on average, how soon do your finds pay for your detector?

[syko]

So I want to get a minelab excal2, as we all know it's not cheap. I live about 45 mins from the beach.

I know it depends on location and right time, but have you guys found enough to pay for your machine in under a year? I tell my wife it's one of the few hobbys that actually pays for itself, and then some.

I dont expect to make cash on it, but if the finds will pay for a higher end detector then everything else is just icing. I also read people posting about hundreds in coins for the year, I know that's a lot of digging.

BTW.. I convinced a guy at work to buy a detector after talking about the finds everyone here posts. Funny thing is, he has a coin collection.

 

[GuerillaBill]

I was out on the beach for 2 hours last evening. Found 13 cents total.

As you noted, what you find depends on the beach, how many people visit it each day, how many people are detecting it each day.

When it comes to detectors, even a inexpensive detector like the Garrett Ace 250 will find rings, bracelets, watches, etc in the sand, if it those targets are there to be found.

But if the targets aren't there in the first place, it won't matter what detector you have.

Look at metal detecting as a great way to get exercise, not a way to get rich (or even pay off the detector quickly).

Yes, some finds can be spectacular, but those are few and very far between unless you are on the right beach and out there every day.

Bill

 

[Jason in TN]

Never can tell could happen in one day could take years. You will need to plan on hunting a lot and the location needs to have a lot of people. What beach do you live near and are there a bunch of tourist that would lose jewelery that will be your quickest pay off.

Jason

 

[syko]

Live in Houston, so Galveston is closest to me.
I am realistic in knowing that it's not a get rich kind of hobby. Of course if I found a class ring I would try the hunt of locating the owner and returning it. Sounds rewarding returning something that they never expect to see again.

But since I don't plan on having a big collection of detectors, I figure go for broke and get one of the best for beach.Then I can start posting all my found pulltabs and found keys,lol.

 

[stitchlips]

So I want to get a minelab excal2, as we all know it's not cheap. I live about 45 mins from the beach.

I know it depends on location and right time, but have you guys found enough to pay for your machine in under a year? I tell my wife it's one of the few hobbys that actually pays for itself, and then some.

I dont expect to make cash on it, but if the finds will pay for a higher end detector then everything else is just icing. I also read people posting about hundreds in coins for the year, I know that's a lot of digging.

BTW.. I convinced a guy at work to buy a detector after talking about the finds everyone here posts. Funny thing is, he has a coin collection.

It also depends on how often you hunt. You do dig a ton of coins.... pennies. I have a gallon jug full of pennies. Time to start jug number 2.....
But every once in a while you will get some nice loot. For me it's not always about finding stuff. You get to go to the beach and the view is never bad! My excal has paid for itself in less than a year but I got it used for half of what you would pay new.

 

[jorge del norte]

2 years...

First year it paid for half, then second year one gold ring paid for the remainder then some, but mine was used and a land machine. Sometimes you have a streak and then other times long dry spells....I'm in a dry spell. Put the time in and it is faster.

HH

 

[deepsix47]

You might want to consider the expense involved with your hunting. Fuel, parking, food, etc., all add up pretty quickly. I only mention this to keep you out of trouble with the wife....lol.

My first underwater detector, many years ago, was a Garrett (sorry, can't remember the model). Took it to the beach and found a 1.5ct. diamond wedding ring in about 30 minutes. Detector paid for. In all of the remaining years (and there have been a few) it hasn't happened again

All that have answered your post already have made great points. I would add that if you want the best chance of making your hobby pay (at least for itself) you might want to think outside of the box a bit. Add coin shooting and relic hunting to your hunting areas. City Parks, Schools, playgrounds, lakes, old buildings, all offer excellent hunting. Go to your local library and become a student of local history. When I say that, I am talking about REAL history, not the tainted and watered down variety so often taught in public schools.

I work mostly the beach but that's because it is only 15 minutes away (if the traffic is heavy). I also work those areas I've mentioned and many others. You might want to consider getting the wife involved also. A second opinion or a hunch derived from a different perspective has very often led to fabulous finds. More importantly, it will build memories that will last a lifetime.

I wish you the very best with your new hobby.

Deepsix

 

[Dixie Digger]

im retired now and all i hunt is 2 beach's.last year i found 72 rings and about $130.00 in change. 1 ring was appraised at $3500..i dont sell many diamond rings as you cant get near what they are worth.my wife got 8 of them and grand kids got a few..iv got 2 man's diamond rings i think i will sell and buy a hand gun for the house. last year i scraped $879.00 worth of gold,silver and platinum.so far this year iv found 43 rings and about $40 in change. but i go hunting about 5 days a week! for about 3 hours a day. i use a Excal ll 1000 in the water and a Sovereign with a S12 coil wet/dry sand.

 

[syko]

Thank you guys and gals...I have been trying to get into a hobby for some time.
I actually had a Garrett 750 but I didn't use it that much before it mysteriously disappeared.

I don't know if it's at my parents home in the attic but I've been looking for it for a long time.
My wife swears she didn't sell it behind my back... I need a metal detector detector.

Wife says if I get an Excal..I could drag along the kids so they can help me. At least digging at the beach
you can cool down anytime you want and just stop and hang out at the beach. I think I would take it to a park
every once in a while on a cool day. I know it's heavy and not usually used for land,but I need a good
digger so I can do it right this time.

In the meantime I will continue following posts here and learning from you guys, and gals.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Buy the detector for the thrill of the hunt, and you will enjoy it more. It could take you years or 1 day, you just never know.

Last July 4 I found 4 gold rings in 2 hours, gold value alone was over $750, and two of them had diamonds. This year I only found 1 small diamond ring and that was on July 5Th because I couldn't go July 4Th.

