My best metal detector.

SCUFFLES

Jr. Member
Apr 27, 2019
44
75
Quebec Canada
Detector(s) used
Bounty Hunter
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I’ve had experience with many expensive metal detectors around $1000, and none of them was as good as my favourite bounty hunter fast tracker, which is less than $200, it’s very simple and easy to use and it can hit targets pretty deep like around 2-3 feet underground. Also it is very light and very easy to carry. Just thought I’d share this info just in case it might help you to make a wise choice when buying your first metal detector.
 

OP
OP
S

SCUFFLES

Jr. Member
Apr 27, 2019
44
75
Quebec Canada
Detector(s) used
Bounty Hunter
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
What did you recover that was 2 feet deep?
For big objects my metal detector detected a whole bunch of junk metals like iron, lead, aluminum at least one feet or two deep once in awhile. Depending on the size of the object.
 

Emil W

Sr. Member
Nov 4, 2021
473
1,081
Central New Jersey
Detector(s) used
Deus 2
Deus
Deus Lite
Garrett Apex
Garrett Pinpointer
BH Discovery 2200
BH Pioneer EX
White's Coinmaster 6000D (have had for decades)
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
Most detectors detect to about the same depth, regardless of cost. The technology for depth was figured out years ago and that same technology is available at all price ranges. Until some new technology comes along, if depth is your only concern, you're correct -- just about any detector will do the trick.

Most long time detectorists choose their detectors based on much more than depth. And the more advanced the detector, the more time it takes to get the most out of it. For a novice who doesn't detect regularly, a basic machine is fine since they're unlikely to put enough time into getting the maximum potential out of a more advanced machine.

But don't assume just because in your personal experience the machine you're currently using is as good as any number of high-end detectors is true for everyone. Most seasoned detectorists will be able to find much more with a higher end machine because they understand how to use the advanced features and customizations to their full extent.
 

Rad1sh

Full Member
Sep 22, 2019
175
272
Olympia, Washington
Detector(s) used
Nokta Makro Simplex White Coinmaster ( Burghandy)
Garret Ace 250 Tracker IV
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
What did you recover that was 2 feet deep?
A bus?
My teenage daughter has one of those collecting dust in the closet. It didn't seem bad or great to me. We all got our machine that was a little special. Mine is my ace 250. I found many firsts with it. So it is always a bit elevated in my head.
 

seagullplayer

Jr. Member
Aug 13, 2008
78
112
Southern Indiana
Detector(s) used
Garrett ACE 250 & ACE 400, ACE Apex
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
I can relate, I have never owned a high end machine with all the fancy features. But I read and watch folks talk about them, and all I see is something I'm gonna have trouble with.

I had an old coin shooter a long time ago and it was old then (think metal box with a couple knobs and a needle gauge). I remember it had manual ground balance, mostly what I recall is that it was a real paint in the...
Anyway when I picked the hobby back up years later I saw "built in ground balance" as a great selling point.! Now I'm told by others that a machine without manual ground balance is less of a machine.

As someone else said, I think I'm one of those people that really doesn't benefit from high end features.
I'm a boggy golfer and am pretty happy with that. I'm not gonna put a lot of time and effort into getting much better. I have fun when I play and I feel pretty competitive with the few folks I play with. I guess you could say I am a boggy detector and I'm happy with the club I'm swinging.
 

Emil W

Sr. Member
Nov 4, 2021
473
1,081
Central New Jersey
Detector(s) used
Deus 2
Deus
Deus Lite
Garrett Apex
Garrett Pinpointer
BH Discovery 2200
BH Pioneer EX
White's Coinmaster 6000D (have had for decades)
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
I can relate, I have never owned a high end machine with all the fancy features. But I read and watch folks talk about them, and all I see is something I'm gonna have trouble with.

I had an old coin shooter a long time ago and it was old then (think metal box with a couple knobs and a needle gauge). I remember it had manual ground balance, mostly what I recall is that it was a real paint in the...
Anyway when I picked the hobby back up years later I saw "built in ground balance" as a great selling point.! Now I'm told by others that a machine without manual ground balance is less of a machine.

As someone else said, I think I'm one of those people that really doesn't benefit from high end features.
I'm a boggy golfer and am pretty happy with that. I'm not gonna put a lot of time and effort into getting much better. I have fun when I play and I feel pretty competitive with the few folks I play with. I guess you could say I am a boggy detector and I'm happy with the club I'm swinging.

Yeah, a lot of us started with these old metal-box detectors back when they were actually considered decent machines. Todays' detectors, even basic ones, are much more sophisticated. But they still do the job if you're happy with them.

