real advice for beginners, if u disagree then please post

[uriykir]

if you get some cheapo detector and try to go hunting u r really wasting time. imagine if u got one that could search 5 inches deeper, u have to go all over again, plus better detector can identify and leave out junk


what u ppl think

 

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[jorge del norte]

I also would like to state.....something simple.......Analog or Digital....
If you don't like setting your VCR date......you need to think about the detector the same way.
Scrolling through settings to me is not fun......unless it is laid out right....I like potentiometers
.......I did the RS 3300....chessy VDI and it was great for the money....but I felt digital was clipping some desired control....that a analog detector might wouldn't.....my machine is not a new one....and I know no other person that uses the exact machine on TNET. I wanted a machine to discriminate when I wanted it to.......and my Tesoro does just that........I often wonder wonder what I might hunt with a Whites or Minelab....but I am just not ready for that leap yet.....I will never part with my Tesoro. It could be a back up one day though.....

It gets serious when you start doing more research......and need the equipment to make it more worth your trouble.....if "clad" is your bag......then go with a cheaper model.....get into the hobby and then move up.....I feel I am at a half way point....I still have a lot to learn about my detector, and research to apply......

 

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[IronClad]

I guess to me its relatively simple. Any Metal Detector reguardless of Brand or Price will do exactly what it was designed to do ...LOCATE METAL. Its entirely up to the person using that Metal Detector that determines success. Your not going to find Coins, Jewelry, or Relics if you don't place the coil over a place they exist, no matter how much or how little you spend on one.


Fact: An old friend of mine had a White's 1Db unit. Hunted in All Metal and dug EVERYTHING. He had a pile of finds that would fill a Dumpster. Could he afford a more expensive detector,,,YEP. Did he ever buy one,,,NOPE. He was experienced and happy with that little unit, and used it very successfully.

 

[Highwater]

I have been hunting since the early 80's using many different units. I have always promoted this hobby as a great family orientated outdoor hobby and can give a mutitude of good reasons to be involved in it.
XD, you may be an exception to most of those that are just beginning. You have figured out a good approach to the hobby and I wish you all the luck and success in the future.
As far as where most beginners should start. It isn't neccessary to have a top end machine. Just like starting out with a motorcycle when you are young. If you start with the least amount of horsepower then you have something to grow into each time you need and want a more powerful machine. If a person starts out with a good basic detector, without a lot of whistles and bells attached, then they aren't distracted or overwhelmed with trying to worry about if all the settings are adjusted just right. There is no need for a display screen, because when starting out it is better to learn the various sounds the detector makes and dig all targets for a while, until the differant sounds produced start making sense. Without the display it means you will have controls that you can reach down and tweak at will without having to learn a menu or how to make a proper adjustment. A display doesn't always tell the truth and if someone starting out was just going to go by what is read on the screen they would be missing a lot of good targets and still digging a lot of trash.
Starting with the basics and working up from there until one gets to the point where they feel like they are ready for an upgrade is, I think, the best way to start out. In turn, when you do make the upgrade, this leaves your 'simple' starter unit available as a loner, usually to friend or relative that has no knowledge of detecting but would like to try it out. It is much easier to get someone started with a 'simple' machine.
One of my back up machines is a Fisher 1266. It is a no frills unit and I often grab it instead of one of my diplay units when I am really getting serious about hunting some areas. I like to toggle back and forth between the two channels. I like to go by the sound more than I do the diplay. I also don't care for the units that ring bells and honk horns. I want to hear the 'true' audio sound so I can make my own choices, but for a beginner, maybe the bells and horns would help, but they wouldn't learn to really 'hear' the target to make a choice whether to dig or not... The machine would be doing all that for them.
What it boils down to is "ya have to run what ya brung". It is just a sad thing when someone gets coupled up with a below par unit and gives up on the hobby and parks their unit in the closet, which happens all the time, as you know. What is sad is, if they would have had a well founded detector to begin with, one that works great but is simple to operate, they may have found a great pastime that they could have grown into that would last a lifetime. There are lots of good units in the bargin basement price range.

 

[Ankylos]

Thanks! You guys give great advice. I have always wanted to try metal detecting and I finally bought one. I went with no experience, knowledge or advice with a $100 budget (thanks wife! I have a tendency to go nuts). I wanted to take the kids searching on the beach we visit every year. I bought a used BH QD2 and a pinpointer from a pawn shop in Daytona for $120. I had a blast! Needless to say, as it turned out, the kids didn't get much of a chance. The wife and her family back up at the resort laughed at the 42 cents, corona twist off cap, and can tabs I came back with but I couldn't be happier! I was just glad I was figuring out to use the machine. That BH QD2 is a tempermental 'B' in the wet, hard packed sand! It likes to beep when you change directions there even if you're swinging real slow. I learned some very valuable lessons. Swing 'slow and low'. If it don't keep beeping? There ain't anything there! My daughter didn't care much at all, just enjoying her time in the surf. My son tried it for a bit. I could hardly stand to let them have it! Bad dad! Now I would like to take it and my son somewhere else but I'm not sure where to start. I noticed someone else on this forum already posted that Marion County FL is putting a stop to digging on county land. I thought it might be interesting to try to locate some old abandoned homesteads on some public lands. Anyone have any advice?

