The quality of metal detectors have improved considerably over the past decade, making metal detecting an exciting and growing hobby. Regardless of your budget, nearly anyone can get started in this wonderful hobby. Not only have some of the high-end metal detectors made considerable advances, but the less expensive “beginner” detectors have improved as well. Even with little to no experience, it won’t take long to start finding treasure.
Entry-Level Metal Detectors
There are now several good entry-level metal detectors that will do a fine job for general purposes like coin and jewelry hunting. If you want to get a simple, inexpensive detector and start hunting the parks these are some of the best entry-level metal detectors right now.
1. Bounty Hunter TK4 Tracker IV
2. Bounty Hunter Quick Silver
3. Garrett Ace 150
4. Garrett Ace 250
5. Garrett Ace 400
6. Bounty Hunter Land Ranger Pro
7. Bounty Hunter Quick Draw II
8. Teknetics Delta 4000
9. Bounty Hunter Sharpshooter II
10. Fisher F22
11. Fisher F2
12. Tesoro Silver uMax
13. Tesoro Compadre
14. White’s Coinmaster
15. Whites TreasurePRO
16. Minelab GO-FIND 40
17. Minelab GO-FIND 60
My Pick: For the perfect combination of low cost and usability, the Garrett ACE 250 is hard to beat!
Advanced Coin & Relic Metal Detectors
If you are willing to spend a bit more, then you will find that these metal detectors offer many advantages over the the entry-level metal detectors. They have additional features that make them able to detect targets at greater depth, better discrimination of iron targets, and better overall stability in different soil conditions.
1. Garrett AT Pro
2. Whites MX Sport
3. White’s Spectra VX3
4. White’s MXT
5. White’s MX5
6. Minelab X-Terra 505
7. Minelab E-Trac
8. Minelab Safari
9. Minelab CTX 3030
10. Fisher F75
11. XP DEUS
12. Fisher Gold Bug
13. Tesoro Vaquero
14. Tesoro Outlaw
15. Fisher F4
My Pick:The Garrett AT Pro is a sweet coin & relic detector, and a very good value for the price.
Gold Metal Detectors
Metal detecting for gold nuggets requires a completely different type of machine because of the highly mineralized soils that gold nuggets are found in. If you are serious about gold prospecting with a metal detector, then you want to invest in a gold-specific metal detector. While they will detect all types of metal, they are specifically designed for gold hunting.
1. Garrett AT Gold
2. Fisher Gold Bug Pro
3. Fisher Gold Bug 2
4. White’s Goldmaster GMT
5. Tesoro Lobo SuperTRAQ
6. Whites TDI SL
7. Garrett ATX
8. Minelab GPX 5000
9. Minelab GPZ 7000
10. Minelab SDC 2300
11. Nokta Fors Gold+
12. Minelab X-Terra 705
13. Makro Gold Racer
14. XP DEUS
15. Minelab GOLD MONSTER 1000
My Picks:If you want the best depth the Minelab GPX 5000 is the one to get. For a lower price option with excellent discrimination, I highly recommend the Fisher Gold Bug Pro
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Pinpointers
Pinpointers are inexpensive and can really speed up target recovery, which results in more finds!
1. Garrett Pro-Pointer
2. White’s TRX Bullseye
3. Minelab Pro-Find 25
4. Nokta Waterproof Pointer
Metal Detecting Accessories
Aside from your metal detector there are some accessories that will improve your speed and efficiency when you are out metal detecting.
1. Lesche Digging Tool
2. Lesche Heavy Duty Shovel
3. Garrett Retriever II Pick
4. Digger’s Trash Pouch
5. Green Plastic Sand Scoop
6. Garrett Metal Sand Scoop
7. Treasure Hunters Tool Kit
8. Garrett Deluxe Headphones
9. Bounty Hunter Headphones
10. Gold Testing Kit
11. Digital Scale
12. Black Widow Headphones
13. Gray Ghost Headphones
14. Sunray Pro Gold Headphones
15. Apex 18″ Badger Pick