Anyone use scuba gear to detect?

[marco]

Hello. I'm a regular park hunter...sometimes beach.....altho its an hour and a half away so not that often. I was just thinking that it might be pretty fun to scuba along the ocean floor in 4-6 foot water vs just walking along in knee to waist deep....while detecting. Anyone here do that regularly? Or...has anyone tried it and found it to be more difficult...and not worth the extra effort and gear? I have the ATPro...supposedly completely waterproof..but Im hesitant to try it to that extent. Any advice on an inexpensive machine to try this?

 

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[mrcolin2u]

I see you are from S. California. Me too. I don't think you could get too many days of calm enough surf here to scuba in 4-6' of water. I've been thinking of getting scuba gear myself and trying some of the lagoons, bays and lakes. Don't know how well the ATPro would do in salt water and black sand ?

 

[marco]

Yep...Socal. And the truth is...ive only been to the beach twice with my machine....pretty close to skunked both times. And both times I looked at the surf and thought....how could I possibly detect in those waves? There can be a semi-calm level around knee deep....just low waves washing by....you would need a strong, long handled scoop thats for sure. Ive been to Florida and the calm blue water at slack tide....THAT would be perfect...but it just doesnt seem to happen over here. So I was wondering...maybe skimming the ocean floor around 4-5 feet deep...the waves would be going over you, vs being up there with them going right across you? Maybe I should just go swimming and see how the wave action is down there first. Maybe my theory is doomed.
Can anyone suggest an inexpensive underwater detector? Or...have any of you actualy used an ATP completely submerged for long periods of time?

 

[Lou from downunder]

Unfortunately the waves don't just go over the top of you.
In water of that depth the waves have influence all the way to the bottom.... you would be tossed around uncontrollably.
You'll only try once.

 

[marco]

Oh well. Its getting cold anyway....I will just stick to the wet sand on low tide. See how the AT does on that.

 

[Sandman]

I am a scube diver and have done this for years, but not to much lately. In shallow water where your talking about it would be very difficult on you as you'd be washed around like a sock in a washing machine. Scube gear isn't cheap either so you have to think of it as part of a new hobby. I've done well in lots deeper water but it was not coin hunting. You should think more of using a hookah.

Forget the AT Pro at even 6 foot in saltwater with black sand in the shallows and it might leak. The 1280 is a good detector for diving but the CZ-21 would be better for the saltwater or the Excal.

 

[Tony in FL]

I have been scuba diving for many years and I am also interested in combining it with metal detecting. I live on the West coast of Florida so the surf is generally not so rough.

 

[riverdiver]

Hi Marco,

I have been diving with a detector for 20 years now, I only do fresh water and most days I am in a river as my name suggests. I will do lakes and ponds that have a swimming beach and more so if there is a swim/dive platform anchored out a ways. I have recovered guns, knives, swords, coins, jewelery and anything else you can think of. I use a Whites Surfmaster II, they don't make them anymore but they can be found on craigslist and ebay for cheap. This is mine with the neutrally buoyant dive handle supplied by Whites. I added the containers for my finds, the bigger one is for junk and the opaque for the good stuff. I cut a hole in the top of the keepers container and glue in a piece of 1/16" rubber gasket material then cut a cross into it like a one way valve. that way you can push the goodies through into the container w/o having to constantly remove the lid and if the wave action from boating knocks you about in shallow water the goodies don't fall out and get lost.

 

[stevemc]

Riverdiver, the Amphibian II is a VLF detector and wont work in saltwater, but is fantastic in fresh water. He is planning saltwater diving. I have scuba and hookah UW detected, and hookah would be best, except for the noise. You can run for hours on a 1/2 gallon of gas. Actually 2 people could go for hours on a 1/2 gallon of gas. Either way scuba or hookah, you would want it calm. Rough in shallow water is not good, even wading in rough is very hard. I do just like riverdiver and use the plastic bottles as holders, I like his rubber top idea! When I am wading I use one looped over my head for rings and good stuff.

 

[riverdiver]

Thanks stevemc,

when I purchased the Whites it came from a shop located on the NH coast in Hampton, I have used it in black sand and it sucks royal...hence the name riverdiver and fresh water being my game. I get 2 hours bottom time on a single 80 in a river while working against the current, then I drift dive back to my put in spot. After 2 tanks of diving I am done for the day. I have considered purchasing a gas powered Brownies 3rd lung but a lot of times I am in rivers that run through downtown areas and I like to go unnoticed as I go about my business otherwise I spend more time playing 20 questions that I do detecting. The rivers I dive also have many snags in the form of trees on the bottom and I would have to constantly deal with freeing my hose. As it is now I have had my regulator removed more than once by an errant branch.

