Any metal detectors here?
 

So i started to stack gold and silver and that got me interested in collecting coins and rare currency and now im starting to get a bit interested in metal detecting

Anyone here into the hobby? Recommend me a good unit? id like to stay around sub 500 if possible

nope i did some mining. metal detecting is time consuming. finding stuff is rare unless you live near a beach.

well during the summer i spend 2 months at the beach so that was my main idea

You should go with the garret scorpion to start. You'll be able to detect small gold nuggets as well.. Only need to find 40 silver half dollars and you've found enough metal to merit the purchase if you sell the metal for its melt value..

that crosses over from hobby to business venture $600? :helpme

alot of the metal detector snobs ive talked to so i need to spend MIN 800 to get anything worth getting


my wife thought the same thing then i showed her the cost of her dslr that she just had to have to take pics of her hobby

I do but I mainly prospect in the mountains for gold. I use a Minelab GPX 4000 and a Fisher Gold Bug 2.

The Minelab Xterra series and Fisher F series are great coin detectors.

I'd buy a cheap unit to start. Most people try it and give it up.

What would i need to start there are gold fields near me but i don't want to spend $5k on a metal detector

buy two and ill help you. :1orglaugh you can afford it :)

Stephen at Xbiz was into that a few years ago.

like the xterra 305? or should i go for the 705 that is like 800?
http://www.amazon.com/Minelab-X-Terr...Minelab+Xterra

i dont have any gold mining area's near me so i am strictly going for coins and lost jewelry

would be cool to hear his input

Why not get with brassmonkey and take your metal detector into the mines? :1orglaugh:1orglaugh:1orglaugh

I sent him a message for you

Buy a metal detector

Move to Arizona, Nevada, Utah, or other mining state

Buy a plane capable of short field take off/landing (Piper cub, supercub, Cessna 170, etc)

Fly to abandoned mining towns/ghost towns/mining sites in the middle of nowhere

Profit! (or maybe not, but have fun anyway)

I always thought that sounded like it would be a really fun hobby if you lived near the beach. When I lived on Ft Lauderdale Beach I would see all the senior citizens with their metal detectors combing the beaches at the butt crack of dawn...

I use Minelab detectors. I had a Eureka Gold then updated to an Xterra 70 with 3 coils for gold and relics, depending on where I'm out hunting. The more expensive GPX devices (which run $6,000+) dig deep but can be harder to work -- but are just the ticket for open desert areas.

I mainly focus on my own diggings, a 40 acre tract on Whiskey Creek / Mad Mule Gulch, that is a historic mine complex and proven performer. The old timers ('49ers), then their Chinese counterparts, heavy depression-era mining, the rush of the 1980's, and now me for the past 7 years, have beat that area good, but she still produces gold.

There are countless "trash" targets in this area, such as nails, bullets, mule shoes, etc., and the cheaper Xterra with its robust discrimination can actually perform better under these "dirty" conditions.

The real opportunity is in global warming, however. Get yourself up to Alaska or Greenland where the glaciers are receding and follow them back. It's all trash-free virgin ground, so any metal "hit" is likely to be gold / silver, with big damn nuggets to be detected. Just don't let a mountain of ice calf on yer head....

what would you recommend in the 500$ range just for beach detecting and maybe some woods
not gonna be hunting for gold

the xterra?

like a fuckin boss

The Xterra 505 is a good entry level detector for ~$550

Might be much better off spending the extra $150 or so for a 705.

Good headphones are a must.

If you'll be working the beach, a proper sand scoop for detectorists (such as the one the guy is holding in the picture above) is a necessity. I picked up a shorty last month for $30 while a long-handled scoop (no endless bending / back issues) runs about $125

2 observations: detecting is difficult -- the machine "speaks" its own language and you need to learn it, which takes many many many hours, just like learning any language; also, most detectorists seem to have multiple machines, although I suspect that the desire for better results that leads to these purchases is really a matter of not spending enough time learning the tools.

You can give a paint brush to a monkey, but that doesn't make him an artist :2 cents:

Oh, and beware of counterfeit Minelabs
http://www.minelab.com/usa/consumer/...y/buyer-beware

The Minelab Xterra 305 and 505 are both great machines. Don't get the Xterra 705. A quarter of its price is for the prospecting mode which you'll have no use for.

I really think the perfect entry detector for you is the Garrett Ace 350. Great price and it performs really good. I think you'll really like it. For a little more the Garrett AT Pro is really sweet. It can go underwater. Nice for beaches and rivers.

why is this guy asking about metal detectors at gfy ?

i'm thinking he's looking to shank someone :2 cents:

I love my Teknetics T2, it has really good discrimination features and goes pretty deep as well.

I also have a Garret pinpointer which is AWESOME and speeds up the digging..:thumbsup

very interesting read! I was just talking to my husband about buying one, since we live at the beach, and now I find this thread. Thanks, now I know which one to buy :)