new to waterhunting

[SilverDrvn]

Was thinking about diving with a metal detector! located an awesome lake to metal detect, everything on land is found, but in the late 1800's early 1900's this lake was used as a huge swimming resort with slides boat rentals swimming lessons, the whole shibang!!! this lake is relatively small, and about 20 feet deep in the area I would be detecting, how is the visability in a lake of this kind, and would the finds be to deep to detect! any information is greatly appreciated, thank you
Cody

 

[Gulf Hunter]

Not sure about your conditions there, but the lake I hunted had very poor visibility. You may still be able to fan out the hole and see the target, if you are right on it. Would recommend a discriminating detector, Excal, Head Hunter Diver, Tiger Shark and Beach Hunter ID are all submersible to those depths. Targets will be within detection range unless there has been a great deal of sediment. From what I have seen, lakes with a sandy bottom have a clay base. That's a good thing, because generally targets will not sink past clay. Let us know what you decide and show us the booty!
GH

 

[PaPa-Joe-Fla.]

n/t

 

[Gulf Hunter]

No we're just fine over here, think it was further south. Just can't get my dang NOAA page to come up. Can't check my pressure, tides, wind direction and meteorological hoopla!

 

[AllenOK]

I can't comment on the visibility conditions in your lake. It's going to depend on the water source, the sediment, and whether the lake gets really stirred up or not. You'll have to ascertain that yourself on your first dive. Heck, you'll probably want to do a few test dives, without a detector, just to see.

Do some research, and try to find out where the old swimming beaches were, if you haven't already. This is where you want to do your test dive / scouting around. Try to find the anchor balls for the old dive platforms. This is usually a big ball or block of concrete with a chain attached. That is the area you really want to concentrate your efforts in. If the water's clear, try fanning a little of the bottom away to see how cloudy it gets, and how long it takes for the silt to settle down.

Have you considered trying to find a used CZ-20? The old ones are pressure-rated to 200', and the newer ones are rated to 250'. They aren't being made right now, so finding them is hard, which is probably why Gulf Hunter didn't mention it.

You also might want to look into getting a Vibraprobe 560 pinpointer. It's waterproof, but I'm not sure how deep. It will help you locate the small and/or hard to see targets. Silver coins will corrode even in fresh water, and they turn dark, and might be hard to spot. Gold will stay nice and bright. Keep your eyes out for bottles. You just might recover some nice older bottles that are highly collectible. I would recommend using a ping-pong paddle to fan with. You don't want to snag your fingers or even your gloves on fish hooks or broken glass. A mesh bag with a velcro closure, preferably on a strap, is good for a "goodie" bag. Be sure to remove all the trash as well, that will help you recover more targets at a later time. If there's a lot of iron, tin cans, bottle caps, or other magnetic targets on the bottom (like Canadian clad coinage), use a strong magnet to sweep the bottom and try to remove the magnetic junk.

You might want to contact Royal on this website. I know he hunted several Victorian-era swimming resorts up in Michigan, and can give you some advice.

 

[Golden]

and have been successful from depths of 3 to 6 feet. You need a weight belt of course, to keep you under! But my other half uses a hookah for anything deeper. He is a certified diver though. But using a hookah is a great way to look for those hidden treasures, just out of arm's reach. Golden

 

[kaptainkosmic]

If not, thats where to start. Here in Michigan once you stir up the bottom visibility is usually ZERO! There aren't any currents to move clouds away, and generally the stuff on top is so light that gravity takes a long time to settle it out. Its pretty much like detecting with your eyes closed. With a little practice it can be done, and not many folks are doing it. So if you find the right spot, (sounds like you have) it can be a very target rich environment.

hh steve

 

[china-clipper]

I'm in the process of getting certified now. Remaining neutrally buoyant (hovering close to the bottom) is pretty tricky; I have both a Surfmaster PI and an Excal. I'll most likely use the Excal for freshwater because it discriminates and the PI for salt. I look forward to reaching areas previously too deep to detect.