01Legal routes by region and land manager
Rules & ground
Places & rules
Find the land manager, read the current rule, and confirm the exact boundary before you dig.
- US state guides
- European country rules
- Permits and boundaries
The legal-first metal detecting field guide
Metal detecting: know the ground before you dig.
Find legal ground in the United States, understand historic finds in Europe, match your detector to the target, and identify what you recover—in plain English.
- Official sources
- Legal-first
- Beginner clear
Choose your next step
Choose the job you need now.
Find legal ground, choose a detector, learn one field skill, identify a find, or start with the basics.
02Official specs and clear tradeoffs
Choose the machine
Detectors
Match a detector to your ground, water, targets, weight limit, and real starting budget.
- Beginner comparisons
- Beach and underwater machines
- Exact models, coils, and packages
03Step-by-step field lessons
Learn the movement
Techniques
Build repeatable field skills. Learn setup and coil movement, then practise signal checks, pinpointing and clean recovery.
- Coin shooting
- Small hammered targets
- Clean target recovery
04Visual coin identification charts
Read the object
Find identification
Record the clues before cleaning, then narrow the object family without damaging the find.
- US coins
- Roman coins
- Medieval hammered coins
05Complete first-hunt guides
Start from zero
Beginner guides
Follow one calm route from legal ground and a simple setup to your first neat recovery.
- Your first hunt
- Beginner checklists
- Permission and ethics
Two regional starting points
Coins in the US. Deeper history in Europe.
Start with the rules for your region. Then follow the guide that matches your ground, target, or find.
United States
Find legal ground and recover more coins.
Move from state rule to exact manager, then use coin-shooting settings and a U.S. size-and-design chart.
Start in the United StatesEurope
Understand the history before you clean or keep the find.
Choose the country rule, protect archaeological context, and identify Roman or medieval clues visually.
Start in EuropeUnited States launch atlas
Six states. One clear first check.
Each guide begins with who manages the ground. That answer matters more than a pin copied from a forum.
South
Texas
A permission-first guide with named USACE beach zones, a moving shoreline permit, and selected city parks.
- First check
- Site manager and written local rules
Varies by managerSoutheast
Florida
Eight source-checked routes separate open beach sand, permit ground, county no-go areas, and federal land.
- First check
- Beach, city, county, or park authority
Varies by siteWest
California
A land-manager-first route through a state with many overlapping local and protected-area rules.
- First check
- Exact managing agency for the parcel
New detectorist route
Your first good signal starts before you switch on.
Choose legal ground, pack the small essentials, keep the first settings simple, and learn one repeatable swing.
Read the beginner guide- 01Confirm the ground
Find the manager and read the current rule.
- 02Run a simple setup
Use a stable mode and moderate sensitivity.
- 03Cross-check the signal
Sweep from two directions before you dig.
- 04Leave no trace
Recover carefully, refill, and take your trash.
Start broad. Then practise one skill.
Beginner route first. Technique deep dives second.
Use the beginner guide for your first full hunt. Open a shorter lesson when you want to practise one skill.
Metal Detecting for Beginners
Your first legal place, stable setup, swing, signal, recovery, and cleanup—one step at a time.
Coin Shooting for Old Coins
Stable, model-independent settings, a clean search grid, signal checks, and careful recovery.
Finding Small Hammered Coins
Light discrimination, iron tradeoffs, overlapping sweeps, and context-safe recovery for thin targets.