New Gold Mining Division established to support small scale gold miners worldwide.LISLE, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Minelab, the global leader in gold detection technology and hand-held metal detector devices has announced the establishment of a Gold Mining division to support artisanal small scale gold miners and prospectors around the world. The announcement was made at the Mining Indaba conference in Cape Town, South Africa, today.
The recent discovery of a 5.5kg gold nugget in Ballarat, Australia at 60cms depth by a prospector using a Minelab GPX 5000 hand-held gold detector illustrates the benefit of Minelab’s cutting edge technology in the pursuit of gold. The Ballarat nugget was valued in excess of US$300,000.
Prospectors across Central and Latin America have also tasted success with the GPX 5000 gold detector. Recently a prospector in Venezuela discovered 30g of gold at a depth of 150cms and in Brazil a 2g nugget was discovered using Minelab’s gold detecting technology.
Minelab launched its first hand-held gold detector in Australia in 1985 and over the past 28 years has been at the forefront of metal detector design and innovation. Minelab’s new Gold Mining division will provide dedicated support to the worldwide small scale gold mining market and its communities.
Peter Charlesworth, General Manager Minelab said:
“The new Gold Mining division consists of a specialised portfolio of products, accessories and support services which include on and off field training allowing us to provide expert advice on the best use of Minelab’s gold detectors so that miners can produce results in the toughest of mineralized soil conditions, in a cost effective way and with minimal disruption to the environment.
In areas where traditional subsistence mining has taken place for generations, Minelab has introduced cutting edge technology and provided training and support to enable these communities to transform their gold mining activities and their lives for the better. Across the globe Minelab’s technology is making a difference to artisanal small scale gold miners by increasing efficiency, productivity and safety.
We are very excited about our new Gold Mining division and believe that with our dedicated products and training programmes, safe, effective and profitable gold mining is only a step away for any serious prospector.”
Sheila Kelleher, General Manager of Minelab’s Gold Mining Division, commented, “Mining Indaba is the perfect platform for us to launch our Gold Mining Division. The conference attracts a global audience focused on developing and investing in an industry that affects so many people’s lives. We hope that Minelab’s Gold Mining contribution will continue to build the connections between Prospecting, Community and the Environment by advancing the usage of Minelab’s hand-held gold metal detector technology and in turn make a difference to the lives of the businesses and communities we work with.”
Enquiries:
For more information on where to buy: www.minelab.com/gold-mining/where-to-buy
About Minelab’s Hand-held Gold Detector Technology
Minelab launched its first hand-held gold detector in the Australian market in 1985. Designed by renowned physicist Bruce Candy, it revolutionized the prospecting world with its ground breaking technology which allowed alluvial nugget gold (from sub-gram size) to be detected in highly mineralized ground. Minelab products lead the field in their ability to ‘see through’ the ground and remain sensitive to even the smallest deposit of gold at unbelievable depths.
About Minelab’s GPX 5000 Gold Detector
Minelab’s GPX 5000 is an unbeatable gold detector, capable of finding gold of all sizes – from sub gram nuggets to life changing ‘retirement’ nuggets and everything in between. It features industry leading MPS, DVT and SETA technology combined with the legendary GPX ability to ‘see through’ ground mineralization allowing it to achieve excellent depth whilst remaining sensitive to even the smallest nuggets – the GPX Depth Advantage.
About Minelab’s Range of Gold Detectors
Minelab’s specialist gold detectors are revolutionizing how gold miners search for gold nuggets in some of the world’s most difficult soil conditions. From the X-TERRA 705 Gold Pack for beginner prospectors, to the Eureka Gold for the more experienced user, to the ultimate in gold prospecting performance – the GPX 4800 and GPX 5000. Each detector showcases unique functions and benefits but all contain world-first technology and come with the Minelab guarantee of the highest performance in even the toughest gold prospecting conditions.
About Minelab
Minelab is an Australian-built, multi-award winning business that has successfully scaled world markets to command global leadership in its key areas of operation. Based in Torrensville, South Australia with regional headquarters in Cork, Ireland and Chicago, U.S. the company specialises in advanced electronic technologies. Since its origins in 1985 Minelab has been the world leader in providing metal detecting technologies for consumer, humanitarian demining and military needs. Through devotion to research and development and innovative design, Minelab is today a major world manufacturer of hand-held metal detector products. Over the past 28 years, Minelab has introduced more innovative and practical technology than any of its competitors and has taken the metal detecting industry to new levels of excellence. Minelab is a Codan Limited company (ASX: “CDA”).
