Gaining From Experience

Successful metal detectorists have years of experience and skill that you can learn from.    Joining a club will help you glean the experience of others and help you with advice, tips and information to improve your own performance.  If you have encountered problems or need guidance, club members are often a great source of information.

Joining Organized Hunts

Metal detecting clubs often put together special hunts and organized outings.   This means that you don’t have to go through all the research and guesswork needed to identify good locations, you can just join your clubs outings.   The club will also make sure that all local laws are being abided to and that all necessary permissions to search the property have been made.   You just need to bring your kit and find the treasure.

Keeping You Up to Date

Many clubs publish regular newsletters or circulate interesting information to their members, helping keep you up to date with what’s happening in the world of metal detecting.  Other clubs have online forums which enable members to post pictures of their finds to other members, share questions and tips.   This is a great way of seeing the possibilities available in your area and also of boasting of your own finds.

Metal Detecting Club Membership Requirements

Typically, club memberships cost around $25 per family per year and are usually open to anyone.  Generally, the only requirement to joining is a commitment to abide by the clubs rules and ethics.  As a rule, clubs enforce a strict respect for private property and cultural sites as well as making sure their members leave sites as they found them, with all holes filled in. Look up online for any metal detecting clubs in your area and see what the requirements are.

So even if you haven’t pursued the hobby of metal detecting to be social, metal detecting clubs offer a wealth of benefits that can ensure your hobby is as fulfilling and enjoyable as possible.

“Grid” the Beach

Many people practice random searching on the beach, trying to cover the whole beach in a short time.   However, it’s much more effective to practice what is called “gridding” on the beach.   This method involves selecting a small portion of the beach and searching it using a very particular pattern.    The patterns can vary but they ensure that you don’t miss any spots.   One example would be to walk in a straight line from the high water mark and head downwards towards the low water mark, turn around step a foot over and walk back up and so on.    Alternatively, you could walk parallel to the water mark and follow a similar approach.   A circular pattern would mean that you’d start in a central point on the beach and walk in ever increasing circles.   When you are practicing these gridding patterns, you should create lines in the sand to ensure you don’t miss any areas or cover areas you’ve already searched.

Try Saltwater Treasure Hunting

Saltwater hunting is a specialized technique of metal detecting on beaches that will help set you apart from the other detectorists if you have the special waterproof metal detector required.   In this technique, you use the low tides to access parts of the beach that would normally be difficult to get to.  Spring low tide is optimal for this type of hunting.   Unfortunately, saltwater hunting can prove to be challenging in that it can be difficult to pinpoint targets.  On the plus side, the futher away from the main beach you are, the less likely you are to detect trash such as pulltabs or bottle caps.

Save Time with a Sand Scoop

Obviously, summertime is the optimal time to go metal detecting on the beach because of the high volumes of beachgoers at that time of the year.  This means that there is likely to be a lot more treasure to find.   Early morning or late evening are best times to hunt as there are fewer people on the beach.    It’s crucial to remember that being more successful than your competition depends on you being able to pinpoint and dig up more targets. Use a short or long handled scoop to help you in your treasure hunt.  Once you’ve found a target, then take a scoop of sand and pass your detector over the newly scooped pile to confirm it has your target.  If it isn’t then take another scoop.  Once you’re sure the signal is in the scoop of dry sand then just shake it and the sand will escape from the screen in your scoop leaving your target exposed. Using this method saves time and allows you to pinpoint more targets and find more treasure.

Beating the Beach Competition

However, metal detecting is rapidly growing as a hobby and so there are more and more metal detectorists on beaches, making the competition for those lost rings rather fierce.  So, how can you grab your own piece of the pie?  Here are some tips:

• Be strategic, what parts of the beach are occupied by people, but not so popular with metal detectorists?
• Is there another less popular beach nearby that you could rather visit?
• Visit the beach in colder weather, after a storm or some rain – there will be less people to compete with and the weather may have unearthed one or more missed treasures.
• Visit the beach in the evening when there are fewer people around.   Friday and Sunday nights are good choices.  If you visit the beach on a Friday night you may well find treasures left by those visiting Monday through Friday and you’ll beat the metal detectorists who come out on Saturday morning.   Sunday night after a busy weekend may also yield great results.

