📚 Buying Guides
Frequencies, discrimination, ground balance — what to know first.
Metal Detecting in Kentucky: State Parks, Local Bans & the Antiquities Act (2026)
Kentucky State Parks ban metal detecting outright — only park staff, law enforcement, and utility crews may carry one, with no lost-item or hobbyist exception at all. Louisville's 122 Metro Parks add a local ban, while Bowling Green allows daylight detecting in most city parks. Here's what's actually legal in Kentucky.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting in Tennessee: State Parks, TVA Lakes & River Law (2026)
Tennessee State Parks prohibit metal detecting outright, with only a narrow lost-item exception supervised by the park manager — no general permit path exists. TVA-managed lakes and reservoirs ban detecting entirely and claim any artifacts as federal property. Rivers and lakes outside TVA control are generally open. Here's what's actually legal.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting in South Carolina: State Parks, Beaches & River Law (2026)
South Carolina state parks are closed to metal detecting by default, opening only with a signed park-manager permit — and never at State Historic Sites. Beaches are generally open but Myrtle Beach caps holes at 2 feet, and rivers require an SCIAA license that specifically excludes metal detecting. Here's what's actually legal.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting in Virginia: State Parks, Battlefields & the Antiquities Act (2026)
Virginia has no general metal detecting permit — state parks allow it only at six man-made lake beaches with a DCR special use permit, and the Virginia Antiquities Act makes disturbing artifacts on state land or battlefields a criminal offense. Here's what's actually legal.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting in New York: State Parks, NYC Parks & Long Island Beaches (2026)
New York runs two separate permit systems for metal detecting — a $40/year NYS Parks permit for mapped beach areas on Long Island, and a free NYC Parks application for open fields in the five boroughs. Here's how each one actually works.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting in Georgia: The Park Ban, the Gold Belt & the Coast (2026)
Georgia doesn't just restrict digging like most states — O.C.G.A. § 12-3-10(n) bans possessing a metal detector in any state park, historic site, or recreational area. Here's where detecting is actually legal: the Dahlonega gold belt, national forest land, and specific beaches.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting in Colorado: State Parks, BLM Gold Ground & Active Claims (2026)
Where metal detecting is actually legal in Colorado in 2026 — state parks allow swinging a coil but ban digging, BLM and national forest land welcome recreational prospecting, and Cripple Creek's gold country is riddled with active mining claims you need to check first.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting in Florida: Laws, Beaches & the 50-Year Rule (2026)
Where metal detecting is legal in Florida in 2026 — the toe-of-dune state park rule, Chapter 267's 50-year felony threshold, and why the Treasure Coast's Spanish-fleet history comes with salvage-lease no-go zones.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting in Arizona: BLM Gold Land vs. the State Park Ban (2026)
Where metal detecting is actually legal in Arizona in 2026 — why every state park bans it outright while BLM land and six national forests welcome gold prospectors, plus the state trust land permit trap.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting in Texas: Laws, Beaches & the 50-Year Rule (2026)
Where metal detecting is legal in Texas in 2026 — the Texas Antiquities Code's 50-year artifact rule, which Gulf beaches stay open, and why Padre Island National Seashore is a hard no.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting in North Carolina: Laws, Best Beaches & Parks (2026)
Where metal detecting is legal in North Carolina in 2026 — why state parks are almost entirely off-limits, which Outer Banks and coastal beaches stay open, and what to know before you dig.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting in Ohio: Laws, Best Parks & Sites (2026)
Where metal detecting is legal in Ohio in 2026 — the state's beach-and-mowed-area rule for state parks, the best public sites for coins and relics, and what to know before you dig.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting in Michigan: Laws, Best Beaches & Sites (2026)
Where metal detecting is legal in Michigan in 2026 — DNR state park rules, the best Great Lakes beaches and old-town sites, and the detector setup that handles Michigan's mineralized sand.
Buying GuidesMetal Detector Settings Explained: How to Dial In Sensitivity, Discrimination & Recovery Speed (2026)
A beginner's walkthrough for setting up a metal detector before your first hunt — sensitivity, discrimination, ground balance, and recovery speed explained in plain language with real starting numbers.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting Finds: How to Identify, Clean (or Not), and Value What You Dig Up (2026)
What you'll actually pull out of the ground metal detecting, how to tell a silver coin from clad, why cleaning a find can wreck its value, and how to get a real appraisal — with the tools to do it safely.
