F350Platinum

Thanks Colonel! 🫡 I probably couldn't have come down here at a worse time, I would imagine that even after a hurricane it's better. 🙄 There is literally nothing on the beach, almost all finds for the past week are a foot deep, and you have to get creative (but not break the law) to find anything. Guess you're no stranger to that. I'm grateful to have a couple of powerful detectors that can hit stuff deep, but all the really good stuff is gone since about the 31st of January. I'm also grateful to be here. 🙂 🍀

Tough conditions, and the flip side of what I'm experiencing on the beach here in Florida. Congrats on finding anything! The same results in different medium. Were I home, I'd be taking videos of my shovel skimming across the ice, and here, the oatmeal sand makes you not want to walk on it for fear of sinking up to your neck. 🙄 I'm happy to find a Zincoln. 😵 I guess it's not much different than a prospector who finds some tiny gold, enough small potatoes still fill a pound bag. Nice to see another "reality" post! 🍀

Those birds are Willets, the largest Sandpiper in the US. 🤔 I saw a group of a much smaller variety on one leg, and for a split second thought it must be something in the water... 🤣 Seriously, the worst part is the "gulls" here are missing for the most part, you'd think the ladies would show up in their string bikinis for a good skin treatment from the blowing sand, it's been really windy. 🙄 I saw one young woman dig a shallow hole the size of her frame, and dug her folded chair sideways behind her head to block the wind. I told her she won the Smartest person on the Beach Award... 🍀

Thank you Shojo, I actually laughed out loud when I found it, so many tells that it was fake, but again the best fake I've found. 🤣 Most important was depth, next the fact that I was on the Space Coast. It was only about 6" deep, I've been hitting Zincolns at over a foot, so I know I'm doing ok. 😅 Joe D is too now he switched to Dankowski, but it's kinda disappointing to dig 2' for a crappy coin, especially in the surf. 🫤 Right now ya get what ya get. I love talking to people about the hobby, and have even tried to help older people, but you know what is said about training old dogs. 🙄 I also have a lot of great answers to the usual dumb questions, and some of them might make my wife mad 😅 My favorite right now for "I get your next diamond ring" is "No, you'll have to fight my wife for it, and she'll kick your ass" 🤣 Seriously, I take karma where I can get it. 🍀

Appreciate the feedback, G-G. 🙂 I know my posts after the first two are kinda polished turds, and my apologies to the hardcore guys. 🤷‍♂️ It's kinda embarrassing really, but I'm hardcore too. Still learning how to be moreso. There just isn't anything here. 🫤 I'm as shocked as the next guy, but as Joe D. told me, "people need to see reality now and again". 🤔 It's winter, and Florida has had record low temps. There was significant erosion when I first got here, but not significant like after a hurricane. Just like that,🫰 most of it is gone now. I know I'm good enough after 6 years of this, and owning and using the two best detectors money can buy. I'm giving back in a way, y'all made me what I am. 🏆 🍀

Thanks! We are ambassadors of this hobby, if we maintain high standards, we all win. 🙂 We all run into some people that don't deserve respect or kindness, thankfully they are few. Overall the beach seems to make everyone happy. 😅 We walk softly on the beach and carry big sticks 😏 I don't think I've ever had a bad day detecting. 🤔 🍀

One of the nicer days here in Florida, it's starting to warm up a little, but not enough to bring out the sun worshippers in their skimpy clothes, with blankets and towels and lost change and jewelry. It only got to about 70 today, with a north-northeast wind off the water. The Ocean is about 64 degrees, so it's instant air conditioning with the wind no matter how warm the air. Some scalloping is beginning to appear, but early on the sand was like oatmeal, very loose and squishy, which is an indicator that the good stuff sunk deeper, something I learned from Joe D. He will leave a beach if it's like that. I hunted the dry, there were detectorists all over the place, it being a warmer day than it has been. One guy I guess was so desperate to find something he was hunting the dune, which is not a good thing and makes us look bad. 🫤 All I found on the dry was a fresh dropped dime. I was waiting for the tide to go out, and hunted the wet and wash on the way back to the hotel. On the way I encountered two people, one a man who was just starting detecting, he asked for advice and I helped him. The only thing he was really not doing well was keeping his coil flat and close to the ground while sweeping. I emphasized that if he wants to find gold, it's going to be at most 8" deep if the detector is powerful, and if he was swinging his coil 8" above the sand he would miss it. I pointed out other guys that were doing that. 😅 The other was a kid with his Mom and Dad, they watched me for a while and motioned for me to come over. They wanted the boy to talk to me and give him some advice for beach hunting. He had a cheap beep and dig detector, but I didn't disrespect that, I just gave him the same advice as the other gentleman, and told his folks to keep him in the dry because the salt in the wet would make everything sound like a target, even nothing. They asked what I find and I showed them all my pics of finds over the last year. The boy was excited! Karma. 🤷‍♂️ It was another pretty find free day, here's my trash: Not bad, I'm getting used to the junk here, but one stainless washer and one screw got me, so I guess I was screwed. 😅 Ok on to the subject, Spanish Gold. This beach was more in the Space Coast than the Treasure Coast, but this find (a 75 on the Manticore) got me: One of the best Spanish coin fakes I've found so far! It's metal. The other side is even more convincing: A pretty detailed copy of a 1731 2 real, Potosi mint... Except the fact that if this coin were a real real 😏, it would be silver. 🙄 Recognized that instantly. So, yet another hunt that produced next to nothing, the guy I gave tips to got 2 dimes, one more than me 🤣 Still, I considered it a great day. 🍀

