lousy equipment

dblspeedtom

Newbie
Jun 3, 2007
4
0
Hi ya'll, I have a radioshack discovery 1000, okay now that you have had a good laugh you can wipe the tears from your eyes and let me know if i'm just wasting my time with this thing or should I stand on the street corner with a sign begging for donations to help me get a real detector? I have found some items with it, like an old pocket knife, some coins, square nails and other stuff not worthy of taking a picture of and posting. Anyway, I can't afford to upgrade, so if you see me trudging around try not to snicker too loud and point, It gets me outta the house and I guess I'll just keep trying....
 

Monty

Gold Member
Jan 26, 2005
10,746
166
Sand Springs, OK
Detector(s) used
ACE 250, Garrett
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
No matter what kind of equipment you have, you are going to find junque and crape'! The good stuff will come, especially clad coins. Hunting clad is a very good way to learn and it all spends. Monty
 

Treasure_Hunter

Administrator
Staff member
Jul 27, 2006
48,301
54,443
Florida
Detector(s) used
Minelab_Equinox_ 800 Minelab_CTX-3030 Minelab_Excal_1000 Minelab_Sovereign_GT Minelab_Safari Minelab_ETrac Whites_Beach_Hunter_ID Fisher_1235_X
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Remember, clad coins add up and you could use it to upgrade.

Good luck.

;D
 

K

Kentucky Kache

Guest
Use what you've got 'till you can do better. I'm sure we all did the same. I know I did.
 

BioProfessor

Silver Member
Apr 6, 2007
2,917
84
Mankato, MN
Detector(s) used
Minelab e-Trac, White E-Series DFX
Try to figure out where your detector will work for you. For instance, lots of us hit the tot lots and school playgrounds. Take some clad coins and any small jewelry items you have and take them and your detector to these places when nobody is using them. Pick a spot that seems representative of the area. Dig a small hole 2" deep, another 4" deep, and another 6" deep. Place an item in each hole -say a quarter- and cover. Swing your detector over the items, can you hear tones on all of them. If so, replace the item with another type - say a dime- and repeat. Keep doing this until you can tell what your detector is capable of. Also make sure you do the same with typical Junque or crape. If you can get signals and tell them apart, then it will be worth your time to hit this type target. Try several different environments at different locations. This will tell you where your detector works best and where you should spend your time. Put all the coins in a jar to help pay for that upgrade.

Daryl
 

Sandman

Gold Member
Aug 6, 2005
13,398
3,992
In Michigan now.
Detector(s) used
Excal 1000, Excal II, Sovereign GT, CZ-20, Tiger Shark, Tejon, GTI 1500, Surfmaster Pulse, CZ6a, DFX, AT PRO, Fisher 1235, Surf PI Pro, 1280-X, many more because I enjoy learning them. New Garrett Ca
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
We all started somewhere and with what ever we could afford at the time. Relax and enjoy the time you have away from doing chores, they'll be there when you get back. Use the good advice the others gave and learn your detector some more. You only need to keep adding up the clad and then upgrade IF you still feel the need. So long as your having fun, go for it..........
 

ivan salis

Gold Member
Feb 5, 2007
16,794
3,809
callahan,fl
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
delta 4000 / ace 250 - used BH and many others too
join the club ---work your way up to the good machines ---it called paying your dues---and once you get know them well even simple machines can surprize you with a nice find---Ivan
 

SHERMANVILLE ILLINOIS

Gold Member
May 22, 2005
7,205
60
Primary Interest:
Other
dblspeedtom,

been there, done that.

What everyone else has said.

Learn that machine and work you way up;
the clad adds up as you go along.

The experience will also let you have a better
understanding of what type of detector you
want to move-up into.

Hope it all works out, just keep swinging.

have a good un.....
SHERMANVILLE
 

DFX-SE Gregg

Silver Member
Feb 6, 2007
2,865
251
Detector(s) used
Equinox 800 SE and DFX
If you do plan to upgrade a detector with a rechargable battery pack is a plus! I have 3 total so I never need to worry about batteries or their cost and always have a fresh battery pack. Is it worth it for you? Well with one sweep you could find enough to pay for another detector. I am cheap so not having to pay for batteries is very nice! :)
 

Gribnitz

Hero Member
Aug 1, 2004
920
11
First machine I started with was a treasure ace 300, which probably couldn't pull a dime deeper than your 1000. BUT, the TA 300 did find me my first .69 minie ball which opened the flood gates to the hobby and my bank account. I have way too much tied up in machines and gear now, but hey, its a hobby.
 