Don’t Stop Digging Up Targets

Inevitably, when you metal detect in a busy place like the beach, you’re going to unearth a lot of junk.   The key though, is not to stop – dig up everything and take the trash home with you.  Metal detecting on the beach is often a numbers game, the more targets you dig up, the more likely you are to find treasure.

Be Patient and Methodical

Don’t try tackle the whole beach in one go, but take it slowly and go carefully over one area at a time.   You need to keep your coil as close to the ground as possible to find all those lost treasures, so being slow and methodical will yield best results.   Create a grid system for yourself so that you can slowly cover the whole beach without missing any pieces.

Good Practice for Metal Detecting on Beaches

• Take all your rubbish with you, even the stuff you dig up.  It’s not only good practice to take all rubbish you might unearth away, but when you relook at it back at home you might find that what you thought was trash is actually a prize.
• Don’t metal detect right on top of sunbathers and beach goers.   This is a simple case of respecting people’s space and not making a nuisance of yourself.
• Fill your holes in when you’ve finished digging and don’t just leave them.  You might think that is a waste of time on a beach which is constantly being transformed, but joggers or people walking on the beach could trip in them and hurt themselves.  The rule is always to respect others, respect nature and leave the beach as you found it.

Research and Practice: Key Ingredients to Success

Of course you could hit it lucky and find something fabulous in your back yard (you never know!) but most success with metal detecting comes from doing some research with regards to the best places to search and also gaining experience with your metal detector, which comes with practice.   Knowing your machine is crucial.  Detectorists often make the mistake that they will achieve more success with a better, more expensive machine.  However, the truth is that a new and different machine won’t necessarily give you better results, it is rather the understanding and knowledge of the subtle difference between different readings that really helps you.

Researching places where you might find historical relics is critical if you want to be more successful with your hunts.   Old sites of habitation may contain coins or items of historical interest such as buttons or household items.  A good place to start looking is your local library which will have information on the history of your area and give you valuable clues as to locations you might begin treasure hunting.  The internet is also a vast source of information.  If you type “History of…..” your state or province or town into the search engines you might uncover some great information – and buff up on your local history at the same time.

Keep Trying and Don’t Give Up

Even if you believe the location you’ve identified has been extensively hunted by previous metal detectorists, don’t give up.   Try to look at the site from a completely different perspective than others might have.  Think about what spots might not normally be searched.  For example, most people probably go for flat areas to search, and you might try some of the steep hillsides that others probably avoided.  Another tip is to go to the very edges of the site or field, look for overgrown bushy areas and try hunting there with your metal detector.  Don’t necessarily go for the obvious and follow your intuition – you’ll be amazed at some of the unlikely places one finds treasure.

You should try detecting the site after heavy rainfall when the ground is well soaked and has greater conductivity.   This means you can detect items that are more deeply buried.   After a hard winter, the thawing ground will shift, possibly revealing more hidden items that weren’t detected before.  So spring time would be a good time to hunt these sites and glean what others have missed.

If You Can’t Beat Them, Join Them!

If research doesn’t appeal to you, then you should consider joining a Metal Detecting club.   Clubs often organize hunts at particular locations and the advantage is that all the historical research, legal implications and other issues will have been done for you.  Plus, it becomes a great way to meet other people who share your hobby, to learn from the experience of others and polish your own metal detecting skills.

Remember, metal detecting takes determination, patience and persistence.  However, if you practice and learn then the results could be fantastic.

Tip #1: Brave the Weather

Metal detecting is gaining popularity as a hobby, with more and more people trying to find hidden treasures buried in the earth.  In order to beat the competition and get there first, you might have to try different tactics such as hunting in colder weather and winter months when most people are warmly wrapped up indoors.  Stormy weather is particularly great on the beach since rain and wind erode the sand and might bring more articles to the surface for you to find.

If you’ve already explored a location without finding anything, try hunting again after winter – the ground will have shifted with thawing and items may now be discovered.

Tip #2: Do Your Research

Although it takes patience and persistence to locate a really good find, background research about the location where you are detecting will go a long way to helping you with your finds.  Always remember though, that it is critical to know the local laws and respect private property and archaeological and cultural sites.

