Metal Detecting FAQ's
How Do Metal Detectors Work?
Metal detectors work by transmitting an electromagnetic field from the search coil into the ground. Any metal objects (targets) within the electromagnetic field will become energised and retransmit an electromagnetic field of their own. The detector’s search coil receives the retransmitted field and alerts the user by producing a target response.
If you are new to metal detecting and want to learn everything you need to know before you start detecting, then have a read of Beginners Guide To Metal Detecting HERE.
Are Metal Detectors Hard To Use?
Modern metal detectors are designed to be user friendly and are very easy to learn and operate. Most metal detectors have large display screens with numerical target ID's that help you identify what your target might be before you dig it up. They can also discriminate between iron (junk) or potentially good targets, as well giving you other information such as target depth and size.
Some brands like Minelab and Quest, build their detectors with pre-programed settings, so you can easily select the mode for your ground conditions and target types and away you go.
Other makes, such as Teknetics and Bounty Hunter, use a more traditional approach, where you can make quick adjustments to your detector as the ground conditions change with the turn of a dial or a push of a button.
Are Metal Detectors Suitable for Kids?
Absolutely! Kids love getting out with a metal detector and seeing what they can find. Metal Detectors are very light, ranging from 1kg - 1.4kg on average. You can easily adjust the size of the shaft to suit your Child's height and there are detectors suited for kids aged 4 years up to teenagers, See our Kids Metal Detectors range HERE.
Can Metal Detectors Be Used On The Beach?
The short answer is yes they can. But not all metal detectors can handle the high salt and mineralisation found in wet sand. Most metal detectors can run smoothly on dry sand but not all can handle wet sand. Wet sand can make a detector become noisy and/or give off false signals due to it's high mineralisation. This can be very frustrating and can cause you to dig for no reason.
To make sure that you are getting the right detector for beach detecting please see our range of Beach Metal Detectors HERE.
Are Metal Detectors Waterproof?
All quality metal detectors come with a waterproof search coil which means that you can detect in shallow water, making sure not to get the control box wet. This allows you to hunt for treasure and gold in shallow creeks and along the shorelines of beaches, lakes and rivers.
If you are more adventurous and want to take your detecting below the waves, we stock a range of fully waterproof metal detectors that can be completely submerged underwater for all of your underwater detecting adventures.
Can All Metal Detectors Find Gold?
This is one of those questions that have a yes/no answer. While yes in theory any metal detector can find gold as gold is a metal, not all metal detectors can handle gold bearing ground.
Gold bearing ground is generally very highly mineralised which makes it difficult for standard metal detectors to operate. Mineralisation can cause many metal detectors to become noisy and very difficult to use.
Metal detectors suitable for gold detecting run at higher frequencies, so they can pick up gold better than treasure and coin detectors. They also have extra features to help make them run smooth and stable in gold bearing ground.
If you would like a detector that can detect gold as well as all other targets then have a look at our range of Gold Detectors HERE.
What Are Your Warranties?
Each brand we sell have different warranties and are all held here in Australia. Please see below for each manufacturers warranty:
- Teknetics: 5 Year Australian Warranty
- Bounty Hunter: 5 Year Australian Warranty
- Minelab: Up to 3 Years Australian Warranty
- Quest: 2 Year Australian Warranty
Is Shipping Free?
We know that shipping fees are never a fun thing, that's why we absorb all shipping fees on orders $99 and over.