I just took my old Coinmaster out to use, just for nostalgia, but I'm very disappointed that it's stopped working! I guess I'll just put it back in its case and stick it in the closet -- can't bring myself to getting rid of it.
 

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Richard Guy

VETERAN
Dec 19, 2019
661
1,299
Virginia
Detector(s) used
Whites Coinmaster
Bounty Hunter 202
Nokta Simplex +
Nokta Legend
Nokta PulseDive
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
Check that battery holder, mine had a crack in it that caused failure. Seems that the plastic got brittle
 

Emil W

Sr. Member
Nov 4, 2021
473
1,081
Central New Jersey
Detector(s) used
Deus 2
Deus
Deus Lite
Garrett Apex
Garrett Pinpointer
BH Discovery 2200
BH Pioneer EX
White's Coinmaster 6000D (have had for decades)
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
Thanks, I'll give it a try when I get a chance!
 

JuBoy

Newbie
Jan 15, 2022
4
2
St Maries, Idaho
I’ve had experience with many expensive metal detectors around $1000, and none of them was as good as my favourite bounty hunter fast tracker, which is less than $200, it’s very simple and easy to use and it can hit targets pretty deep like around 2-3 feet underground. Also it is very light and very easy to carry. Just thought I’d share this info just in case it might help you to make a wise choice when buying your first metal detector.
You may be just who I've been hoping to run onto. I had an old cheap detector years ago and never really had any experience with hunting. I don't have much to spend but been looking at the Garrett 250 and 300 having heard a couple people talking on them. Would you be able to compare your bounty hunter to one of those? I live in Idaho panhandle and hope to be near creeks as well as dig at old homesites etc. Thank you so much for your share.
 

OP
OP
S

SCUFFLES

Jr. Member
Apr 27, 2019
44
75
Quebec Canada
Detector(s) used
Bounty Hunter
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
You may be just who I've been hoping to run onto. I had an old cheap detector years ago and never really had any experience with hunting. I don't have much to spend but been looking at the Garrett 250 and 300 having heard a couple people talking on them. Would you be able to compare your bounty hunter to one of those? I live in Idaho panhandle and hope to be near creeks as well as dig at old homesites etc. Thank you so much for your share.
Well I had the Garrett ATGold, which is way more expensive and more advanced than the Garrett 250 and 300, and to be honest I like my bounty hunter fast tracker much more just because it’s much more simple and easy to use which makes it more effective for me to find treasure. Also with my experience with metal detectors I’ve come to realize they all basically do the same thing but the more high end expensive ones are very complicated and also very heavy and so for a person like me it becomes ineffective in my quest to find treasure, and for depth I think 2-3 feet is very plenty, who is willing to dig more than that?
 

Emil W

Sr. Member
Nov 4, 2021
473
1,081
Central New Jersey
Detector(s) used
Deus 2
Deus
Deus Lite
Garrett Apex
Garrett Pinpointer
BH Discovery 2200
BH Pioneer EX
White's Coinmaster 6000D (have had for decades)
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
If by "basically all do the same thing" you mean they all detect metal, then yes, that's true. But they most certainly do not all do the same thing and some are in fact very specialized.

As I've stated earlier, they all pretty much detect to about the same depth regardless of brand, model, or cost. But that's only in ideal situations which are rare out in the field.

With a basic detector you'll also either end up digging a very large percentage of iron junk compared to good targets, or miss the good targets altogether. That's fine if that's all you want -- some people are actually looking for iron. But be prepared to also dig up hot rocks, bottlecaps, etc., which can be more easily avoided with advanced detectors, although no detector can eliminate them completely.

More advanced machines will detect objects that simpler ones can't, even if the object is only an inch or two under the surface, unless as I've said above you don't mind digging every single signal you get and hope there's something good alongside whatever trash you actually detected.

Even the more advanced detectors can be simply removed from the box, turned on, and find metal without any understanding at all about all the options and customizations. They all come with preset basic programs. And they would still be better than the basic detectors at discriminating between good and bad targets even right out of the box, but wouldn't be worth the price if you don't intend to utilize its programing to its full potential. An intermediate detector would be your best bet in this case.

Back to depth, only very large targets can be detected at two to three feet. There's a YouTube video of Gary Blackwell digging a steel truck wheel at a measured depth of three feet using a Deus. Not exactly something I'd want to do but it does show what kind of depth is possible with large objects.

As far as the weight of high-end models, the original XP Deus is one of the lightest detectors you can buy at about two pounds so weight isn't necessarily an issue with high-end machines.

