You hunt the beach on a regular basis but don't seem to find the things that others find. Well here I hope to give you some information that will help. I'm not an artist so the pictures are not the best.

 Also I am by no means an expert. I am self taught. I done a bunch of reading and trying different things out in the field. I have found what works for me and what don't. And when I think something don't work there is always a time where it proves me wrong, so keep an open mind.

 The people that you see with a collection that you would just love to find are obviously successful. You may or may not have the kind of success that they have. One question people ask is what am I doing wrong? The questions you should ask are, how long have you been detecting? How many times a week do you go out? How long have you used that model detector. You will find that most successful hunters are ones that go out every chance they get. They have done it for a few years and they have used the same machine(s) for a long time. I say machines because one detector may excel in an area that another don't.

 Also, every detector review you read is not truthful. I don't care what magazine you read it in. If advertisers have full page space in their mags then you will never know the whole truth. Truth is EVERY detector has its shortcomings, period! They are not all winners in all types of soil conditions. And the thing I love the best is how they all go to a place they hunted for years and just started to pull things out of the ground that were not there with their normal detector. Do some research before buying a new detector. Ask people questions. Take the reviews for what they are worth. I would love to read a review that started off... "This is the biggest piece of crap I ever swung!" Thats one headline that is not going to happen.

 Always remember you can't find it if it is not lost. People and the beach do not mean that there is a wealth of finds there.

 I won't speak about about any on particular metal detector. Most will work in the dry sand. You just have to play with the settings. Wet sand is another story. Then you will need a water machine as the mineral content will likely cause havoc with a unit not made to handle all that salt.

Discrimination is a bit over used. Unless you are looking for something specific then keep it turned down. You can easily walk over gold items if the setting is to high.

Take a nickel, put the nickel in the sand and set the detector to pick up that nickel. If you can't pick up that nickel with your current settings then you know discrimination is set too high.

 A lower discrimination level also allows you to decide what to dig and what not to dig. I have dug items I thought for sure were junk and it was a gold ring. And I have also thought I had gold and had junk.

 Yes, running a lower discrimination level will cause you to dig pull tabs and junk but its something you are going to have to do in order to get the good stuff. Pull tabs can sound just like gold and visa versa.

 Here is a term you may not have heard of. Coil compression. As you raise the discrimination level you actually loose area in which you coil will detect. This is why all metal mode will detect deeper.

 Keep the coil low and even to the ground. You want to overlap your swings by at least 50% if you are using a round coil. A round coil produces a signal that is cone shaped.

 Sweep speed is another item that seems to be of question. Place some items on the ground, far enough apart and so you don't get two hits at the same time. Using your normal speed go over these items. If you don't get the desired result adjust your speed up or down till you hear every target. Different detectors have different sweep speeds. This is a good way to find out what works best for you.

 A sweep that is shaped like a  Z also will do you no good. Yes you will find stuff and you may be getting gold but what about the stuff you missed?

  The black dots are the coil,  the red area represents the areas that the coil does not cover then you don't know what is under that area. Not a good pattern.

 A coil that is not even with the ground is also no good. Swinging it like a pendulum is useless. When you start lifting the coil from the ground on either side you are losing depth and finds.

The black line is the bottom of your coil. The dots are targets at 6 inches. Your detector can only detect 6 inches deep. I think its self explanatory. The black line is in the shape of a U.

  Most important thing I can say is slow down. All to often I see people racing around the beach. Its not a race. Its a big beach\area and you can't cover it all in a days time no matter what you do.

 A couple of different times I have seen these two guys who were hunting the same beach I was. I never had a chance to say hello, so I don't know them. Anyhow, they are swinging like there is no tomorrow. Coil is not level to the round, the search pattern is in a really big Z and they a leave all the crap they find on the ground. Yes this is TRUE. So this one time I decide to walk behind them and hunt the same area guy A is checking. Although it is not much I did walk away with some clad coins that he missed. I did also get a silver ring that was about one foot away from the two pieces of junk they had to dig and leave.

