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Wet Salt Water Beach hunting machine that doesn't break the bank ? :detecting:

C

Cal_Cobra

Active member
I've tried wet salt water beach hunting with my Coinstrike and F4 and I don't think any amount of tweaking is going to make them formidable wet salt water beach hunters, although they seem to perform well on dry sand.

I'd really like to get a wet salt water beach machine without spending a fortune (I know wouldn't we all?). I'm not necessarily looking for something to go into the surf with, just the waterline, maybe a bit of wading if the water is calm, but I won't be breaking out the snorkel and diving mask :ninja:

I've been reading and reading, and the one machine that keeps popping up as a good beach machine that doesn't break the bank is the Minelab Sovereign. I've been looking, and I believe you can pick one of these up for half the price of the Explorer (second hand). I know their both on the heavy side (probably not any heavier then my Coinstrike with the 10.5" coil IMO), but the Sovereign seems to have quite a following and I see VERY positive reports on it for beach hunting, as well as deep silver turf hunting.

The Fisher CZ 7a Pro looks good too, but I'm inclined (maybe incorrectly so) to believe the Minelab is a better machine from what I've been reading.

Any thoughts ?

Thanks,
Brian
 
If you do not mind a non-water proof unit, the Sovs as well as the CZ's ( 5, 6a, 70) are great. Used they do not cost as much, but I think maintenance on the older CZ's may cost a pretty penny if you need work on them ( not sure about the maintenance cost of the Sovs).

I use my CZ6a with the Sunray FZ12 coil on the salt beaches here in NJ with great results. Deep, sensitive to gold and pin points right on. Splash proof too. Can hunt in all metal and then hit the discrim button or just hunt with discrim on 0, hear all the targets and dig the repeatable mid and high tones. Also, if you are limited on time and just want to try to find the gold, just dig the repeatable mid-tones. Yes, it does get fooled by deep iron, but I will never sell the 6a. Too easy to use, has the salt switch and goes deep. And one of the best land detectors too !
 
Thanks for the reply therover. Looks like the CZ7A is also rainproof/splashproof, which would be a big bonus. I don't believe the Sovs are, but there's probably some rain covers or such one could utilize.
 
Just as you have moved from an interest in drysand to an interest in wet sand, you will soon develop an interest in the shallow water of the Lane and possibly the deeper water of the Mine will be next. Why not bite the bullet and get a submersible Sovereign, I think they call it an Excal.:thumbup: To stay within budget look for someone trading from an Excal to an Excal2, it's really pretty much the same machine. At least you won't have to worry about your investment going up in smoke if you get hit by a rogue wave or if it slips from your hand while digging a target. (accidents do happen and this one would be fatal to a Sov.)

Cheers,

BDA:cool:
 
..once you get bitten by the wet sand/shallow water bug, you will want to go in. I do agree that once that bug bites you, you need a water proof unit just so you don't have to worry about the consequences. They may be a bit more, but there are used ones at reasonable prices.

I did see a used CZ20 for around $450. The only problem with that one is the headphones are cracked. The bottom line is how much you want to spend. If you could swing it, my first suggestion is a water proof unit.

If you do buy a used water proof unit, please buy from one of the people on the forum and NOT E-Bay unless they are the same people on the forums. The forum hunters are real users of detectors and not people just trying to make a buck. They will let you know how much time was spent using the detector and if the detector was in water or not. Also, you will find that the guys n gals on the forums will price accordingly and not try to rip you off. They are honest and want you to enjoy the hobby.
 
At present I own four Minelabs; 2 Explorers, 1 Excalibur, and 1 Sovereign GT. If you're looking for the biggest bang for your buck, get a used sovereign XS. You should be able to get one for the low $300's. I use the GT with a 12 inch coil and you can't beat it. If you're worried about getting the box wet, you can hip mount it or make a sling and wear it off your shoulder. I used to think my Excalibur with the red headphones was the best beach machine made, but after using the GT, the Excal stays in the closet. The only Minelab I didn't like was the Excalibur 1000 with the dark blue headphones. Good luck on your decision.
 
My experiences with salt water led me to waterproof pulse (no discrimination) machines. Most sand beaches aren't that trashy in the water so I don't mind digging every target. Also, pulse machines generally hit deeper and are more effective on small gold, like earrings and fine chains. I bought a Tesoro Sand shark. Totally waterproof and quite easy to pinpoint with. I think I only paid $440 for it new from Kellyco a few years ago. As the others have said, if you play in the wet sand, eventually you'll wind up in the surf. It's where most of the swimmers gold is lost and no amount of wave action is going to push it up onto the beach. All it takes is one big heavy chain to pay for your machine.
 
