several $1 & $2 coins.

The  complete range of Equinox-compatible coils of various sizes (made by both Minelab, and Coiltek) also fit the Minelab X-TERRA PRO detector. This detector includes the Minelab V12X coil (a 12”x9” elliptical Double-D coil – also fitted with a protective skid-plate), and a magnetic, USB charging cable (for the internal Lithium-Ion battery).

Increasing in both cost and additional capabilities, other Minelab detectors available for coin & relic hunting (apart from the Vanquish series, ranging in cost from $399 to $599), include the Equinox range – namely the older Equinox 600 ($999) and older Equinox 800 ($1,089), the new Equinox 700 ($1,079), and new Equinox 900 with 2 coils ($1,549), as well as the new MANTICORE (cost $2,499).

CAUTION - Coin Cleaning - VERY IMPORTANT
Every time I detect & unearth a dirty coin (or an old Token - Australian tokens will be the subject of a future BLOG article), I immediately (for a few seconds at least) wonder what type of coin it is ? and what year is minted upon one of its sides ?

I immediately put pure, drinking-quality water on the dirty coin to wash off any grit and dirt (a small, squeeze-squirt type bottle of water can be handy for that task).
Sometimes I use a very soft bristle toothbrush & clean, pure water to slowly/very gently remove dirt, particularly over the spot where the year is featured on the coin.

If the dirt is more stubborn, and say partly obscuring the year on the coin, I use water-dampened cotton earbuds, or soft-wood toothpicks, to very gently remove some dirt hiding the numbers of the year. Failing that, I will soak a coin in a glass of pure, drinking-quality water overnight, or for a few days if needed, to let any stubborn dirt dissolve away from the coin (by way of leaning the coin upright/near vertical against the inside of the glass).

Try to avoid rubbing the coin, especially if it has sand and gravel upon it - as this may scratch or mark the coin.

Most times, particularly with small coins like threepences & sixpences, I use my mobile phone camera to zoom in and verify the date prior to wetting it.

I always prefer to do a minimal amount of coin cleaning in order to:
1. Verify the coin date; and
2. Then, prior to any further gentle cleaning of a coin - I do subsequent research (via the internet) of the total coin mintage for that year - to establish whether the coin may be a very low (scarce), or extremely low (rare) mintage, and hence may be of significant monetary value to a collector, depending upon the condition & grading of the coin.

Expert coin collectors DO NOT LIKE scarce/rare date coins being cleaned by the use of chemicals (e.g. DO NOT soak in, or clean, using chemicals such as coke, vinegar, acids, lemon juice, metal polishes, Brasso, Silvo, toothpaste, etc) and by way of rubbing/polishing (including the use of abrasive cleaning/scouring pads, steel wool, or tools).

I prefer not to use Ultrasonic cleaning machines on my pre-decimal coins - since they can damage coins if used incorrectly. For example, using the incorrect frequency (i.e. too low) and/or running the ultrasonic cleaning process for too long can cause pitting on a coin.

Unfortunately, many people including some experienced detectorists, are not aware that cleaning a scarce/rare coin to a highly-polished/shiny finish can significantly reduce its value to a collector.

You should not do/use anything that will shine up your coins, as this will remove the natural lustre or toning off the coin. This will also decrease the value of the coin.

Over time, coins go through a natural process called ‘toning’. This is when oxygen or sulphur react with the metal but, it’s important to remember, the surface under the toning still contains the reflective quality known as ‘mint lustre’. Expert collectors prefer coins that still retain a natural patina from decades of oxidation.

The least amount of wear on a coin, including its circumferential rims, also increases its value to a collector.

If you do find a scarce or rare coin, then if you are intending to keep it indefinitely, it is also very important (in order to retain its potential market value) to consider how to store it long term so that it does not deteriorate with time. It is best to store valuable coins in a safe place where there is very little variation in temperature and humidity over time.
I use a clean, soft, white-coloured, pure cotton cloth to gently wipe my prized coins free of any dust or oils (e.g. from handling by fingers or hands).
I then use plastic tweezers to insert the coin into a special, air-tight/waterproof, clear, hard plastic, coin capsule/display case - for optimal long term storage and viewing.


