Is the Spectra V3i TOTALLY wrong for a newbie?

[BassGear]

Hey folks, I just started this new hobby less than a few weeks ago, and really enjoy hunting for stuff. Only thing is my first metal detector MAY be holding me back. I have found nickels, lead weights, matchbox car, and many pennies but a ton of false alerts because of the price/quality of my Bounty Hunter 4 detector? Or it just may be me. hahaha..

After reading, and watching many V3i videos on YouTube, the analyze screens look to be genius, and it would be awesome to get an idea of what I may find before I even start to dig.

So this is my question, If I were to buy one this weekend and set it up for one of the factory pre-sets, maybe the coin/jewelry setting, would I be totally lost and miss a lot of stuff, and get completely frustrated? My initial choice is a White's MXT Pro, but don't really want to keep upgrading and keep learning new detectors if I could possibly learn this detector without pulling my hair out, and wishing I would have purchased an MXT Pro instead.

[gordonquixote]

No matter which machine you buy....from a cheap Radio Shack to a V3i, you will have a learning curve before you really start smoking coins.

If you want to upgrade to a better detector, by all means do so....but experience is the best way to find the good stuff.

Are you sure you're getting false alerts instead of just not pinpointing/finding your target? I would guess that if you had a pointer (Garret/White's/ect) lots of those 'false signals' would miraculously turn into coins.

Good luck...don't get discouraged.

Think of it as learning a new language. You can't learn a language from someone that doesn't speak English in a day....you also can't learn to speak 'metal detector' overnight.

For example...I bought my next MXT Pro and beat two local yards completely out. Then after about a month I was bored and walked over there and found more coins than I did the first times over there...and I thought I had got it all. I also found a mint 64 Washington and a gold men's ring in spots that I'm sure I had gone over before.

Put your time in...good things will come.

[Terry Soloman]

Dude, you are about to be assaulted by Whites dealers! Seriously, hold on to your wallet with both hands and sit down. You just started, did not even mention what machine you are swinging, but you are findind nickels and lead. That means your machine can probably find gold.

Don't be in a rush to spend $1,000.00 or more. You can get the same, or better results for half of that money. There is no magic machine. Even when you own the best money can buy, you have to get your coil over the target, and little VDI numbers are NOT going to tell you what it is in the ground better than your ears will.

Slow down, don't believe evrything you read or are told. Get more time in with your machine and LEARN it.

Originally Posted by BassGear

Hey folks, I just started this new hobby less than a few weeks ago, and really enjoy hunting for stuff. Only thing is my first metal detector MAY be holding me back. I have found nickels, lead weights, matchbox car, and many pennies but a ton of false alerts because of the price/quality of my Bounty Hunter 4 detector? Or it just may be me. hahaha..

After reading, and watching many V3i videos on YouTube, the analyze screens look to be genius, and it would be awesome to get an idea of what I may find before I even start to dig.

So this is my question, If I were to buy one this weekend and set it up for one of the factory pre-sets, maybe the coin/jewelry setting, would I be totally lost and miss a lot of stuff, and get completely frustrated? My initial choice is a White's MXT Pro, but don't really want to keep upgrading and keep learning new detectors if I could possibly learn this detector without pulling my hair out, and wishing I would have purchased an MXT Pro instead.

[Captain Silver]

Speaking from experience, going from a Tracker 4 to a top shelf unit was frustrating at first, very frustrating. I kept at it, worked and learned through it, and finally started finding the things I was looking for. Any new md will take a while to learn, but it can be done if you keep digging...give us an idea of where you are and the type of hunting you will be doing, and we could assist you better.

[Kolby72]

The learning curve is not as steep as some would like you to believe but it will take time to learn it. Having said that sit down and think really hard if you want to make that big of an investment. I detected for almost 8 years with a worn out bounty hunter and then bought the V3i and have had it for 2 years. I have almost got all of the bells and whistles figured out but I always learn something new. In all it is a great machine just dont bite off more than you can chew! HH

[BassGear]

Thanks for the replies guys!..

gordonquixote - Maybe you're right, I may be missing stuff, thanks, I just ordered a Garrett pin pointer on Amazon.


Terry Soloman - Thanks I guess I will stay with what I have until I learn it better, since I don't have head phones, I just ordered Garrett headphones, you mentioned hearing is very important, maybe this will help.


Captain Silver - Sounds like it might be a big jump as you said, and I don't want to get frustrated, so I will learn with my current detector I guess. To answer your question I'm in the San Francisco Bay Area, and wanted to look for coins, and jewelry.


Kolby72 - Although I really want a new V3i, I guess you took many years before you were ready for a new V3i... uuggghh I guess I'll take you guys expert advice and wait for a while.

[pennyloafer]

If I would have been fast enough to nab the V3i I saw for sale on the Raleigh craigslist for $500, I would have given it a try even though I've never ran a metal detector.

[fsdigital12]

If something is too good to be true is usually is

A $1000 detector for half that....something isn't right........

[fsdigital12]

Like Terry has said

Jump into a $500 machine first

Look at the ATPro by Garrett.

If you really get hooked, then you can try the big guns

[Greek2Me]

There's different ways to look at this. If you really think you will enjoy this hobby for years to come, then by all means, get what you want. When I started, I waited 2 months then jumped to the etrac. I wanted to know I was the weakest link in the detecting chain and not my detector. On the bright side, if you hunt with the BH for a few years, you can then buy a V3i or whatever is the latest and greatest detector and rehunt all your spots.

