Safety while Prospecting, Geomap and a New Minelab Detector

Table Of Contents

Garrett ATX

Safety and Personal Locator Beacons

Looking Over Your Shoulder While Prospecting?

Geomap

New Minelab PI Detector to be Released on 1 July 2014

Garrett ATX

The last six weeks have been really busy with Sue and I having two grandsons born two weeks apart, 3 seminars in May and June, applying for a 6 block Exploration Lease that has potential for mineralisation, sampling Udos mining lease with nearly 100 samples to have analysed so we can find any hidden deposits, upgrading our First Aid qualifications – heck, we are supposed to be retired!

Garrett ATX

Because we have been so committed to other things I will apologise in advance for not getting a video up on the website on the Garrett ATX. We are still testing it and providing it to our seminar detectorista to try out. Maybe next month.

Thanks to all the feedback to the last newsletter about the Garrett and Minelab, even the very negative ones.

We do not believe it is an argument about Brand Vs Brand and specific loyalities! To Udo and I it is always about what is the best equipment that YOU can use to find gold in the WA goldfields.

We are not linked to any manufacturer so do not have any bias one way or the other.

Our conclusions are that while the Garrett ATX is a good PI detector that is significantly cheaper than the Minelab 5000 it is not as efficient as the Minelab 5000 for finding gold on the WA goldfields.

More next month.

Metal Detector and Gold Prospecting Training Seminars Finished in 2014

We have completed our seminar programme for 2014 with the last seminar in June, thank you for all the people who booked

We will put up the 2015 programme in a newsletter in December.

Although nothing has been finalised yet we are currently talking to people who we think will be a good fit for tagalong tours in WA, when we have further discussions with them we will provide information to you about their offer.

Safety While Prospecting and Personal Locator Beacons

Over recent years more people are being lost while prospecting and it looks like the government will be promoting personal safety and locator devices (Personal Locator Beacons) to help rescuers quickly find you when you are lost while prospecting.

We have outlined some options for these PLBs for Australian use.

As with any of these products search for your price online and deal with reputable dealers., note that the links are provided are so you can get more information about the product - we have not connections or relationship with any of these dealers.

Check with local WA dealers, metal detector shops and camping stores first!

• I have removed these links as they are no longer relevant please just google PLBs......

We also use a prepaid Inmarsat satellite phone when we are travelling in the bush and this was discussed in a previous newsletter.

Another option is the Spot Satellite Messengers which require purchase of the SPOT transmitter and an annual subscription cost, but these are not a replacement for a Personal Locator Beacon.

Spot Satellite Communicator

Or a Bushnell Backtracker is a really simple unit to use where you simply mark in the spot you want to return to and easily find your way back, cost vary between $100 to $130 depending on model.

Looking Over Your Shoulder While Prospecting?

We noticed that officers from the Gold Squad were in the Cue area recently and there was rumours that they had pinged a few people for illegal prospecting, including confiscating their gear.

Udo and I wonder why people would continue to prospect illegally these days when you can get access to so much land that is currently Pending (Blue on Tengraph Online) or when you can plan you trip in advance and apply for Section 40E permits to prospect on granted Exploration leases.

Why the heck would you want to be looking over your shoulders because you are doing something wrong, that takes all the enjoyment out of metal detecting surely!

Tengraph Online If you don’t know how to sign up, understand and use Tengraph online go to our page Tengraph - Free Ebook on how to sign up and use it.. So you can know the places where you can go prospecting legally.

Section 40E Applications

If you don’t know how to do a Section 40E application then go to this page How to apply for a Section 40ePermit on Granted Prospecting Leases.

there is a few videos and links to the forms you need to do this.

Knowing this will give you access to massive tracts of potential alluvial gold nugget areas (around 46% of granted leases) for 25 bucks and no hassles.

Geomap - Know Where the Best Gold Spots are and Where YOU are At All Times

One of the things we teach people in our seminars is how to use the FREE Geomap software provided by the Department of Mines (DMP).

Udo and I use Geomap extensively, it is a geographical mapping software system provided quite freely by DMP than enables you to download Geological and Topographical maps, Tengraph tenement shapefiles, Minedex shapefiles and many other free DMP products to your Laptop or PC.

The Geomap Program. Maps, Shapefiles are all freely downloadable from the Department of Mines Website at DMP Data and Software Centre

Just scroll to the bottom of the page and you will see the Geomap Software and instructions download area.

You can then and then plug a cheap $60 GPS Satellite dongle (like the Sirfstar 1V - available at your local detector store)into your windows laptop and know exactly where you are on the ground in relation to tenements, geology, topography, mines and so on in real time, while you are driving along the great Gold Field Highways of WA.

Here is a link to a document that shows you how to download the Geomap Software from Department of Mines Website and load it to your PC.

Geomap Version 1.9.10 How to Download and Add to Your Computer.

Over the next few newsletters we will provide some information on how to use the Geomap Program to target gold nugget areas. So say Tuned.

New Minelab Pulse Induction Detector on 1 July

No doubt there will be plenty of opening specials on the launch day so contact your local detector shop and go in to see what it is all about.

Although no price has been announced it will certainly be much cheaper than the Minelab 5000, lighter and much simpler to use. For those that do not go gold prospecting as a full time hobby this looks like a viable option.

...may you find plenty of gold nuggets in 2014

Regards

Udo and Bill

p.s. we will have some news about a VERY Exciting New Product about gold localities in WA next newsletter.

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