Some Coin Hunting Considerations:
1. What is the likely total number of such scarce/rare Aussie pre-decimal coins most likely to have been lost ?
Possibly hundreds or thousands of coins ?

2. Where would such scarce/rare Aussie pre-decimal coins be most likely to have been lost ?
Near cities ? and large towns ?
At historical sites ? e.g. on the grounds of heritage-listed, residential estate properties ?
At old showgrounds ? and stadiums ? nearby old cricket & football ovals ?
In old parks ? nearby old/large trees ?
Given population distributions in Australia over the past century - is it more likely than not, that most of the scarce/rare Aussie pre-decimal coins lost are in the eastern States of Australia ?

3. Given the excellent coin-targeting & discrimination capabilities of modern Minelab VLF-technology detectors (unlike pulse-induction detectors) - Would the average metal detectorist in Australia, based in/near a city, be more likely to find such a scarce/rare Aussie pre-decimal coin ? and/or valuable jewellery ? - compared to the chances of finding gold nugget/s of equivalent value ?

Queensland Heritage Act 1992

It is worth knowing that the  Queensland Heritage Act 1992  requires any potentially important discoveries of archaeological artefacts to be reported to the relevant Queensland Government Department - so its team of experts can assess how significant the artefacts are to Queensland’s history.

Such artefacts can include coins or monetary notes. Penalties can apply for failing to do so (The Maximum Penalty is a fine of over $15,000).

In fact, in 2017 a large cache of century-old coins was unearthed during construction work on the Toowoomba Bypass. This discovery of coins was considered one of the largest coin discoveries in Australia.

A total of 5,663 coins were found buried in a metal container. The pre-decimal coins comprised florins, shillings and threepences, dated between 1910 to 1940, and equivalent to an average Annual wage in today’s currency.

Research suggested the owner of the former farm on which the coins were found passed away in 1940, corresponding to the most recent date minted on the coins and suggesting the collection was a personal “nest egg”.

In 2018, a former work contractor was fined for failing to report the find, as they were required to do under the Queensland Heritage Act.

There have been some very interesting discoveries of ancient coins in Queensland, including an Egyptian coin dated by experts as being about 2,200 years old !

TIPS  FOR  GOLD  HUNTING  IN  WESTERN  AUSTRALIA  –  Part 3

DETECTING TECHNIQUES
Gold Detecting Tips:
1.    Upon commencing detecting each day, consider doing a “Factory Preset” (on the GPX 6000) or “Reset Audio & Detection Settings” (on the GPZ 7000) – in order to optimise the operational performance of your highly-sensitive, Minelab pulse-induction detector.

2.    Be patient, the gold is not going anywhere – if the GPX 6000/GPZ 7000 becomes a bit noisy or “chattery”, then do a noise cancel followed by manual ground balancing using the “Quick Track” button. Some days I do this often throughout the day. This will optimise the performance of your GPX/GPZ so that you are not wasting time and possibly missing those quieter/faint target signal noises often associated with deeper gold.

3.    Swinging technique is also VERY CRITICAL to how much gold you are likely to detect. The “Low and Slow” rule is VERY IMPORTANT to find more gold. On soily ground (without too many sharp rocks) I would lightly and slowly rub my coil upon the ground, with overlapping sweeps from side to side, in order for the detectors pulse induction to energize gold nuggets as long as possible, and so as to increase the chance of the nugget being detected. I found that the coil skid plates lasted longer than I expected, and they are a small expense to pay for the benefit of finding more gold. (The gold price recently hit an-all-time record high of about AU$3,000 per ounce – nearly $100 per gram).

4.    After finding a gold nugget, and then re-checking the back-filled hole, I would always do a Noise Cancel, and a manual Ground Balance, to optimise the operation of my detector to find further nuggets.

5.    Whenever possible, and about half-way during a day of prospecting (during my midday lunch break), I would replace my detector's Lithium-ion battery with a fully charged battery.

