Need help deciding on a dector

[wild eyed willey]

I am very new to this and There are soooo many choices.
I expect to use the detector primarily for gold nugget searching in and around the streams, however I would like to investigate the deeper water at the local swimming hole, when the temperature gets warmer. I might also like to check out areas of opportunity on dry land occasionally.

I think I would need a water proof detector for the swimming hole.

I am leaning towards the fisher gold bug 2 , but I don't know if it would be water proof enough for the deeper water ( 7 or 8 feet deep). also don't know if it would find other cool stuff like coins.

I am also not sure what size coil would be the most useful all around.

Can anyone offer any advise that might help?

 

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[DirtDiggerDaveinMD]

Hi Willey,
The Gold bug would do good on nuggets and coins, but it is not waterproof. You could take a look at the Garrett AT Pro. It's waterproof to 10 feet and will work well on coins and supposedly nuggets too. Both would work in freshwater but would drive you crazy in salt water.

 

[Terry Soloman]

The Garrett AT Gold (Waterproof to 10') may work for you; The Tesoro TIGER Shark (Waterproof to 200') is better. There are no "off the shelf" waterproof nugget shooting machines. The three best VLF nuggetshooters are the Tesoro Lobo Super Trac; Fisher Goldbug II; Whites GMT. None of these machines are waterproof.

 

[DirtDiggerDaveinMD]

I forgot about the AT Gold.

 

[jkng]

I'm not sure about waterproof detectors but a pinpointer is NEEDED. I don't have one but MDing is hard if you don't have one. I'm thinking of getting a bounty hunter pinpointer.

 

[DirtDiggerDaveinMD]

While not essential, they do help speed up recovery especially if you were off a little when pinpointing with your detector.

 

[wild eyed willey]

I'm not to concerned about a pin pointer, I have a big shovel. It also dawned on me that I might not need to detect all the way out into the deep water, I could work waste deep.. I think I looked at the At pro. I think it might be more expensive than the Gold bug 2, but I might be wrong, I'll check it and the others out.

 

[james231]

Such metal detector should be made of waterproof coil, this type of metal detector can be used to search on wet sandy beaches, and even in shallow water places. But careful about entering water in electronic controls. The perfect metal detector should be enclosed in waterproof housing. Because falling in protection of these encapsulated housings, no metal detector would be able to search in the water to recover coins, rings, and jewelry beyond the reach of a standard.

 

[TNGUNS]

Willey.....I agree the AT Gold might be your best bet if you age going to get just one detector. I haven't had the opportunity to use any of the AT's but hear so much good about them on here that I would lean that way. I am wanting to do the same thing but think I am going to get a dedicated water machine to hunt the creeks and swimming areas in the near future if the "she-money" permits (money she don't know about.... Ha Ha). I hunt around the creeks a little with my G2 but know that my clumsy butt is apt to fry it if I get in water to any extent. Best of luck.

 

[cudamark]

As you have seen here, there is no one detector that will do all phase of detecting excellently. That's why there a lots of different machines on the market (and why I have 10 detectors!). Some are designed to do one thing very well but they will also do other things just ok and some things not well at all. If you plan on doing ANY water hunting, get a waterproof machine as you WILL drop that detector in the water sooner or later.....I can almost guarantee it. If you can only buy one detector to do all the tasks you mentioned in a budget under $1000, I would be tempted to get the AT Gold. If money were no object, I'd get the Minelab CTX3030 with various coils for specific needs. Of course, if money were no object, I'd get dedicated machines for each type of hunting.

 

[wild eyed willey]

Money is always an object. Until I start finding all of the valuables. I figure I can retire if I can find 3/4s of an ounce per week of the yellow stuff,, shouldn't be to hard right?

 

[Mzjavert]

My suggestion would be to get the Gold Bug 2. Then keep a sharp eye out for a used water-proof detector. (Got my water machine for $75 at a yard sale.)

 

[cudamark]

Money is always an object. Until I start finding all of the valuables. I figure I can retire if I can find 3/4s of an ounce per week of the yellow stuff,, shouldn't be to hard right?

To find that much raw gold per week in S.Carolina might be a challenge! Finding it in jewelry.....maybe but I doubt you'll get that much on a regular basis. After you've dug your 1000th lead shot or hot rock, let us know again how easy it is.

 

[DirtDiggerDaveinMD]

Depends. If you were detecting in a White's commercial you would find all of the treasure you could handle just an inch down at the local tot lot. After all they only find the good stuff, or so the commercial says. I love my White's detectors, but their commercials are a little misleading.

 

[wild eyed willey]

Depends. If you were detecting in a White's commercial you would find all of the treasure you could handle just an inch down at the local tot lot. After all they only find the good stuff, or so the commercial says. I love my White's detectors, but their commercials are a little misleading.

Which whites do you use?

 

[cbcstamp]

I own and use the whites MXT, Gold Bug 2, AT Pro and AT Gold and a Minelab Excalibur. The best detector for your needs in my opinion is the AT Gold. It is light weight, water proof and a decent gold detecting machine. If you have unlimited funds buy an AT Gold and a goldbug 2. Goldbug 2 is a little better Than the AT Gold when detecting in desert dry washes.

My bet is you will probably go coin shooting some day and the AT Gold is a killer coin machine. You cannot beat the service on a whites or a Garrett if you ever need it.

 

[DirtDiggerDaveinMD]

I mainly use my XLT that I have had for about 9 years, but I have a Quantum XT as well.

 

[cbcstamp]

The chances of you finding 3/4 of an ounce of gold per week is very slim unless you know more that most of the people trying to mine gold. Finding that much gold with a metal detector is pretty much a dream. I live near some of the best producing gold areas in the California and Airzona deserts. I consider myself proficient with metal detectors and there is no way I can find that much gold with a detector each and every week. Placer gold is very difficult to find. Even with a dry washer or high banker it may be difficult to find that much. I have found over 185 rings and around $2000.00 in coins in the last 2.5 years. If you have never detected before, you may not realize how difficult it is to run your coil across an object as small a the head of a match in an are as large as the desert and possible as deep as 8 inches. Gold is 19 times heavier than all other metals. It rarely is just laying on the desert floor, although it has happened it is very rare. Gold goes to bed rock quickly.

The fun of detecting is the friends you make, the beautiful sun rises you will see and the "little treasures" you may find. I still get excited when I find a wheat back penny. I found my best gold ring on Friday last week. 9.6 gram mans wedding band at the local soccer field.

 

[DirtDiggerDaveinMD]

I believe Willey was being facetious when he mentioned finding 3/4 of an ounce of gold per week. At least I hope so.

 

[cbcstamp]

I didn't think South Carolina had much gold. Cudamark said it pretty clear. Try detecting in a park before you try the outback. Lots of things can happen to people that are new to the hobby. Enjoy your new detector if you choose to do this. The secret is research, research and more research. The more knowledge you have the more you will find in gold, coins and jewelry. It took me better than a year to learn my first detector (MXT). The AT Pro, AT Gold and the MXT are great machines once you learn the machine and what it is saying to you.

The best place to start learning is right here on these forums. These folks have true knowledge form experience. They will not lead you wrong. Saves the newbie hours of time.