  Dry sand hunting is pretty easy. People always say to go and see where the people are during the day and then go back and hunt those spots. While this is true you can find items by reading the beach first. I'm going to try to point out some things you may not have read. And some things you have read.

 For instance. On the high part of the beach is a lot of foot prints all jumbled up together. Where they kids horsing around, people playing football? It just shows signs of what could a mistake of someone's part. Check that area they may have had jewelry fall off and all that horsing around gets it covered by sand fast.

 Entrances to the beach make a good change finding spot. When people go back to the parking meter to feed it they grab some change out of their pockets just as they are about to exit the beach.

 The usual spots like the cabanas, concession stands, park benches on the beach. They are good spots to check also.

 While at the beach look for where the people are. But pay attention to where some of the sunbathers are. They are usually out of the way and facing the sun for that tan. While it may not be the best producing spots, they do put on suntan lotion and its slippery. And when they get hot they go in the water for a quick cooling off. Water, slippery lotion and rings make a good combination for a lost item.

 Never get the idea that there is nothing at that section of beach. You never know where you will find stuff.

 Also don't think a beach is hunted out. Its always being replenished. I have been to the same beach for two weeks in a row ( just for 2 days, total of 5 hours ) and pulled out about 120 coins, a pair of glasses, fake ring. While this is not anything to brag about, every little bit helps.

 On the other hand if you are not finding anything don't be afraid to pack up and go elsewhere.

 Ever dig a hole in the sand to find there is no target? Try moving the sand around. It is possible that the object is now on edge and not easily detected. Sometimes this method works to get the target back to a flatter resting position. Sometimes I still can't find the target. I guess its just magic.

 Was there any heavy wave action that cut into the beach? If sand is missing and there is a drop off created by the water then check that drop off. And by drop off I mean 2 to 6 inch step down from the dry sand to the high tide mark. Check the very top of the dry sand and also walk along the wet sand by the drop off. If you find something in the wet sand area then turn towards the water and detect the sand going down to the water. You will find that coins get flipped up on the dry sand and lots of goodies that are just under the wet sand.

  Instead of the beach sloping at a even pace, the waves created a drop off point in the sand. When I see the beach is like this I start my search by looking at the water side of the cut ( pink dot ). If I can I will check the top ( black dot ) and the sides at the same time. When you find something in the cut area stop, turn towards the water and check the wet sand right up to the water line. I can tell you that I have found more doing this then just heading on down the beach. Most of the items found in the top and the cut are coins, but there is always a chance for gold.

 Mostly all your finds on the beach will be freshly lost. The older stuff is buried deep ( depending on sand makeup ) and requires a storm to remove some sand.

 Any depression in the dry sand is a good place to look. Even if it was made by a child or a large area made by the water.

 The middle part of the beach can also get eaten away. Sometimes the water makes a cut in the sand in on spot. The water then goes further and further in the beach. Depending on the severity of it it will take out top sand in the middle of the beach and make it look like a lake in the center. This is the best spot to hit. The water enters in one area and comes out in one area taking sand with it. You just need to walk along in the pit that was created and gobble up the goodies.

View of beach from the top. Blue is water, darker brown is normal beach, lighter brown is area taken away from the water entering one spot.

 Also don't forget rocks. As the water is taking away items, if a rock happens to be in the way it will get stopped by it. Check by them.

 Granted most of your finds at the beach are going to be clad coins. But look at it this way. Those coins add up. You need batteries, you have to pay for your unit somehow, maybe an accessory or two.

 Look at your finds. Are the pennies almost eaten away? Find silver that has really turned black? If you found them in a depression on the beach then start going over the area slowly. When you start pulling up things that have been in the ground for awhile its time to really pay attention.

 Before you go water hunting WEAR SHOES! You will see what I mean after you start digging glass bottles and other junk people just had to use the water for as a garbage can. Water shoes are cheap enough and beat the hell out of cutting your foot.

 If your detector allows you to go into the water then take a moment to look out at the waves. Are there any that are not breaking in the same spot as the others? Yes. Then check that area. Are there any darker blue areas? Perhaps a dip in the sand before the sand bar. Low spots are good starting points and produce the most stuff to find.

