Recovering the Cost of a Metal Detector

badkharma

Jr. Member
Mar 25, 2017
62
157
Central NC
Detector(s) used
Whites XLT Minelab Equinox 800
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I ran my White's XLT for 20 years before upgrading to the Equinox 800. Never found anything overly profound with it in all that time. Once when it was freezing cold, I was tossing out hay to keep my dog warm and I threw my wedding band off with a handful of straw. Would have never found it otherwise, but the old White's found it almost immediately. Worth the whole investment right then.
 

Digger RJ

Gold Member
Aug 24, 2017
19,312
33,446
SW Missouri/Oklahoma
🥇 Banner finds
1
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
2
Detector(s) used
Minelab CTX 3030; Minelab Equinox 800;
XP Deus 2
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Just wondering how many here have a metal detector that has paid for itself? I have a 30 y/o Whites Silver Eagle and thinking about upgrading to an A/V 800. My Eagle does a pretty good job but it is heavy and after 30 minutes or so, I have give it a rest. When I was in my 20's it wasnt a problem. I paid somewhere in the hood of $600 for it. It hasnt come close to paying for itself unless you count the health benefits of owning one and staying off the couch. I recently retired so I am getting back into detecting again.
I hunt relics and coin shoot. I've found quite a few relics and coins worth a bit, including a Gold ring that was almost a full ounce of 14kt . That's the only thing I have ever parted with to get My Equinox 800. Everything I find I put in the proper holders and just store them. Keepsakes 😁
As for making enough to pay off all of my machines, it doesn't really matter . The enjoyment that I get out of the hunts and the incredible people I've met in this Journey is More than enough.
I know it's almost always in everyone's mind to be able to find that reimbursement find to pay off their machine, but the enjoyment and peace of mind from this hobby shouldn't be overlooked!!! Happy Hunting!!
 

BennyV

Hero Member
Feb 22, 2021
861
1,468
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
All it takes is one or two big finds (gold rings, etc). Obviously this is easier said than done. I got into it to get some fresh air and find some history. Right now I just got the fresh air, but I just started out.
 

mikeinfla

Newbie
Jul 30, 2014
3
7
Tampa, Florida
Detector(s) used
Garrett AT Pro, Garrett Ace 250, Garrett GTAx 400
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Just wondering how many here have a metal detector that has paid for itself? I have a 30 y/o Whites Silver Eagle and thinking about upgrading to an A/V 800. My Eagle does a pretty good job but it is heavy and after 30 minutes or so, I have give it a rest. When I was in my 20's it wasnt a problem. I paid somewhere in the hood of $600 for it. It hasnt come close to paying for itself unless you count the health benefits of owning one and staying off the couch. I recently retired so I am getting back into detecting again.
Ive more than paid for al my equiptment with just the clad coins found. Have found many gold items that i haven't sold.
 

iamavol

Greenie
Mar 20, 2020
13
24
Cibolo, TX
Detector(s) used
Minelab CTX 3030 / Garrett AT Max
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I know I have. Since the start of 2021, I have filled up a half gallon bottle with common clad that I will take to the bank at the end of the year to cash in. In addition, several James Avery pieces of jewelry that I have sold about half of them...wife and daughters have taken the other half...and a bunch of silver coins (dimes and quarters). We live 2 hours from the beach and I have only detected it once...also have NEVER found a gold ring. I also have a water detector for when I dive. While I try and return everything I can to the original owner, I have sold my fair share of sunglasses, silver rings, and a few phones
 

swimmer

Jr. Member
Oct 13, 2004
43
32
St Helens OR
Detector(s) used
Fisher
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
Just wondering how many here have a metal detector that has paid for itself? I have a 30 y/o Whites Silver Eagle and thinking about upgrading to an A/V 800. My Eagle does a pretty good job but it is heavy and after 30 minutes or so, I have give it a rest. When I was in my 20's it wasnt a problem. I paid somewhere in the hood of $600 for it. It hasnt come close to paying for itself unless you count the health benefits of owning one and staying off the couch. I recently retired so I am getting back into detecting again.
I have a Whites Eagle II and it paid for itself the first six months. I was in SOCAL and hit the beaches on the weekends. A few years ago I sold all the gold rings I had lying around and got just over $5000 for them. Lots of these were found with a Fisher pulse induction detector I bought somewhere along the line specifically for beach detecting...but both detectors paid for themselves the first six months. Good luck as you get going again in this hobby.
 

califteacher

Full Member
Sep 30, 2012
162
232
Vista, San Diego County, CA
Detector(s) used
Minelab CTX3030 and Excalibur II
Primary Interest:
Beach & Shallow Water Hunting
My reply depends on whether my wife is reading this thread or not. 8-) Naturally, I accentuate the positive when spending a couple of thousand dollars on a detector.

