trinity820
New member
Looking for a detector that finds silver more so than others, my budget is $500 - $1000. Thanks all
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Curious
- Thread starter trinity820
- Start date
OregonMike
Member
I'm not sure any detector "finds" silver. You have to get out and get over it. You have to research, you have to practice, you have to get out a lot and learn what your detector is telling you.
I always say, "You can give me Tiger Woods' golf clubs, but that isn't going to help me golf like he does. You can hand me Tom Brady's (partially deflated) football, but I won't throw it like he does."
Seriously, I've found good stuff, both gold and silver, with White's and Minelab detectors, but I haven't owned other brands, so I can't speak for (or against) them. I think they're all pretty good, but if you aren't willing to do the work, you aren't going to find much.
Having said all that, my latest purchase is a used Minelab e-Trac that I got on eBay for under $1000 and I think it's great. I've found silver in schoolyards that most other guys have hunted and given up on, so take that for what it's worth.
Mike
I always say, "You can give me Tiger Woods' golf clubs, but that isn't going to help me golf like he does. You can hand me Tom Brady's (partially deflated) football, but I won't throw it like he does."
Seriously, I've found good stuff, both gold and silver, with White's and Minelab detectors, but I haven't owned other brands, so I can't speak for (or against) them. I think they're all pretty good, but if you aren't willing to do the work, you aren't going to find much.
Having said all that, my latest purchase is a used Minelab e-Trac that I got on eBay for under $1000 and I think it's great. I've found silver in schoolyards that most other guys have hunted and given up on, so take that for what it's worth.
Mike
More about the location than the machine. If you want to focus on silver coins then a machine that runs multiple frequencies, or a single lower 3kHz-8kHz should do better with silver than 15kHz. I went with a used Whites DFX as it is both 3 and 15 kHz but there is a bit of a learning curve and it is an older model no longer made. Lots of choices in that price range and they will all find it if it is there and you put in the needed time to understand what the machine is telling you.
Good luck and don't get sucked into more money means it works better..
Good luck and don't get sucked into more money means it works better..
2 Much Trash
Well-known member
Amen to what oregonmike and airscapes said. Personally the best detector I ever owned by far that hit on silver the best, when there was silver in the ground was an ole fisher 1266x.
It always put me in mind of coon hunting with my grandfather back in the day. You could always tell by their howling the difference from when they treed a possum or if they'd treed a coon. If you can get your hands on a 1266, if your're hunting silver you might want to grab it up.
It always put me in mind of coon hunting with my grandfather back in the day. You could always tell by their howling the difference from when they treed a possum or if they'd treed a coon. If you can get your hands on a 1266, if your're hunting silver you might want to grab it up.
Larry (IL)
Well-known member
Aren't we all....
and gold too.
Finding silver has more to do with location, experience and knowledge of the detector by the hunter than a specific detector. Sure some detectors are deeper than others but that isn't always a major factor in finding more silver.
and gold too.Finding silver has more to do with location, experience and knowledge of the detector by the hunter than a specific detector. Sure some detectors are deeper than others but that isn't always a major factor in finding more silver.
trinity820
New member
Tnaks all, I know I should have out in the user is in factoring out my question.
But .... the 1266 was one SQUIRRELLY SON OF A GUN to use in a lot of conditions. For example: if trying to use it in moderate to heavier mineralized soil, the TID (ability to tell nails versus mids versus highs) aparts hit a brick wall at about 5". Beyond that, and everything sounded the same.
Some machines seem to "zero in" on high conductors better than others. And some machines tend to "zero in" on low conductors better.
This was especially apparent, for example, back in the 6000d series I days. (1978 to 82-ish): It would actually detect a dime DEEPER than a nickel. EVEN THOUGH the nickel was/is the physically bigger object. Doh!
IMHO the Explorer (or etrac or whatever incarnation you choose) is the best at silver. Not that it can't also get nickles, gold rings, etc.... too, yet it just seems to "sound better" when trying to sniff out deep silver from amidst junk, at depth, etc....
This was especially apparent, for example, back in the 6000d series I days. (1978 to 82-ish): It would actually detect a dime DEEPER than a nickel. EVEN THOUGH the nickel was/is the physically bigger object. Doh!
IMHO the Explorer (or etrac or whatever incarnation you choose) is the best at silver. Not that it can't also get nickles, gold rings, etc.... too, yet it just seems to "sound better" when trying to sniff out deep silver from amidst junk, at depth, etc....
trinity820
New member
thanks
Asking a public forum for advice on the best silver detector is like asking a public forum for advice on the best car...subjective as hell depending on who you ask and loaded with all kinds of variables which might or might not apply to you.
Get the best detector you can afford, learn it and dig. Then eventually you'll buy another one and yet one more, on and on looking for that 'perfect' machine...... like a lot of us have done.
