1st Time buyer go cheep or $$$$.?

[lovelylea]

This will be my first time buying a MD and trying Metal detecting . I need some advice from the "pros". The one I would like to get is the Fisher CZ21. I like how it can be used on land and water. Fresh and salt.

So the question is "What if I don't like Metal Detecting"? Will I have a good chance of re-selling and making my $ back.

Or should I go a bit cheaper and see if I like MD first? If so any ideas on which one?
Thanks

 

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[Koffee]

Hello there

Here is my suggestion when buying a detector. I think you buy a good brand incase you want to sell it. I do not suggest a high end machine for this one reason. Most people I know that purchase a metal detector it turns out not to be their cup of tea. As they find out that this is a lot of work and good finds are tougher to get and a lot fewer then they expected.

I am not trying to discourage you but I believe most metal detectors sold collect dust more then anything else because of unrealistic expectations. Once you get an entry level detector see how much you enjoy the hunt. From here you can tell how much money you want to sink into the hobby.


Cheers - Koffee

 

[Metal Detecting Stuff]

The CZ21 is a well liked water machine. The CZ and the Minelab Excalibur Il are two of the most popular for water hunting. I'd recommend you buy the best that fits your budget. If you decide you don't like detecting, expect to discount a lightly used unit by 15-20%.

You mentioned land hunting also. These machines will work on land. But don't have all the features that most land detectors have.

Good luck in your search, and feel free to give me a call if I can help you in your decision.

Wayne

(832)928-9135

Www.metaldetectingstuff.com

 

[cudamark]

I agree, buy the best you can afford. The better machines will be easier and less frustrating to use. Also, with more money invested, you're less likely to just let it sit in the closet! If you buy a popular model, you'll be able to resell it without any problem and not take too bad a hit on it. First, you'll need to decide what type of detecting you will be doing. If you're going to hunt on land quite a bit, the CZ21 (or Excalibur for that matter) isn't the best choice. Even thought they're both great choices for the water, they aren't the same in function. If you need or want good discrimination, the Excalibur is the one to choose. If you're hunting areas that are relatively free of trash, the CZ21 is a good choice. If you need a machine that will do it all excellently, there isn't one yet! If you can afford it, the CTX3030 seems to come the closest at this particular time. Either that or buy multiple detectors to cover all the type of detecting you plan on doing. The AT Pro is also a good choice for a multiuse machine in a budget friendly class. It just comes up a but short in the highly mineralized/salt water beach type of hunting.

 

[Iron Patch]

The first questions are.... what do you plan to look for, and how much time do you plan to spend actually in the water?

With the CZ 21 it probably looks good to you on paper because it sounds like it will do everything, but it may not be the best detector for you, and maybe not even close. I personally would not want to lug around a CZ21 if I decided old coins from a cellar hole was going to be my main focus.

 

[Iron Patch]

PS: You can definitely get a good sense of this hobby spending well under a grand!

 

[airscapes]

There are a lot of popular machines under $600. If you don't live in a shore community, then focus on something that will work on land as you will be more likely to hunt non wet sand. I did not do a huge amount of research before I made my purchase in Nov. but I am happy with what i have thus far. I went with a White's Coinmaster GT. This is a fairly new model which does not seem to be very popular on any of the forums. It does however have many options that the much more expensive models have for a $399 price point. Among the options that got my attention Auto Ground balancing, VOC All metal and pinpoint, VID, 9 tone discrimination and a Beach mode to help with wet sand. The unit is not 100% water proof just the coil so not really a Water machine but does work in fresh water (tried that). Bad thing is there is only one optional DD coil for it.

After reading the forums now for a few weeks I start to wonder if I got the correct machine as I hope to do relic hunting next summer in the mountains.. today at lunch I went out in the back yard again and thought i had a nickle at 2", was a small chrome ash tray from the 70's at 12" in clay.. It's more about what is in the ground and knowing what your MD is telling you than the price you pay for the tool.
On the other hand, you can rarely go wrong with the good tools.. so let your budget guide you along with what you will be hunting the majority of the time. Everyone love what they have, and there are not that many people who have sufficient funds to try out all the new models and compare them.
One other thing I did not do but will before I ever upgrade is find a dealer and go put a bunch of machines in your hand.
Check around and see if there is anyone in your area that stocks multiple brands and takes trade-ins. It would be wroth a couple hundred mile ride.. if the unit is not comfortable you won't like it..
Good luck and welcome

 

[Jason in Enid]

There are some great "entry level" detectors that are easy on the pocketbook. Like was said before, A lot of people drop out of the hobby very fast. There's no point in spending big bucks before you know you want to stay with it for a while.

Post what types of places you want to hunt and what you want to find and we can help you pick something.

