Ok, here goes. Hope I don't offend anyone here, just telling my story. My first Garrett was a GTA1000 back in 1997. I used it a LOT until I finally thought I should get serious and bought a GTI2500. After about a year of using it, with my wife using my old 1000, she decided to upgrade to a 2500 also (since I was consistently finding more than her). We were both happily using our 2500's for a couple of years, finding more and more stuff as our research took us to better ground.
Fast forward to earlier this year when, after reading this, and other, findmall forums, I started noticing I really enjoyed looking at the finds the guys using the Explorers were posting. There seemed to be more old stuff and generally more finds on that forum. I'm not implying that Minelabs find more than Garretts. It just started to really get my interest up. I sold a couple of other older detectors that were collecting dust and ponied up for a new Explorer II. There was quite a bit of a learning curve, since it is a totally different machine to any of the Garretts I have used. I really missed the Imaging feature, as the Exp doesn't really have a "target size" gauge. It's something that comes with practice using pinpoint. I dug a lot of trash that first month or two and was becoming quite frustrated with it. My wife was suddenly finding a lot more than me on every outing (it used to be the other way around)! I would occasionally dust off the old 2500 just so I could find something and feel better about myself. But after reading as much as I could about the Explorer, I knew persistence and practice would eventually pay off. I started finding more and learning the different sounds made by different targets.
Since my wife still uses her 2500, we often compare signals (before digging the target) and if she has a weak signal she is unsure of, she'll ask me to see what I think, and vice versa. I have learned that in some circumstances the 2500 is superior, but in general the Explorer will find items the 2500 has problems with. While the majority of items we dig are in the first 6"-8", the difference between the two is hardly noticeable. What I HAVE found, is that since using the Explorer, I have dug many more targets at the 10"-12" range and found some nice old coins I would most likely have walked over with the 2500.
Was it worth the extra money for the new machine? Maybe? I dunno. I like it, but I have nothing bad to say about the Garrett machines (I have owned and used: Infinium, Ace-250, GTA1000, GTAX1000, and GTI 2500). Their turn-on-and-go ease of use is hard to beat. The imaging of the 2500 (and 1500) is a great feature I wish the Explorer had. I like the rechargeable battery pack of the Explorer, even more each time my wife has to buy batteries for hers.
I wouldn't worry too much about them coming out with a new model just after you've bought one. There will always be another "new model" coming out, no matter what you buy or when. About hunting on the beach, We live about 10 minutes from the beach and hunt there often. The Garrett doesn't seem to be at any disadvantage at all at the beach (esp. with "salt elimination"), other than maybe depth capability, which I won't get into. Once again, it's 90% user, 10% machine.
My opinion to your original question? Keep the Explorer SE and learn it. Keep the Garrett 1250 as a backup or extra machine. It's a great coin shooter, and you won't be at a big disadvantage using it vs. a GTI2500. Bottom line is, become intimately familiar with whatever machine you decide to use and you will find more than the average "once-in-a-while" hunter, no matter what machines are being used.
I hope that wasn't too confusing. Just my view.
Whatever you decide, Happy Hunting!
Cheers,
Toby