 When you do find something. Take a moment to search the area towards the shoreline and out a bit deeper. This find may be a loner or it may have some buddies also waiting discovery. This holds true when there was a storm that passed through. It does not have to be a big storm. Just something to get the water churning. A passing cold front may also do the trick. When stuff gets washed out from the beach they tend to stick together.

 Here is one that works really well. I hunt the shallow water along the coast line. I walk up & down the beach. Whenever there has been some rough seas and I am out there the next day I change nothing until I find either a quarter or a nickel. They are both heavy. If I am in towards the shoreline and I get a quarter I then head out to deeper water. Since there is sand missing from the beach there is a good chance there are lighter items further out. I don't go much further either. Maybe another 20 feet out. When you start finding dimes that is when the finds usually stop.  This pattern works about 80% of the time and seems to only work with quarters or nickels. Pennies or dimes tend to yield nothing walking further out. So far no rings have been found with this pattern but that will change one day.

 There are a few methods out there to find out where the water deposits items because two items of similar weight tend to end up in just about the same place. You always hear people say they found a hot spot. Theses methods include taking a string connected to a weight with a bobber at the other end and tossing it in the water. After a tide cycle you can find the bobber and see where your weight ended up. Do this with several weights at the same time and you can get a general area of where targets may wind up. Of course I can't see myself doing this at a public beach. I don't think people would leave the stuff alone. You would have to do it during the night and get there early in the morning.

 Don't overlook the other parts of the water either. You will see people out chest deep, but there is also mom and dad playing with their child and they are only knee deep. Suntan lotion and cool water, it does not matter where they are they will lose stuff.

 Out of the way places in the water might also surprise you. Don't think that just because you would not go there that there is nothing to be found. I made that mistake and was quickly corrected. While walking out in the water around a part of the beach where a few trees grow at the water line I decided not to swing in that part as there was no beach access because of the trees. I got a hit while walking and decided to check the area. Although they were just clad coins I could have past up a ring by just walking by.

 The use of a floating sifter may help digging  in the wet sand. But I have heard it can really beat the hell outta you in rough water.

 And what about empty cigarette packs. Yep thats what I said. Pick them up and take them to the trash like everything else you find is junk. But with the empties you may find money inside or in the wrapper. Could be a ring that somebody put in there as not to lose it, only to be a litter bug and leave the empty on the beach.

 Listen to your machine. It may be old or it may be a newer model without all the bells and whistles or it could be the top of the line for that manufacture. But listen to it. Learn what it is trying to tell you. A successful hunter is one that know what his machine is saying.

 Also try to guess what it is before you dig it. This is a good way to get to know what you are being told.

How does your machine tell you there is a penny & gold in the same spot. Or 2 good targets along with a pop top?

 Speaking of which. We don't have crystal balls. We can't see past the sand, that's why we use a metal detector. When you dig a piece of junk put it in a pouch and take it with you. All too many times I have seen a pop top on the top of the sand only to find a coin in the same area. That junk may not be the only target around or in the hole.

 Research. What do you mean research? For a beach? YES. A beach I hunt turns out had a hotel on it that burnt down in the early 20th century. This hotel was right on the beach. A lot of sand has since gone and the chance of finding anything are slim. But, if a storm happens to come by and remove a lot of the top sand away it just may expose a few goodies left in a time where women did not show any of their legs in a bathing suit. Also there is a claim of gold coins from an off shore wreck that washes ashore during the right conditions.

 What about a spot that used to be popular but now is not. A little research can go along way. Its not just for ghost towns or old camps.

 Search patterns. There are a bunch of different ideas out there on what to do. Search however you feel comfortable. If walking up and down the beach makes you happy then do it.

 If you are lucky enough you can tell where you walked so you don't go over the same place twice. But if not I have seen people dragging their scoop behind them so it makes a line in the sand.

 Don't forget to check the tide charts. Low tide will get you further out in the water. But the ideal tide for myself is a minus low tide. A minus low will take out more water with it. Very helpful when the water is cold or you don't have a water proof detector.

 Well that is all I have for now. Any questions or complaints can be e-mailed to Beachnut@thingforum.com