Good beach detector - Sea hunter? Sand Shark? any others?

[13Beast]

Hello there,

First of all I just want to say this is a great site with heaps of information for any beginner or professional metal detector enthusiast! I am a new member, and this is my first post so hi everybody

I am an Australian, but living in Japan at present. I metal detected as a kid with my father back in Australia. We used an old Garrett Deepseeker.

I am looking at getting back into metal detecting, right here in Japan - pretty much only beach and shallow salt-water detecting here in Japan.

Couple things to note though - Japan's beaches have very high mineralisation content in the sand, and also that silver is more common than gold as jewelry here - so I would like a detector that can both handle salt water, wet sand, dry sand, high mineralisation and be able to skilfully detect both gold and silver as well.

My budget can stretch to a Garrett Sea Hunter II or a Tesoro Sand Shark. I have heard great things about both and they are at the top of my list in terms of quality and budget - at least from what I have researched so far. I understand with PI units they are one of the best with wet sand, saltwater and going deep, and also detect just about everything, but I don't mind digging a lot - its part of the fun. But I do want something that is relatively easy and enjoyable to use on a regular basis, as well as being a very good detector in its own right.

Any suggestions for a detector that can fit my needs?

 

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[firstbiggestmost]

If you are considering a pulse machine you should pick up a copy of pulse power first. This book describes very well the type of hunting you will be doing with a P.I. detector. Good luck with your hunt.

http://clivesgoldpage.com/

 

[Sandman]

Welcome to the forum.

For your area with the extra minerals I would not use the Tiger Shark as it is to sensitive for your ground. Either the Sea Hunter II or the Tesoro Sand Shark should do you well at about the same cost. Silver is very conductive while gold depending what it is alloyed with is poorer, more like pull tabs.

 

[13Beast]

Thanks for the feedback.

One more question - durability and reliability...

Which is the better of the two? Sand Shark or the Sea Hunter II? I have heard good reviews about the Sea Hunter, but also the odd one or two scathing review about it also.

Sand Shark user reviews seem to be all positive, except for the fact one of their suppliers went under awhile ago and there was a backlog of repairs and orders that couldn't get serviced in a timely manner.

I will be importing the detector into Japan from the US (no dealers here) and it would be a very expensive exercise to mail any detector back for repairs if it broke down.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

A member by the name of CrackBadger has hunted many beaches in Asia, including Korea and Japan and had great luck with the Excal, you will not have to dig as much junk with a Minelab Excalibur, and if there is a lot of iron there it is an even better choice since it will "null" on iron, as well as tell you when there is a gold ring beside a piece of iron........

Here are couple links to some of his Asian hunts.

http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,206033.0.html

http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,110852.msg1103106.html#msg1103106

 

[chipveres]

I have a Garrett Sea Hunter and it is a rugged piece of pro dive equipment. Its only drawback is extreme sensitivity to iron. Can readily find a sparkler wire a foot deep.

Chip V.

 

[Diver_Down]

Also, keep in mind since you will be out of the country and want to avoid costly shipping for repairs, that the Garrett Sea Hunter allows the user to swap out headphones and coils. With the Minelab products, you have to send it back to the manufacture to have the work done or you can do the mods yourself and void your warranty. Also, keep in mind that the some negative reviews of the Sea Hunter are from those that are not strong enough to swing such a rugged piece of equipment. Apparently, they also not smart enough to realize that the control unit can be hip mounted.

 

[Indasurf]

Out of the two listed I'd go with the Garrett!!! I currently own an Infinium and it's built like a tank too.

The Sea Hunter Mark 2 has the same type of heavy duty case and is good to 200ft. Over the years an amazing amount of valuables have been found with this detector and they're used successfully all over the world!

IMHO, If you have high mineralization (black sand) you should definitely stick with a PI unit because no vlf can match the depth achieved in that type of bad ground! Also being able to swap out coils (8 1/2 or 10x14") and phones is a huge advantage over some of the other brands out there.

Just for the record, I currently own a CZ20, Beach Hunter 300, and Infinium for the water.

In the past I've owned a SOV GT which is a fine detector too.

However from the conditions you've described, I truly believe that a PI would work best for you!

Thanks

 

[GibH]

I haven't used a Sand Shark, but I do have a Piranha and owned a Tiger Shark. I've never had any problems with either of them. I also had Sea Hunter and I think I will probably buy another. It's the deepest PI I've had yet. Yes it is heavy, but like Diver_Down said, it can be hip mounted.

 

[13Beast]

Once again, thanks for all the feedback guys!

They both sound like great detectors, however its unlikely I'll be heading into deep water, or doing any kind of underwater stuff with it. Which one is the best for shallows, shore-line and dry sand? Or is it six of one, half a dozen of the other?

Do I need any extra equipment to hip-mount the Sea Hunter? Or does it come with the equipment to do that out of the box?

What's the weight difference between the Sea Hunter and the Sand Shark? I need to factor in postage costs to import it here from the US. It won't be cheap

 

[Diver_Down]

Once again, thanks for all the feedback guys!

They both sound like great detectors, however its unlikely I'll be heading into deep water, or doing any kind of underwater stuff with it. Which one is the best for shallows, shore-line and dry sand? Or is it six of one, half a dozen of the other?

Do I need any extra equipment to hip-mount the Sea Hunter? Or does it come with the equipment to do that out of the box?

What's the weight difference between the Sea Hunter and the Sand Shark? I need to factor in postage costs to import it here from the US. It won't be cheap

It comes with the equipment to hip mount it (belt and pouch). Hip mounting it will allow you to swing it all day. If you don't, you will have ripped shoulders. I like the Sea Hunter as the ability to change the headphones/coils without having to send it in means a cost savings to you by not shipping back to the manufacture and also less down time. I have no experience with the Sand Shark.

 

[stevefisher7767]

Hello 13beast, if you GOOGLE IN (LOST TREASURE ONLINE) and click on [feild test] this will not give you a price range but it will give you a great ideal on Many detectors.Good luck