For beach hunting, here is what works and doesn't: The method to hunt in wet sand is different than in the surf submerged up to waist high. Some answers:
1. The box should be mounted on a belt at your waist, or on the handle near your elbow. I prefer belt mount because it makes the handle lighter and easier to swing for hours on end. If the box is on the handle, make sure it is at or behind your elbow, not near your hand, or else it will be extra weight you gotta hold up with your lower arm muscles. Elbow mount box requires mods to your shaft.
2. The waves push the coil, but you learn to let it move with the flow of the surf currents. The larger the coil, the more muscle needed.
3. Struggling during surf-hunting happens when there are heavy surf currents at your feet, or waves hitting you. I don't hunt in areas like that. I hunt calm water, or I look for a low tide that uncovers sand that's usually submerged. But if you do hunt in submerged areas, take a big metal scoop with tall handle that you push your foot on to dig down. Once you stomped the scoop down into the sand, it can also act as an anchor to hang onto if a wave hits you. When the water's not moving too fast, you pry the handle down, then lift out a scoop of sand into the air. Check the hole with the coil to see if you removed the target. If not, then dump the scoop and dig another scoop till u find it. When u finally got the target in the scoop, let the scoop rinse in the surf like a sieve and find the target at the bottom of the scoop along with any big pebbles and trash. You will lose any small targets (under 5/8") with this method, but will get all coins and rings. If you want 100% recovery, carry the scoop of sand back out of the water and dump it where you can find the little targets without losing them. I don't usually do this. It is up to you. The best all-around scoop is shown in the picture below in aluminum or stainless steel. Stainless is a lot more rugged and weight is not really a problem. Use this kind of scoop or something that looks about the same with 5/8" holes and waist-high handle (the 45 degree angle is necessary, 5 or 6 inch diameter scoop).
4. I never used goggles and snorkel. You got enough stuff to carry without extra breathing apparatus. But snorkeling could work if you are hunting in calm water waist deep to head deep. For deeper than that, I would use scuba or hookah. Seems to me that snorkeling is not good for covering a large area in a short time.
5. For any wet beach hunting, use a plastic mesh loot pouch that loops into your belt, the kind that drain water without losing your loot. These are about 7" by 10" or larger, and it is good to have 2 compartments, one for loot and other for trash. I always carry trash away so i don't find it the next time I hunt there.
6. I installed a finer mesh a long time ago on my scoop, but I found it wouldn't let the sand and pebbles out. My preferred method is to dump the scoop load on the ground and pass the coil over it. Then use the scoop to remove a hand-full of dumped sand at a time until the coil tells me I have removed the target. Then shake the scoop so the sand falls out the holes, and watch for the target at the bottom of the scoop. If the target is small and falls out with the sand, then look at the fallen sand for the target.
These methods are what works for me. You may need to experiment for what works best at your beach.
