We feel the need to reiterate that the wonders of metal detecting cannot be understated. It is a hobby that has drawn the attention of hundreds of thousands of people around the world; an immensely rewarding one which sharpens a person’s focus and encourages patience.
People are also able to find antique materials and sell them for a fortune. Some other people go down the path of starting a collection, which is an equally engaging hobby. As a starter, you might not get much luck with finding anything. This is not because you are bad at it, or because the hobby itself is pointless; it is because you lack information about how to go about it. This article is here to enlighten you.
In our previous article, we went through a few things a person would need to do metal detecting. This list consisted of things like batteries, probes, shovels, scoops, headphones, metal detectors, etc. The primary accessory within this group is the metal detector. The metal detector is a hand-held portable electric device that uses electromagnetic induction signals to find buried metals. Without it, all other accessories are null and useless. Considering the fact that it is central to the adventure, novices should focus their investments on one that is high quality.
Features To Look Out For In A Metal Detector
When we say “invest”, we aren’t asking you to go haywire on the expenses associated with metal detectors. You definitely have to be generous with your wallet’s contents if you are going to get any metal detector at a worthy price, however, it pays to watch out for what features the metal detector you are going to get has. We would go through some of these features in the list below:
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Sensitivity
This is the ultimate decider of how powerful your metal detector is. It is a measure of your metal detector’s ability to detect buried metals. The higher the sensitivity of a metal detector, the farther it can detect objects, and the smaller the object it can detect. This is very necessary, considering the fact that metals erode when left under the soil for so long.
These days, it is easy to find metal detectors with very high sensitivities. The baseline for performance measurement of the metal detectors on the market is expressed in terms of the size or diameter of a given sphere, which is made of a chosen material. The material is usually metallic and can be ferrous or non-ferrous. As the least possible detectable size of the metal increases, the sensitivity of the metal detector reduces.
While this is easy to understand, things aren’t so clear-cut in real life. There are many factors that contribute to the sensitivity of a metal detector, and these would be discussed in a later article.
Sensitive metal detectors make things easier for people who use them. Needless to say, these are the metal detectors you should aim for.
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Detection mode
This is a feature of most modern metal detectors in which they easily differentiate between various types of treasures. The detection mode on metals can filter what kind of things you want to focus on, be they coins, heirlooms, boxes, jewels, artillery, etc.
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Discrimination
Some metals are basically useless, while some are valuable. You would want your metal detector to be able to distinguish different kinds of metals, depending on the kind you are looking for. The lower-end ones aren’t very signal specific, the higher-end ones on the other hand, have high discrimination abilities.
Discrimination is basically the ability of your metal detector to filter and identify buried metals based on their conductivities and ferrous attributes. This is very important in metal detecting, considering the fact that it is a very time/energy-intensive hobby.
Although you are just walking around most of the time, it would definitely irk you if you spend time shovelling only to find that the metal picked up is something you do not want. Discrimination of a metal detector ignores the signals from certain kinds of metal and focuses on the ones you set them to pick.
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Coil size
The coil size in a metal detector directly affects both the sensitivity and the detection depth of the detector. Things get trickier here, though. It is difficult to say what size would suit you best because both coil sizes have their own benefits (some might say large coils edge over small coils, however).
Large coils are perfect for deep searches; the larger the coil, the deeper you would be able to search. The drawback to this is that large coils aren’t very sensitive to smaller-sized targets. They are also more liable to be disrupted by electromagnetic interference; this means that hobbyists would have to turn down the sensitivity in places where interference is immense.
Smaller coils do not have the reach of large coils, but they pick up small targets easier. They aren’t likely to be overrun by interference, and they can fit into smaller places easily.
Small coils are perfect for:
- Metal detectors for shallow targets
- Gold detectors detecting shallow nuggets
Large coils on the other hand are perfect for:
- Underwater metal detectors
- Metal detectors for long-range searches
- Detecting coins and treasure
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Operating Frequency
Frequency is another thing that affects the sensitivities of metal detectors. It is the rate at which waves are transmitted from a metal detector and into the ground. The lower the frequency of your metal detector, the easier it would be to detect metals that have low conductivities. The higher frequency detectors are the best metal detectors for gold and other metals like it, which have high conductivities. The best metal detectors overall with regards to frequency are those within the range of 5kHz to 15kHz.
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Ground balance
This is the ability of your detector to sift metals of different signals and focus on the ones you set them to find. It basically nullifies interference.
Conclusion
Now that you know quite enough about them, you probably would be looking for a metal detector hire or metal detectors for sale. Well, this is what we specialize in at Lucky Strike Gold. We are prospectors that cater to your metal detecting needs. We are one of the few gold detectors Australia has; we would be happy to help you. Contact us now!