Buying GuidesIs Metal Detecting Worth It? The Real Costs vs. What You'll Actually Find (2026)
Metal detecting rarely pays for itself in cash — average clad-coin finds run under $1 per hour. Here's the honest math on cost, time, and what actually makes the hobby worth it.
Buying GuidesCan You Take a Metal Detector on a Plane? TSA Rules Explained (2026)
Yes — TSA allows metal detectors in both carry-on and checked bags, but full-size machines almost always need to fly checked. Here's how to pack one without a hassle.
Buying GuidesCan Metal Detectors Detect Plastic? No — Here's the Physics Behind Why (2026)
No — metal detectors cannot detect plastic, and it's not a settings issue. Plastic is an electrical insulator, so it can't produce the eddy current a detector's coil relies on. Here's why, and the one exception that trips people up.
Buying GuidesCan Metal Detectors Detect Gold? Yes — Here's Why It's Harder Than Coins (2026)
Metal detectors can absolutely find gold, but nuggets are harder to detect than coins. Here's the conductivity and frequency science, plus the machines built specifically for it.
Buying GuidesDoes Aluminum Foil Set Off a Metal Detector? Why It's the #1 Junk Target (2026)
Yes — aluminum foil sets off metal detectors, and it's the most-dug trash target in the hobby. Here's why foil reads in the same range as gold jewelry, and how to dig less of it.
Buying GuidesMulti-Frequency Metal Detectors Explained: VLF vs. Multi vs. PI (2026)
What a multi-frequency metal detector actually does differently from single-frequency VLF and pulse induction, when the extra cost pays off, and which multi-frequency machines are worth buying in 2026.
Buying GuidesDo Metal Detector Apps Actually Work? The Truth for 2026
Free "metal detector" phone apps can't detect metal at all — here's why the physics makes it impossible, and what beginners should buy instead to actually find something this weekend.
Buying GuidesHow Much Does a Metal Detector Cost in 2026? Real Prices by Tier
What a metal detector actually costs in 2026, broken down by budget, beginner, mid-range, and flagship tier — plus the real total once you add a pinpointer, digging tool, and headphones.
Buying GuidesHow Does a Metal Detector Work? Electromagnetic Induction Explained (2026)
The physics behind every metal detector on the market — electromagnetic induction, the VLF vs. pulse induction vs. BFO technologies, and how target ID actually reads what's in the ground.
Buying GuidesGround Balance Explained: What It Is and How to Set It (2026)
What ground balance actually cancels out, why the entire Garrett ACE line skips it, and the four ways detectors handle it — one-button auto, manual, terrain-tracking, and Fisher's trigger FastGrab.
Buying GuidesMetal Detector Target ID Numbers Explained (2026)
What the 0-99 and VDI number scales on Garrett and Minelab detectors actually mean, why a nickel and a pull tab can read almost identically, and how to use target ID without over-trusting it.
Buying GuidesMetal Detector Coil Guide: DD vs. Concentric Coils Explained (2026)
What a Double-D coil actually does differently from a concentric coil, when coil size trades depth for separation, and when it's worth buying an aftermarket coil instead of a new detector.
Buying GuidesHow Deep Can Metal Detectors Detect? Frequency, Coil Size & Soil Explained (2026)
Why no manufacturer publishes a detection-depth spec, the four variables that actually decide how deep your detector reaches, and which machines are built for maximum depth in 2026.
Buying GuidesIs Metal Detecting Legal? Federal, State & Private Land Rules (2026)
Where metal detecting is actually legal in 2026 — why it's banned outright in national parks, permitted in national forests, permit-by-park in state parks, and always fine on your own land.
Buying GuidesMetal Detector Rental: Is Renting Worth It, or Should You Just Buy? (2026)
What metal detector rental actually costs in 2026, real per-day and per-week rates from working rental shops, and the break-even math that shows when renting beats buying — and when it doesn't.
Buying GuidesMetal Detecting for Beginners: The Complete 2026 Start Guide
How to start metal detecting the right way in 2026 — the three settings that matter, where you're allowed to swing, how to dig a clean plug, and the starter kit that finds coins on day one.
Buying GuidesIs Amazon Prime Worth It for Metal Detecting Shoppers? (2026)
Prime costs $139/yr and needs ~20 small orders to pay for itself. Detectorists place about five. Here's the honest math — plus the dealer bundle that beats free shipping outright.