 

[DeepseekerADS]

I've purchased 11 detectors total in my time. I settled into using only 3 of the 11. While I was completely addicted for quite a number of years before tapering off to complete abandonment of the hobby for many years. I did have the savvy of what I wanted to do, and how I wanted to do it.

When I decided to get back into the hobby, I figured that even the less expensive detectors today would surpass 30 year old technology. I was wrong. I bought the next to lowest entry level detector from a very well established brand, and figured I'd do very well with it. I was WRONG! Even 30 year old technology was better than a modern cheapie.

So after a few uses, and the revelation that VDI and depth scales was crap, I turned around and bought a very nice one which was really new technology - to me.

You go by sound of a target instead of the bells & whistles.

I admit to being rabid in my detecting needs and wants. But I was so disgusted by the cheapie, I wasn't even going to ever use it again.

What you need to gauge is:

1) How serious are you about getting into the hobby - will you actually put the time in - it does take time to learn the signals.
2) Do you already have places you want to search and can you search there? You need somewhere to start, and places which will give you quality time to learn.

A major part of the hobby is finding places to hunt. Remember that, as it will influence the time you get to use and learn your machine.

Now, on what you face. I've put several thousand hours into detecting. How much time do you have?
I've gone to great places and spent hours in the hot sun and found nothing but trash. Will that change your mind?
On the other hand, twice I turned my detector on and immediately found gold rings within just a couple of minutes. That would change your mind!
I once found 22 straight silver dimes.
But then I once dug up a balled up cigarette pack at 13". You're going to find trash, and you have to in order to learn - will that frustrate you?

So, it comes down to the time you can devote to the hobby, the availability of locations to hunt (check local laws first), and the seriousness you expect to devote to the hobby.

3 times hunting I was run off by cops - and that was in the 80's.

So - if you decide to continue, study posts here, and put the time into detector research - and pass it by this forum.
Don't go dirt cheap - you'll likely never pick up another detector.
Check Craigslist - do a search for metal detectors - and counter offer - them people selling them are likely the ones who didn't really know whether they wanted to put the time in to begin with - make no mistake - this ain't easy, period, it is work from many directions.

All in all in summary, don't go cheap, but do ask for opinions before you get impulsive - do not be impulsive!

And, good luck

 

[Jason in Enid]

Thank you for everything everyone! The CZ21 did look great on paper. Always good to ask

So ill add - Yes mostly wanting to do land, near water. Not directly under water but surface. My town has 4 lake/beaches I am able to search on. One is a quite place I can learn how to use my new MD. But Also my mother lived in Gloucester MA on a half private 1/2 public beach. It is jammed packed all summer. I think that would be a good place.

I most likely would not need a submergible MD, but it would be nice to have just in case. To get into old streams? I am looking to spend 2 full days out a week. Hoping for more but I work full time. What is the average time someone would spend out? I am willing to do the work and put in the time.

Looking for old coins/jewelry mostly. I love the old coins. I also do CRS

I will look into the suggestions you all have giving me! Thanks again

Unfortunately there is no single detector that is perfect for everything you want. If you want to use it on ocean beaches, especially wet sand, you need a dedicated "beach" machine. Most machines are either basically land or water (fresh water) detectors, but recently there are a few crossover machines. The Minelab CTX is one but that is $$$$. The Garrett AT-Pro is another one that works great as an amphibian and it's not extremely expensive.

For ocean beaches, you really need a multi-frequency VLF machine (which can eliminate iron) or a Pulse Induction (all metal). Beach hunting also means that you need a very good scoop.

The CZ21 WILL work for both land and saltwater. While not an ideal land machine (in my personal opinion) it may be the perfect fit for everything you want.

The amount of time people spend hunting varies greatly. It depends on how much you enjoy it and how much free time you have. I usually only have a few hours a week, but have put in 12 hours days on rare occasion.

 

[Iron Patch]

Thank you for everything everyone! The CZ21 did look great on paper. Always good to ask

So ill add - Yes mostly wanting to do land, near water. Not directly under water but surface. My town has 4 lake/beaches I am able to search on. One is a quite place I can learn how to use my new MD. But Also my mother lived in Gloucester MA on a half private 1/2 public beach. It is jammed packed all summer. I think that would be a good place.

I most likely would not need a submergible MD, but it would be nice to have just in case. To get into old streams? I am looking to spend 2 full days out a week. Hoping for more but I work full time. What is the average time someone would spend out? I am willing to do the work and put in the time.

Looking for old coins/jewelry mostly. I love the old coins. I also do CRS

I will look into the suggestions you all have giving me! Thanks again

You really don't need, or should want a CZ21 then. You're getting bombarded with info, but you really have to set that aside because you are still in the process of figuring out the basics. There's probably very little to find in streams, so I wouldn't even add that into your equation.

