Will this equipment do the job?

[the Swede]

I am now finally ready, after months and months of reading and studying the many a vast "secrets" of metal-detecting, to order my equipment which I exclusively intend to use for finding lost jewellery (hopefully gold!) in the moderately salty waters of the Baltic Sea.
But I would like to make one

 

[Bobbie]

I don't know about those Waders........they can be dangerous if accidently filled with water. You might want to invest in a wet (or dry) suit instead, gives you a lot more freedom and you won't drown as easily.

Sand scoop......if your beaches are rocky and a lot of shells.......get a good stainless steel scoop.

The carry bag.........I consider it a an unnecesary nuisance.

Back up battery......make sure it is a NiMH and not a NiCad. An alkaline battery pod is also a good idea. ALWAYS have a back up battery......Excals are juice eaters.

Grey Ghosts are the best!!! Minelab can put connectors on the Grey Ghosts and the orginal headphones.......this is a good idea just in case something happens to one set, they you have an extra without having to send it back to Minelab.

Straight shaft is a necessity. The orginal shaft makes the Excal feel a lot heavier than what it is.......you will tire easily.

The new Excal has a very good coil, you may not need it another one

Don't over burden yourself with extras around your waist.......it will only get in your way

Make sure the bag you get for your loot will drain out the water or you might find your goodies falling out.

Good luck and have fun

 

[GraveDiggerMax-VaBch-Va]

what do u think the water temp will be ?

u might want to look into a wet suit---------------------5mm to 7mm thick

and 5mm dive gloves even if u do not have the wet suit.

waders are ok, but unsafe at times and are not very forgiving, but they will keep u nice and warm, work great if the water is not tooooo deep or waves are not to big. a lot of guys up north use full length rubber gloves - from hand to shoulder type.

good luck

 

[willia in tex.]

I would seriously consider a wet suit, or a dry suit instead of waders in ocean waters, even on calm days waves can come out of nowhere and slam you. holes are another danger. fall into one and getting out is going to be tough with waders it's hard enough to get out of one with the minium amount of gear on.hh willia

 

[Daniel A.]

Baltic Sea temps average 10 Celsius yearly or 50 Fahrenheit for my US neighbours. Here on the west coast of Vancouver BC the sea temp today is 15 Celsius or 59 Fahrenheit most people who dive in these waters go with dry suits and some a wet suit at the height of summer but our ocean temp rarely gets better than 18 and falls to 12 quickly. I know your not diving but to stay in the water and be comfortable 5 or 7 mm wet suit would be more comfortable and safer better yet a dry suit. I use both even in lakes here because ours are snow pack fed. Today the lake water is 18 Celsius where in the great lakes or smaller ones they warm to 25 Celsius. Just my thoughts. Dan

 

[Arkie John]

...I'd think seriously of obtaining a snorkler's vest for added safety. We lost a good friend a while back that stepped off in deep water.

Maybe a farmer john wetsuit would be more suitable for you. Depending upon the temperature of the Baltic, I'd consider even purchasing a good full wetsuit, and leave the waders at home maybe. Just my 2-cents worth.

aj

 

[Waterdog]

I added a Life jacket to my water hunted supplies. May look different, but I have herd of too many people drowning while out metal detecting in shallow waters. Better safe than Sorry.
HH

 

[PaPa-Joe-Fla.]

I have chest high waders also, but I never go over waist deep and NEVER in rough water. All the rest of your equipment list sounds good. Good Luck and be careful in the cold water hypothermia will sneak up on you even in slighly chilly waters. HH

 

[the Swede]

Just HAD to post Gulf Hunter's reply to my questions:


"*#01 Thanks for the info, Gulf Hunter!
You are welcome!

*#02 I guess it is the 145-mm for the Excalibur II, right? Was actually planning on getting the Short Hipmount Kit, but I have changed my mind after reading several positive posts about the straight shaft on this forum. But is the original shaft really that unbalanced?
The stock shaft is a piece of junk and hard to hunt with. It is like swinging a paddle through the water. It will woller out and get lose in about a month of hunting. You will fatique from swinging against the flop, been there, done that! The Lightning rod is an EXCELLENT choice, imo. NO HIP MOUNTING! It will be suicide eventually water hunting. I own both the 800 & 1000 and the ONLY thing the 1000 does better than the 800 is coverage. If there is ANY doubt about how trashy the area is, the 800 would be the BEST choice.

*#03 Are these the headphones everybody is talking about on this forum? Would it be possible to have Minelab hard-wire these before shipping? The Gray Ghost Underwaters are the ones I selected too, EXCELLENT choice, imo. Have Minelab install the ikelite connectors, DO NOT HARDWIRE THEM IN. Have Minelab also install the lkelite connectors onto the stock Koss, as well, in the event you have a failure (you will I already have). Don't worry, DP has been great about it, EXCELLENT warranty.

*#04 Found something which looks like this one with my

 

[the Swede]

Man... Gulf Hunter, You are awesome!!!

 

[grumpyolman]

There are some different waders that are made out of wet suit material and have an enclosed boot. That's to make it NOT work like a wet suit and warm you with the non-circulated cold water you have warmed with your skin. You can choose a true wading shoe, with felt soles ( to reduce slipping on slimy rocks), or you can just put an old pair of tenny runners. The down side is they are not as easy to put on as the waders you showed and you will float BUTT UP if you get knocked off your feet so that life jacket others have mentioned is really a good idea, no matter what you finally choose to use. Get one of the Coast Guard approved inflatable type as you won't even know it's on until you need it.
I would suggest that you also rent a dry suit and a wet suit and spend a day using each. Some wet suits are really uncomfortable and restrict movement and there are also draw backs to dry suits. The most useless thing about a dry suit is you have to get into it somehow through a waterproof zipper. The one I had a zipper on the back. I had to find someone to zip the thing up when I went by myself or I had to make some contraption to hook to the car and then hook to the zipper and would maneuver my body to close the zipper. Some dry suits have the zipper located so you can do it solo, but it's important to consider that. Dry suits have more maintenance issues than wet suits but they are warmer and more comfortable...and expensive.
I use similar waders as you pictured when surf fishing the Pacific on the West Coast and I can tell you that I am good for about an hour even when wearing Smart Wool underwear and polar fleece. The waders lose lots of body heat through the water as it comes around you, The when the waves go away, the wind also cools the wet wader surface. It's like wearing an evaporative air conditioner. Lots to consider but do it right the first time. Regards...Jim

 

[Gulf Hunter]

I replied, in detail on the Excal forum.

 

[foot69]

A Good winter surfing wetsuit and Booties will help keep you warm and they wont restrict your movement very much.
I surf year round in Victoria Aus, and water temp gets down to 12 celcius. A good wetsuit is still OK after a couple of hours in the water, most of the time is stting on the board with in the wind, the recent models come with a wind resistant outer lining an a thermal inner lining. As everyone else has said, waders can be a death trap if there are any waves about. Sandshoes will let you lose a lot of heat through your feet.