Are you buying new or used? I bought and then sold a used Excall for $75 less then I paid for it 18 months earlier, and that didn't take in to account the silver and gold with diamonds I found with it. Remember it is like buying a car, you will lose a percentage of the value as soon as you put it in the water, BUT, you are also going to buy a detector that holds most of it's value over the years.

Here is something I know for sure, once you start giving your wife first claim on the gold rings you find, her objections will diminish, mine did. After I gave my wife the first diamond ring I found her objections started to lessen, after the 2ND diamond ring they disappeared completely, and she has gotten more since then. She has no objection when I go hunting or when I add to the arsenal.

Good luck, and good hunting.................

 

[Florida Sand Digger]

You said it Treasure Hunter, My wife at first was a "What in the world do you want one of them thing for" type of woman. After I brought her a ring with two diamonds and two rubies, she changed to a "Oh that's why" kind of woman. Now, a year and seven gold rings later and 5 silver rings and other jewelry, she is " What can i do to help you go hunting tomorrow type of woman. So you just hang in there, and hopefully you will find a ring quickly that fits your ladies finger, then I promise her mind will change too.


Like others have said too, you can't consider the cost of the machine, gas, parking, batteries, sunscreen, food, bug spray, clothes, scoops, diggers, probes, another detector, well you get the picture.

When I hunt, yes I always hope i will find that big diamond ring, but I am outside, walking on the beach, taking in all the eye candy, stopping to talk to a curious tourist about what you are doing, and some days I come home with only a few bottle caps for my efforts, I got some exercise, and I had fun. I hunt with a whites DFX, and when I get a certain VDI number, I get all tingly inside, before I even dig it up. It may turn out to be a gold ring or a capri-sun packet, you just never know until you pull it up out of the ground and see what it is. That is what it is about, not how much it costs or how much I can make.

You go buy that machine, and find that first ring and give it too your lady, she'll come around.

Welcome to the hobby

 

[JRich98150]

I'm still trying to pay for my first detector (Metrotech) which I bought back in 1970 ..... and I've had many others (detectors that is..) since then.

"This ain't a get rich quick scheme"

JRich

 

[Chi Town Bruce]

Go and have fun with your new tector! and bring her with!

 

[spez401]

I paid for my first detector - before i even owned it. Stopped into a hobby shop and took a demo out (with a $100 deposit). I went down to the beach, and after about an hour i found a few bucks in change, and then a nice diamond solitaire. I rinsed off the ring, stopped by the pawn shop on the way back to the hobby shop - got $500 for the ring (In hindsight... i should have kept it and sold it somewhere else...). I walked into the hobby shop, laid $250 on the table and told the owner "I found a ring, and i got $500 for it. here's $250 because I figure the detector was yours." When I said i wanted to keep the machine (a white's surfmaster pi pro - $699 at the time), he said to give me the deposit and $150 and the machine was mine.

I went on to pay for that machine many times over.

On the other hand, it took me about a year to pay for my DFX... and about a month to pay for my first Excalibur 800. It all depends on where you hunt, and where you're hunting. Oh... and if you plan on doing any amount of beach hunting, you can't go wrong with the excal. It has a bit of a learning curve... but once you get it, the only reason you'll be disappointed is because nobody is dropping the goodies... not because the machine can't find them. And, while a bit awkward for land hunting (I'd suggest a hip mount or the so-called "florida straight shaft") it is basically an "explorer in a tube".

good luck
steve

 

[jopher]

Ive got a buddy that is an avid fisherman.......got about twenty grand tied up in equipment.
Another bud into motocross.....bout the same money tied up into that.
Others who are snomobilers, golfers, hunters.
The way I see it , everyone needs a hobby ...and if you drop 1200. bucks on a good unit and a scoop, with the definite possibility of paying for more than your gas, youre getting off with some pretty cheap thrills. And if you take the kids to the beach in the process....bonus!

 

[chipveres]

I look at it as a "reversed cash flow" situation. Every time my wife goes to the gym, she pays them a dollar. Every time I go to the beach, I make a dollar or more.

Chip V.

 

[txkickergirl]

The learning curve took me about 6 months. After that I started finding the rings. Just in the last 4 months I have paid for my excal 5 times over. Its nice to know that the machine is well worth the money when your finds pay for it. Don't forget its the thrill of the hunt, and the what could be out there to find, that the hobby is all about. Relax, have fun, don't kill yourself or get frustrated trying to pay for your machine. Just enjoy, the finds will come. Maybe not today, next month, maybe not for a year, but eventually they will come.

 

[jorge del norte]

I look at it as a "reversed cash flow" situation. Every time my wife goes to the gym, she pays them a dollar. Every time I go to the beach, I make a dollar or more.

Chip V.

thats funny, i want to go to the gym tonight and go night detecting......

 

[deepbeep]

I have found coins every day this week! At the current rate, and with the type and age coins I have been finding, If I don't miss a day for the entire year (It is going to get tough here in Ohio in December)...but If I don't miss any day and the finds stay at the current rate I have been finding them, then by one year from today I will have paid for about 1/2 my Garrett GTAX 550! lol

I guess I better not think of it that way either! lmao

Tim

 

[Sandman]

Many have had they're first detector paid for in a couple minutes and others never have even made it half way. A lot depends on the amount of time spent swinging the coil and where. Operator skill comes into play too. If you are just looking to add up the money you find, you'd make more faster at a part time job pushing burgers at a fast food joint. But this hobby is just that, a hobby that is fun to find what the next target will be. I don't even wanna think about how much money I spent on bass boats and fishing gear when I haven't eaten that much fish. It is nice to get out there and enjoy the sun and rain while diggin' in the dirt for a penny. It beats following the ole lady into a fabric store.