Introduction and question

[cessna152]

I just registered on this forum. I am 73 years old and retired. I have finally gotten all the kids educated and settled. After being away from detecting for about 30 years it's now my and my wife's turn to have some fun. Most of my detecting would take place in sandy washes and hills. Also some old homesteads on private lands. I'm just looking for interesting things (old cartridges, relics, and whatever comes along. Detectors have really changed since I last detected. I'd like to buy one that I could grow with. Being an engineer by trade, I understand the learning curve can be trying at times. I would rather buy a unit I could grow into rather than a simple one I would outgrow. Any suggestions. I understand that leaves things wide open for discussion.

 

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[tlane38003]

What's your budget

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[cessna152]

What's your budget

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I'd like to spend as little as possible to get a good unit. No more than 500-800 dollars.

 

[ChampFerguson/TN]

Garrett ATP. Best value for the money. Only thing it doesn't do well is salt water/wet salty sand.

Remember: only MSRP is advertised. Talk to several dealers and see what the Real price is on any detector.

 

[tlane38003]

Garrett ATP. Best value for the money. Only thing it doesn't do well is salt water/wet salty sand.

Remember: only MSRP is advertised. Talk to several dealers and see what the Real price is on any detector.

Good advice the at pro is waterproof but struggles in black sand and wet salt an a used etrack might be something to consider and obtained in your price range and is awesome in most environmental conditions you will need an environmental cover if you go near salty air and will also protect in the rain not downpours however you mentioned you wanted something that will take time to master just my thoughts I am a minelab fan

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[Loco-Digger]

All the big manufacturers have a detector in your price range, are you just a listen and dig or do you want to see target ID numbers? I am a Fisher guy and the best bang for the buck "currently" is the Teknetics Patriot in my opinion.. You can get $50 bucks off using a promo code. It is a re-branded Fisher F70. It is something you can grow into, You might want to read some of digger27's post.

 

[oldkoot]

I would recommend the Mine lab X TERRA 705 being as to how you stated you are going to be going up some washes and things like that the X TERRA 705 has a true prospecting mode and is just a great all around detector for the money the only advantage the AT PRO has over the X TERRA 705 is the AT PRO is water proof to 10 feet and the X TERRA 705 is not I have been using the X TERRA for about 8-9 years now and have never felt the need to upgrade as the X TERRA has plenty to learn and I find still to this day I learn something new about it all the time I also have the AT PRO and have never been that impressed with it other then a detector I would also plan on picking up a good pin pointer as the pin pointer makes recovery of your target much quicker and easier

one other thing the X TERRA 705 has auto and manual ground balance as well as ground balance tracking which is a great feature where I detect I use the GB tracking all the time because I have seen the ground balance numbers change drastically and have seen ground balance numbers in single digits and as high as the high 40s the tracking on the 705 keeps the machine pretty stable so you are not having to mess with re ground balancing all the time

 

[Kurios1]

Ok, that's almost the impossible question to answer but, here's my 2 cents. Makro Racer 2 standard package. I have used this machine for about four months now and absolutely love it. I had it's predecessor the Makro Red Racer 1 and loved that machine so much I had to get the upgraded model. I also own the Garrett AT Pro and would pick this machine over that one hands down. I think it doesn't get much attention as it's a "foreign" manufacturer and is not as readily available in the states as some USA made machines. One advantage I really love is the wireless headphones. ZERO lag and no messy cables to trip over or get in your way. You will have to purchase them separately as they do NOT come with the standard or Pro package. Rather than give you more opinions why I so love this machine I'll send you a good link from another T-net member and a die hard Tesoro driver who reviewed the Makro Racer 2. I hope you chose wisely and enjoy whatever machine you end up with.
http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/n...acer-2-pro-package.html?highlight=Makro+Racer