New to detecting/treasurenet

[danijoh]

Folks, I am new here, so this post may be in the wrong thread, if so I apologize up front- this site is VAST! Ok, here's my question: as I said, I am totally new to this, am retired so am looking for something fun to do with my time. I live in NW Florida, the panhandle. I have been thinking of getting a metal detector for some time, and being retired now it seems like now or never! Which metal detector would be best for use at the beach and in salt water? I would love to get one that would work on regular ground also. Seems like I remember reading somewhere the coil is very important for detecting in the ocean. What else should I look for? I don't want to spend a (small) fortune, but I don't want a "toy" either. I know I'm asking a lot, but any help y'all could be would be appreciated! What other accessories will I need? Thanks in advance!

 

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[Sandman]

Welcome to Tnet and the addiction. If you only detected on dry ground or dry sand your choices are many as the prices are lots lower for non waterproof detectors. Its when you start thinking of hunting the wet saltwater sand or the water that your choices are more costly and choices are fewer. For the wet saltwater sand you should use a Excal II, Sovereign GT, White's Beach Hunter ID, Fisher CZ-21. Pulse Induction detectors are a choice too, but they lack good disc qualities and you end up digging lots of trash from deep depths. This can get very tiring fast with nothing to show for a day of digging. Suggest you also buy a scoop, preferablely a screen type sifter so sand sifts quickly without any shaking, long handle for no bending. You should also visit this link for learning more about beach hunting.

http://web.archive.org/web/20080202045558/http://thegoldenolde.com/ Norm was the Master.

 

[Terry Soloman]

The quest for the perfect metal detector to this point has been quixotic. Minelab, has come the closest to building a fully submersible beach machine that can discriminate out iron in wet sand and saltwater. The “Excalibur” uses Broad Band Spectrum, or “BBS” technology, and retails for about $1,500.00.
According to Minelab, their BBS operating system, “simultaneously transmits, receives and analyses a broad band of multiple frequencies to deliver substantial detection depth, high sensitivity and accurate discrimination for a wide range of target types.” The key takeaway here is “multiple frequencies.” Unfortunately, radio waves regardless of their frequency still have to be filtered and balanced in heavily conductive wet-ocean sand and highly mineralized saltwater. That limits the systems depth capabilities.

Single frequency VLF machines (Very Low Frequency), have even more limitations in the harsh saltwater environment. Take for example the Tesoro Lobo Super Traq. This VLF single frequency machine (17.9Khz) is one of the finest and deepest gold nugget finders on the market today. The Lobo Super Traq, is capable of finding BB-sized gold nuggets eight-inches deep in heavily mineralized ground, or a nickel in dry beach sand at 14-inches. Put that same nugget – or even the nickel, seven-inches deep in wet saltwater sand and the Lobo could walk right over it while chattering, or maybe without seeing it at all. Why?

The magnetic iron sands (“Black Sands”), salt, and high concentrations of other minerals in the water and sand conspire to bounce the radio waves away from the target. Conductivity and mineralization act like a shield around the target and create white noise that must be filtered electronically. Think of it as turning on your bright headlights in a heavy fog at night. All that powerful light is diffused and causes a complete white out – you can’t see anything three-feet past the hood of your car! However when you turn on your yellow fog lights, you can see a little further – not as far as you could in clear daylight, but further. That is why all radio wave machines must be “ground balanced” or tuned, to maximize their depth potential, and why BBS filters and multi-frequencies are so effective – yet still limited.

Unlike BBS and VLF metal detectors, which constantly send and receive thousands of low frequency radio waves per second, a Pulse Induction (PI) metal detector fires high-voltage pulses into the sand several hundred times per second. If no metal is present the electric pulse decays at a uniform rate with no anomalies. When metal is present a small “eddy” current flows through it causing the voltage decay time to increase, which creates a measurable anomaly. Unlike VLF radio waves, electronic pulses are impervious to the effects of conductivity and mineralization, and are unaffected by salt or black sands.

PI metal detectors give the user superior depth capabilities in all metal detecting situations and soil conditions. Using the same heavy fog at night metaphor that I referred to earlier, pulse induction is like headlights that cut completely through the fog as if it were not there at all. The trade-off for that added depth and clarity is the inability to discriminate, or block out iron targets that you generally don’t want to waste time and energy digging. While a pulse induction machine detects all metals without discrimination, the minute differences in the signal tone and quality can give a skilled and experienced operator a clue as to what the target may, or may not be.

Will one machine do it all? Not in my opinion. I always advise new beach metal detecting hobbyists to have a VLF machine for dry sand (as well as their other dirt detecting needs), and a PI machine for the water and wet-sand (and deep farm field and relic hunting). In truth, it all comes down to what you prefer and can afford. Good Luck!

 

[Les West Central Fl]

Welcome! Very soon, if you start detecting, you will be a fellow "Addict" who can't wait to go out and detect. When you purchase a detector be sure it can work in wet salt sand. All the guys on the forum gave you great advice on brands. Don't buy something that doesn't work in wet beaches and ends up in the closet.
Welcome to TreasureNet!

 

[Crispin]

I just started detecting a few months ago. It is really addicting! Be warned. I bought a White's CoinMaster Pro for around 275$ because I did not want to spend a small fortune. It works great in dry sand and dirt; however, it is awful in anything remotely resembling wet sand. From what I have read most of the exciting finds are in the water. Plus, who doesn't like walking in the surf? After reading a lot of the posts here I bought a Tesoro Sand Shark for 600$. It came in the mail this week and I have not had time to test it out. Downside of this one is it does not detect well in dry sand or dirt because it picks up so much trash. I'm not sure, but to get one that works well in dry and wet is pretty expensive. I recommend getting a pulse inductor. The biggest complaint I hear is that you have to dig everything. But, being new to the hobby I dig everything because it is fun and I am trying to learn. Hope this helps.

 

[Sandman]

You are beginning to understand Crispin. We can't have it all and must temper our fun with hard work. The Sand Shark is deep but many trash items are deep too so we need to dig those to eliminate those that might be thin gold rings or jewelry. Sort of like by passing a good signal because you are tired and later wonder if that was the "big one."