What I really want is.......

[marco]

Summer is coming up and where I live its really hot...but an hour away is the beach and its nice. There are also 3 lakes with sandy swimming beaches within 30 minutes. This summer to cool off I have decided to buy a detector so I can wade in both fresh and salt water...approx knee to waist deep...cooling off and hopefully finding a few rings. Im sure I will find a lot of crap but that comes with detecting...Im not new to it...but I AM new to water.

So my question is...what would be a great all-around detector for water in general...salt and fresh. I dont care if it goes down 200 feet but I want to know It wont be destroyed if a wave hits me. Some level of disc would be nice but I would use the absolute minimum...just so I'm not digging to china for iron every 3 feet! A few years ago i ran around with an ATPro...I dug a ton of clad but not much else. It didnt perform well at the beach...ok in the dry but not at all in the wet sand. Work got in the way and I sold it. No AtPro bashing from me...it was great in parks, ect...but this time around I want to focus on water and jewelry.

I am aware of PI vs VLF...but it does seem that multiple frequency detectors are also popular.
A few models I am considering in no order:

ML Excalibur
Garret Infinium
Tesoro...but not sure which of the sharks is most versatile for both fresh-salt.
Fisher CZ's...there seem to be several...any info on the most versatile would be great.

If anyone has used several and think one would be best from your experience I am all ears. If I have missed something let me know. If money was no object the ML CTX would be an option but jeez id kindof like to spend less than $1000 not $2500.

Thanks

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Diving for Pleasure and Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[Irishgoldhound]

I hear they don't leak anymore. That was the old black gasket seal that leaked. The new red one does not. Also they say the BH in all metal mode is just as deep as the Excal if not deeper

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

How to Research for Treasure Hunting and Metal Detecting From Lead Generation to Vetting - Grab it through Amazon!

[Treasure_Hunter]

I hear they don't leak anymore. That was the old black gasket seal that leaked. The new red one does not. Also they say the BH in all metal mode is just as deep as the Excal if not deeper

It was the black gasket. ... as far as just as deep or deeper that never happen that I saw.... Excal was deeper and more sensitive to smaller gold. My smallest gold ring was .06 of a gram with excal...

Having owned and used both, I would choose an excal over BHID every time........

Not trying to put BHID down, BHID is a competent detector.....

Just my personal experience and opinion is all....

 

[Irishgoldhound]

Well I'll take your word for it that the excal is deeper. Just here lots of reviews of some that say it is and some say it isn't. Guess it all depends on ground conditions and the hunter alone. I currently own the AT pro, would you say the BH is deeper than the AT pro?? If not by much then I wouldn't see a reason for me to get a BH.

 

[Boatlode]

Do sand sharks give a different tones for different targets?

No. Once you set your preferred signal tone all signals are the same frequency. However, the more time you spend using your SS you will be able to tell what some objects are before you dig them. For example, I noticed that long thin objects (like nails and fish hooks) give a double signal.

But make no mistake - you will be digging a lot with a PI detector like the Sand Shark. If the places you hunt are trashy, then you will probably want to get a discriminator. The beaches I hunt don't have too much trash, so I dig everything anyway (even the double signals, because old ship spikes give a double signal too).

 

[madforclad]

I own a SH II and dig a ton of trash. Looking at a Excal this summer.

 

[marco]

Good to see my thread bring in others trying to make decisions just like me! Anyone have a recommend on water shoes that are comfy when wet and keep your feet protected from rocks...ect..? Another thing that crossed my mind was buying a small clear waterproof bag to hold a pinpointer....one that leashes to a belt loop. And something similar for car keys.

 

[shawninNY]

No pinpointer in the water Marco use a large scoop , the plastic ciggarette case with a latch and gasket work great for key and my permit here!

 

[matrix master DBA]

Good to see my thread bring in others trying to make decisions just like me! Anyone have a recommend on water shoes that are comfy when wet and keep your feet protected from rocks...ect..? Another thing that crossed my mind was buying a small clear waterproof bag to hold a pinpointer....one that leashes to a belt loop. And something similar for car keys.

I use Cressi hard sole 3 or 5 mill. Boots very comfortable. Keeps the sand out.

 

[marco]

I figured I wouldnt really use a pinpointer in water....more if i was on the dry sand...probably dont really need it there either compared to dirt....i never had a good scoop when i had my Atpro so even dry sand was a pain and the pinpointer helped. Once I have a good beach detector I will get a good scoop at the same time.