6.    A Guide Arm (or Control Arm) attachment to the shaft of your detector can also be very useful. The end-grip of the guide arm is held by your non-detecting hand, so as to provide precisely controlled swinging of the coil within both the horizontal and vertical planes. The guide arm is also great for distributing some of the detector weight to the strength of your non-detector arm. I found that a guide arm greatly increased my prospecting comfort, especially on long, consecutive days of swinging.

7.    A Bungee cord (also often called a Bunji or Bungey cord) is often worn by many prospectors using the heavier GPZ 7000, especially if it is being swung for sessions of longer than a few hours. I also used a bungee cord on my GPX 6000 (attached from the shaft of my detector to the “D” ring on my harness) to minimise fatigue since I would mostly swing my 6000 for about 8 hours a day (equivalent to the running time of a fully charged battery). Some weeks I would swing for 7 consecutive days (that was about 56 hours of swinging a week). I found using a bungee made a huge difference to my muscle fatigue, and it provided me with greater swinging endurance time per day. More swinging = more ground coverage = more gold.

8.    If you find a gold patch, then use all the suitable coils you have on the patch, and also then thoroughly over the patch – that is, not only sweep-swinging on a grid-like pattern in both perpendicular directions, but also at angles across the patch. It never ceased to surprise me how much more gold I picked up with the GPX 6000 by detecting in many different directions on a patch. I would firstly exhaust the patch of gold using the GPX17” mono coil. When I was finding little more gold on a patch, I would then run the GPX11” mono coil over the patch and find more gold. Finally, I would then put the GPX14” DD coil and often find some more gold.


UNFILLED HOLES
One of my pet hates .... unfilled holes dug by lazy detectorists/prospectors - it ain’t rocket science.
Besides, it is generally much quicker to fill in a hole than dig it.
Who would like strangers coming into their yard and digging holes? let alone leaving them unfilled?
To me, leaving their holes unfilled is a reflection of, not only someone’s personality, but also their professionalism as a prospector.

During my several years of prospecting in W.A., I reckon I encountered tens-of-thousands of holes, some up to about 2-feet deep, left unfilled by other people using detectors. Most poachers do not backfill their holes - for various reasons.

I would often run my detector over many of these unfilled holes and find trash left in them, or in the adjacent spoil.

Fortunately, on about half a dozen occasions, I found small gold nuggets either still remaining in the hole, or in the spoil beside the hole - that were missed. On two occasions I found two nuggets within a hole after digging out the holes deeper.

Always re-check your holes & the spoil, and then check again after you have back-filled them. You might just get a nice surprise, like I did on a few occasions.


THEY NEVER GET ALL THE GOLD
One day I encountered two old "blow-in" (from interstate) prospectors near Kalgoorlie detecting some recent scrapes using a GPZ 7000 with a Minelab GPZ 19" 'Super-D' coil and a "modified" GPX 4500 with a Coiltek 18" Elite Mono coil.
 
I also had written permission to be on that lease to detect gold using my Minelab GPX 5000 with my new Nugget Finder 15" Evolution mono coil.
I got yarning to these blokes as they were packing up to leave. They loudly boasted that I "would be absolutely wasting my time" detecting the scrapes with my "stock 5000" as they "had completely flogged the ground" with both of their "high performance" detectors.

After they left, I fired up my trusty & proven workhorse GPX 5000, and I unleashed it upon that ground with enthusiasm. The first thing I did was walk upon the top of the many windrows (soil bunds created via machinery pushing/scraping operations), and I detected their tops, and both side batters.

Over the next few days, I pulled out over several ounces of gold (40+ nuggets) including a stunning half-ouncer at a depth of 1.5 feet. Most of the bigger nuggets were within the windrows. Other blokes who had recently pushed this ground with a loader not only failed to detect the nuggets in the windrows, but so too had these two "mature"-aged interstate prospectors missed all these nuggets. I had found more-than-enough "missed gold" to buy a brand spankin' new Minelab GPZ 7000. I had a few quiet chuckles to myself.