Keep your eye out for old foundations or stone walls, or look for deep impressions in the ground that may have been dug for a bottle dump or cellar hole.  Old paths and wagon roads are also great places to search as many of these have long historical use.

Tip #3: Follow the River

Rivers used to be the major means of transport in the old days and were generally central to colonial life, so searching along riverbanks can often yield great success.  Look for old marinas and swimming holes because it is likely there was lots of activity in these areas. Old bridges are also great spots to search for artifacts.

Tip # 4: Explore Old Fields and Battlegrounds

Old fields can also potentially hold great excitement as many fields were used as encampments during the wars.  However, be sure to ask permission from the landowner first before you attempt to detect in these areas.  It’s also critical to ensure that you’re not breaking any laws by detecting on known battlefields – so ensure that you’ve done the necessary checks first.

Tip #5: Don’t Rush

Being a successful metal detectorist depends a great deal on patience and persistence.  Take your time exploring an area and you’ll be rewarded with more treasures than those detectorists who rush over areas. If you cover a hundred square meters of land in just five minutes then you’ve probably missed a great deal.  The trick is to sweep small areas thoroughly before moving onto the next one.   A useful trick is to use a map of the area and cover it with multiple grids.  Then you can carefully cover each grid so you don’t miss anything.  To help you, use visual markers to align your map grid points.

Good luck with your treasure hunting!

With the excitement of discovery comes the exploration of new places outdoors and in nature. Whilst you are searching for lost coins and old relics you will be broadening your knowledge of history and travelling to new and different places. Metal detecting is also a great way to meet new people since the hobby is growing rapidly.

Which Metal Detector Should You Buy?

Once you’ve decided to pursue metal detecting as a hobby, you might be tempted to think you need to purchase the biggest most expensive metal detectors. However, don’t rush in to spend your hard earned money too rashly. Whilst fancier machines can give you a slight edge over other treasure seekers, it’s really experience and skill that makes the difference with metal detecting. If you’re pursuing this as a hobby rather spend according to your budget. Some golden tips to consider before buying a machine:

• Ease of use is a critical factor. If the gadgets are too complicated, you might never use your machine because you feel overwhelmed and don’t have time to read a manual the size of an encyclopedia.

• Don’t focus too much on the depth of detection as the most important feature of a metal detector since almost all metal detectors (save for some very expensive ones) have the same depth of detection.

• Look for features that will provide you with practical assistance during an actual hunt, for example, it would be great if the metal detector provided a visual readout of any detection so you’ll an idea of what it has picked up while you were walking.

• Don’t be confused by all the hype and marketing gimmicks but choose a detector based on ease of use and acceptable price.

• Go for detectors manufactured by companies with good reputations for innovation and product improvement.

• Don’t order your machine online. Metal detectors need to be physically checked out. You need to actually test the machine and purchase the detector based on its performance. Don’t settle for one model after your primary research. Instead, choose three or more models that you like and go to the store so you can try the detectors yourself.

• The best teacher is experience, so talk to folks who’ve been practicing metal detecting for many years to learn from their experience with different machines.

Learning to Discriminate Between Different Signals

One of the key things you have to learn with metal detecting (and it comes with practice) is to discriminate between different signals. The best place to start learning is on a beach where you will initially probably need to dig up everything you get a signal for – until you learn which signal means what. Most metal detectors do have settings that help you pass over worthless things such as foil or pulltabs, but the more you discriminate the less depth you will have and if you pass over pulltabs you might be missing diamond rings! You need to be quite careful with your settings, but practice and experience will give you an “ear” for what is worth digging up or not.

Metal Detecting Ethics

When metal detecting, it is also important to adhere to a generally accepted code of metal detecting ethics. These include:
• Covering holes when you’ve dug up your treasure – even on beaches (you don’t want anyone falling into or twisting their ankle in any holes);
• Always asking permission to search on private property;
• Ensuring that you don’t do any damage to the natural environment or to any cultural or archaeological treasures.
• Taking all rubbish with you and leaving behind only footprints.

I’m sure that your metal detecting will bring you many hours of enjoyment and anticipation in your hunt for that elusive treasure.