How long has everyone been Detecting for?

[MightyMouse]

I started back in....... Hmmm have to think now lol I belive it was 1984ish. We were living in Scotland, my dad was into it and he had got me a Whites coin master i think. He was using a Bounty Hunter Red Baron(which i still have to this day) After Scotland he stop but i kept going with the hobby. Over the years i sorta quit for a little while but then got back into it. Still injoying the hobby like i did back in the day. HH John

 

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[Viddy]

Started about 3 months ago in August 2011. I started with a Xterra 705 and a lesche digger. a few weeks later figured I needed a Pro Pointer. few weeks later I got a Fisher F2 as a back up...(my father had a Fisher detector in the 70's and wanted to come), then just a week ago, I upgraded the Xterra (sold on Ebay for $550) and got an Etrac and SEF coil. I try and hunt daily, figured out the 705 quite easily, and now have the E-trac monster to figure out...LOL

I am very new compared to everyone, but I am a Realtor and hunt daily and I am a tech-head....LOL.

so techy that I have a Samsung Fascinate that i use with the E-trac that I use the GPS and a few custom apps... and mark hunt locations, track where I hunted (sweep-range memory...can tell where I swept in my local park previously, it colors it out, pinpoint locations more accurate than Googlemaps, etc...LOL

I have the time and money but wish I had the experience of a lot of you guys... you can't buy that :-)

Glad to be a part of this group!

 

[Produce Guy]

Back in 1978 I saved my money and bought a very cheap $85 Mustang detector,it had a speaker and an off and on knob with a handle and a black coil.It chirped allot and I found somewhere around $20 with it for the next 10 years.Biggest thing I ever found was a empty paint can about 12 inches down,Dad was pretty pissed that I dug it up in the front yard

 

[HuntNdig]

about two months now, you can see all most of my finds and hunts at my youtube channel in my signature! I am hooked!

 

[U.K. Brian]

About 42 years back. Had to import a detector from the U.S. as we didn't have a detector industry at the time just a few homebuilts and modified mine detectors.

No ground balance or discrimination or really depth but you could find stuff everywhere and get permission for any site as people were interested in seeing if you really could detecting metal underground. On your local beach people would shout from what they thought was a safe distance because they thought you were trying to locate wartime mines ("will we be safe at the other end of the beach" !)

Happy days before money/profit became a big part of the industry.

 

[worldtalker]

1975,had a Garrett DeepSeeker.Sure did make many a haul on the silver,not many MDers back then.Sure wish I could find one of them spots again! God Bless HH Chris

 

[deepskyal]

84 or there abouts. Started with a White's Coinmaster 3000...ground balance sucked!!! But used it for a couple years til I had enough for the 6000 DiPro which was awesome. Still own one.

Al

 

[fistfulladirt]

Back in 1978 I saved my money and bought a very cheap $85 Mustang detector,it had a speaker and an off and on knob with a handle and a black coil.It chirped allot and I found somewhere around $20 with it for the next 10 years.Biggest thing I ever found was a empty paint can about 12 inches down,Dad was pretty pissed that I dug it up in the front yard

That's funny, I got my Jetco Mustang also about 1975 at 15, then graduated to a White's Coinmaster in '78, and life went on...thirty years later I bought a DFX, now swinging a Minelab.

 

[RGINN]

Since back in the early 70's with a machine, and I was inspired by a couple of generations before me who were searchin out treasure in the Wichita Mts., Oklahoma. We never found it, but we know a lot of stories.

 

[baywalker]

Got my first one in 68 or 69" home made"got A Garrett in 71 had 3 coils did every thing ? still got A garrett and A fisher and an old whites for sentimental reasons. Saving up for an AT pro or A water md still can,t get enough of it.

Jonnie

 

[HighTone]

Started about 1984 with a whites 4000 then mini red baron then a bounty hunter big bud ( what a dud ) then whites 6000 di pro fisher cz6a now swingin a minelab explorer 2. Loven it

 

[stevemc]

First tried detecting with my dad in the early 60s. Fisher M scope. I used his several times since, through the late 60s and into the 70s. I didnt buy a detector until early 80s, when the underwater detectors were coming out. I bought a Garrett xl 200 and since it was a real piece of crap of a detector, kind of gave up UW detecting. It would only find big iron, and that was about it. I did try finding lost jewelry and it couldnt find anything. I still have it but never use it. It still is a terrible machine. I have used newer Garretts since and they still are bad UW machines. Like a J W Fishers only find big iron. Even in the last year. In the mid to late 80s I bought a White's surfmaster PI, and did OK with it, then found out about Mr Bill and his modifications. Had that done, then bought another that was modded also. Fantastic. Finding gold (and everything else). In the interim bought a huge coil PI to find extra deep stuff and it worked as it should, too good. And a couple VLF detectors for the kids, and a Tersoro Stingray, which was very sensitive on tiny gold, but too sensitive on saltwater-falsed constantly. Last year bought an old NY style Excal with the horse shoe coil. Great machine! Bought a 12x15" SEF coil for the Excal, but found it hard to move in the surf and went back to the 8" original for water use. Still use the big coil on the sand though.

 

[kayden]

6 Months ....Addiction has set in!

 

[snakeyes]

Only a couple of months. I inherited a Viper underwater detector, it actually works on top the ground, I found a handful of quarters last week. I have some ideas on where to hunt as I have access to several large ranches in Northern New Mexico. Right now I just practicing in the vacant lots near the house.

 

[Rockin Chairs Gold]

Built my first metal detector in the late 60's from a Heath Kit, good machine but couldn't keep the coil balanced. Latter bought a Fisher M scope, better machine but didn't have a water proof coil. A little dew on the grass and it went nuts.

I latter bought a Whites 66TR, not much depth, but latter floated it and used it for my first water detector, worked real good.

You know the machines back then weren't to expensive and didn't get much depth, and didn't discriminate, but I was younger, the coins weren't to deep, and there wasn't so much trash. Now I have a $1500.00 metal detector, I move slower, can't hear as well, and don't find near as much, but I'm still out there digging. It hurts more, but I'm still having fun.

 

[donj]

I STARTED IN '82 WITH A WHITES 5500 LOST A DOLLAR COIN TRYInG TO FIGURE IT OUT, WENT ON TO DO Pretty good with it for a few years then took a long break moved to virginia and picked up the hobby again about 5 years ago. i found this site less then a year ago and really got back to detecting. BTW I never did find that dollar coin. DON.

 

[gleaner1]

I'm a late bloomer. Back in the early seventies I asked for a radio shack tector for Christmas and got a stupid electronics experiment kit. I hated that stupid thing and have not talked to my parents since. Got my first machine in 93, a world famous 84 garret freedom II, Olympics edition. Pound salt mom and dad!!!!

 

[BARKER]

I Started in 1969 with a ---

Radio Shack BFO detector. Buzzed like crazy and only went about 4 - 6 inches on a good day. I loved it hahaha. Anyway, Over the years I've gone detecting over 2/3rds of the World. I am now disabled with a severe back injury but want t remain in touch with the field. My Most recent detector was the White's Eagle 2 SL. Good Machine but nt like the ones today for sure. Anyway, Thanks. PEACE:RONB

 

[relichunters]

I had my first detector in 1991, but I've actually been detecting 9 years.

 

[DigDugNY]

Im 21 now...got my first detector when I was 13. Have had my ups and downs and was out of the hobby for a year and a half, but it was calling me back, so I invested in a Tesoro Vaquero and hopefully it will be here tomorrow or thursday