Over the next few years I was often amused hearing others claim they had "flogged" areas. This always presented a challenge to me - to try and prove them wrong. In the vast majority of cases I always found multiple nuggets from such so-called "flogged" ground.

It would seem to me that it was highly likely that all of those hundreds of nuggets I found on such so-called "flogged" grounds was due to poor detecting techniques used by others (including lack of patience and thoroughness).


TERRAIN/GEOLOGICAL INDICATORS
The vast majority (90%+) of gold nuggets I found in W.A. were detected with a distance of about 0.5km to 1km of a hill or hill/s. Many nuggets I detected were on the sides of hills or near the toes of hills too. A salt lake/s was often nearby too, within about 1 to 2 km's.

Most of the biggest nuggets I found in W.A. were at depth, often nearby large/old trees, and they were either within gold patches containing numerous nuggets, or nearby at least a few other smaller nuggets.

I also detected many nuggets buried under tree logs & branches that I carefully moved (watch out for snakes). Sometimes I would find unfilled holes scattered nearby/beside big logs that, surprisingly, had not been moved. I would then move these potential "nugget covers" and sometimes detect gold nuggets below. Many part-time/hobby detectorists are not absolutely thorough in their physical quest for gold. Full-time prospectors mostly think-outside-the-norm, and also take those extra, hard-yards steps to find more gold - probably because for many of them, their (and their family's) livelihood/s depends on it.

Saltbush vegetation was often nearby where I found gold too. I found several great nuggets beside the roots of saltbushes.

Often where I found gold (and other long-time local prospectors told me the same too) nearby was any/many of the following geological indicators:
Quartz + ironstone (often called “salt & pepper” ground)
Laterite ground
Banded Iron Formations (BIF's)
Greenstone belts
Jasper
Fault lines and contact zones (sometimes they can be naturally marked by way of obviously contrasting/sudden changes in vegetation types)

Many long-time, local prospectors in W.A. enjoy going out prospecting after heavy rains (when unsealed roads are not closed and not boggy) - since good gold is often eroded out of the ground and exposed, to be possibly spotted by a sharp-eye, or become within the range of detection of a detector coil.

REFERENCE BOOKS

There are many good books (and atlases) available for information on gold prospecting in Australia. I particularly like reference books that contain good maps, including locations of historical gold workings & mines. For decades in Australia, aussie prospector Doug Stone has authored several such prospecting books & atlases, including for Western Australia.


SIMPLE AIR-DEPTH CALIBRATION TEST:
At the start of every prospecting session, after turning my detector on and then doing the Noise Cancel, and Ground Balancing procedures, to get the detector running quiet & smooth, I would ALWAYS do an air-depth detection calibration test - to ensure my detector was running at near optimum performance for depth.
For this test I used a new/clean Aussie 5 cent coin (that I would always carry in my pocket), and I would confirm the maximum height (above the coin-on-the-ground) that the coil could just detect the coin.
Around Kalgoorlie, I generally obtained the following air-depth testing/calibration results (on an unburied 5 cent coin) for the respective Minelab detector & coil/s that I was using:

GPX6000 with 11" round Minelab Mono coil = 14" depth
GPZ 7000 with 14×13" Minelab Super-D coil = 16" to 18" depth
GPX 5000 with 19" round Nugget Finder Evolution Mono coil = 16" to 18"depth
GPX 5000 with 25" round Nugget Finder DD X-Search coil = about 20" depth

The above air-depths were the absolute maximum detection depths I generally achieved, and less than the detection depth of the same metal target buried in the ground, especially in highly mineralised ground.

Pulse-induction detectors will generally lose depth performance to some degree in highly to extremely mineralised ground, particularly when using highly-sensitive, flat-wound Monoloop coils, and especially as the ground surface temperature increases.
In "difficult ground" (highly mineralised and/or conductive), and sun-heated ground, a DD coil of at least the same diameter (albeit heavier than a Monoloop coil of the same diameter) may be more of an advantage.


