narrowed down to three....I think

[CTRAP]

Hoping for some opinions before I make the purchase late this week/next week.
In Ct and primary interest is silver coins around old homesteads and a little beach hunting
I am overwhelmed by all the information out there. Learning curves, weight, problems with particular machines, etc all make the choice difficult, the more I read. lol
so, I have it narrowed down to these in my price range.
Garret AT Pro
Garret GTI 1500
Fisher 3d CZ

any opinions appreciated, the snow is melting here and I'm ready to hunt.
Thanks

 

[Lowbatts]

I'm kind of thinking I'd be happy with any one of those machines as a first. What you really need to know is more about the sites you'll be hunting.

What are the conditions of the ground? That is the mineralization, depth of soil, etc...

What sort of trash is in the mix and how dense it is?

So the machine someone uses around here or other parts of the country may be better there or worse.

How many local detectorists do you know? What do they use to the best effect in those sites?

Get those questions answered and you're on your way to the shinies.

 

[Daedalus]

One person here uses the Garret AT Pro , and so far he has done very well. I have watched him use this machine and it has turned out to be very good.

For the price it does quite a bit and can be used in the water. Any one of the machines that you listed are great machines so you should be fine with what every your choice is .

I would just sort out what and where you are going to be detecting the most and try to get a machine that will come the closest to matching your area and type of detecting .

 

[CTRAP]

Thank you both. I have no idea of the mineralization of our local soil.
I found another old foundation yesterday.... : )

 

[CTRAP]

I ended up w/a Whites MXT 300
learning the machine........... found a wheat penny first time out 4" down.

 

[Keppy]

I ended up w/a Whites MXT 300
learning the machine........... found a wheat penny first time out 4" down.

To me that Whites MXT is the best VLF detector that Whites has............ Now that is just me..

 

[Sandman]

I ended up w/a Whites MXT 300
learning the machine........... found a wheat penny first time out 4" down.

To me that Whites MXT is the best VLF detector that Whites has............ Now that is just me..

I kinda liked the MXT also but ended up buying the DFX. Now it hangs on the wall because when land hunting I like the Sov GT or the Tejon. I think it is the screen that turns me off. I like the surprises of whats down there.

 

[LuckyLarry]

Like LowBatts got right, it depends on where live, what you hunt, and where you hunt...

For depth in average to mild soil the Fisher cz3d and the Garrett At Pro will be a close match. The Garrett GTI 1500 won't do any better than the cheaper Ace 250 in equally iron-laden or red clay soil.

In heavy iron or magnetite or hematite (black sand) soil people should leave the Garrett 1500 at home and grab the cz3d or AT Pro. Either of these will handle it better than the VERY antiquated 1980's circuitry of the GTI 1500. The AT Pro is still new and a guinea pig, of sorts, and the cz3d is getting on in age.

I think you made a better choice with the Whites, it's very versatile.

LL

 

[extractor]

Primary interest is silver coins ,, I would be tempted to get the Tesoro Silver Umax ,,
My second choice would be the At Pro. But that is just me .