The price tag is generally a good indicator. However if you're not tech savvy like having problems programming video recorders and don't want to learn all the advanced bells and whistles features on the high end detectors, i'd stick with a mid priced detector. They will find silver too, maybe not as deep or in extreme trashy areas as the $1000+ units but they will find silver if its there.
Get the best detector you can afford, learn it and dig. Then eventually you'll buy another one and yet one more, on and on looking for that 'perfect' machine...... like a lot of us have done.
The price tag is generally a good indicator. However if you're not tech savvy like having problems programming video recorders and don't want to learn all the advanced bells and whistles features on the high end detectors, i'd stick with a mid priced detector. They will find silver too, maybe not as deep or in extreme trashy areas as the $1000+ units but they will find silver if its there.
ChicagoJohn
New member
You cant find silver if there is no silver! Go old place for silver! I found many silver at old park! If no one metal detecting there then you have good chance but I did find some at heavy hunted park. Private old house is great place for silver! Any good metal detector can find silver! Minelab is good! Garrett AT PRO is good for the price that you look for. Good luck!
MNCoinhunter
Active member
I found an 1838 seated half dime with a radio shack detector when I was 10 years old. Research and knowledge of your detector is all that is required . .
Littlehugger
New member
Silver is easy to find by its nature. Metal detectors are programmed to find coins. Primarily, gold, silver and copper. Gold is rare and not strongly reactive. Copper is common, but most "copper" coins now are Zincoln's Thus, silver is the choice of detectors. It was once commonly used in coins, and it is far easier, and more likely to be found than gold.
Thus, ALL detectors do best on silver coins.
Your best bet is any of a number of detectors that have gained a rep for deepness. I love my Fisher CZ and Garrett GTAx 550. Simple, easy to use and good ID.
Yes, you can pay more for a bit more depth. Or nifty features that make life easier, but I think at a certain price point, skill, familiarity and research are more important than cubic money.
Any good detector with a solid rep will find silver.
Thus, ALL detectors do best on silver coins.
Your best bet is any of a number of detectors that have gained a rep for deepness. I love my Fisher CZ and Garrett GTAx 550. Simple, easy to use and good ID.
Yes, you can pay more for a bit more depth. Or nifty features that make life easier, but I think at a certain price point, skill, familiarity and research are more important than cubic money.
Any good detector with a solid rep will find silver.
mrwilburino
Member
Yes, some machines are better at finding silver and higher conductors, just like others do better for gold and lower conductors, and still others make better relic hunters. The types of sites that you hunt can also play a part in machine selection: soil type, mineralization, trash content, trash density, EMI, target depth, etc.. It can get complicated..... and expensive. A good general purpose machine will find plenty. Something a little more specialized, in the right hands, for the right purpose, will find more. If I were to make a general recommendation based on your price range, I would say get a used Etrac. That could change depending on your hunting conditions.
Wayfarer
Member
Tom_in_CA said:
Tom, you are so right about the 6000D's and those early White's machines hitting better on dimes than nickels. I haven't used an early 6000D in 30+ years but used to use one lots back then and forgot about that little peculiarity. Thanks for the fond memory!
My advice on silver mirrors what the others have said about other factors, besides which detector to use, being most important. In your price range almost any general purpose detector will be very good. Get something that is known to be a good performer but also simple, something like an MXT or E-trac, but there are many others. Then practice like crazy, learning its sounds, and testing yourself on each "iffy" target to see if you can guess what it is before you dig. After awhile you'll learn your detector's language. Personally, I think your odds are best with a detector that is known to separate well instead of being deep, but there are advantages/disadvantages to each strategy and only you can decide which is better suited to your style.
The most important three factors are location, location, location! Even if you can find a virgin patch back along a tree line or under bushes, even just a few square feet, at an old site, you will likely find some silver. Back in the good ol' days like Tom was talking about in the late 70's and early 80's, virgin ground was still everywhere. You could tell where someone had detected a site before you because there'd be a swath or two where you didn't find much silver and you'd realize a few folks had wandered around with a detector before you and got the silver in those spots. But large parts of the area were still undetected and you'd find silver coins just a few inches down that were easy pickins. Back then, silver had only been out of circulation for 10-15 years ... imagine nowadays when you go detecting and come home with a pocketful of clad, back then half of 'em would be silvers
There are still tiny patches like that left, but you have to be creative and persistent to find them. Nowadays it's the opposite, there are only a few little patches here and there that haven't been detected to death, but you sure know when you've hit one, because you will frequently find several fairly easy silvers within a few feet of each other but not find anything else the rest of day. You have to think like a normal detectorist and then do the opposite!
Try those spots that are hard to get to, under bushes are one of my favorites, especially if you have to crawl on your hands and knees to reach in very far. Most important is persistence and a positive frame of mind. Good luck!