Like some others, I have never come close to paying for my detector, but it is the other things that members have mentioned, like being on the beach on a beautiful sunny day or finding an object that has been buried for a century, that makes metal detecting rewarding.
 

coast40

Jr. Member
Apr 3, 2015
36
27
Central Oregon Coast
Detector(s) used
Simplex Lite, AT Pro, Fisher Gold Bug, Fisher F2, TRXs, CarrotZ, Lesche diggers, Bobcat excavator
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
It took me a couple years to pay off my first, a Fisher F2, with a gold wedding band. So I then got an AT Pro and a Gold Bug. Still working on paying off the Garrett Carrot... I don't know which is better, the thrill of the find or the thrill of new equipment.
 

Keyboardkowboy

Jr. Member
Mar 26, 2013
34
67
Far nor Cal
Detector(s) used
Makro Nokta gold kruzer
Primary Interest:
Prospecting
Yes paid my detector off in 3 months after buying it and have recently bought another. But I'm a gold miner and live in gold country. Also I go out every chance I get. Less recently just got married.
 

ScoTTT2

Jr. Member
Jul 19, 2021
47
133
steuben county, ny
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
on 3/19 I bought my first detector, the T2+ package with the winnings from a scratch off ticket .. since then I bought a pair of GG platinum head phones, a nels sharp shooter coil, a T2se with a 5" round and 13" ultimate coil, a simplex+ with wired water proof head phones, a 8" coil and carbon fiber lower rod for that machine .. plus odds and ends .. all with the silver and clad coins I've found .. counting the clad and silver I have now, that would probably pay off the original money spent from the scratch off .. I won a 340 vanquish and on the first hunt with that found a 14K ring with a stone and a few diamonds on it ... surely that one find would have paid off that detector .. I told my wife when I started detecting that I wouldn't buy anything new unless it was with the money from my findings .. so far that has worked out well .. saving up for my next big purchase.
 

RedFernSF

Newbie
Jan 30, 2015
4
5
New York City
Detector(s) used
Garrett Ace 350
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
My detectors have paid for themselves via enjoyment, exercise, relaxation, socialization, and in so many other intrinsic ways.
With that said, monetary value wise, I do not have that mind set when purchasing detectors, but I can say this... a few years ago on my first beach hunt with a brand new detector, I found a large earring made of gold mounted with several decent sized diamonds, the value of which was just slightly under the price I paid for the detector... that was a good day.
 

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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
As others have touched on; .... after a few outings, even if I find 20 pull tabs, my machine has paid for itself. The peace and serenity provided by the sport is cheaper than a psychiatrist and is more effective. It's very akin to playing a musical instrument and is way less frustrating:)
 

Cape Hunter

Sr. Member
May 17, 2019
269
1,438
Cape Cod
Detector(s) used
Minelab Equinox 900
Minelab CTX 3030
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I recently bought the CTX3030 so I am doomed. Going to take quite a while to break even with old buttons and mostly slick coins. Use to find nice jewelry at the beaches. But few take valuables to the beach these days. At least on the cape.
 

bc5391

Hero Member
Sep 23, 2016
522
749
Southern Arizona
Detector(s) used
Minelab ,XP
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I average $600-700 in clad every year. That is not counting any real gold or silver jewelry. ( lots of bling) I still prospect but usually only find a couple of grams a year, I guess that is not too bad for 1 - 3 times a year.
so to answer the question yes.
 

Peter67

Sr. Member
Oct 9, 2016
277
367
Belgium
Detector(s) used
XP Deus 2
Xp Deus
Minelab Equinox 600
Nokta Makro Legend
Nokta Makro Multikruzer
Tesoro Lobo Super Traq,
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I honestly can say yes. I took me a few years to buy really good gear and to find out what and were are the best places to hunt but then you have a deadly combination. The advantage we have here in Europe is that our coins have a higher value. When you detect and you find coins with a value of 1 or 2 euro that adds op really fast. I detect 1 or 2 times a week but i have to drive +- 80 km a day to get at the good places. A good day gives me between 50 and 80 euro. If i detect close to house me it's only 20-20 euro. The average amount of coins i find in a year is +- 2000 euro. The averige on gold rings is 2-3 a year. I like to try out different detectors to find out how they perform. Half of my detector collection, i bought second hand and sometimes i buy detectors i know i still can make some profit on. I'll try them out and sell them then with a small profit. My wife knows i only use money from metal detecting for metal detecting so that's no problem for her and she always has first pick from the gold womens ring i find. Happy wife happy live.
 

RGINN

Gold Member
Oct 16, 2007
8,581
10,644
Summit County, CO
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
White's DFX, White's Classic 1 Coinmaster, Nokta Pointer
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Well I have a White's Coinmaster that I bought in a pawnshop in Lawton OK some years back for less than a hundred bucks and it has paid for itself about 3 times over in spendable cash. I got a White's DFX, mainly I guess cause I could afford it and thought it was a status symbol I guess. But it has paid for itself a few times over too. Not so much in actual money you can take to the bank, but other items, and enjoyment in imagining what I might turn up just a little farther down the trail. The payoff and enjoyment is always in the hunt, anyway, if you can put a dollar value on that.
 

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