ENTHUSIAST,
You talk about Beach hunting, dry or wet, salt or freshwater as all make a difference and this causes your choices to be less for certain conditions.
IF you are hunting other peoples lawns the lawns must be treated with the utmost of care, private lawns or park lawns!!!! If someone trotted up to my front door with a shovel or after giving them permission I saw them carrying in a shovel I would tell them to get off of my property. If you are in a park with a shovel they will likely kick you out as others before you have not filled their holes or have left a Mess. Get a Lesche digging tool for lawns, its The Best. If you have wide open spaces to dig in then get a real metal detecting shovel. Call some of the Sponsors down towards the bottom of the Forum page and ask questions about diggers, detectors, earphones, pouches for finds/trash or a "nail apron". Digging tools Must be really strong if not they break/bend and then you say naughty words at them, don't frustrate yourself get a really solid tool first time out! Also when digging use a sizeable drop cloth to put the loose dirt on.
This is the Lesche and it comes with a belt loop carrying case.
Likely "the real tools" will kill your budget BUT find out what they are first, go to a detector dealers store and look at what they have their. Also go to the Lesche website and look at All they offer and ask more questions as to what and why people own/use them. Go to the Sponsors websites and look at what they stock.
The detectors, depending on the beach use, any of the major brands will serve you well. The Tesoro's intrigue me but I've never owned one. I know White's and trust them. Usually the more expensive the detector the steeper the learning curve but do not get the bottom of the line machine from anyone. Within your budget buy the best detector you can, I think all of them will pinpoint and if you pay attention to how to pinpoint you will not need the Garret Pro Pointer right away. BUT, one of the Tnet Sponsors might just make you a smoking deal on a detector/Lesche/G Pro Pointer?! ASK! If you do not ask you will never know, asking may not change anything but then it just may. ASK!
Terry Soloman, here on Tnet, is a staunch Tesoro man BUT even he posted a best first detector thread that included several other major brands, look for it on his website as it was a good reviews of simpler machines yet good ones.
You are stepping of into a consuming hobby! As soon as you start finding 'stuff' your interest will go up. If you happen to find silver or gold right off your life will really change (mine did when that happened)!
If you Do Not read your machines users manual and/or you do not practice, practice, practice you will Not like this hobby. This hobby is all about learning, reading, practice and doing it all over again time after time, never ending. As well as asking questions just like you've done.
Also, it is Very Practical/Helpful to build a "Test Garden" of buried items that you know what they are and where they are in your garden. Bury them at just under the surface to 6" down: so that will be three pennies, three nickels, pulltabs, bottle caps, etc. Leave a good three feet between each target. After planting day water your garden really well so the air comes out and the ground compacts. Oh, the angle you bury the targets at makes a difference: flat is like zero, 15 degrees tilted and so on till the target is vertical - each angle can give you a different unique response on your machine. Yes some of it gets complicated but heck if it was just drop dead simple absolutely everyone would be doing it and likely the hobby would be ruined, IMHO.
Best of luck with your research and your choices, now get to it!
Happy Hunting....................63bkpkr
Note: IF you happen to have really good targets in your area, save the coins/rings up and use your finds to purchase your accessories.