Contacts
QuickSilver Edge for Minelab
Sherree Geyer, 949-813-6802
Detecting at ocean beaches is the dream of most detectorist. Plenty of gold and silver to be found, incredible views, great weather, and beautiful bikini clad women swinging detectors...Okay the last one isn't very common, but the number female detectorists is growing every year...on to the point.To choose the best detector you have to answer a few questions. First, where will you be detecting? Second, do you want a detector that's a specialist or a generalist? Last, of course, how much can you spend.
Each answer will open many other questions, but they will set you in the right direction.
Now, you're here because you want a beach detector, so the next question is saltwater, freshwater, or both...and just how wet do you plan to get - wading, snorkeling, diving?
Saltwater is highly mineralized and can overwhelm the ground balancing ability of VLF (very low Frequency) detectors and resulting in lost sensitivity and target depth. Pulse induction (PI) detectors ignore the mineralization and excel in saltwater settings and have the great target detection depths. The typical down side of PI detectors is the lack of discrimination, meaning more pull tabs in trashy areas.
If you're planning on going into the water at all get a unit that is fully submersible. Having a waterproof coil on a detector that can't get wet is just asking for trouble.
Let's assume you want a beach specific detector that can get wet and will work best in saltwater conditions. Do you expect there to be a lot of trash? Do you care? Do you think the targets you want will be 12" down or 20" down. These answers will help you to choose between a PI or VLF detector.
Just to complicate things a bit, the Minelab Excaliber II is a VLF machine which uses BBS (Broad Band Spectrum) technology to allow it to ignore saltwater mineralization while still giving you full discrimination abilities but, the max target depth is not as great as a PI machine. This is just a starting point and you can see there's lots of work to be done.
Now you have a little direction, research the machines that will work for your needs and then go have some damn fun!
| Detector | Fresh Water | Salt Water | Price | |||||
| Dry Sand |
Wet Sand |
Under Water |
Dry Sand |
Wet Sand |
Under Water |
|||
| Minelab | ||||||||
| CTX 3030 | 100' | 100' | $2,499 | |||||
| Excalibur II | 200' | 200' | $1,499 | |||||
| X-Terra 705 | Wade | Wade | $899 | |||||
| White's | ||||||||
| Beach Hunter 300 | 25' | 25' | $999 | |||||
| DFX | Wade | Wade | $1,199 | |||||
| MXT & MXT Pro | Wade | Wade | $899 | |||||
| Surf Dual Field - PI | 100' | 100' | $899 | |||||
| Fisher | ||||||||
| CZ 21 | 250' | 250' | $1,125 | |||||
| Gold Bug Pro | Wade | Wade | $649 | |||||
| 1280 X | 250' | 250' | $699 | |||||
| Tesoro | ||||||||
| Sand Shark - PI | 200' | 200' | $636 | |||||
| Tiger Shark | 200' | 200' | $660 | |||||
| Garrett | ||||||||
| AT Pro | 10' | 10' | $595 | |||||
| Infinium LS - PI | 200' | 200' | $1,062 | |||||
| Sea Hunter Mark II - PI | 200' | 200' | $640 | |||||
| Optimal performance | Good | |||||||
| Sub-optimal, loss of sensitivity | Issues | |||||||
| Not proper operation, loss of discrimination | Stop | |||||||
---->Read The whole Story Here<-----
In March of 2012 I was on a wandering desert road trip exploring Southern Utah and Northern Arizona. I had my stream prospecting gear and my Minelab Xterra 705 metal detector. I stopped along Colorado river beaches for tourist jewelry. I panned gravels and alluvial sediments from the Henry Mountains for gold flakes. The best stop though was in Northwestern Arizona just outside of the town Congress. I had heard of the Weaver Mining District through prospecting forums and decided to get a membership for $50. As a member you have access to 2,300 acres of mining claims in Arizona. Both drywash sluicing and gold detecting are very popular in this area. Going without knowledge of the claim or ownership status of an area is the fastest way to get in serious trouble.
I was provided with topo maps outlining the claim boundaries and told which locations had been producing for nugget shooters. The ground there is incredibly mineralized and getting my machine balanced was an ongoing challenge. I knew things were dialed in though when I started digging up tiny birdshot.I first focused on old drywash sluice tailings...nothing there. Next, I started working small side washes and low spots...Then...HOLY HELL...I found gold on my first day. This was the first piece of natural gold I have ever found with a detector. That fact alone will make this a beautiful and memorable place for me. But, even minus any gold it's an amazing landscape on its own and a perfect place to find some desert solace.
