Newbie in Pensacola, FL

[osborne311]

Hello everyone. I was excited to find this forum. I can remember as a kid going over my Grandpa's property with his metal detector and how much fun it was. I am now 44 and would love to get into the hobby with my son. Since we live so close to a very popular beach resort area I would like to find a good detector that would be good for both wet salt sand and hard ground. I plan to hit some fields and fairgrounds with it as well as the wet surf but do not plan on getting further than about my waist in the water for detecting at this time (son is only 5), so do not need a fully submersible. If anyone can direct me to past threads on this subject or just give me some advice I would love to hear it. I am comfortable spending in the $300 to $500 range on a first detector. I have found a used Tesoro Vaquero and a used White Pizm V. I do not need to buy these but they seem very good deals compared to what they sell for new. Anyone have any thoughts on these or any other machines?

Thanks so much,
Shawn

 

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[smalltowngirl13]

Hello and welcome aboard Shawn!!

 

[Metal Detecting Stuff]

Welcome to TreasureNet! If you intend to get waist deep in the ocean, I'd suggest the Garrett At Pro. It's a tad over your budget, but it is fully waterproof, has a ground balance feature to neutralize the salt at the beach, and is a great land machine also. Although most detectors have waterproof coils, one big wave that knocks you over can be an expensive accident. If I can help you with more details, feel free to contact me.

Wayne
Metal Detector Sales and Rentals | Fisher, Garrett, Minelab, Lesche and DetectorPro

 

[webatch]

Hello Shawn

I used to live in Pensacola until Ivan came thru then Denis I wasn't into metal detecting back then. I have been thinking how fun it would be to be back on those white sand beaches with my metal detector. I got the Garrett ACE 350 but should have spent the extra for the AT Pro. The water proofing is a BIG advantage if your hunting near water or just caught far from your vehicle by a sudden shower. I was wondering what one could find out near Ft Pickens or the ruins of Ft McRae.

I am still new at this so you should probably get more experienced advice but for what its worth I would go with the Garrett AT Pro.
You can watch some metal detecting videos on youtube and see the different detectors in use as well as get excited about others finds also gain ideas for places to search.

Good luck and best wishes.

WB

 

[osborne311]

So I went with the AT PRO and trying to learn to use it. A buddy of mine just bought some land that has probably never been searched. There is a small cemetery with markers early 1800s' through early 1900's. We have not found the foundations yet, still clearing out land but I worked the peanut field around the overgrown cemetery as my first test with the detector. I am having trouble learning to balance it and getting alot of ghost hits but I managed to find a 1906 Indian Head Penny! Cannot tell you how happy I was to find something first time out. I have a lot to learn and a lot of land to search there. Going to try the beach tomorrow. Thanks for the tips.

 

[G.I.B.]

Good luck and congrats on your penny! It's so much fun finding neat stuff- addicting

Pictures, post pictures!!!

Great hunting areas are hard to find, so enjoy the new land to hunt. There are lots of folks who would love to help you hunt it. Perhaps someone who is experience with an AT PRO would be a great hunting partner.

 

[TWP700]

Hello and welcome,from So. Ca.

 

[CaptJohn]

osborne311, I am interested in a AT Pro, I'll be checking for your post on it use around and in Salt. I'm from Fairhope Al, 50 miles to your west.
webatch, what you'll find at those places you mentioned, State or National Parks are TROUBE . Its a felony to MD in most State and National Parks.

 

[Metal Detecting Stuff]

Osborne311, to ground balance, make sure there are no targets under the coil. Hold ground balance button, pump coil up and down 6-12 inched over the ground until the numbers stop changing.

A tip to find old homesites- turn on iron audio in a big pasture - when you find a large area with lots of iron signals, you are probably where a structure once was.

Ghost signals - probably a deep soda can. Large cans can register 2 -4 inches deep but sometimes be a foot deep.

 

[osborne311]

Did not make it to the beach today but did make it to another old 1800's home site a friend told me about. Judging from the way the AT PRO lit up everywhere I went with junk I doubt this site has been hunted much either. Found a lot of clad coins due to a festival held there over the weekend. Found a couple older coins but nothing pre 1960. Only hunted one side of the yard and found some old toys and a couple neat buttons and belt buckles. I will definitely hunt the rest of that property soon. Getting much better with the AT PRO - starting to figure it out. I find that ignoring the manuals suggestion of starting in standard coin mode and using the pro zero mode gave me the best results. I just did not dig anything without a consistent hit and nothing under 40. Found some neat stuff and one penny at about 9" in which I only needed a hole about the size of my fist so definitely getting better at targeting. I ordered a pro pointer and anxiously awaiting it. Found a very wierd and very heavy jagged piece of metal in the field. Hoping for a meteorite but I am sure I cannot be that lucky. Will check it out more in the next few days and let you know. I cannot speak for other models but the AT PRO is starting to impress me more and more as I learn to use it. Really appreciate every ones help.

 

[osborne311]

Hope I do this right - here are photo's of my first Indian Head Penny found the first day I took the AT PRO out of the box. Woot!

 

[Metal Detecting Stuff]

Great find!

Wayne

 

[firemac]

welcome shawn, i like my at pro, its my go to on dry land parks etc, i use my etrac at the beach

 

[webatch]

Congrats on the Indian... all I'm finding are new coins so far. It will only get better as you learn all the capabilities of your detector. Watch some of nugget noggins videos on youtube he uses an AT Pro.

Capt John FELONY? really dang theres like 150 miles of beach thats considered the Gulf National sea shore... I can understand not disturbing the turtle refuge area but the surf? Your tracks are gone with the next wave? Well thats the gov for ya... Its all about controlling the public not serving the public these days.

 

[osborne311]

So have two more hunts to report on. Tried the beach for the first time today. The saltwater is challenging and I still need to work on that. However, up in the dry sand it does very well. I found a silver earring and lots of clad. We also hunted an old home site and found our fist cache of coins! All pennies and all between 1960's and 1980's. Looks like a buried jar of pennies. Jar was broke and it took us forever to find them all but it was neat to find a cache. We also found lots of neat relics on the same land and have a lot of land left to hunt. I wish that cache was old silver or something but to be honest, just finding a cache with only a handful of hunts under my belt I feel pretty damn happy about even pennies. lol

 

[Metal Detecting Stuff]

So have two more hunts to report on. Tried the beach for the first time today. The saltwater is challenging and I still need to work on that. However, up in the dry sand it does very well. I found a silver earring and lots of clad. We also hunted an old home site and found our fist cache of coins! All pennies and all between 1960's and 1980's. Looks like a buried jar of pennies. Jar was broke and it took us forever to find them all but it was neat to find a cache. We also found lots of neat relics on the same land and have a lot of land left to hunt. I wish that cache was old silver or something but to be honest, just finding a cache with only a handful of hunts under my belt I feel pretty damn happy about even pennies. lol

Osborne311, be sure and ground balances when changing from dry sand to wet. Saltwater sand usually ground balances between 0-20. Normal dirt with low mineralization ground balances between60-80. If you have ground balanced and still get chatter, you can turn your sensitivity down a little. Be sure you are in Pro Mode when hunting in saltwater.