Urgent! Help me find a SOCAL beach!

Nashvegas

Jr. Member
Aug 9, 2017
55
139
Nashville TN
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Minelab X Terra 705
Teknetics T2 SE
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Metal Detecting
Hoping I can get some quick advice. I am in Southern California on a business/pleasure trip until Monday and brought my metal detector with me. First time detecting at beaches. Yesterday I went to Santa Monica Beach and was sorely disappointed at the results. Ended up with 51 cents in clad. But the most surprising thing is that there was hardly any trash hits either. So I guess they rake those beaches regularly with some sort of machinery. So my question for folks who know Souther California is where to go that they don’t have raked beaches???? Help! Was so looking forward to beach detecting.
 

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Icewing

Silver Member
Jan 5, 2016
2,633
5,494
NW Arkanslaw
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They probably get raked by a dozen metal detectors every night. :dontknow:

Good luck, just keep swingin'
 

Mackaydon

Gold Member
Oct 26, 2004
24,082
22,858
N. San Diego Pic of my 2 best 'finds'; son & g/son
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Try the beach at the Venice Pier; and enjoy the scenery of the 'locals'.
Also work the sand south of the pier on the Venice Peninsula; down to the channel.
I used to live on the peninsula and find $1.00 in change after worik, before dinner, just about every day.
Don.......
 

b3y0nd3r

Hero Member
Aug 27, 2011
982
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Step one: Go to Southern California

Step two: walk west until you are in ocean water

Step three: Go east a smidge

Congratz your on the beach! :laughing7:
 

redcobra8u

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Jan 24, 2014
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1,336
Los Angeles
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Hoping I can get some quick advice. I am in Southern California on a business/pleasure trip until Monday and brought my metal detector with me. First time detecting at beaches. Yesterday I went to Santa Monica Beach and was sorely disappointed at the results. Ended up with 51 cents in clad. But the most surprising thing is that there was hardly any trash hits either. So I guess they rake those beaches regularly with some sort of machinery. So my question for folks who know Souther California is where to go that they don’t have raked beaches???? Help! Was so looking forward to beach detecting.

I was south of the pier today and pulled over $9.00 in clad from the dry. Saw another guy there so I went the opposite directions. Also found a heavy silver pin in the surf. My last three hunts there have brought no less than $9 in clad and at least 1 keeper.
 

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RustyGold

Gold Member
Aug 16, 2013
9,372
10,901
Southern California
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Try Malibu for some real excitement. Great history and a point break that should shove some goodies up on the sand.
 

Icewing

Silver Member
Jan 5, 2016
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Beach Volleyball courts would be my firsts, if you are into jewelry.
 

Jul 25, 2016
252
283
Maryland
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Volleyball nets are always my first stop. When nothing works just keep swinging!
 

TommyB

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Jul 24, 2013
563
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OC, Calif
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Just an FYI.... MOST SoCal beaches get hit by detectors. Everyone's back in school now so there's not a lot of recent drops. Kinda like "off season" now. Touristy places like venice or Huntington Beach pier area is a pretty good bet. Also the beach groomers don't grab the small stuff like coins and rings. Mostly for bottles, cans and larger assorted trash. HH
 

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George (MN)

Hero Member
May 16, 2005
829
98
I don't know if they rake the beach with a machine or not. The other possibility would be detectorists digging the trash because gold rings will ID as just about anything. Gold rings like to slip off fingers in waste deep water, but many don't have underwater detectors and the ocean can be dangerous.

I live in Minnesota so we don't have ocean beaches but we have lake beaches. In that soft sand, things get deep quickly. I prefer the solid earth under grass to try for older coins. Santa Monica had 37,146 people in 1930, when 1800s coins were still in circulation, but even in harder ground they may be too deep to detect. Best wishes.
 

Xraywolf

Silver Member
Feb 28, 2005
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4,360
MI USA
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Finding little trash at a beach is a sure sign that the beach is being combed clean on a regular basis by locals - They take the trash because they don't want to be digging up the same bottle cap over and over.
 

trdking

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Feb 28, 2015
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Fullerton CA
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SOCal is everything South of San Fran. Big place. I like T street San Clemente. I pulled two gold rings from one hole there. It is less searched with detectorists. Seldom see swingers there
 

K-Mann

Tenderfoot
Sep 2, 2017
6
4
Irvine, CA
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Gold Bug Pro
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All Treasure Hunting
Huntington Beach, by the pier (So. side) has a TON of trash (nuts/bolts, screws, washers etc)..remember, this is where they have the world surfing champion contests, Paintball tournaments and numerous other events...why does this matter? they build the grandstands and bleachers ON THE BEACH. SO naturally, when these stands are built and disassembled, lots of construction fasteners are dropped.

There are better places to "hunt"...a bit farther south to Huntington State, by the volleyball nets are good. Have fun!
 

toddbbq

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Apr 13, 2014
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Lutz FL
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originally posted Oct. 2017
 

against the wind

Gold Member
Jul 27, 2015
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Port Allegheny, Pennsylvania
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Great information,, now when I head up to the beaches around the Great Lakes, I know where to go for a few tips.
 

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