Well, having pounded beaches here for more than 22 years, I can tell you that you really need a dedicated machine to hunt salty wet sand.
But there are a few tricks to help you hunt with a single frequency VLF detector.
Here's one of them :
-You will be tempted to ground balance your unit to salt and to use a standard or larger coil. The obesession of depth.
Well, don't.
Ground balanced to salt, a VLF monofrequency unit will become less sensitive to gold. To convince yourself of this phenomenon, just do airtests with small rings, chains, pendants, earrings, all what falls into the category "small, thin, weighltess GOLD. Eye-opener test.
You will have to hunt wet sands leaving the GB at a higher than effective setting, ideally the default setting or max 20%lower towards salt.
Of course your detector will chatter, and you don't want to lower the sens.
Good news, the second part of the trick : use a small coil.
Small coils see les ground (less ground signals) AND are more sensitive to (small) gold.
Do you read me?
Last thing : small gold tend to live at the high tide mark. A matter of waves and weight. Hunt there. You will find gold.
I have found small rings with the ETP and 5" dd and 8" concentric coils, and with the golden µmax and the 9x8 coil.
If you are tempted by the low tide hunt, go there and dig a hole. Look what depth you are when you see the hard pack, that is a layer of compact, heavy sand, where objects and coins can stay for a while.
If it is deeper than 6", your attempts to find gold rings will result in frustrations and zilch gold.
You might dig a hole where gullies are present, the hard pack there is generally shallower.
When I hunt for coins at the beach, and recognise a favourable situation at the high tide mark, I have a go with the detector I swing with the above settings.
And it works.
Ang gosh ! yes !! I swing two minelabs and a PI !
HH
Grumpy