OP
OP
D

dblspeedtom

Newbie
Jun 3, 2007
4
0
Thanks alot for all the replies/advice I will take it and run with it! I might not ever make a huge find but it's the thrill of the hunt that I really like and I'll save the stuff I do find and save up!!!
Thanks again!
 

Charlie P. (NY)

Gold Member
Feb 3, 2006
13,003
17,106
South Central Upstate NY in the foothills of the h
Detector(s) used
Minelab Musketeer Advantage Pro w/8" & 10" DD coils/Fisher F75se(Upgraded to LTD2) w/11" DD, 6.5" concentric & 9.5" NEL Sharpshooter DD coils/Sunray FX-1 Probe & F-Point/Black Widows/Rattler headphone
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
That's the spirit. I had a Radio Shack kit-built (I believe it was a "Science Fair" kit as they used to sell). Had a bare circuit board coil on the end of a radio antenna which served as the shaft. Not the most rugged of gear. It did work, and I did find a few coins. Even took it to Ocean City NJ and beach hunted (without success). Ever scuffed rock meant a solder repair was required. :-\ Finally the coil delaminated from the board and that was that.

I had a gap of 26 years in there where I didn't MD - don't let that happen. Stick with it and save up.
 

Ricardo_NY1

Bronze Member
Oct 24, 2006
1,330
3
Bronx, NY
Detector(s) used
Explorer XS/II & Garrett ACE 250
I have an 1100 (Will be sent out to a new owner shortly) and I think it's a good detector. Its only downside in my opinion is lack of depth. Otherwise, it discriminates well, can be used to accurately pin point a target and it is a very easy machine to learn. I paid $50 for mine and it found me almost as much in clad in a matter of weeks, along with 3 silver coins. Bottom line is that this machine might not be capable of hitting on a true 4"- 5" deep dime in most situations, but anything shallow in the 3" or less range can be scooped up with this detector and there are plenty of shallow coins, including the silver ones. With that said, avoid tall grass or any other obstructions that will have your coil too high off the ground. You want to literally have the smallest amount of distance from ground to coil. Learn it, practice with it, go into clad infested territory and sooner than later you will have some upgrade money. The unit is inexpensive, but it is a good little detector.
 

texan connection

Silver Member
Sep 3, 2006
4,560
79
Texas
Detector(s) used
Minlabe SE, ace 250, fisher 1280x
I started with a tracker IV, even found some silver with it, got addicted, moved up to the ace 250 and did well with it, now I have a minelab (not trying to start a debate) but the only diffrence is exceptional discremenation,( I havent noticed much depth change myself), I gave the Bounty hunter to my brother, and we hunted alot together, he dident want to use my ace just "his bounty hunter" He recently died and I'll always cherish his attitude toward that machine. He found some good silver with it too, Now my other brother has it and I hope we can hunt together soon.
 

Stacylee926

Full Member
Dec 29, 2006
179
2
Portsmouth, VA
Detector(s) used
ACE 250; Discovery 1100
Got a Discovery 1100 for Xmas... asked hubby for a MD and that is what I got. It works fine and I definitely found clad and stuff with it. After I decided that I LOVE the hobby, I saved and got the ACE 250. I do get more depth with the ACE and my clad count has tripled, but I say you have to start somewhere. We all find the same amount of trash - regardless of the detector, but the depth is something that you might miss.

Keep hitting the schools, parks and get a ton of clad, then buy a little better machine!
 

detectordave

Full Member
Apr 6, 2005
165
0
Ann Arbor Meechigan
Detector(s) used
DFX WITH DX-1 PROBE AND XLT WITH XL-1 PROBE
My equipment gets laughed at whether I'm metal detecting or not. Try puttin a potato in your speedo before you detect the beach. Oh....In the front of course! LOL. hang in there, good things will come. HH dave.
 

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