Help me, I am trying to find a good detector for place with lots nails need help

makahaman

Full Member
Sep 22, 2006
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55
Northshore, Hawaiian Islands
Hi everyone I am trying to find a metal detector that will help eliminate nails they are driving me crazy. I need more suggestions as to what I should do, should I dig up every nail? Should I be using a smaller coil with a good detector. Right now I have a Whites IDX and am not too stoked on it it works alright at the beach ect but it is hard when there are nails. How should I be setting my detector? Any one have any good suggestions to steer me in the right direction?? Thanks ;D
 

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Monty

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Jan 26, 2005
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Unfortunately in my experience, rusted nails or really any rusted ferrous metals are and remain a problem. The oxide causes what is known as the halo affect and it is nearly impossible to discriminate out with any detector I am familiar with. I don't have an answer for you but good luck just the same. Monty
 

jeff of pa

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I Have to agree with Monty on this.

Due to what happens to Iron in the Ground,
I don't think there is a Foolproof way.

The only thing you can do is use a Very small Coil,
& trust your Machine.

With my Sovereign & 15" WOT I still get good signals
at times off the edges of Old Iron.
Almost every time, I can tell it is Iron & Could trust
what my Machine is telling me & Pass them by.
But I don't. 1% of the time I will pull a coin out
of a Pucket of Rust Soaked Ground.

Maybe IF I put a small coil it would fix the Problem some,
But I still don't think it would cure it completly.

Plus after using a 15" coil for the last 8 years,
a 4" or even a 10" would feel like searching
a field with a probe. :P
 

luvsdux

Bronze Member
May 16, 2007
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Lewiston, Idaho
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Re: Help me, I am trying to find a good detector for place with lots nails need

Don't know about any "one" detector that is the only way to go here. In my experience by far the most useful thing I know of is using the smallest coil possible and being patient and persistent. When it seems to be nothing but nails time after time, I move on.
good luck
Bill
 

Sandman

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Aug 6, 2005
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In Michigan now.
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Excal 1000, Excal II, Sovereign GT, CZ-20, Tiger Shark, Tejon, GTI 1500, Surfmaster Pulse, CZ6a, DFX, AT PRO, Fisher 1235, Surf PI Pro, 1280-X, many more because I enjoy learning them. New Garrett Ca
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The oxide causes what is known as the halo affect and it is nearly impossible to discriminate out with any detector I am familiar with.

The use of a smaller coil will help get between the nails an you may need to turn down the Sensitivity some. This post question sounds familiar.
 

Willy

Hero Member
Re: Help me, I am trying to find a good detector for place with lots nails need

Try running in zero disc. with a multitone detector. If you have multinotch, knock out the very last notch. Get a Compass detector. A detector with a TR mode (White's XL Pro, Scorpion Gold Stinger, Compass X-100) rocks in iron and dense trash. ..Willy.
 

Dimeman

Bronze Member
Jan 16, 2007
1,634
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Houston,TX
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Garrett AT Pro Fisher F5
On the IDX Pro a 5.3 coil ( 6 inch) is the best to use and set the disc knob 2 lines above the MIN and try a little bit under the SENS preset setting.

Dimeman
 

EasyMoney

Sr. Member
Sep 15, 2007
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Sweet Home, Oregon
Detector(s) used
Primarily my Fisher cz-70 and Compass Relic & Coin, plus many others
Or if you don't want to part with the IDX you could do like many Minelab and White's users do and buy an aftermarket WOT or Excellerator 5" coil.

Claims are that those two 5 incher's cherry pick pretty well. Not as good as a Tesoro or a Compass 8" or smaller, but better than a stock White's coil, that's for sure.
 

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