Thomas Dankowski's Metal Detecting Forum

I'm thinking about getting the Manticore and the M8 in the spring.

I live in northern lower peninsula of Michigan. 30 miles south of the Mackinaw bridge that connects the upper peninsula of Michigan. Close to Lake Michigan and Lake huron with lots lakes and trout steams. Still a great area to live except for the snow in winter. Not the best area for detecting but I do what I can. My ground is very mild.

I'll be hunting the lakes in the spring.

Most of my 2 tracks are railroad grades from the lumbering days from 1840 to 1900. Every tree was cut down in Michigan. I've seen photos where there there wasn't a tree in sight. This caused some big fires at that time. I'm going to hunt the 2 tracks and open fields along it in the spring. Could be good. I haven't hunted that area before No emi there. Not much emi anywhere up here in Michigan.

Mild ground AND no EMI...... is a recipe for HIGH Sensitivity and great depth!

Yes...... I use ONLY the M8 coil on Manticore...... for ALL beach hunting.
Inland.. I use all 3 coils....... depending on conditions.

If you are hunting freshwater...... you may not need the M8 coil. The M9 or M11 should do the trick.
Close to RR tracks .... can be trashy!!!
It's a good thing that there is quite a bit of age to your RR tracks/system!

Tom... Do you use a threshold while hunting the salt beach? I have heard of some people using it, but I find the extra noise to be more than I need especially with high sensitivity. I currently have the sensitivity around 26 to 28 on the wet sand with the M8. Thanks Bob

Tom... Do you use a threshold while hunting the salt beach? I have heard of some people using one, but I find the extra noise to be more than I need especially with high sensitivity. I currently have the sensitivity around 26 to 28 on the wet sand with the M8 and just a hint of threshold at 3. Thanks Bob

Bob........ no. I keep threshold on 0. I do not use any form of threshold. Running a Sens of 30........ my ears could not handle any additional noise!

Thanks for the clarification on that!

Just make sure you get a good Ground Balance......VERY close to the water's edge! THIS is what allows you to run your Sens a bit higher.

Yes Tom, that's a good hunting practice to remember. I see GB numbers ranging from 5 at the water's edge to the high 20's on top of a slope filled with loose shells. At times I have used auto tracking when walking up and down the slope but prefer the fixed GB after a water's edge balance.