 

[scotty544]

well heres an opinion and some logic from a beginner, I just got into this whole hobby and decided i didn't want to start with a radio shack special, whats the point if you think your going to do this then you might as well do it right and start off with something decent.
Now i looked around on this forum and read tons of posts of how this is better than that and all the hooey, obviously there are more factors involved than just picking something, what you plan on doing with it for one, and your locations come into play also, i wanted something adjustable with some versatility in the future and i ended up with a whites xlt, now for a beginner i could see how all the fancy settings and stuff could be overwhelming but after perusing the manual that comes with it decided not to mess with it and use preset stuff until i became familiar with the entire hobby and the detecting equipment, now yes there will be those guys that break out some new stuff run around for 10 minutes , find nothing and go right into screwing around with stuff, the key here i think for a beginner is patience and learning technique and what not to do from more experienced people.
I have only been out with this thing for a total of 4 hours and i allready have lil list of things i need, ive started asking others what they are using , digging equip etc.
Ive made up my mind to practice at a beach that is well picked over just for practice until i get good at using the equipment because heres the bottom line.
I have several very promising sites in mind and do not want to out there tomorrow and waste my invitation and find nothing even thought theres a lot of stuff there. again heres where the patience comes in.
To me this isnt about digging up the biggest treasure there is, its about being outdoors and the thrill of the chase kinda thing.
so far ive dug up a dozen or so pull tabs, a crap load of foil gumwrappers, and then i got one huge signal a foot and half deep that i was sure was something that gets your heart pumping it turned out to be a real old sparkplug. now im sure someone collects these things but i found myself asking how the hell it got there, how long its been there and what did it come from.
I think the 2 best pieces of advice you could possible give would be
1 get aquainted with someone thats been doing it for a while for some expert instruction
2 Have some patience and learn your equipment - dont rush in to be indiana jones.
after all i dont think i would have found that sparkplug with the radio shack deal and it could have just as easily been a gold coin. I would also like to point out that this beach is checked by several others on a regular basis so they either missed it with thier equipment or decided not to dig because of the depth which is it? i dont belive the spark plug with steel, tungsten and brass construction could have given any other signal display or audible other than DIG THIS UP.
oh and on a funny note, i attached the park plug to my lawnmower wire and pulled it it sparked
so added a nother question to my list "why would someone throw out a perfectly good spark plug
Dan

I replace my sparkplugs on my boat every two years, even if they are still working.

 

[fishguy]

I use a Bounty Hunter tracker 1 the OLD one. I MD over parks that I know people hit with top of the line machines and still find alot of stuff. Now I have only been detecting for a year so yes I'm one of the noobies reffered to in this post but in that year I have found 5 rings alot of clad and a few silvers. IMO all metal detectors beep when they go over metal what happens from there is up to the person yes the detector can give you educated guesses on what to do but sometimes you dig that foil signal and find gold or nail that solid iron shot and get something neat. Thats the reason I love this hobby. I know I may not be getting signals for coins beyond 6 inches but I am finding pocket watch size pieces 11-18 inches down. The bounty hunter is what I use, I bought it used to try out the hobby and it has paid for itself many times over. Someday I will buy another but why fix something thats not broken?

 

[christo000]

A cheap Detector is Great for somone who Isn't sure if
they will enjoy the Hobby,
and IF they have spots where there is alot of
clad lying around.

As the Feaver Grows, then a Upgrade is suggested

i also agree if u dont or are unsure if this hobby is for u dont spend 600 or a grand on a detector it seems more just comone sence ya know u spend those big bux u dont like it now ur out the money u just spent on that machine u have no use for

 

[gold diggr]

if you get some cheapo detector and try to go hunting u r really wasting time. imagine if u got one that could search 5 inches deeper, u have to go all over again, plus better detector can identify and leave out junk


what u ppl think

ya but if i get a unit that reaches 5 inches deep or more, think of all the digging!

 

[scotty544]

Do you want a yugo, a silverado or an escalade. You get what you pay for. I would start with the Silverado.

 

[luvsdux]

I personally feel it is very beneficial to start with a beep and dig detector with no display. Put in lots of hours, dig everything for a while and learn the nuances of the machine. THEN if or when you get one with a display you'll be experienced in the audio along with the display. Always dig any response that seems strange, always wear headphones and you're handicapping your recovery time if you don't use a pinpointer such as the Garret Pro Pointer. Oh, and ALWAYS recheck the hole before filling it in and moving on - there's often more than one good target in the same area. These suggestions will get anyone off to a decent start IMHO.
luvsdux

 

[Nickleanddime]

I've been interested in it for 20 years, didnt want to pay that much for something to just not like it. Found a 10 dollar deal at a sale just a beep with a needle on it. Payed for it 5 times over in clad. Now that I found I enjoy it, it combines my favorite things. Researching history, finding things, getting free money, and the hunt. I am now looking for a better detector that'll go deeper and find more. I think if I'd have bought a higher dollar machine right away in our financial instability it would have overburdened the fun I would have had. Since I'd have been thinking what else I could have used the money for other then finding pull tabs and clad. So yes a cheap harbor freight or radio shack md is worth it for a beginner, no offense to anyone but I've found out that alot of guys get into it for riches and maybe even notoriety, not for fun and history. Now if.i lived in a area that had alot of beaches and alot of rich people on it then yes a high end machines worth it considering you can find one ring or watch and pay your machine and some profit.

 

[OldJerseyGirl]

Grass is always greener!!! I am guilty of the same thing sometimes.