2500.... good deal for $250 with Jolley Rodger headphones?

[NW Digger]

Me and the wife are new to the hobby, started with a borrowed bh 202... had it about 3weeks then found a old titan 2000xd in a shop for $60 and have been using it and love the hobby but have realized without something better we are gonna be stuck in the tot-lots for life as our current machine is good for about 3-4inches.

We have have been looking at the at pros but they are a lil steep for us, we wouldn't mind finding a good used whites but we came across this gti 2500 i think its the older model as it has the white style coil.

in short is it a good detector? we like coin and jewerly hunting but live on an island and have access to some older sites too so relics would be nice also. will we get 7-9" depths with it as far as coins are concerned? is 250 a good deal or should we save another year and try for a whites or lower end minelab like the x-terra series?

thanks for any and all help/advice.

 

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[AC1955]

Husband and I sold our GTi2500...didn't like it at all. He found that there was a big lag in the response time. He'd get a tone, but by then he was already a foot away from the target. Drove him crazy. It is also a fairly heavy machine to swing (in my opinion). Truthfully, I would look for a White's (we have an M6 and Coinmaster) or save up for a Minelab (husband has an E-Trac and Excalibur). Check out the For Sale forum here. You may find some good deals. Also check out E-Bay (that's where we bought our GTi2500). Call around to different stores that carry MD - many carry machines that have been traded in and you can get good deals on them.

Good luck. I'd stay away from the GTi...but that's just my opinion. It's the type of machine that you either love or hate...no in between.

HH,
Anita

 

[Hosensack]

For $250 you should be able to get that back easily if you don't like it. I'm not going to say the GTI 2500 holds it's value well at all in a resale market, but $250 is a completely different story. If it is a machine you can physically see and check out before hand then I would go for it. Just bring some targets with you to air test it first, or ask if he'll meet you at a park where you know a spot with easy picking clad that you can try it out in a real world setting.

$250 is a price that puts a up a red flag so if you can't try it and see it first then no it's not worth it. If you can do all of the above and are happy with it..grab it.

 

[NW Digger]

Thanks guys for such quick responses! I found it on craigslist, the lady claims her husband has only used it a couple times and that it is in like new condition.
Our only problem is they live 4 hours away, so for us it would be $250 and another $80-$100 for gas. We don't mind making the trip as long as we are going to look at a quality machine. Yes Hosensack we planned on a having a few things in our pockets, along with a fresh set of batteries for testing just to make sure.

 

[NW Digger]

So here is a quick rundown of the emails i just sent and received,

(i wrote)

You sound very honest in your email and your CL ad as far as the condition etc,
(but i have to ask just because it is so far for us to come)

It does work and work well? No problems etc?
Is there any big scratches or dents?
Is the coil in good shape?

(the reply i got)

No problem those are good questions since you are coming from such a distance. So here goes:

No dents or scratches on the machine. Garret TDI 2500.
The Coil is in good shape, but has some scratches and dirt residue on the bottom of the coil due to "swiping."
The detector and headphones do work and I have only put at most @ ten hours on the machine.
I have the owners manual as well as instructional video as well as Garret wipes that came with it.

I bought the machine with my brother who has an identical machine with the plans to detect together with him. Then he moved out of state for work! So I lost interest in it. I beleive its a great machine for a real decent price especially with low hours.


AHHHHHH... Lol what to do? what to do!?!?

 

[NW Digger]

Well after 8 hours of driving, I have returned home with a 2500 and the headphones, it all seemed to work well with 0 to no ware on anything.
It seems the guy selling it couldn't figure it out and just wanted out of the hobby, so hopefully the learning curve wont be as tough for me.
I will say that after using that BH and our Titan 2000 (just a dressed up BH) this machine does seem a bit overwhelming, I have read the manual like 10 times now and ended up in the yard a few min ago (11pm here and pitch black out lol) and cant wait to give it a try!!

If anyone out there has or is experienced with the GTI 2500 and could maybe suggest a good starting point as far as settings go, that would help alot.
Right now it seems to me that the preset coin mode isnt the way to go as it discriminates out pull tabs etc. where the rings would be hiding.
Im leaning at more the relic preset or all metal mode.... but having a machine where u can hear the threshold is all new to me....
Any starter advice in setting it up the first few times would be great....

Thanks again for the reply's and all the help!! HH

 

[Calvin.Coin]

Just wanted to say congrats on the purchase. Eight hours is a long drive for a CL deal and I'm sure you were nervous on the way there and then pretty excited the whole way back!

enjoy the hunt,
cc

 

[NW Digger]

Thanks CC! and yeah waaay nervous on the way there, honestly thought to myself i was making a mistake (too good to be true i thought)
but after testing in his yard for 10-15min and handing him the $$ and then putting my new green friend in the truck.... excited doesn't describe it haha

My wife had to keep telling me to watch the road, i was busy looking for tot-lot, park, anywhere!!! Can't wait!!!

