Ok call me dumb.

[g-olden years]

Howdy! Regardless of which detector you use, the primary caution for anyone who has health issues is simple: take numerous sitting rest breaks during your detecting time! I'm 73, puny and with arthritic knees and heel spurs in my feet. But I've been happily detecting for the past four years with my lightweight Bounty Hunter, finding gold, silver, relics, funny surprises, etc. from signals both deep and shallow. When I forget to sit down and rest for fifteen minutes every hour or so, I always feel it painfully later with many aches & pains back at home! So, take it easy, rest, and you'll love it. Since you already have the el cheapo machine, follow the advice of trying it out in a location without much trash. If you're near any sandy beaches, everything on beaches is easier on sore joints! Sand is gentle on your feet and digging lots easier. Also, try detecting wood-chip tot lots as digging there is easy and all your targets will be shallow! Usually tot lots have benches to rest on too. My $25 pin-pointer from Harbor Freight saves a lot of time & effort too. If your first few excursions turn out happily, for beaches you may want to buy a long-handled scoop, which lets you retrieve your target with minimal bending or squatting. I've yet to spring for the long-handled scoop, so my small scoop will do for now. Have Fun! Andi

 

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[K1DDO1979]

Howdy! Regardless of which detector you use, the primary caution for anyone who has health issues is simple: take numerous sitting rest breaks during your detecting time! I'm 73, puny and with arthritic knees and heel spurs in my feet. But I've been happily detecting for the past four years with my lightweight Bounty Hunter, finding gold, silver, relics, funny surprises, etc. from signals both deep and shallow. When I forget to sit down and rest for fifteen minutes every hour or so, I always feel it painfully later with many aches & pains back at home! So, take it easy, rest, and you'll love it. Since you already have the el cheapo machine, follow the advice of trying it out in a location without much trash. If you're near any sandy beaches, everything on beaches is easier on sore joints! Sand is gentle on your feet and digging lots easier. Also, try detecting wood-chip tot lots as digging there is easy and all your targets will be shallow! Usually tot lots have benches to rest on too. My $25 pin-pointer from Harbor Freight saves a lot of time & effort too. If your first few excursions turn out happily, for beaches you may want to buy a long-handled scoop, which lets you retrieve your target with minimal bending or squatting. I've yet to spring for the long-handled scoop, so my small scoop will do for now. Have Fun! Andi

True. With his machine if it's salt water beaches he may want to stick to the dry sand. That type of detector probably wouldn't perform good in the salt. False signals galore! [emoji33]

 

[BLK]

Thanks for all the help and honesty

I feel humbled by all your honesty. Even the critasim about the junk I just bought. I listen to ALL opinions and then blame no one but myself. I will be trying my "new" cheapo in the next few weeks on the Port Aransas beach right after spring break. After I test it at my RV in a sand filled plastic bucket without the metal handle. Will then venture forth and report back to you. If I find out I like this stuff even a little bit I am going with a Fisher Gold bug or a Garret AT Pro. Do any of you prefer one or the other?

 

[boogeyman]

I feel humbled by all your honesty. Even the critasim about the junk I just bought. I listen to ALL opinions and then blame no one but myself. I will be trying my "new" cheapo in the next few weeks on the Port Aransas beach right after spring break. After I test it at my RV in a sand filled plastic bucket without the metal handle. Will then venture forth and report back to you. If I find out I like this stuff even a little bit I am going with a Fisher Gold bug or a Garret AT Pro. Do any of you prefer one or the other?

There's no reason to blame yourself! We all have to start somewhere. As long as you learn along the way & remember what you learned, you're all good. Glad you asked questions, that alone puts you ahead of the majority!!!
r

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

Not a bad thing to start inexpensively . . . but. Here's an anaolgy:

I fly R/C aircraft. I wanted something small to fly around my yard. Bought a model called a "Fighterbird" that came with transmitter for relatively little.

It was almost uncontrollable. ANY regular R/C aircraft I own, or ever have, was easier to fly than this thing. I'm a relatively experienced pilot and have flown some hot, aerobatic models. This took 150 ft to make a 180° turn. Pitch was by throttle (no elevator!). Turned only by banking and with no yaw control. Some poor kid who got one of these to learn to fly with on Christmas would have had nothing left to show by New Years. Inexpensive does not always equal easy.

Back to detecting.

The inexpensive unit will likely find coins and any metal to 4" deep - and indiscriminately. A quarter = a nail = a septic tank lift handle = a soda can. It will be a good way to determining in general if being out listening for a beep while wandering around appeals to you. It's not for everybody. But it will be a LOT more frustrating than a better detector, so don't judge the pursuit itself by that equipment.

My first detector was a Radio Shack kit with a bare PC board printed loop. I found clad coins with it and other odd bits. But soon lost interest. I later (25 years) bought a used Minelab Musketeer Advantage and it was astonishingly better. If I had started with a better detector wiuld I have stuck with it from an early age? Probably. So that's 25 detecting years lost. What's that worth?

 

[texasred777]

Like Relicmeister said, BH is a great cheap machine to start with, or do like I do and just stay with BH. I have 4 and don't see much reason to change to the higher priced ones. I have 2 from the 1980s, a TrackerIV, and a Lone Star.

 

[cruiserkev]

Good luck with the cheapie. That's how many of us started out. Mine was a $30 Radio Shack clunker I received as a gift in 1981. Found a lot of trash and a few relics with it before losing the detector in a house fire 6 months later. My hobby remained dormant for many years until I bought an ACE 250 just to see if there were any old coins in my yard. Used it with great results for a few years and determined I was serious enough to recently purchase an AT Gold. Still learning it but am very impressed so far. Happy hunting!

 

[ivan salis]

well if you decide detecting is not for you --rather than just throwing away it --I know of several needy kids that would ;love any detector at all...

 

[gianetics]

i started out with the hf9fmd. it feels cheap as heck, takes a lot of batteries, and doenst get a lot of depth. that being said, it is amazing in heavy iron and the disc actually works quite well. this machine on a nail board test will embarrass a lot of 500-1000 dollar machines.

 

[texasred777]

I was posting about the BHs that I own, but I actually started in the fall of 1979 with a $29.99, or was it $39.99, Radio Shack detector; no discrimination, just all metal. I found enough in my own yard to pay for it by the next spring. That's when I bought my first BH. Any detector can be used and made to pay for itself. You just have to use it and get know it. Yes, I'm sure there are more expensive detectors that will find more than my BH ones will, but will they find enough to pay for the extra amount they cost? A lot of people think so. If you get into it and think so, go for it! It may be worth it. I just never tried it.