Need advice on budget detector.

cbailey613

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May 9, 2017
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So right now I have the Fisher 1212x. It only has one knob which is for discrimination I believe. It works pretty well, but I am wanting to update to a detector that has a digital display and can target deeper objects. I am wanting to stay under $300.00 for right now. I have been looking at Bounty Hunter SS2 Sharpshooter II, Bounty Hunter TIMERANGER, and Garrett Ace 300.

Any other suggestions? I do not have a pin pointer yet. Should I get one of those before I upgrade detectors?
 
Maybe a little over your price, but a very capable machine.

Minelab Xterra 305. Then save up for a White's TRX pinpointer.

Good luck.
 
Why not buy used and get a heck of a machine for $300?You post a ad wanting a 300 dollar machine and your gonna get a lot of sellers with some great deals.
 
I would go for the ace.
I would keep the freq somewere between 8-14 khz. The best for allround.
Above 14khz is great for very old (like roman), and below 8 is great for ww2 militaria.

As long as you get rid of the 4.2khz which is much too low for small items.
The 'one know' ain't the problem.

BTW, did you know that your Fisher 1212x is one of the best for ww2 militaria hunts in europe?
 
Like sponsor Craig at Show Me Treasure wrote Several posts down, Teknetics Minuteman is only $199 with a coupon. The Sharpshooter II & Time Ranger I could not recommend. Bought a used Time Ranger maybe 17-18 years ago. Lucky to unload it quickly. The Sharpshooter II I had couldn't get a consistent ID on coins below 2.5". Also had a Garrett Ace 250 that couldn't ID a dime beyond 4" in my moderately mineralized soil.

You could get a Centech pinpointer from Harbor Freight or off that big auction site for $20-$30. It sounds off really loud with a 2"+ range on coins.


So right now I have the Fisher 1212x. It only has one knob which is for discrimination I believe. It works pretty well, but I am wanting to update to a detector that has a digital display and can target deeper objects. I am wanting to stay under $300.00 for right now. I have been looking at Bounty Hunter SS2 Sharpshooter II, Bounty Hunter TIMERANGER, and Garrett Ace 300.

Any other suggestions? I do not have a pin pointer yet. Should I get one of those before I upgrade detectors?
 
My first detector was the BH Time Ranger. I found a lot with it and it goes pretty deep. I did notice its recovery speed was a tad slow. The Garrett Ace you mentioned sounds to be a capable machine as well. If you shop around, you can pick up the Ace 350 and still stay just under $300. Or as already suggested, buy a used machine.
 
Like sponsor Craig at Show Me Treasure wrote Several posts down, Teknetics Minuteman is only $199 with a coupon. The Sharpshooter II & Time Ranger I could not recommend. Bought a used Time Ranger maybe 17-18 years ago. Lucky to unload it quickly. The Sharpshooter II I had couldn't get a consistent ID on coins below 2.5". Also had a Garrett Ace 250 that couldn't ID a dime beyond 4" in my moderately mineralized soil.

You could get a Centech pinpointer from Harbor Freight or off that big auction site for $20-$30. It sounds off really loud with a 2"+ range on coins.

Really, two and a half inches with a SSII? What kind of soil do you have? I used a Land star for years and 8 inch coins were no problem.
 
Maybe those detectors just have to be swept very slow. When I tried the Land star on a planted coin, it sounded off when the coil was about a foot past the coin. My B.H. Land Ranger Pro lets me sweep faster & sounds perfect on my dime planted 5" deep. My soil is mostly moderately mineralized. Garrett AT Pro works fine here, perfect IDs on 7" deep clad dime in cleaned out park.


Really, two and a half inches with a SSII? What kind of soil do you have? I used a Land star for years and 8 inch coins were no problem.
 
So right now I have the Fisher 1212x. It only has one knob which is for discrimination I believe. It works pretty well, but I am wanting to update to a detector that has a digital display and can target deeper objects. I am wanting to stay under $300.00 for right now. I have been looking at Bounty Hunter SS2 Sharpshooter II, Bounty Hunter TIMERANGER, and Garrett Ace 300.

Any other suggestions? I do not have a pin pointer yet. Should I get one of those before I upgrade detectors?

None of the machines you mentioned are going to be deeper than your current machine. I don't think any machine sub $500 will be deeper unless you get a PI. If you do want something deeper get a used machine so that you get more bang for your buck or just keep what you have. Digital displays and other bells and whistles are not worth the money imo; if they come with the detector great but I wouldn't go out of my way to have them unless the detector was deeper.
 
I do advise immediately factoring in a hundred for a good pinpointer from the beginning.

It's miserable beginning the hobby without one. I woulda quit back when I first started had I not bit the bullet for my first pointer.

Buddy of mine was set up with a Bounty Hunter Lone Star Pro and a Garretts Propointer when he started and took off running, under $300.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Maybe those detectors just have to be swept very slow. When I tried the Land star on a planted coin, it sounded off when the coil was about a foot past the coin. My B.H. Land Ranger Pro lets me sweep faster & sounds perfect on my dime planted 5" deep. My soil is mostly moderately mineralized. Garrett AT Pro works fine here, perfect IDs on 7" deep clad dime in cleaned out park.

You had a bad unit. I could sweep mine as fast as I could and it would hit just past center(less than 1/8 inch). There wasn't any 'tone language' like my M6 has, but it found the metal. BH's are known for super fast response. I would never go back to one after having the M6, but I made a lot of great finds with it.
 
I know you said you want a display but you could pick up a used Tesoro Vaquero for around 250 which is just as deep or deeper than you currently have. The recovery speed is really fast and the disc circuit is spot on.
 
I really like the LRP, but now there is a Teknetics version of it on discount and it should fit your budget just fine.
 
I got a BH Timeranger shortly after they came out and I found A LOT of good stuff with it. I found my first mercury dime with it around 7 or 8 inches deep. I actually still have it and use it from time to time just for fun. I would recommend it. I don't know if they have changed anything on them since I bought mine other than the price. I have also been using the minelab go find 60 a little and it seems to be a decent machine too.

I haven't used it enough to recommend it yet. It is pretty awesome how small it folds down to though. I will probably use it as a test detector just to see what's at a new site before I bring in the big guns. I can keep it in the vehicle without taking up much room. I don't think it will hold up to daily use for too long but I could be wrong. It's all plastic and a little too flimsy for my liking.

I will agree with alot of people on purchasing a good used machine and definitely a pinpointer. A pinpointer is a must! Now you can check out the big name website to see if they have any deals on detectors that come with a pinpointer. I don't know if I'm allowed to say the name of the website or not but I'm pretty sure everyone here knows which one I'm talking about.

I was on their site last week and they were giving away Garrett pinpointers with certain detector purchases. Might not hurt to check it out. Again I can recommend the Time Ranger it is a good machine for the price and has a decent amount of "bells and whistles". I also seen somewhere that they have a timeranger package with the 8" coil and a 4" coil for 200 bucks. Good Luck on your purchase!
 
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White's Treasure Pro used. You can get one used like new for $250.

I agree with KirkS. I picked up a nice used Treasure Pro for $255. Lots of features and respectful depth. I have only been out with it twice but I did find 2 silver dimes on the first outing.
Plus it's very lightweight and only requires two AA batteries.
 
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