Wizard 5 metal detector laser line pointing precisely at a bent nail on a flat surface

What to Do When Your Metal Detector Finds Something

You're scanning a board and the alert fires. Now what?

This is where a lot of woodworkers — especially newer ones — aren't sure what to do next. The detection is only half the job. Here's the full protocol for handling a metal find correctly, from alert to clear-to-cut. For the full scanning technique that gets you to this point, see our step-by-step scanning guide.

Step 1: Stop and Hold Position

The moment you hear the alert or see the LED light up, stop moving the detector. Don't keep sweeping past the signal — you'll lose the precise location. Hold the detector in place and note where you are on the board.

Step 2: Pinpoint the Location

With the Lumber Wizard 5: The laser line is your pinpointing tool. It projects onto the wood surface at the point of detection, showing you the exact location of the hidden metal. Mark that spot with a pencil or chalk before you move anything.

With the Little Wizard 2.5: Watch the LED bar graph while slowly moving the detector back and forth across the alert area. The signal will peak when you're directly over the metal. Mark the center of the peak signal.

Slow, small movements get you the most accurate location. The goal is to find the spot where the signal is strongest.

Step 3: Assess Your Options

Once you've marked the location, you have three choices:

Option 1: Remove the metal. This is the preferred approach for most situations. Use a nail puller, pliers, or a magnet to extract the fastener completely. This takes more time but leaves you with a full, usable board.

Option 2: Cut around it. If the metal is near an edge or end, you may be able to crosscut or rip it out of the usable portion of the board. Make sure your cut takes a safe margin around the detected location.

Option 3: Reject the board. If the metal is centrally located, deeply embedded, or there are multiple hits, sometimes the right call is to set the board aside. The cost of a blade or cutterhead is always more than the cost of one piece of lumber. See exactly what that blade strike costs if you guess wrong.

Step 4: Extract Completely

If you're removing the fastener, get all of it out. Broken shanks, bent staple legs, and partial nails are common — and they're just as dangerous as the original fastener. Use a magnet to check the extraction area for small fragments you might have missed.

Step 5: Re-Scan the Area

After extraction, re-scan the entire area where the metal was found. This confirms the extraction is complete and checks for additional metal nearby. It's common to find a second nail or staple close to the first — especially in pallet wood and old framing lumber.

Scan at least 6" in every direction from the original detection point.

Step 6: Final Full-Board Scan

Once you've resolved the alert and re-scanned the extraction area, complete your full-board scan if you haven't already. A single detection doesn't mean the rest of the board is clean. Finish your passes on both faces, all edges, and both ends before calling the board clear.

Clear to Cut

Only after a complete scan with no remaining alerts is the board ready for the planer, jointer, table saw, or router. That's the protocol — and it's the same whether you found one nail or five.

Scan it. Find it. Remove it. Then cut.

Want complete coverage? The Lumber Wizard 5 + Little Wizard 2.5 Bundle gives you fast wide-board scanning and precision edge detection in one kit — at a better value than buying separately.

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About this article: This article was prepared with AI assistance and reviewed by Wizard Industries, Inc. for accuracy based on our experience designing and selling woodworking metal detectors since 1999.

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