Beach & Estuary detecting

[Scott T]

Hi all, back from hols so time for my 2nd detecting outing!
This time off to an area that has beach and tidal river estuary.
From reading various posts on the forum my Ace 250 should perform pretty well. I don't have a pointer yet so recommendations welcome for the future!
As i'm still getting used to my machine should i leave it in "ALL METAL" mode & how will wet or dry sand conditions affect the signals i get, e.g. better or worse?

I've read the manual again but not much info on using discrimation & sensitivity in it.
I know the best way is experience but i really don't want to miss anything good. I'm driving a long way to get there and it's very close to a roman fort & a castle dating back to at least 1200!!

The area although huge, has probably been detected hundreds (if not thousands of times), but i'm gonna have a go anyhow!
All tips & suggestions appreciated

p.s. i've joined the NCMD & got a Crown Estate licence (doin it reet if i'm gonna do it). bit of lancashire slipped in there!

[Scott T]

OOOPS! Can't believe i missed the whole "metal detecting beach" section!!! rl;
All tips & comments still welcome.

[Bazza]

Hi Scott

I do a lot of beach work with the euro ace down south coast.First off all these types of detectors do not like wet salty sand.I can get mine to behave itself by knocking the sensitivity down until it settles.it may seem quite low but will still hit reasonable depth.you may want to run in all metal and just notch out the first couple of iron. Regarding the pointer I find it as essential as my detector would not go without it now. You can use the garrett on the beach just get your set up right and you should find stuff.take a carrier bag for your ring pull finds.

Bazza

[Scott T]

Thanks for the tips Bazza.
Due to being hit by a severe gastric virus i've had to postpone the trip!

[Christoph1945]

Hi Scott,

I hope you are feeling better by now, and looking forward to hitting the beach. When buying a pointer, don't be tempted by cheap. The Garrett ProPointer is a superb bit of kit and I wouldn't be without mine.

The Garrett sounds expensive but by the time you have bought several cheaper ones and been dissapointed with their perfomance; you could have bought a ProPointer first time round.

Good luck and happy hunting.

[Scott T]

Unfortunately the virus is still with me
Looks like i'll be ordering the propointer then! Thanks for the tip Christoph

[OTR666]

Only been on the beach a few times and can at best describe it as frustrating - good luck

[Christoph1945]

You are welcome Scott; I wasted money on a stud finder, a Maplin's pointer, and some other odds and sods before taking the plunge and buying a ProPointer. Should have bought one first off, but one lives and learns!

Good luck, happy hunting, and get well soon.