Newbie headed to Corolla N.C., any tips would be appreciated.

[djm of PA]

Hello, I have been detecting for a little over a month and have found a few coins and other items, nothing special.........yet. Anyway, I am headed to the Outer Banks, Corolla to be exact for 7 days starting on July 10. I plan to detect everyday as much as I can in the early a.m. and late p.m. I have two friends already who have volunteered to loan me their scoops, one is a short scoop, the other a long handled kick scoop. I have never detected in sand and/or low water so I was hoping someone could save me some grief and give me some pointers and maybe a little synopsis of what to expect.

thanks everyone!

I should add, i'm using a White's Classic ID, basic metal detector.

 

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[Treasure_Hunter]

Be very careful if you get in the water, one slip, and your detector is toast......Do not raise the coil above the controls, water will run down the shaft and into your controls, also recommend a plastic bag over the controls, so the salt spray in the air doesn't get inside......

You will need to turn down your sensitivity due to the salt minerals in the water and wet sand. If you descriminate out pull tabs and aluminum foin you will miss a lot of gold rings..........

Dont expect to just walk down the beach and pick up gold, it's not that easy. Water hunting is a whole different ball game then land hunting.

Have fun and enjoy the fresh air, sound of the surf, and the eye candy, that is a large part of water detecting.....

 

[BareBones]

Have fun and enjoy the fresh air, sound of the surf, and the eye candy, that is a large part of water detecting.....

I wholeheartedly agree!

 

[djm of PA]

thanks for the tips I'll keep my eyes peeled for that eye candy you speak of, just don't tell the Mrs.!!!
when detecting in water, do you somehow strap your detector to your body to keep from dropping it, or just use the arm strap? I can just see me scooping, bending down to pick something up and dipping the detector in the water

 

[BareBones]

In the water I use a water proof detector.

I have seen guys at the waters edge with land detectors and maybe ankle deep in the water, but they usually have a bag over the control head. It's more for salt spray I would say then anything else.

If your land detector falls in the salt water, chances are that is going to be the demise of it eventually unless you disconnect the power source and take it completely apart immediately and I do mean immediately after it goes in the water. Corrosion builds rapidly and starts immediately on the PCB (printed circuit board) and it only takes enough resistance to bridge the gap on the PCB to short the board out. There is probably almost enough resistance in just the salt water to destroy some sensitive electronics.

You would have dry it out thoroughly and clean the PCB with something like contact cleaner to displace any remaining water, hit it with a light oil like WD40 to stop any corrosion and then hit it with the contact cleaner again before reassembly to remove the oil.

Point here really is unless you have a waterproof machine, your best bet is to stay out of and away from the water. It's really just not worth the risk vs. reward.