G2M

[pennyloafer]

Originally Posted by fsdigital12

If something is too good to be true is usually is

A $1000 detector for half that....something isn't right........

Actually, I take that back. The guy had owned it a couple of years and it was not upgraded to the 'i' version. Anyway, deals happen like this with some regularity. There are plenty of folks who buy stuff and don't care about losing money on it. Doesn't matter to me, it had already been sold when I called him.

[Bonesquat]

Originally Posted by Terry Soloman

Dude, you are about to be assaulted by Whites dealers! Seriously, hold on to your wallet with both hands and sit down. You just started, did not even mention what machine you are swinging, but you are findind nickels and lead. That means your machine can probably find gold.

Don't be in a rush to spend $1,000.00 or more. You can get the same, or better results for half of that money. There is no magic machine. Even when you own the best money can buy, you have to get your coil over the target, and little VDI numbers are NOT going to tell you what it is in the ground better than your ears will.

Slow down, don't believe evrything you read or are told. Get more time in with your machine and LEARN it.

In other words...get a Tesoro.

[cmbtvet]

My first machine was an Ace 250. Three months later I bought a Sovereign GT. About four months after that I bought an Etrac.

I haven't mastered either of the Minelab machines but I have fun every time I go out.

My advice; If you have the money to spend on a top of the line machine then do it. Keep your BH as a back up or a loaner. I still have my Ace and my son and mom use it occasionally. My GT goes to the beach with me and Etrac for everything else.

I will add though that if you've only been in the hobby for a couple weeks, wait a couple more months to make sure you're going to stick to the hobby before spending the big bucks.

[BassGear]

Hey thanks Greek2Me, cmbtvet and everybody!
Seems White's and the local dealers are running a special this month. $500 in added upgrades: $100 off retail, plus package includes a wireless headset, Bullseye II Pinpointer (I just got a Garrett one), padded detector bag, and a super 12 coil. So I think I'm gonna diving right in and go for it this weekend! I'm a tech junkie and the different screens, and analyze modes make this detector too hard to resist for a guy like me, I feel this will add even more fun to this great new hobby of mines. I'll keep you guys posted on the learning curve for me.

[Arisaka]

Originally Posted by Terry Soloman

Dude, you are about to be assaulted by Whites dealers! Seriously, hold on to your wallet with both hands and sit down. You just started, did not even mention what machine you are swinging, but you are findind nickels and lead. That means your machine can probably find gold.

Don't be in a rush to spend $1,000.00 or more. You can get the same, or better results for half of that money. There is no magic machine. Even when you own the best money can buy, you have to get your coil over the target, and little VDI numbers are NOT going to tell you what it is in the ground better than your ears will.

Slow down, don't believe evrything you read or are told. Get more time in with your machine and LEARN it.

Well said I own a coinmaster and it does great

[Silverado6x6]

Some time in the near future I want to buy a Garret AT Gold, i actually have the money to buy a Minelab GPX 5000 but first off up here in Alaska we are terribly snowed in this winter, I'm a total newby but in the last week I have been narrowing down certain types and brands and the AT Gold appeals to me, I like lots of bells and whistles.

Will I ever buy the GPX 5000? Possibly if I don't spend my Australian vacation money on something else first, the 5000 I hear is perfect for Oz nuggets.

[BassGear]

I got my brand new V3i Sunday morning and WOW what a sweet machine! I least I think it is... hahaha I started detecting early morning at a local park, and man I dug up soooo much junk my pouch felt like it weighted a ton! I only found three pennies, a nickel, and a dime. I ended up spending about five hours total and was overwhelmed with all the screens, and graphs as I had no clue of how to use them to my advantage. Well when I got home I watched the DVD, and started reading the manual. Funny thing is I had a hard time reading cuz my right arm was sooo sore hahaha..
I guess I proved the point that a nice detector is only as good as one's experience on it... I was clueless hahaha..
So much to learn, and I'm sooo sore, but I still had a fun time and I'm looking forward to putting in many hours with my new hobby and new toy. I'll keep you guys post on my progress.

[Gozzo]

Originally Posted by Silverado6x6

Some time in the near future I want to buy a Garret AT Gold, i actually have the money to buy a Minelab GPX 5000 but first off up here in Alaska we are terribly snowed in this winter, I'm a total newby but in the last week I have been narrowing down certain types and brands and the AT Gold appeals to me, I like lots of bells and whistles.

Will I ever buy the GPX 5000? Possibly if I don't spend my Australian vacation money on something else first, the 5000 I hear is perfect for Oz nuggets.

You can usually hire the latest greatest machines that are suited to the area your in, in Australia. Unless your a very serious bushman you may want to consider going on a gold tour rather than head straight into the wilds of Australia. These tours usually supply everything. All you have to do is supply a body with a pulse. Details of these kinds of tours are available online. I would recommend a WA one.
Gozzo

[Greek2Me]

Congrats on your new machine. It will amaze you more and more each time you take it out.

G2M

[Rattlehead]

Congrats on the new detector! The V3i is a great machine, but even with the best detectors you'll still have to dig some junk if you want to find the good stuff. Just start with the preset programs and take your time with learning the rest of its features/settings. There's no hurry and the presets actually perform pretty well. Good luck and HH!