 

[Hosensack]

My advice would be start in the coin mode to figure out the sizing feature etc.

View it as a learning not hunting then you won't be upset your missing out on pull tab signals.

Once you are comfortable with the features open it up more if you want , to pull tab range or further.

 

[AC1955]

Congrats on your new machine.

 

[Keppy]

I think that once you get to know the 2500 you will like it...........

 

[NW Digger]

I hope so, went out today in between the downpours of rain and found my 1st silver dime, and a couple Wheaties. But don't know if it was me,
the detector or just sheer dumb luck. I like all the bells and whistles but it seems to talk a lot, and that I'm not used too, maybe cause i just don't know what its saying yet.

I did as Hosensack said and ran it at factory settings in coin mode, and got that whole sizing thing down pretty well i think, and it seems pretty sweet!
Just all the churps and single belltones going off at will for no apparent reason started to test my nerves. I'm sure there is a way to fix it or at least quiet it down
but i haven't figured it out yet (only thing I really tried was turning down the sensitivity)

Time will tell, and hopefully I can get some good advice from some of you PROS here on TN about running it etc.
I have a lot of patience and am pretty persistent, just hope it all holds together through this learning curve!!

HH all!

 

[Calvin.Coin]

You got a GTI 2500 for not much more than the cost of an Ace 250, I'm thinking you're gonna enjoy the learning curve and be a pro in no time...

cheers,
cc

 

[Keppy]

Yes with the white coil and the talking it is a older one.... But it is just as good as the newer one's...... And that sizeing on the GTI detectors i really liked that....

 

[Keppy]

You got a GTI 2500 for not much more than the cost of an Ace 250, I'm thinking you're gonna enjoy the learning curve and be a pro in no time...

cheers,
cc

..Yes that was a great buy... I would buy one for that price and keep it never sell it.......

 

[NW Digger]

Its seems nice so far (only about 4hours with it) it just talks and talks a lot, I have read about every post here I can find. I'm not sure if its just me, the detector, or the coil maybe? I just cant get confident with it, and still not used to hearing that threshold constantly. Today I will try and turn the sensitivity down a bit, I have read that with the older GTI's it sometimes helps with the false beeps, tones, etc.

Sad but I can take out that Titan machine I have and run it around and can tell you 90% of the time what its gonna be, from a coin to a bobby pin.
I'm so hoping to get that same confidence with this machine, sometime soon!

Thanks for all the reply's, pointers, help and just taking an interest in a "rookie"!!
I'll keep everyone posted and how I come along.
HH everyone!

 

[Calvin.Coin]

I have an Ace 250 not a GTI but they're both Garrett's and share a similar factory reset option. I would do that to the GTI (press and hold power for 5 seconds) since you got it used. That will ensure it is at factory orginal settings for your learning adventure.

peace,
cc

 

[NW Digger]

Yup ty CC, when i picked it up from the people selling it, that was the first thing I did as soon as I turned it on, then proceeded to test it

My wife keeps telling me to remember, I went from a "toy" to a real metal detector, and it will just take time.

It's stopped raining finally so time for me to "go to school" lol

HH all

 

[Keppy]

And you got a $100.00 set of head phones with the detector...SO you only paid $150.00 for the 2500..

 

[NW Digger]

And you got a $100.00 set of head phones with the detector...SO you only paid $150.00 for the 2500..

Yeah thephones are a very nice bonus


Well after about 5hours and 2 parks later I'm happy to say that I'm starting to have a bit of fun learning, not all super frustrated anymore.
After reading the forums and reading and reading, I applied some of my new found knowledge and Mr. GTI quieted down a bit!!

First thing i did was re-wrapped my coil wire, i used a couple of zip-ties and ran my wire straight up the shaft a few inches to make sure i wasn't
getting any interference from a floppy wire (yes i made sure to leave room so the coil could still move freely)
Second thing I did was turn the sensitivity down, I'm currently at 6+ (6 1/2?)
Last, I turned the threshold almost all the was down, I have to listen for it, its there but just not that overbearing buzz now.
I also left my cell phone in the truck this time and made sure my pin-pointer was as far away my detector as i could get it!

All in all it seems to be working fine, ended up getting around $3-$4 in clad and a 1975 dog-rabie-tag. No silver but I didn't expect any from the places I went today
as they are fairly new parks, I only choose to go to them because I wanted a place I could just dig, dig, dig. Not to trashy but a place I knew I could get some decent targets. I was happy to be digging pull-tabs, nails and foil today, as i was playing the guessing game and actually getting some right!

I ran mostly in relic mode and switched over to jewelry when i started getting a ton of garbage, it worked ok, I don't know if that was the best way to go about it, but it seemed to work. I tinkered a bit with all-metal mode but that is a world all of its own!! I think I will hold off awhile before i trudge down that road and get super comfy with the basics first.

Thanks again everyone, and remember I'm always open to constructive criticism, can't say much to me that's gonna hurt my feelings!!

HH ~~hope to hear from you guys soon!