Time to upgrade my detector

CaperBoy

Jr. Member
Aug 4, 2013
50
37
Cape Breton Island
Detector(s) used
Bounty Hunter 2200
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I currently have a Discovery 2200 and been having a bit of an issue. I detect mostly along the coastline and beaches. My detector displays "Iron" every pass when I'm about 10' from and up to the oceans edge. I assume it's due to the high saline in the water. But on a positive note it works great on dry land and fresh water. Time for an upgrade. Can anyone suggest a detector to fit my needs.

Thanks
 

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Get a dedicated salt water machine if your detecting mostly on the beach. There are a few to choose from and greatly range in price and performance. Ask in the forum where the lucky beach detectorists hang out! They will set you straight very quickly.
 

Tesoro Sand Shark 8" coil. Whites Dual Field, Minelab Excalibur or Sovereign GT, Fisher CZ-21. Research them all to see which best fits your needs and areas your hunting. Good luck with your choice.
 

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Thanks for the information folks. Time to do some research. Good hunting.

Caperboy
 

Thanks for the information folks. Time to do some research. Good hunting. Caperboy
The PI units have no discrimination but tend to be a little deeper (not necessarily true with the right VLF setup) so if the areas are rich in iron debris I wouldn't recommend those. Also forgot to include Garrett Sea Hunter and Infinium.
 

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Most detectors will work good in dry sand (as you found out with your machine). Wet sand and salt water is a whole different story. Fletch mentioned several good detectors for that venue. To break it down a bit more, if you are just going to hunt wet sand and water up to your knees, all the ones he mentioned will work good plus: Just about any Minelab with BBS or FBS, which also includes the Explorer, Safari, Quattro, and CTX3030, work great. If you're going into knee deep to 10' deep, the CTX3030 is a real good machine. Deeper than 10' you'll need a dive machine. The Minelab machines are the only ones with good discrimination. The rest are either a PI machine with no discrimination or VLF with sketchy discrimination at best. It will depend on how much iron is in your search area as to which would be the better choice. You may think the AT Pro might be a good choice. It would be if you're just hunting fresh water up to 10' deep, but, in salt water it usually needs to be turned down to make it stable and you lose some depth in doing so.
 

Thanks Cudamark, I guess I had a lapse in memory when listing machines! The Etrac and other FBS machines are great for beach also.
 

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