Best detector under $1000

[Darshevo]

What would your recommend for a good machine under $1000. Looking for something pretty universal. Main usage will be coin / relic hunting with a few trips a year to salt beach and a few prospecting. My understanding is different coils can be used to improve a units ability in different areas (ie: prospecting) So please throw in that info as well.

I am currently leaning heavily towards the X-Terra 705, but want to make sure I make an informed decision

 

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[Treasure finder]

My recommendation is to keep your Silver Sabre and CZ for coins etc. Then you need a
waterproof PI that is good for nuggets. The only one that comes to mind is the Infinium,
a great nugget machine, and a waterproof beach machine to boot. Kellyco and others
sell the Garrett Infinium for $1062.50, maybe under $1000 elsewhere. Also you should
always take a backup detector with you, one machine is never enough, so you can't get
by with just one.
Good luck.
Rich

 

[Iron Patch]

Minelab Explorer SE pro would be what I'd look at. (and I'd pay well over a grand if necessary to use an explorer) Not sure what an SE is going for but I personally wouldn't let a couple hundred dollars be a deal breaker... I'd just find a way to make it happen.

You'll no doubt get lots of answers to this question!


PS.... Prospecting being part of the criteria I think hurts you more than helps for the over-all best choice.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

darshevo, you are incorrect when you muse that getting a different coil, would enable you to swap venues, and pursue prospecting (I'm assuming you meant nuggets, in their natural state, when you said "prospecting"). The coil size has nothing to do with that. I mean, within each type detector (coins vs nugget machines), there may be benefit, within the chosen machine, to 1 coil size over the other. But to simply have one coil that finds nuggets, verses another coil on the same machine that doesn't: no, it doesn't work that way.

The 2 goals (coins/jewelry/relics verses nuggets) are two opposed types of hunting. Nuggets in their natural state are most often pinhead and grain-of-rice sized (even down to pepper grain size!). So machines designed to find items this small (in the accompanying mineralized soil where nuggets naturally occur) are designed from the ground up, for this exact purpose. Contrast to a coin/jewelry/relic guy.... who DOESN'T want to hear every little fleck of birdshot, every staple, every straight pin, etc...

Yes there are machines designed to be able to go back and forth between each goal. But they will excell in neither arena. If you absolutely must have one that can do each type, you might consider the MXT. But otherwise, get one for each purpose. A good coin/relic/beach machine under $1k, if you are a beginner, is to look for a used 6000 Di pro. Or if you want a little more bells/whistles/depth, and want to spend a little more, and spend more time pulling your hair out a little more in a learning curve, you can find an Explorer on ebay usually for under $1k

 

[Rob66]

Minelab GT

 

[bottlebum]

Minelab GT

I second that. The Sov. GT is a great machine.

 

[Smudge]

I'll the third the Sovereign GT. I just bought one after exhaustive research and forum scouting. Believe me, I hammered this decision to death before buying.

I picked it because I wanted an audio only machine (though you can buy a meter for the GT if you want one) that had iron masking capabilities for trashy areas, offered great depth, and could operate in more than one mode.

In all my searching, I could only find one person who didn't like the GT because he said he couldn't get used to the tones. The attitude of the other 99% was: "you can have my GT when you pry my cold, dead fingers from around it."

 

[Rob66]

When that GT hits a target not only will you hear it, you will slighlty feel it in you hand too thats how powerful it is.I use it both for gold prospecting and low tide times at the beach with more then half of the rod in the water sometimes working around rocks and the shore lines.Black sand is no match for it and be ready to dig deep.