PICKS
For extra grip for my big hands, and also for increased shock-absorbing capacity, I fitted a rubberised tennis handle wrap to my pick handle.

I always had a super-strong, round/flat, rare earth magnet mounted upon the top middle of the head of my pick. It was great for pulling out iron-based trash e.g. wire etc. It also often grabbed hot rocks. Don't just assume that all such hot rocks consist totally of iron and don't contain any gold. Over the years I found several hot rocks on my magnet that when broken up contained gold.


RECORD & SECURE YOUR NUGGETS .... & 4WD KEY
Most gold prospectors I have met (hundreds of them) use a plastic container (i.e. a used medication-type bottle) in the field to store their smaller, found gold, and most carry that container in either their shirt pocket or trouser pocket.

Over the years I was told by several local W.A. prospectors that they had found small plastic pill-type containers apparently dropped in the bush by other prospectors. Most contained gold nuggets. One bloke told me the container he found had 19 nuggets in it, totaling about an ounce. It was found on 'Pending' ground.

I store my freshly found nuggets within a plastic container, either secured:
(A) inside a zippered, deep compartment inside my backpack (together with the keys for my 4WD); or
(B) inside my trouser pocket - with a lanyard made from strong, pink coloured string that is securely connected from the bottle thread to a belt loop on my trousers.

I also use compact (pocket) digital scales to weigh, and I also photograph my significant gold nuggets in the field immediately after finding them.
That way if you then lose such a valuable nugget/s (either by accident, or it being stolen), at least you have a digital record (with a date & time stamp) of you having then had possession/ownership of it prior to it being lost or stolen.


LOOKING AFTER THE BUSINESS END OF YOUR DETECTOR
I regularly inspect my detector coils for any damage, and very carefully/gently remove the coil skid plate to clean out any dust and soil that may possibly congregate over time. In Western Australia where highly to extremely mineralised soils are common, such very fine mineralised dust can eventually find it’s way into between the coil and the skid plate.

This is even more likely to occur for large diameter spoked coils, compared to small round solid coils – mainly due to the significantly more total length of the contact faces between the coil and the skid plate.
If enough such material gets in, and also moves around whilst swinging, then this can affect the performance of highly sensitive, pulse-induction detectors.

I also wrap the circumference of all my coils with a quality adhesive tape. This acts as both a seal against any possible ingress of moisture and/or dust, and also as a protective layer on the outer vertical edge of the coil which nudges/rubs on soil, rocks, etc. I prefer Scotch heavy-duty grade ‘SUPER 88’ vinyl tape. It usually lasts me several months of swinging.

Talking about dust - which can find its way into almost all small gaps - it can pay to make sure that all the pin connections for all cables (like the coil cable plug, and also any battery cable plugs) are fully inserted, with the screw rings also done up firm.

Given the tens-of-thousands of dollars I spent buying pulse-induction metal detectors over the years, I always protected these investments from the dust, heat, and potential damage (e.g. caused by impact/scratching etc), by way of fitting quality, Aussie-made, padded canvas protective covers over the control box of each detector. Such protective covers can also protect the manufacturer’s labels of serial number/security codes – which may be useful down the track.
Furthermore, for concealment and ease of transportation of my detectors and accessories, I also use quality, Aussie-made, padded canvas carry bags for all my detectors.

When I was gold prospecting full-time in W.A. I soon learned the benefit of dusting down my detector & coil/s at the end of each day (with a soft cotton rag), prior to placing my detector & coil/s into the padded carry bag. This end-of-day ritual sure helped minimise the amount of fine dust that got caught inside the canvas carry bag. After every week of prospecting I would empty my carry bag of it's contents, and then turn it inside out to thoroughly shake out any dust that had congregated. I also kept all electrical-related accessories (like spare cables, and batteries and headphones, etc), within separate plastic clip-seal bags to minimise any dust entering the plugs or connections. This held me in good stead for years without any issues.

[Nugget image source - Facebook page of Finders Keepers Gold Prospecting - Kalgoorlie, W.A.]