Prospecting / Miners pick information and questions

[dwt]

CC's for me (not the chips, allthough they are very tasty) tough, durable, its the only one i hanvnt snapped a handle on to.
The one on the left is from memory is called the "jumbo", the one on the right is a bit shorter on the handle, as you can see, the jumbo needs a rebuild, out with the 16tc rods for that one

 

[Nugget]

As an alternative to CC Picks, check out Walco Picks http://www.minersden.com.au/walco-prospecting-picks/.

I can't really comment on quality as yet but I have one turning up today so will know soon enough. I went with the No.1.

 

[loamer]

Walco or CCs - unless you can get a good personally hand-made pick. A wooden handle is a must - detect in the heat and you soon learn why. Keep the blade and point maintained with a light grind with an angle grinder. A point rebuild is a must every year or so - depends on where you dig. Maintenance - WD40 or any other fish oil based product for storage. Lightly sand and treat the wooden handle with linseed oil (olive oil works OK too). No pick - no gold.

 

[Guest]

As an alternative I have found these to be good.
http://www.ebay.com.au/sch/bluejeansronald/m.html?_pgn=1&redirect=mobile
3 different sizes & priced well.

 

[Guest]

As an alternative I have found these to be good.
http://www.ebay.com.au/sch/bluejeansronald/m.html?_pgn=1&redirect=mobile
3 different sizes & priced well.

The secret is out. I own the large one.

Fantastic pick.

 

[Nugget]

My Walco No.1 Pick has just arrived and so far I'm very happy with it. It feels great in the hand, is well balanced and overall a very high quality product.

 

[Magilla]

Thanks guys, the prices of those CC's was a shock. The Ebay ones look attractive at nearly a third of the price.

 

[loamer]

This is deja vu - this has all been discussed before I am 100% positive. The Masters/Bunnings pick-o-matic 2000 will get posted soon, followed by the Aldi pick-o-greatness 4000, followed by the KMart Chinese-o-brilliant 3000, all at ridiculously low prices etc etc.

Picks are a personal preference, depends where and what you are after. They should be well balanced, hardened steel, well joined at the pick/wood interface and given a warranty. They should also be maintained and cared for.

If where you are digging is highly mineralised, hard, nasty ground, with quartz reefs, ironstone reefs and the like and you need to get deep or bash the living daylights out of HARD ground/minerals/rocks then get a heavy duty, Australian-made, recommended pick. If you want to dig in sand/parks and soft mullock heaps, by all means get an el cheapo. If you are humping through the scrub with only one pick - it had better be a good one no-matter what you buy.

 

[Tathradj]

You missed the "Mitre-10 self assemble yellow handled pick of the year" for the best price of $25.95.
I got one and does me well. LOL

 

[MDH]

You missed the "Mitre-10 self assemble yellow handled pick of the year" for the best price of $25.95.
I got one and does me well. LOL

Mate bunnings does one of those too, already assembled for $8.95. Got one for panning and doubles as a pry bar(pretty strong as it hasn't broken yet). I was going to say it doubles as a nunchuck for when those bloody cows are chasing the life outa ya and at $9 you don't care if it falls behind, but a pry bar is far more socially acceptable!

 

[Nugget]

This is deja vu - this has all been discussed before I am 100% positive.

I don't really mind people asking a question that was previously discussed in a retired topic. It's one of those things where you can ask the same question 10 times and receive a slightly different answer each time, so it's all good.

 

[loamer]

yes mate- and all ends up the same! :lol:

one we have alway overlooked - handmade from old farm blades with a welded galv pipe. now those are the bad boys - bit hot in summer, but great underground. indestructible.

 

[Beagleboy]

yes mate- and all ends up the same! :lol:

one we have alway overlooked - handmade from old farm blades with a welded galv pipe. now those are the bad boys - bit hot in summer, but great underground. indestructible.

One of my friends that lives in Maryborough has one of these bad boys. It is certainly indestructible but heavy as.

 

[Guest]

Loamer those "el cheapos" from eBay are the real deal. Aussie made by an Aussie prospector. Have had one for quite awhile & no issues to speak of. Did soak the handle in water to tighten the fit up a bit though.
Ron is his name & he's good to deal with too.

 

[loamer]

No not him - his are OK. Its all those others - especially shall we say - made in the PRC. the winged keel picks are very good.

 

[Araratgold]

I've got two of those from ebay ( bluejeansronald ), a large and small and they are bloody good picks !
For the price, you can't beat them.
I used some plaster bandage over the recess that the handle goes into to strengthen the bond.
Cheers,
Rick

 

[Blind_Freddie]

I've got one of "bluejeansronald"s picks off ebay called "Little Ripper Digger" and can't fault it as it's a really strong bit of gear. It's supposed to be made from spring steel like the Walco picks.

 

[misty]

Hi all
with reference to Loamers comment ie hand made from farm blades etc I have just made 4 picks using details found in Gold Gem and Treasure magazine from August 2012.
In that article the contributor used a plough disc of about 750 mm diameter giving a pick head size of approx. 320 mm and a "blade" width of 100 mm
The disc I used was only about 500 mm wide so ended up with a pick head of 240 x 95 mm
Relatively light but will probably do the job especially if someone like Magilla wanted a light one.
Since these have had no test action yet I would be happy to send one to any one who wanted one. You would have to provide your own handle.
The only cost would be a donation to Nugget for the running of this great forum. If he agrees of course.
Let me know what the feeling is and I will arrange through Nugget on how to send to personal addresses etc.
My camera is at work at the minute, so will post photos in the morning
Regards
Misty

 

[Ryan27]

I saw a youtube vid of a couple of blokes digging a target with a cheap pick the vid had three parts, part 1, part 2,part 3.
I also was speaking to a couple of guys at Dunolly that left a target in the ground because their home made pick couldn't penetrate the ground.
Buy cheap, buy twice!
You will find the more full time prospectors will say CC or Walco.
There is a difference in the two picks which I will explain later.
The price of the CC picks is high however you can dig more targets in a days detecting and they last longer!
A little bit like comparing a Landcruiser vs Great Wall.
Personally I prefer to buy Aussie and buy the best.
The loose head(pick to handle connection) that has been mentioned in this post.
You won't find that in a professionally manufactured pick certainly not in a CC pick. Yes there is a reason for this also.
There is nothing wrong with buying bunnies, just like there is nothing wrong with buying Aldi detectors.
There is no shame in leaving Gold in the ground or taking 4x to extract gold from the clasps of the earth either.
However if anyone can extract a target in Marble Bar Ground quicker and easier than I can with the pick below I will happily give my 4500 to them and give the game away!

 

[Nugget]

Hi all
with reference to Loamers comment ie hand made from farm blades etc I have just made 4 picks using details found in Gold Gem and Treasure magazine from August 2012.
In that article the contributor used a plough disc of about 750 mm diameter giving a pick head size of approx. 320 mm and a "blade" width of 100 mm
The disc I used was only about 500 mm wide so ended up with a pick head of 240 x 95 mm
Relatively light but will probably do the job especially if someone like Magilla wanted a light one.
Since these have had no test action yet I would be happy to send one to any one who wanted one. You would have to provide your own handle.
The only cost would be a donation to Nugget for the running of this great forum. If he agrees of course.
Let me know what the feeling is and I will arrange through Nugget on how to send to personal addresses etc.
My camera is at work at the minute, so will post photos in the morning
Regards
Misty

That's a very generous offer Misty and I really appreciate the gesture. As the forum is currently holding it's own, perhaps they wouldn't mind making a small contribution to their local prospecting lobby group instead? (i.e. NAPFA, PMAV etc)