I need some time saving tips!!!

[Silverfinder99]

So anyways, just got my At Gold a couple or three weeks ago and have been able to take it out for a couple of swims since and have found three silver and one gold ring with it so far. So I'm loving the machine but beach and shallow water hunting is totally new to me. Well the water part is anyways. I've been hunting every swim beach around here that's not on a state park and I'm hunting in water up to five feet deep. Any deeper and I'll be drowning since I don't have any kind of scuba equipment. I'm hunting freshwater lakes by the way. My question to my fellow hunters is this. What are some of y'alls techniques in placing your sand scoop after pinpointing the target so as to retrieve the target on the first try? If I'm fairly shallow it's easy but the water I'm hunting is kind of murky so visibility of my coil is low if not totally not there. Just wondering if you guys have any unique retrieving methods you think would help me. Im tired of it taking me 4,5,10 scoops to finally retriev my targets in the deeper water. I'm using a homemade sand scoop made out of a 4"PVC 22 degree angle with a four foot handle. It works fantastic as long as I can see my search coil but if I can't it's very difficult. Can anybody help me? Thanks in advance.

 

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[gold4us]

Get yourself a good long handle scoop. Pinpoint your target and put your foot at the end of your coil. Move your detector and place scoop at the tip of your foot and push it all the way down and scoop it up and then move it off to the side and re-check hole. Rinse and repeat. This gets real fun wwhen you are in neck deep water with waves.

 

[Silverfinder99]

Rinse and repeat. This gets real fun wwhen you are in neck deep water with waves.


Yes I've noticed. Just wondering, do any of you use weight belts or anything to make yourselves a little less buoyant in the choppy waves to help keep yourself planted?
What scoop would you reccomend? Can you provide a link?

 

[Meatmechanic]

I think you shoyld try a 6 inch scoop , also try RTG scoops they are out of FL. MM

 

[TheInspector]

I typically use the pinpointer built into the AT Gold, placing the coil on the on the sweet spot and then I put the leading edge of the scoop at the back of the coil. I move the coil and dig towards the center of where the coil was.

Good Luck,
Larry

 

[Silverfinder99]

I typically use the pinpointer built into the AT Gold, placing the coil on the on the sweet spot and then I put the leading edge of the scoop at the back of the coil. I move the coil and dig towards the center of where the coil was.

Good Luck,
Larry

Thats what I do when I can see the coil but in the deeper murkier water I can't feel enough or see enough to do this accurately. On top of that the gentle waves are bumping me around which makes it hard for me to keep my coil planted long enough to try and feel my scoop into position. That is why I asked about maybe using a weight belt to weigh myself down. I'm a big guy but I'm no match against speed boat wakes.

 

[TheInspector]

At chest deep I am also a little too buoyant. Makes it hard to dig. When I cannot see the bottom, I run the scoop down the detectors shaft and feel for the edge of the coil.

Good Luck,
Larry

 

[mrmackin]

Get yourself a good long handle scoop. Pinpoint your target and put your foot at the end of your coil. Move your detector and place scoop at the tip of your foot and push it all the way down and scoop it up and then move it off to the side and re-check hole. Rinse and repeat. This gets real fun wwhen you are in neck deep water with waves.

I drank half a lake havin' fun like that!

 

[dewcon4414]

Maybe paint the scoop part yellow would help. Get a larger scoop helps. Trust me you arent the only guy out there who isnt getting targets in one scoop, but you do get better. After awhile you can put sound and sight together. You scoop may also be filling pushing targets out that happens on floaters like coins, pull tabs ect.

Dew

 

[lookindown]

When I first statred I borrowed a friends 5 inch scoop and I was having a hard time digging targets. I bought a 6 inch scoop and the difference was unreal. You will get better at it the more you do it. I use an aluminum RTG 6 inch. It weighs 4 pounds and Im happy with the job it does.

 

[Silverfinder99]

Thanks everyone, I'm going to save up a little money and get me a better scoop. HeHe, I'll let the wife have my homemade one for hunting the dry sand(which it works great on btw) so she'll quit running my battery down on my ProPointer. Of course I might need to change the handle on it otherwise she's going to end up with forearms bigger than Popeyes as I made the handle out of a four foot piece of 3/4" rigid conduit so it's pretty heavy.

 

[CASPER-2]

wear a mask & snorkel or at least goggles
paint an arrow on your scoop - paint your coil a more visable color
buy largest basket scoop out there
good luck

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

I use the Beach Brute II with a stainless steel lip I put on... It is 8.5 inches wide, 6 inches high and 12 inches long. Personally if your hunting with no partner in water past your waist I dont advise a weight belt, if you step in a hole it could be a major life threating problem...Just my opinion is all, drowning is not an option in this hobby...

I found a HUGE difference between the 8.5 inch and my back up 6 inch scoop as far as recovery.......Lake hunting is a lot easier than salt water beach hunting.... even the small 2 foot surf is a major problem when the swells are close together.... I hunted 2 weeks ago in only 2 foot surf, but swells were every 4 secs or so....After about 1.5 hours I moved to the shallows...

 

[Sandman]

I have used many scoops in lots of different bottom materials and the one I settled on is the Sunspot Stealth. Chuck has a new model out called the 720 which has an angled handle and the back is a foot pad. Super fast draining and I recommend the large size for retrieving on one scoop. You'll notice in the pic that there is no hole for a bolt in the handle to weaken the wood. The handle floats upright where it is right near you where you left it.
Metal Detecting Scoop for the Beach

 

[Sandscoopdan]

Sandman, how do you tighten the lower ubolt or what tool do you use on the 720i?
Cheers,
Dan

 

[SusanMN]

I'm so darn short that I'm always hunting in chin deep lake water. Sometimes if you seem to be missing the target it helps to go at it from a different side so turn 45 degrees, pinpoint and scoop again. Also, there are a few hunters I know who put very bright pink or yellow tape on the top of their coil to make it stand out better in the water.