First Time MD Buyer Needs Recomendations

B

bonbon1220

Guest
Hello,
I am buying my boyfriend a metal detector for his birthday. I'm looking to spend, for new or used, around two hundred to three hundred dollars, more or less, but I want to make sure that for my money I have something that a. works well and b. is fairly easy to use. He is a coin collector and I know he wants to use it in grassy fields; however he will also be using it on the beach being that we visit Florida often. I see so many detectors that have water proof coils and such, but then I see reviews saying how bad they all are. Pretty much I just don't know where to start. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank You -Bonnie :-\
 

Kilika

Full Member
Apr 6, 2007
173
1
NW Washington (State)
Detector(s) used
Garrett Ace 250, GMT
Hi Bonnie

I own a Garrett Ace 250, which has become a pretty popular model lately. You can get one brand new for under $250, and it's designed to be a 'coinshooter'. It's also very easy to learn, basically a 'plug and play' model. Great in the grass, not so good at the beach as it may give false signals in the wet sand. (But fine for dry sand)

"Tony from TC" on this forum is a dealer and I hear he gives good, honest advice. (Or is it "Tony from CT"?) Anyway, Tony can answer your questions, or, if you go to the home page and scroll down, you'll find a heading that gives reviews on different machines by the people who've used them. Lots of knowledgeable people in this site.

Just remember, buying your boyfriend a detector is one thing... be prepared for him to spend alot of TIME using it!! :D (You might want to get two so you can go together ;))

Good Luck (Just read a post from "Tony in CT" here's his #860 623 1153)

Kilika
 

Jeffro

Silver Member
Dec 6, 2005
4,095
143
Eugene, Oregon
Detector(s) used
Fisher CZ5, White's GM VSat
The Ace 250 seems to be the detector of choice for a lot of beginners. It has more bang for the buck than a lot of other starting models, yet is fairly easy to learn and use. I have yet to hear anyone say they regretted buying one. :)
 

davidco

Jr. Member
Jun 10, 2007
35
0
South Australia
Detector(s) used
Explorer II, Xterra70,GP3500,Tesoro Tigershark.
Hi Bon

The ACE 250 is easy to learn and is great for coins in the park etc. OK at the beach but you will need to turn the sensitivity down on the damp sand. If he gets really serious buy him something more upmarket later. I have just bought my wife an ACE 250 and she loves it, she found heaps of coins at our club hunt at the weekend, it is a breeze to use.

Cheers for now
 

Foose

Jr. Member
Apr 12, 2007
46
0
Fayetteville, GA
Detector(s) used
Garrett GTP 1350 & Garrett Ace 250
I am also a beginner and took everyone's advice and got the Garrett Ace 250. This is a very easy machine to learn and I absolutely love it. I took it to some tot lots to learn in the wood chips and within 1-2 hunts felt like I could pinpoint and id my finds with the best of them . . . (well maybe not the best ;D ) . . . but you get my point.

Good Luck!
 

Born2Dtect

Bronze Member
Jun 11, 2004
1,683
68
Hurlock, Maryland
Detector(s) used
XP Deus, Excalibur II
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Bonnie,

You seem like you know a little. The ACE 250 is a good detector for starting with. Not meant for the water, but you could do dry and wet sand areas at the beach if you are carefull. Tony in CT can help. If you want a good site to see comparisons of different brands and get some prices check out www.kellycodetectors.com . Good luck in the search,

Ed D.
 

stoney56

Gold Member
Oct 4, 2004
6,888
56
Oklahoma
Bonnie,
Ed has some good advise. Something else to think about is since you visit Florida often, instead of just checking out Kellyco's website, you might just stop in at their Winter Springs, Florida showroom and look around. This way you can get a hands on comparison of a # of detectors. You might even ask about seeing if you can get a better deal on a floor model. It would still have the original warranty but might be a few $$ cheaper.

http://www.kellycodetectors.com/Welcome.htm?PHPSESSID=468204f9fe60b846d41e0755f38c1ec1
 

Born2Dtect

Bronze Member
Jun 11, 2004
1,683
68
Hurlock, Maryland
Detector(s) used
XP Deus, Excalibur II
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Good catch Stoney, I missed that Bonnie was in Florida. I would love to visit KellyCo. I would have to take out a second mortgage on my house! I would be like a Big Kid in a candy store.

Ed D.
 

stoney56

Gold Member
Oct 4, 2004
6,888
56
Oklahoma
Born2Dtect said:
I would love to visit KellyCo. I would have to take out a second mortgage on my house! I would be like a Big Kid in a candy store.

Ed D.

I hear ya. The door greeter would have to stand there and hand out a bib if I were ever to make it there. LOL
 

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