Which detector should you buy ????

[Elton]

I have been asked this by so many people.

The answer isn't simple.. Everyone of us has our preference. So if you take that point of view then their all a good purchase as long as it's a Name brand.

Some like a Minelab EXP series............. Most claim they are the deepest detector. Multi frequency units that function almost everywhere you can detect.
Lately that claim of the deepest just isn't holding true. But if depth is your only quest then try the EXP units by Minelab. Remember they are heavy to swing...

First Texas Units Fisher, Omega, Teknetics have been getting rave reviews in the depth and the separation of target speed by many detectorists..All Fisher and Omega, & Teknetics units are a real pleasure to swing..Light, deep and over all good most places you detect.. If you want comfort and ease of operation along with good solid depth then try a First Texas detector.

Tesoro makes some of the best Gold finder units on the market..they also find coins..and lots of them at pretty reasonable depth So Light pretty deep and swing it all day Tesoro will do it for you. A side note is most Tesoro's do not have a meter..Their a deep and dig unit..

Garrett Units are a very nice detector..Some are light some are heavier, The Ace Series is a good light weight reasonably deep detector .for the money.
Garret has one of the better discriminators on the market. Some of their machines are heavier to swing..but Garrett's have found treasure all over the world..

Whites Metal detectors are really nice detectors.. The New v3i is a detector in it's own right that finds plenty and at very good depths.. The DFX , XLt and other models are good to. Like Garrett, Whites detector have found exceptional finds all over the world.. Some are heavier, and some are light weight..

So as you can see there really isn't any bad detectors..It's just perception of the user.. what you like and do well with, and can afford is the best detector. Nothing beats the detector in your hand though.. Learn what you use well, It will be good to you..

There is no perfect Metal Detector....... just good metal detectors....... There are other makes and models out there too..not everyone likes the same detector..not everyone has the same results from a detector......... I really believe it's buying the best you can afford, learn the detector, and have fun using it.
When your out detecting just because the guy your hunting with has a different detector and is finding more does not mean his detector is better. he just knows what it's telling him, digs a lot of targets, and happened to go over the good stuff. Next time you may be the one hitting the good stuff. Remember this is a hobby..Not the beat the other guy contest..Don't get in that mode..it's a sure fire way to not like the hobby..Enjoy it..appreciate what you do find and have some fun.Metal detecting also leads to other interests ..ie..coin collecting, History, Research, and making good friends with fellow detectorists.....
Of Course this is just my opinion, and not etched in stone.... Have fun all.. May your next trip out be your best time ever..

 

[jim tn]

I think the most important factor for selecting a detector, after what one can afford, is the type of hunting it will most often be used for. Me, I mainly coin shoot and a good deal of my detection time is done on trashy spots searching for old coins. Consequently, I want a detector with good or above average depth and one that has great target separation. And, I want to be able to swing it for several hours at a time without my arm wearing out. Ultimately, any detector I purchase must have good depth, be able to work through trash and have an assortment of coils available for achieving these two criteria's and also be a comfortable swing. For me, the F 75, T2, Omega and F 75 LTD have all met the criteria's for my type of hunting needs. I also think the frequency that one will be hunting should be a consideration, as well. There are easy to learn models and those that take some time to learn well. My 1 zinc's worth. HH jim tn

 

[Joel-Winnipeg]

Good one Elton.
Usually its the man behind the detector and mastery of it.
Most units will find the good items if it goes over it.
Depth may be a problem at times as some detectors are better than others in this department.
I hunt mostly metered machines and the friend that comes with me with a sound only he usually out hunts me 2 to 1

 

[crazyman]

Your ground conditions should come into play also when choosing a detector. Generally, high frequency high gain detectors don't do as well in bad ground so frequency choice and available features needed to cope with mineralization should be at the top of the list if you live in more mineralized ground.

 

[Elton]

Problem is most newbies do not know the ground conditions so "Research" comes in to play immediately

 

[Elton]

n/t

 

[Elton]

n/t

 

[BarberBill]

Elton covers it pretty well.
To me, the best detector is the one I'm using when I'm making good finds. I've done well with beep and dig models and TID models as well - especially once I got to know the particular machine. Nearly any detector by the major manufacturers, when set up properly, will find good targets if the coil passes over them. Ultimately it's up to the operator to decide to dig or not. My coin finds increased with the beep and dig machines after I had used the TID machine for a while. The reason being that the ID gave me more confidence to dig in parks etc. where I then improved my retrieval technique - digging what was most likely to be a coin and passing what was most likely junk. I can proudly say that very seldom can you tell where I've been. After becoming comfortable with this I began hunting the same areas with the beep and dig machines thumbing the discrimination knob to ID the target. I soon got to the point where my accuracy was nearly on par with the TID machine, but the process was slightly slower. One thing I do like about the non ID machines is learning to really hear what the machine is trying to tell you. Most newbies would do well to cover their display and dig "by ear" until they get comfortable with the minute variations in the machine's sounds. I've gotten to a point where the audio information is nearly as much help as the visual. Nonetheless, I still recommend that digging it all is the only sure way to know.
BB

 

[Elton]

Should be of great help to newer detectorist........... I still remember my first detector..I had no idea for a long time what I was doing.. and still managed to find a few good targets....... relying on the meter will surly cost us all some good finds.. As Digger (Randy) says..You never know for sure unless you dig it..
and if you think those words are not true..dig some targets you hit that you would not relying on a TID machine.. You will be very surprised..

 

[GRAY GHOST]

wow, great posts, there's not much more i could add! ....but i will say that there are plenty of people in our hobby who are very happy with their "chosen" machines.... it took a long time and many different models for them to figure out exactly which machine "fit" them and their style of detecting. it took me forever to perhaps temporarily settle on the tesoro line. the good thing is, i'm not opposed at all to buying a new machine from another maker.


at the end of the day, over 80% of the targets that i recover are less than 6" in the ground. if properly set up, almost any machine can do that [unless it's one of those ultra cheap, non - working chinese models] if i were a newbie starting out, i'd buy an inexpensive starter machine just to see if i liked the hobby. that way, i wouldn't lose much money either way, could always recoup most of it, and i wouldn't be wasting my time. it's not hard at all to get big bucks into a couple of select machines. after all this time, i still think it's more about the operator than the machine.

 

[Elton]

n/t

 

[BarberBill]

There are some examples where a given machine may be the better choice. For instance where manual ground balance is a big help or a machine that handles the wet salt beaches over one that doesn't, but they all find stuff we'd never see without them, in fact, wondering what made it beep is very addictive to me, even when it turns out to be trash. LOL
BB