I bought a Sov a couple years ago, waterproofed it, and use it just like my Excal. Only difference is I can't dive with it because the box is contained inside a waterproof box that floats like a cork. I have made numerous water finds with it. The waterproof box is worn on a harness arrangement, making the shaft weight much easier to handle. The coil loop on a Sov is heavier than the excal or the CZ-20.I would recommend the Sovereign with no hesitation. HH
 
You sure are getting some good advice and guess i'll put in my 2 cents. if money is an issue, you cant go wrong with a minelab sovereign. the XS, Elite, and GT are advances in sovereign models with the GT being the latest. I have an Elite that i love on the beach.In the wet sand it is so stable and goes DEEP, with great discrimination. I use the chest bag mount with the control in a plastic bag and reinforcing corrogated plastic tube on the coil wire, and you wont get tired swinging. this mounting gets control box up out of reach of the water and you can go into the surf a little, however i mostly hunt the wet sand at low tide, find the coin line and stick to it. i use the sov because i cant afford a thousand buck waterproof machine and i want to have discrimination, instead of spending half my time digging iron. one big consideration for you is learning a different machine. the sov is totally different than a fisher. Just one example of this is you must go really slow with your coil, like 1 foot per second sweep speed, in order for the sov to process the ground completely in order to get maximum depth and maintain stability. Maybe this could drive a fisher user who is used to that faster response time nuts. if money isnt an issue and you dont want to learn another machine, you should save your pennies and get a CZ-20 or new CZ-21, and you wont have to adjust. I'm with Dave T.though, Minelabs on the beach are great. You can PM me with any questions if you like. Best of luck! Cash
 
Thanks for all the great feedback. I think I'm sold on the versatility of the Sov for wet salt beach hunting, and deep silver and jewelery turf hunting.

Hip mounting solves the extra weight issue and adds some insurance for it getting wet short of me falling in :rofl:
 
Hey Brian,

While not wanting to take anything away from the great advice you've already received, I want to offer a plug for the Detectorpro Wader. Both my son and I use the Wader here at our Socal beaches, and we've had really solid success with them. The machine is very sensitive, very light, and goes deep. It also cuts fairly easily through the water and is quite stable. I had a similar problem that you face in that I got tired of trying to stablize my MXT in the wet sand at the beach (and was not crazy about even attempting the water since it's not waterproof). With the Wader, no worries about the water or those annoying stability problems. You might also check out the Detectorpro pulse machine, too. I decided against a pulse induction unit, because there's just too much iron in the places I hunt. However, I've heard great things about their pulse unit and its sensitivity and depth (including advice to just leave your scoop at home and bring a shovel). One other great thing about the Wader is that it's not all that expensive. In fact, we found a nice used one for my son for about $400.

HH,

Dan
 
Dan is this the unit that has the electronics built into the headphones ?

Do you have any links I can read about it (I looked at Lost Treasure's field reports, and didn't find one for this) ?

Thanks,
Brian
 
Thanks for getting this thread started Cal Cobra!! I am in about the same situation as you up here on the Monterey Bay in Santa Cruz as to the conditions I prefer to hunt in. Looks like a ML SOV or The Detector Pro Wader may be the upgrade I am looking for from my BH Land Ranger which works great in the dry sand, but sucks as I get near the wet, hard pack. I, too, am not sure I want to go the PI route yet.
 
Dan...I have both a Detector Pro wader and pulse. I agree with all you say about the wader. And the pulse unit....DEEP and yes, they do tend to get on your nerfes when there is tons of iron or nails.

Out in the water where there is much less trash is where they really shine. Then, and when you get to a beach that is sanded in and there are very few targets...this thing will get them since it does go deep ( as do most all PI's).

JC
 
SeeBea I hunted down in Monterey a few weeks ago, and would love to hit it with a machine that can tackle the wet salt beaches again. I did find about 60 coins with my Coinstrike there, BUT it was like finding them via braile. The machine was falsing like crazy and so far I've found it just can't null out the salt when trying to GB. Everything I've been reading and from what people are posting the Sov or a Fisher multi-freq CZ is the way to go, unless you want to drop the big bucks on the Explorer.

You ever hunt Fort Ord ?
 
Haven't hunted Fort Ord yet, but plan to as soon as I can. I know a couple of guys who hit it a bunch and hope to hook up with them.
 
I'd also like to hear your reports on the new sand shark, Guzz. Congrats!
hh
 
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