Best metal detector for forest and field hunting?

[Woodsy]

Hi folks, I have been away from the hobby for a while since my metal detector was stolen from my storage garage a few years back during a move. Today I have been reading the forums and started to get an inch to squeeze in some hunts before the ground freezes here in michigan.

I jumped the gun, and ordered a tesoro mojave off amazon, but I think I may have made a mistake. Although I will be hunting some campgrounds, I will also be hunting in the woods and fields where heavy grass and leaves may pose a proplem.

So what is your guyses take on a metal detector that performs well in these types of areas?

 

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[Nick79]

That will work, I use a crappy Ace 350. 90% of the battle is just putting a coil over the target. Are there better? Yup! But you gotta weigh the cost. I want a whites mx sport when I have some spending cash but that's not looking too good right now hahaha

 

[Back-of-the-boat]

I don't think the detector will matter as much as the size of your coil.A smaller coil will move through the tall grass easier.

 

[Woodsy]

I don't think the detector will matter as much as the size of your coil.A smaller coil will move through the tall grass easier.

That's a good point I didn't think of. My first detector was a garrett treasure ace 100. Although it was a fun little coin machine, the depth was terrible, so it didn't really do well in grassy/wooded areas.

 

[cudamark]

Hi folks, I have been away from the hobby for a while since my metal detector was stolen from my storage garage a few years back during a move. Today I have been reading the forums and started to get an inch to squeeze in some hunts before the ground freezes here in michigan.

I jumped the gun, and ordered a tesoro mojave off amazon, but I think I may have made a mistake. Although I will be hunting some campgrounds, I will also be hunting in the woods and fields where heavy grass and leaves may pose a proplem.

So what is your guyses take on a metal detector that performs well in these types of areas?

What is your budget? The best bang for the buck right now is the Minelab Equinox.

 

[A#1]

I use a Minelab Equinox 600 for practically the same thing, in roughly the same place. Before that it was a Whites Eagle Spectrum.

In my opinion, a smaller coil could help, with getting between the undergeowth. Lilac, fern, sweetfern, blueberry, that sort of thing.

And something with good iron rejection. Been thrilled with the Equinox for that. Seriously cut down on the amount of crap I gotta dig.

 

[Patriot 1776]

I do a lot of woods and Farm Fields all of your Garrett are durable and work well.
Again there are a lot of great Detectors for that use
Location and research , Dont forget
Happy Treasure Hunting

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

Don't despair. You'll find things with the Mojave if you stick with it. Tesoro makes good units that are simple to operate.

Take a nickel coin with you and set the discrimination so that it just gives a solid signal when setting on the ground you are hunting. That will help get you past most junk.

Unless you want to dig old iron relics - then set no at all. And dig it all until you get to know your detector. The price you pay for gold and jewelry is trash finds.

The 7" coil isn't bad for poking in between trees, shrubs and brush.

Campgrounds can be a real horror-story of bottle caps (steel and aluminum) and pull-tabs, foil, cans and all the worst of what gets in the way of detecting. But they also have lots of goodies.

 

[Woodsy]

Update: the mojave arrived today. After poking around the front yard a bit, I found a 50s wheat penny. I then headed to a nearby camping park. After digging about a dozen pull tabs I cranked up the discrimination as far as it would go. During the duration of a couple hours I accumulated about a $1.50 in clad coins. The depth ranged was about 2 to 4 inches. The oldest coin was a 1967 quarter.

All in all I was a little disappointed when I saw how small of a detector the mojave is. So far, I thought it worked pretty well and I'm going to head back out tomorrow. I will say that I think my treasure ace 100 had better discrimination and I liked the more meaty size of it, also running on two 9 volts. I did order a used tejon on ebay, and if the guy gets around to shipping it, I'm being hopeful that I will gain some more power. Other then that, I don't know yet. I'm hoping tomorrow I will like the mojave better.

 

[HighVDI]

If you do try that Tejon please give it more than one outing to form an opinion on it!

Those units are super capable but they take hours and hours of use to understand.

 

[puja joshi]

I think "Garrett 1140900 Pro-Pointer" is the best metal detector. The best part about this metal detector is it can be used in both water and ground. There are many useful features available in this detector and it is a good choice in that price range. The weight of this metal detector is just 183 grams. Aut off mode is a special feature. 10 feet deep penetration. This detector will start beeping when you put it aside without switching it off.

 

[Woodsy]

Update: the Tejon arrived on Wednesday. I spent a lot of time cleaning it up for the field, it's an older detector, but it's working pretty good. So I guess between the two, its treasure time!

 

[Woodsy]

I almost forgot. One of my first runs through the woods with the Tejon, brought up this little goodie.

 

[DeepseekerADS]

I like my Tejon. I often use it instead of my CTX just because of the Tejon's capabilities and simplicity. I dig a lot more targets than with the CTX, mostly because the CTX has me thinking and analyzing too much!

Edit: Of course I dig a lot more trash with the Tejon.....

 

[Woodsy]

I like my Tejon. I often use it instead of my CTX just because of the Tejon's capabilities and simplicity. I dig a lot more targets than with the CTX, mostly because the CTX has me thinking and analyzing too much!

Edit: Of course I dig a lot more trash with the Tejon.....

I agree. So far, I think the Mojave is a bad a** little detector, but I'm learning that the Tejon is just the cat's a**!

 

[A2coins]

The best bet AT MAX I have equinox 800 also The Max no programming If your looking for coins and relics it separates better and goes much deeper for silver and the signal and vdi are clear my nox will not read deep coins as well it fluxuates both are great Machines for the price. The main thing is getting your coil over the target!!!!!

 

[Woodsy]

I'll have a close look at the Max. I have all winter to think about it now. I was looking at the Teknetics G2+.

How do you think the Max would compare to the G2?

Also I'm thinking of trading my Mojave up for a Vaquero. I didn't realize it uses a 5 pin coil, so wont interchange with the Tejon.

 

[cudamark]

For the money, I don't see anything close to the Equinox in performance. As for buying a Tesoro, I'd wait until the future of the company is decided.

 

[Woodsy]

I like my Tejon. I often use it instead of my CTX just because of the Tejon's capabilities and simplicity. I dig a lot more targets than with the CTX, mostly because the CTX has me thinking and analyzing too much!

Edit: Of course I dig a lot more trash with the Tejon.....

One of my first runs with the Tejon.

 

[Woodsy]

For the money, I don't see anything close to the Equinox in performance. As for buying a Tesoro, I'd wait until the future of the company is decided.

I've been looking closely at the Equinox believe me.