Metal Detecting discussions and finds

I use the Garrett ACE250 and it is extremely easy to learn and use.

Minelabs are really good knowing other people that use them.

I don't know about the other one in your post? I'm pretty sure it is very decent.

A few years back on a detector forum I frequented for a few years, there was a huge back and forth battle between "tone only" and "visual display readouts". Pretty lame actually if you ask me.

But yeah, you had these absolute "purists" that were tone only believers who were the main "Karens" with the whole fuss!!!

I bring this up because as far as "ease", having a visual readout gives very good approximation of what it is that you have under your feet just before recovering the object.

Anyways, the other thing is to practice cutting plugs correctly.

 

@OnHartung'sRoad

Just waiting for the tow truck driver to take it to the shop.


Hopefully sometime this year we can get a group meet? I'll hopefully have my baby girl back up and running soon!!!

 

Wtf is wrong with her now?

 

Long story brother.

I'll post later... At the shop right now.

 

it’s great that you want to get into metal detecting, if you know people that are really good at it and know their machines, maybe get someone to help you buy a good used one? There really is no reason to buy a brand new one for cheap when you can get a higher quality one for maybe less or about the same price. Do you want to detect for gold, coins or both? And at the beach, in the water, in salt water, or just at the park? And the last two biggies; how much time do you think you’ll have to actually do it, and how much money do you want to spend?

 

HAHAHA, uhhhh, brother, I believe you quoted the wrong brother?

I THINK you meant to quote @klavender1

 

Honestly I can't answer some of those questions. It just seems like a fun thing to do. Being near Camden SC there's a lot of early American history here. So that appeals to me too. Maybe once in a great while go to the beach.

 

Sounds like you’re in a great place for old coin detecting and relic hunting! Suggest getting something with target id and iron discrimination. As WilleECoyote recommended, get something like a Garrett ACE250 as a starter.

 

Oops!

 

The Ace 250 certainly looks like a great place to start. I've really been eyeing the Nokta Simplex as well. It seems to have features and abilities of more expensive detectors. They're both roughly the same price.

 

To lavender, he brings up good points about things to think about. The main one, in my humble opinion, is "how much money do you want to spend?"

I know it's hard to answer a question like that when you really don't "know about the hobby to begin with".

I can only speak for the ACE250, but I'm pretty sure the Simplex will do a good job as well.

What I can tell you is that for sure, the ACE250 is really good when it comes to "coin hunting", meaning the "Silver" end of the spectrum as well as "Iron", which is what you want in your case.

I was always interested with metal detecting when I was a wee lad, but my parents couldn't afford things like that and even as I got older and started working, I still couldn't afford anything like that.

Anyways, years go by and I'm walking through Fry's Electronics when they were still around and saw the ACE250. I walked by it a few times basically contemplating because I had no idea about the subject.

I ended up buying it anyways. It was an impulse buy really.

Anyways, in a nutshell that is how I started. I just bought it because I was able to afford it and just started learning.

Super easy to learn.

 

Went detecting yesterday with a couple buddies. It was cold and very windy with some left over snow from the previous night. I didn’t find anything but they got some gold. I was using my 6” coil and they were using larger ones (11” and 16”). Not considering the detector types (all of the gold found was shallow and could have easily been detected by all three machines), I think there was definitely an advantage to them using larger coils with much wider sweep areas than mine because my friends probably covered a lot more ground than I did!

Next time I really need to be mindful of all of the factors in choosing the best coil for the job, not just because a smaller one is better for getting small gold, or because larger coils sense deeper, etc… I should’ve also considered if the terrain allows for a larger coil, would it increase my chances for finding some by covering more area?

 

I'd get the Simplex over the Ace 250...all day, every day. The Ace 250 is not very deep at all. I'd also look into a Minelab Vanquish.

 

These are very good points (i.e. choosing coil for type of search, etc).

My dry sand hunts are with my 13" DD to cover area since the beach I hunt is very large.

Found this on my last "leg" just before deciding to head back to the car.






Anyways, he brings up good points about thinking about the hunt you plan on doing.

For "trashy sites", you want a smaller coil for sure and possibly go with a "Sniper Coil".

Just all depends on how you want to conduct the hunt for that day?

I haven't really done anything since. Hunting parks only finding your typical dropped or buried quarters, pennies, and your typical trash targets (i.e. pop tops, foil, etc).

 

I've had very good findings with my ACE. My first silver was maybe 4" in depth and gave a very solid dime signal.

My deepest target was at around 6" at best and ended up being a dime.

Coil type for a hunt is also very key.

 

I've been seriously leaning toward the Simplex. Just seems like a great machine for the money. Money wise I'm just using a part of my tax refund. Simplex with wireless headphones are $100 more than the ACE with wired headphones. That extra $100 could buy me a pin pointer though.

 

Ahhhh, YASSSS!!! HIGHLY RECOMMEND A PIN POINTER!!!

I still have my original Garrett Pro Pointer (i.e. GPP). The newer Garrett Carrot, as far as I know, is more or less the same? I never looked into it as the one I have is still working like a champ although you can tell it's starting to wear down, but I've had that thing since they first came out.

Anyways, get a pinpointer for sure, but try not to go too cheap. I've had the Whites Bullseye II, Bounty Hunter, my GPP, the Harbor Freight pin pointer, and one other I can't remember. Yes, the HF and Bounty Hunter is not your most rugged built pin pointers, but they do work. I even modified the HF so that it vibrated at the same time as the tone.

More to the point, out of all of the much cheaper ones, even the Bullseye, are really cheaply built and even the "feel", if you will.

My GPP feels very rugged built and has taken some beatings. The downside, when they first came out, there were many, supposedly, bad batches to where LOTS of failures. I am apparently one of the luckier ones not to have any issues and have never had any issues.

But yeah, try not to go too cheap on a pin pointer.

If you plan on doing parks and such, get either a Lesche Digger, Hori Hori, or similar. I personally like my Lesche.

Watch Youtub_e vids on how to cut a proper plug too.

 

I'm been researching and watching YT videos to the point of exhaustion!
I will probably spend the money and get the GPP.
Now researching the Vanquish 340. It seems to be great at multi frequencies with it's "multi-iq". Which seems to be a good thing in the detector world. Plus it's $200.

 

I've decided on the Minelab Vanquish 340. It comes with a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Any experience with Bluetooth transmitters and headphones that work well?