 

[lost items recovery]

I've owned a BH ID 300 and it was a decent detector and did very well in the dry and wet sand with it but fast forwarding a few machines I own a excal 1000 for a reason.
In my opinion the excal is in a league of its own.
As far as sand sharks very good machine also and awesome in VCO mode but I found even a non trashy beach will get you frustrated really quickly with bobby pins, bottle caps, sparklers left over from 4th of July and every nail, screw, fishing hook, and bolt under the sun. A lot of digging for something you don't want and while looking for gold... You'll be happy over a quarter because it wasn't junk.
My vote goes to excal and BH ID 300 second.
Good luck to you, take the coins and jewelry and leave the iron.

Sent from my iPhone using TreasureNet

 

[Irishgoldhound]

Is the BH deeper than the AT pro? I can't see the Excal being so much deeper than the BH with the 12" coil I would think it would be almost comparable in depth. So what is it that the Excal can do "so" much better than the BH besides a floating coil of the BH and easier pin pointing of the Excal. I just don't get it. I know automatic ground balance of the EXcal also, but I think coin for coin and gold for gold the BH would find almost the same.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Excal uses

Excal has BBS using 17 freqs to punch through the salt, It will identify when your over iron, excal will tell you when there is gold right next to piece of iron, I dig no iron ever with my excal, when mine had the 10 inch coil on them I was digging 12 inch targets in discrimination and deeper in pinpoint, ...

Both my excals have been modded with15 " coils now, using reverse discrimination mods mounted on hand grip on both of them I'm digging targets 20"+ many times...

Major difference between single freq bounty hunter and an excal....

 

[Irishgoldhound]

Ok but The BH can also identify gold next to iron I've read a few reviews that say it can and will tell you iron under coil also. I'll be using in fresh water so punching through salt won't e a prob. Although guys on here say the dual frequency of the BH is very stable in most salt beaches.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Ok but The BH can also identify gold next to iron I've read a few reviews that say it can and will tell you iron under coil also. I'll be using in fresh water so punching through salt won't e a prob. Although guys on here say the dual frequency of the BH is very stable in most salt beaches.

I owned the BHID, (never owned the 300) BHID was a good detector but it was not as good as my excals. I sold it and bought my Sov GT with the funds. It was no where near as sensitive or as deep as my excal...

Not trying to put it down, just speaking from my own experience is all... I knew other hunters who had and sold them to get excals... If your hunting freshwater the BHID will be fine.

Good luck no matter what you choose.....

 

[Irishgoldhound]

Thanks for your help TH. So maybe then the old BH isn't as deep as the new 300 coil. Either way I'm going to be purchasing an Excal down the road. Just wanting a machine that would be most comparable to it as I can't afford the Excal just yet.

 

[gamiller]

Good to see my thread bring in others trying to make decisions just like me! Anyone have a recommend on water shoes that are comfy when wet and keep your feet protected from rocks...ect..? Another thing that crossed my mind was buying a small clear waterproof bag to hold a pinpointer....one that leashes to a belt loop. And something similar for car keys.

Like previously mentioned a pair dive boots for protection, also buy cheap nylon dress sock to protect against the abrasions from the boots. The cheap nylon socks allow you to slip in and out of the boots more easily. For my keys I use an appropriate sized otterbox. The otterbox is a little tough to open n close, but hasn't failed.

 

[Boatlode]

I figured I wouldnt really use a pinpointer in water....more if i was on the dry sand...probably dont really need it there either compared to dirt....i never had a good scoop when i had my Atpro so even dry sand was a pain and the pinpointer helped. Once I have a good beach detector I will get a good scoop at the same time.

Don't stinge on the sand scoop. Before I got my Sand Shark, I was only hunting dry sand, and my homemade pvc scoop worked fine. Once I got the Sand Shark, I was digging deep holes in hard, wet sand. You need a heavy duty, welded, reinforced, stainless steel scoop. RTG makes a good one for $110. It is worth every penny.

 

[shawninNY]

I recommended BHID for performance vs price, but I stated excal does it better, it never falses , and I've never dug deep bobby pin thinking it might be gold! As far as boots I go with cheap water shoes for wading in bay or barefoot for ocean beach .because boots always fill up with sand and the zippers jam after 1 month, I agree with others spend 150+ on a large long handle scoop stainless or alum ! I like RTG 6" stainless with 40+" 7/8" handle .most recent drops can be had in 1 or 2 scoops and when your on the beach time is money , for wading a floating sifter is invaluable just keep digging and dumping until signal is gone from hole than dump that scoop in the sifter, we have 0 vis in our bays and most wading spots !