Are these beaches salt or fresh water? Some units can handle the salt well, where others struggle. That is probably the bigger question right now in choosing what is right. That said, it is possible to use a submersible on land, I just wouldn't recommend it, and it would not be the direction a good dealer would send you with the info. you have provided.

 

[snokid]

first my vote is for the Excalibur. works great in the dry sand, wet sand, fresh and salt water.

I live in Michigan we have tons of lakes around here, so I get to hunt water often. But it's a car ride and the park is just around the corner. So 2 detectors it is, one for land and one for the beach.

metal detecting is a lot like the lottery, you have to play to win, or you have to swing to find good stuff.
One day I go out for a couple of hours and come home with 78 cents and a bunch of pull tabs. couple weeks later I have a free hour and score 2 rings.

you might have beginners luck and find something good your first time out, but more than likely you aren't going to find good stuff till you learn what you are doing.

For me it's the rush that I get every time the machine goes beep beep, what is it? pull tab? nickel? some foil? gold ring?.... You really never know!! If you have that rush then you are hooked for life!!!
have fun
Bob

 

[Rangerbb]

I don't own one but I think the AT Pro would fit your needs for hunting both fresh water and land. Maybe you can get a deal on a used one that way you aren't out a lot of money if you decide this hobby is not for you? Generally salt water machines don't make good land machines. If you find you love this hobby you will most likely end up buying another machine as there is no best machine for all locations.

 

[Nickleanddime]

Cheap machine or pricey you will still find stuff. I use a best buy Xmas toy from a yard sale and find silver,coins, but it leaves the nails and other iron out. I've seen guys use 1500+ machines and I go over it and find stuff they missed.
Price doesn't always mean quality. Try a cheaper machine first like the bounty hunters or something like that. You can get a good resell on them for almost what you paid. My cheap one gets about 8" max on large items and blows the speakers on anything down to 2". It found a silver ring at 6" in the fall. Now there's 2 guys who use 1500+ machines that I've seen work that same area more then once and missed that ring. But go 45ft away and find another, but its all how they are set up. In all this babbling my point is, get what you can afford. Don't go into it with a $600 machine thinking your going to pay for it in 3 months with finds. Also the higher end machines are really complicated and take alot more time and patience to even get them to work right. The lower ends are more out of the box and go. Go to a md store if you can, you can try them out, ask questions, get a feel for it. Then mention tnet and you might get a discount.

 

[gunsil]

I see you're in MA so I would not hurry to buy a brand new machine unless you like to go out in the frigid weather. No need to have a warranty clicking away while waiting for things to thaw. Used machines are often great values, and there are a great many available on ebay or craigslist. As others here have said, there are many folks who get one, decide they really don't have the time or just don't enjoy the trash to good ratio that we all face and put their machines up for sale with little use on them. Possibly you can find experienced people near you (there are many in MA) who would be willing to show you and let you try their machines for an hour or so. There is a state by state section on this forum, try asking there for your state. Or like stated above a dealer where you could at least handle them. Some are two pounds heavier than others, and some folks get tired quickly swinging the heavier ones. I agree with some that the Garrett AT Pro is a good all around mid-price range detector, but no single frequency machine (which the AT Pro is) do well in wet salt sand or in even shallow salt water. Good luck with whatever you opt for and have a ball with it!!

 

[cudamark]

Cheap machine or pricey you will still find stuff. I use a best buy Xmas toy from a yard sale and find silver,coins, but it leaves the nails and other iron out. I've seen guys use 1500+ machines and I go over it and find stuff they missed.
Price doesn't always mean quality. Try a cheaper machine first like the bounty hunters or something like that. You can get a good resell on them for almost what you paid. My cheap one gets about 8" max on large items and blows the speakers on anything down to 2". It found a silver ring at 6" in the fall. Now there's 2 guys who use 1500+ machines that I've seen work that same area more then once and missed that ring. But go 45ft away and find another, but its all how they are set up. In all this babbling my point is, get what you can afford. Don't go into it with a $600 machine thinking your going to pay for it in 3 months with finds. Also the higher end machines are really complicated and take alot more time and patience to even get them to work right. The lower ends are more out of the box and go. Go to a md store if you can, you can try them out, ask questions, get a feel for it. Then mention tnet and you might get a discount.

Every high-end machine I've seen has turn-on-and-go programs to help you get started, so don't let that stop you. Their advantage is that they can be adjusted to meet just about any conditions you'll encounter whereas most lower priced detectors have limited capabilities in that area.

 

[lovelylea]

Wanted to thank everyone for your help!! I ended up getting the Garrett AT-Pro.. Learning and loving it!

 

[lookindown]

Wanted to thank everyone for your help!! I ended up getting the Garrett AT-Pro.. Learning and loving it!

You made a good choice for the types of hunting you are doing...you can always get more detectors if you get hooked on this hobby...good luck.