Need help deciding on a new detector

[washingtonian]

I have a bounty hunter from big 5 i am pretty unsatisfied with. I find great spots but never anything old because of the metal detectors lack of capabilities. I am mainly into coin hunting and am looking for something that will pretty much tell me what is in the ground before i dig it up. So I was wondering if anybody had any ideas on a good metal detector?

 

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[surfrat96]

Check out the Garrett Ace 250. Lot of people on the forum love em!

HH 8) surfrat

 

[rvbvetter]

O BOY!! I've still got tomatos dripping off me from the last time I said which ones the best or which one the person should look at, or consider.
But I do agree with Surfrat. I think you would find the Ace 250 a big improvement. Gotta run. Here come the tomatos again. HH

 

[surfrat96]

O BOY!! I've still got tomatos dripping off me from the last time I said which ones the best or which one the person should look at, or consider.
But I do agree with Surfrat. I think you would find the Ace 250 a big improvement. Gotta run. Here come the tomatos again. HH

rvbvetter, you're just giving your opinions, and that's what their asking for. So no more tomatoes! LOL!

HH 8) surfrat

 

[Jerxs]

What metal Detector should I buy?

This is a very good question that is asked quite frequently.

There are many questions you should ask yourself before buying a new metal detector. Questions that only you have the answer to.


 What is my budget?
 What type of metal detecting will I be doing?
 What are my physical capabilities?
 What experience do I have with metal detectors?


The first question you should ask yourself is how much you are willing to spend on a new metal detector. Once you are set on a budget you can start eliminating metal detectors that are out of your price range. This is important, because of the wide price range of metal detectors. Metal detectors typically range from about $200 up to $1500. Keep in mind that you get what you pay for in most cases. If you buy a metal detector for $200 it will not have the options or performance of a higher priced metal detector. Also keep in mind that if you buy a high priced metal detector with all the bells and whistles and have no clue how to use it the bells and whistle mean nothing and are useless to you.

I generally recommend some of these metal detectors to those that are new to metal detecting.

 Fisher’s 1225 X (retail price: $299.95)
 Garrett’s Ace 250 (retail price: $249.95)
 Minelab’s X-terra 30 (retail price: $499.95)

Keep in mind that metal detectors hold their value quite well. Trading up to something bigger and better once you have the feel of metal detecting is always an option.

Once you know how much you are willing to spend on a new metal detector you need to figure out how you will be using it. What kind of metal detecting will you be doing?

The different types of metal detecting can be summed up into the following.

 General metal detecting (parks, yards, beaches)
 Beach hunting (salt and fresh water beaches)
 Relic hunting (ruff terrain)
 Gold (hunting for raw gold)
 Under water (under water metal detecting)


You need to ask yourself this question for obvious reasons. If you plan on metal detecting under water, you would not want to buy a metal detector built for metal detecting land. Once you know what kind of metal detecting you will be doing you can narrow down your choices even more. You now know, what you can afford and what type of metal detecting you will be doing.

The third question you may want to ask yourself. What are my physical capabilities? This is also a very important question. If you have a physical disability you are not going to want to purchase a heavy metal detector. You would think that most metal detectors weigh about the same and that an extra pound or two would not make that much of a difference, but it does. Some metal detectors are very heavy and require good physical capabilities to operate efficiently.

What is my experience level? This is also a very important question to ask yourself before purchasing a metal detector.

If you are new to metal detecting I don’t advise buying a metal detector that is going to overwhelm you while out metal detecting. It is good to start simple, get a feel for the hobby and what metal detecting is all about. As I mentioned earlier in this article “Trading up is always an option”. If you become frustrated with your metal detector out in the field because you don’t understand it, chances are you are not enjoying yourself and will eventually quit metal detecting as quick as you picked it up.

Some things to keep in mind when shopping around.

Any good metal detector dealer will take the time to work with you and answer your questions. Metal detector sales is like any other business. You will run across the sales man that is only interested in selling you the unit he is going to make the most profit off of.

Before going to buy your new metal detector sit down with a piece of paper and write down any and all questions you might have. Talk with the dealer ask all of your questions, if you start to feel pressured and are not getting the answers you seek, WALK OUT! Find a different dealer.

Most dealers Have demo’s in their shops. This will give you a chance to try a few models before buying.

(2006 DetectorX) Article Published on DetectorX.com, Metal Detecting & Treasure Hunting

 

[neilo]

You say you want a deep seeking detector that will tell you what the target is before you dig. All detectors including the dearer models cant do that. Generally speaking anything over about six inches in depth cant be accurately identified by visual target id.I use a Minelab Explorer 2 and whilst the machine is hard to beat as far an depth goes its visual target id isnt accurate at depth but its tone id is. All detectors are affected by ground mineralisation which will affect its depth dramaticly some worse than others. I wouldnt recommend the Treasure ace as a machine which is good for depth or use in salty mineralised ground. If I couldnt afford a better machine new have a look at secondhand, but only buy from recognised dealer with warranty.
good luck with your hunting buy carefully seeya Neilo

 

[hollowpointred]

You say you want a deep seeking detector that will tell you what the target is before you dig. All detectors including the dearer models cant do that. Generally speaking anything over about six inches in depth cant be accurately identified by visual target id.I use a Minelab Explorer 2 and whilst the machine is hard to beat as far an depth goes its visual target id isnt accurate at depth but its tone id is. All detectors are affected by ground mineralisation which will affect its depth dramaticly some worse than others. I wouldnt recommend the Treasure ace as a machine which is good for depth or use in salty mineralised ground. If I couldnt afford a better machine new have a look at secondhand, but only buy from recognised dealer with warranty.
good luck with your hunting buy carefully seeya Neilo




this is good advise. while i do like the ace 250, it is only fair to average in the depth department and it is lousey in heavily minerilized conditions (salt water conditions for example). depending on your budget there are a ton of good machines available. minelab x-terra, explorer 2, whites xlt, dfx, mxt, fisher id excel, cz3d,garrett gti 2500, gti 1500, several tesoro machines are well liked by the folks that have them. check out the different manufacturers websites for starters. it can be super hard to pick the right machine. i recently got a gti 2500 and im still not sure if it was the right machine yet! good luck!