Thanks RVP, Rolling the double 6's today. 🥳 I'm surprised they're not using Snowmobiles uptah camp. 🤔 I'm impressed by how tough it is to find much here, while there have been spectacular finds, it's very humbling to come back with less than $1 most days. Went from riches to rags. 🫤 Asked the hotel manager if she sees much detecting activity at the beach here, she says in 6 years she hasn't seen more than a handful. When I got back there were two guys gridding the beach here, both had Equinoxes, they dug tons of iron. Got me to thinking about my Equinox days, and I realized they must be digging it all because back when I joined the forum that's what I was reading (and doing). I like having a choice with the Manticore, everything that sounds like iron is iron, I don't miss that. 😅 The one iron item I checked was a screw from an obviously destroyed wooden access staircase. Too much Voodoo. Guess I'm spoiled by detectors that are more accurate. This is a beautiful hotel albeit small, but every night at about 8 the lights flicker, and overnight the Internet goes out along with the digital thermostat. 😵 That may seem to be no big deal in Florida but this morning it's 52. Yesterday it was 38. Am I living in the future? 😬 Probably should have stayed at the Hilton. At least there one elevator worked all the time. 🤣 That's another thing, there are no fresh drops at all out there, not since the first day when it was 80. Lady Luck ain't with me weather-wise for fresh drops or butt floss. 🙄😏 Happy birthday to me... 🍀

Got an update: Two more hunts, same results, next to nothing. Florida beach hunting is tough due to all the competition, it was a cold day today too, the last really cold one I want to show you the condition that really gave me fits, the 3 wave phenomenon: Very short intervals, each one getting bigger, the last one pretty much overwhelming your dig. Lost a couple targets yesterday and one today to this. 🫤 I met Rich at a beach yesterday, we hunted for a few hours, and it was scarce as usual. It was blustery and kind of cold. We hunted the wet and dry, got there at low tide. Rich got a Quarter and some sinkers, and I got all of 4 Zincolns and some junk: Forgot to photograph the Zincolns before putting them in the finds bag. I'm sure you've all seen them. 😅 Today I hunted North from my hotel, it's right on the beach so all I have to do is walk outside. In total I walked about 4 miles, 2 up, 2 back, from my hotel to the place we were yesterday and back to the hotel. There hasn't been a really warm day in a week or so, people had to dust off their coats for morning temps from 24 to 40. 🥶 For them it's been rough, for me it's kinda typical. I hunted the wet north, and the dry south. More targets in the wet! Today was a little better, got all these: But it's still not much. Funky trash for me today: Huge stinker. 🙄 Old flip phone and other junk. Saw some cool stuff today: A "Gafftopsail Catfish", never seen one before, And another 9 armed Star in the brush. I'm sure getting a trial under fire here. 🍀

Is this for every coil? I can handle brain overload, 😏 but does it apply to all 4? I've found each to be different with response, EMI, ground conditions, etc.

Welcome from Virginia, displaced to Florida for a while but it's still cold. 😵 Lots of great info here for reading until it warms up and the ice is gone. You couldn't have picked a better forum. 🍀

That would be pretty cool, Steve H. willing. 😅 I've found lots of "shipwreck" type silver, but usually where ships "wrecked" in Northern Virginia farms. 😎🤣 I did score a 2 Maravedis copper on a beach in the Outer Banks last summer, that is a shipwreck coin. 1660s.

Thanks Colonel, Luckily it's been more 'givething' than 'takething', I've found more targets in the wet than last year anyway. 🤷‍♂️ Still got another week to score big, but the tides are not in favor 🫤

Wow mn, You really knocked it out of of the park, and thanks for the kind tribute. 🙂 That's a nice chunky gold! 🥳 Now you have to take someone out to dinner 🤔 🤣 The other rings are silver or Stainless/TungTanium? They look nice regardless, hope ya have a diamond tester. 😏 A ring is a ring. 🏆 Last night I joined @Joe D.'s metal detecting club, TCAS, Or Treasure Coast Archaeological Society. We had a special guest who is also a member, but that will be a post on its own. 😎 I expect we'll be back every year for my birthday, so I can pay my dues. 😅

Thanks JCR, I've been reading that, and originally speculated that the stereo would probably be a "dramatic" improvement in target location. Not sure what this "AM" is but I'll have to watch the videos and read some more. Moving to my new hotel today, and it's raining. 🫤 All I need is stability across all coils, and the ability to use the HF2 without a lot of iron falsing. 🤔