But reality is we all want something we're comfortable with using, otherwise it will end up sitting in the closest or listed on Craigslist. We each have our own criteria for what exactly that is.
 

OP
OP
S

SCUFFLES

Jr. Member
Apr 27, 2019
44
75
Quebec Canada
Detector(s) used
Bounty Hunter
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
If by "basically all do the same thing" you mean they all detect metal, then yes, that's true. But they most certainly do not all do the same thing and some are in fact very specialized.

As I've stated earlier, they all pretty much detect to about the same depth regardless of brand, model, or cost. But that's only in ideal situations which are rare out in the field.

With a basic detector you'll also either end up digging a very large percentage of iron junk compared to good targets, or miss the good targets altogether. That's fine if that's all you want -- some people are actually looking for iron. But be prepared to also dig up hot rocks, bottlecaps, etc., which can be more easily avoided with advanced detectors, although no detector can eliminate them completely.

More advanced machines will detect objects that simpler ones can't, even if the object is only an inch or two under the surface, unless as I've said above you don't mind digging every single signal you get and hope there's something good alongside whatever trash you actually detected.

Even the more advanced detectors can be simply removed from the box, turned on, and find metal without any understanding at all about all the options and customizations. They all come with preset basic programs. And they would still be better than the basic detectors at discriminating between good and bad targets even right out of the box, but wouldn't be worth the price if you don't intend to utilize its programing to its full potential. An intermediate detector would be your best bet in this case.

Back to depth, only very large targets can be detected at two to three feet. There's a YouTube video of Gary Blackwell digging a steel truck wheel at a measured depth of three feet using a Deus. Not exactly something I'd want to do but it does show what kind of depth is possible with large objects.

As far as the weight of high-end models, the original XP Deus is one of the lightest detectors you can buy at about two pounds so weight isn't necessarily an issue with high-end machines.

But reality is we all want something we're comfortable with using, otherwise it will end up sitting in the closest or listed on Craigslist. We each have our own criteria for what exactly that is.
You are absolutely right but I guess it all depends on the person using the machine. For example I like to use easy and simple machines rather than difficult machines because it’s just too complicated for me and I won’t enjoy going out hunting for treasure or I probably will go less often or not at all and that means money wasted for nothing for a person like me, but other people might benefit from having a more advanced machine because what is difficult for me might be simple and easy for someone else.
 

Emil W

Sr. Member
Nov 4, 2021
473
1,081
Central New Jersey
Detector(s) used
Deus 2
Deus
Deus Lite
Garrett Apex
Garrett Pinpointer
BH Discovery 2200
BH Pioneer EX
White's Coinmaster 6000D (have had for decades)
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
I couldn't agree more -- it's up to each individual to decide what they want to deal with.

I still like my Apex even though it's a much simpler detector and prefer it for beach use. Not that the Deus doesn't work well on the beach, but because I can't be bothered dealing with customizing programs as I go when conditions change -- too much to think about. Sometimes I want to turn a machine on and go. Even though I could do that with the Deus I just can't bring myself to ignore the adjustments and I end up thinking too much about what settings to change. Beach detecting to me should be relaxing.
 

Gare

Gold Member
Dec 30, 2012
7,366
13,876
Canton Ohio Area
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
2
Detector(s) used
Presently using Deus 2's & have Minelabs, Nokta's Tesoro's DEus's Have them all . Have WAY to many need to get rid of some
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Centerville Electronics in Va does repair on them
 

alloy_II

Hero Member
Dec 24, 2021
629
1,028
Yeah, a lot of us started with these old metal-box detectors back when they were actually considered decent machines. Todays' detectors, even basic ones, are much more sophisticated. But they still do the job if you're happy with them.

I just took my old Coinmaster out to use, just for nostalgia, but I'm very disappointed that it's stopped working! I guess I'll just put it back in its case and stick it in the closet -- can't bring myself to getting rid of it.
Capacitors do not age well, replace any swollen ones with the same values and your Coinmaster will be happy.

Screenshot from 2022-01-18 09-52-21.png
 

TheGreenBoy

Sr. Member
Nov 10, 2017
399
462
Countryside
Detector(s) used
DBP2010, eeTH, tx850
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Do not warry, i had many "best" detectors. It lasted only somethime, for each of them......
 

Emil W

Sr. Member
Nov 4, 2021
473
1,081
Central New Jersey
Detector(s) used
Deus 2
Deus
Deus Lite
Garrett Apex
Garrett Pinpointer
BH Discovery 2200
BH Pioneer EX
White's Coinmaster 6000D (have had for decades)
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting

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