 

[Jason in Enid]

Thanks stevemc,

when I purchased the Whites it came from a shop located on the NH coast in Hampton, I have used it in black sand and it sucks royal...hence the name riverdiver and fresh water being my game. I get 2 hours bottom time on a single 80 in a river while working against the current, then I drift dive back to my put in spot. After 2 tanks of diving I am done for the day. I have considered purchasing a gas powered Brownies 3rd lung but a lot of times I am in rivers that run through downtown areas and I like to go unnoticed as I go about my business otherwise I spend more time playing 20 questions that I do detecting. The rivers I dive also have many snags in the form of trees on the bottom and I would have to constantly deal with freeing my hose. As it is now I have had my regulator removed more than once by an errant branch.

Riverdiver, you may want to look into the "DIR" or "Hogarthian" scuba setups. The hose and equipment routing is clean and smooth to reduce snags and hangups. I agree that when dealing with things like submerged trees, you don't want a hookah hose waving around in the water.

I like your detector setup too.

 

[riverdiver]

Hi Jason,

I looked up the DIR method and surprisingly I have been doing something similar for 20 + years now. All of my hoses are tucked in, weights are on a suspender rig, BC is technical with the crotch strap and a pair of 40lb lift wings. I wear a converted white water helmet outfitted with dive lights for hands free operation, I built/welded my own accessory tank bracket that holds two 40cu-ft pony cylinders on either side of my 80cu-ft and close to my wings for reduced drag as that is a big issue in strong current diving, both 40cu-ft cylinders are mounted inverted for ease of valve operation and the one of them on the right is dedicated to me as a bailout bottle while the other is rigged with a 1st stage and a qc hose with an air nozzle and is strictly for lift bag filling. I have a yellow milk crate set up that I made that holds my detector, camera, lift bag and a larger version of the goodie container on the detector.

As for the regulator being removed by a branch I should also say that I do not fin, but walk on the bottom with weighted boots and often with a Scubapro FFM. Imagine walking along at any depth against a 2+ knot current and having a branch from a tree pass between your face and your hose in poor visibility, without the FFM, the reg just pulls out of your mouth , no worries, I just put it back in and continue with the salvage at hand. I designed systems to work for me in my former business as a commercial scuba diver.

 

[Jason in Enid]

Hi Jason,

I designed systems to work for me in my former business as a commercial scuba diver.

Ahah, that explains why you set up the way you did.

 

[Randyd]

Riverdiver, thanks for the gear ideas!
R

 

[riverdiver]

Hi Randy,

You are welcome.

Where in Cali are you from, I hail originally from Simi Valley. Got certified in 1979 by a shop in Thousand Oaks and did my check out dives at Zuma, Paradise Cove and Anacapa Island.

 

[Randyd]

My check outs were off of Catalina Island (from San Pedro) around 1986. I definitely don't have your experience!

Most of my diving has been central & nor cal rivers with a hooka or a snorkel. I have been thinking about getting tanks, now your post really got me interested. An area I want to go in has a strong current and lots of snags. That doesn't mix well with a hooka and air lines. It is dive season now, the rivers are dropping enough to be able to get in.

I bought a FFM because my lips would hurt in February's ice water, but I never got used to it. After a minute or so they go numb, so I stuck with the regular mask. I pulled it out last week to sell, along with a dry suit, but I think I will keep it now, I can see where it would be harder to knock off of your face.

R

 

[riverdiver]

Hi Randyd,

Are you a gold dredger? I have spent some time on the American river and in Happy Camp. Many years ago I was considering moving back to NorCal to be a Firefighter in Redding so I could dredge on my days off, but the wife was not having any of that after we drove to Happy Camp from Seattle only to find the area being ravaged by one of the worst Forest fires in its history. Apparently, women don't dig being burned up, go figure. That wife is long gone and my new wife loves SoCal so when I retire from the NH fire service here in 6 years we are moving back to the Ventura County area.

 

[Randyd]

The envirowackos have dredging stopped in Kalifornia. They lost in the courts so they had to payoff the polytics to sign and cause more study.

Ventura is a great area! With all business and professional people leaving CA, there should be a lot of room by the time you move here!!!
My friends are leaving, another one told me yesterday he is moving to TX. (He is the third one this year that is moving to TX) This summer two moved to AZ.

Randyd

 

[riverdiver]

Why are your friends leaving?

Too many fires or too much BS?

Now that dredging for gold is banned, can one scuba/hookah dive for gold with a detector? as that would be my choice in lieu of a dredge.