Pick the best coin machine – for this purpose...

[mrwilburino]

You will be spending the day searching all areas of a small popular old city park. Your purpose is to find as many old (1964 and earlier) coins as possible. Ground mineralization is low but trash levels run from medium to fairly high. You will be searching for all denominations equally. No denomination will be singled out or passed over in favor of others. You will be provided with the detector and recovery tools of your choice. You may keep this detector afterward but only if you find enough old coins. You must choose the detector that you feel would be best for this purpose; not necessarily the one you want, or your personal favorite, or the one you are most comfortable with. It must be the machine that you believe would find the most old coins under these conditions. This detector must be a new 2010 model that retails for under $1,000. Any training that you require to become completely proficient with this detector will be provided beforehand. What model will you choose?

 

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[Goes4ever]

Ace 250 not good in parks for old coins? I can absolutely say this is wrong. The ACE 250 rocks. My detecting buddy schools me in the park with one. I don,t own one but if I was just starting detecting, I would. I have seen hundreds of old coins come out of a trashy park over the last year. The most were found with an ACE 250. Just get a small coil and dig as many signals as you can to learn the machine. Then dig all solid signals. Seeing is believing. My buddy does remind me of the energizer, always on the go, not too fast. Sometimes I think he could find things with just a magnet. I don,t mind though, see what I get to and it will motivate you too.

I have also seen the ACE 250 rock at the beach, beat Minelab, Whites and Fishers, hands down that day.

My point is, don,t say the ACE 250 is no good, I know differently.

ACE 250 , YES!

Ed D.

wow I about spit my coffee on my screen reading this ...lol
I had an ace 250 and I was good with it, but it cannot touch a minelab. The very reason I bought a minelab is because they are good, hands down. Look at todays find, who posts the most silver and indian finds........it sure is not ace250 users

 

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[Born2Dtect]

I was hoping this would not turn into a my detector/brand is best post but.............

This is a new guy to detecting. This trashy park scenario is common. I have seen this recently. Even though I had a EXP II and knowledge of it I could not find as much as you guessed it, An ACE 250. What I learned was there are a few ways to approach a trashy park. The amount of money spent on the detector does not mean you can find more.!!!! AGH <>>>>> What? That's right, how much you find in how much you put into detecting. As far as the trashy park clean it out, go often, dig all possible signals, eventually the targets get better, older if they are there. A smaller coil helps but a lot of hard work with adequate detector, the ACE 250 will get the job done. Will the more expensive detector work? Yes, but being more expensive is not always the best way to go. For this guy, I still recommend the ACE 250, and a good digger, and perseverance.

Ed D.

 

[TerryC]

Ahhhh,
So many words, so little advice. I'll pick the GTA 550. I don't own one but I have a 500. If the 2010 550 comes close to the (out of print) 500, I'll win the contest. Backed up by the Ace 250. TTC

 

[Goes4ever]

Even though I had a EXP II and knowledge of it I could not find as much as you guessed it, An ACE 250. What?

Ed D.

if you had an explorer and was getting beat by an ace250, then you have not learned how to use your machine properly. No way an ace could touch an explorer

 

[Keppy]

My first pick would be the Minelab Sovereign..............then a toss up between the Garrett Ace 250 and the Omega 8000...........

 

[lonelyduckhunter]

Maybe I did misread the post, but here is what I am reading: "YOU will be spending the day.......YOUR purpose.......YOU will be searching.........YOU will be provided........YOU may keep.....YOU must choose.......the machine that YOU believe.....", and finally "What model will YOU choose"?

Now, if you can find where in the thread it says which one you would or would not RECOMMEND then I will stand corrected.


All the nonsense aside, I would choose the GTI 1500 under the guidelines given. (While under normal circumstances I would 100% of the time spend the extra on a 2500,) but for this purpose I need to be below $1000. In coin mode with the Graphic Target Imaging you will have a quick confident reading, the first post 1964 coin you find you would simply press the reject button and no longer worry about that metal composition. From that point on when you get a belltone and the proper reading you can be rather confident you are getting a pre 1964 coin.

This coming from someone who has not used a Minelab, but has had much success with Garretts. Following the which would "I" choose I have given MY answer.

A dealer actually saying to find more old coins, you need to turn UP the discrimination?

So you dig a 1965 penny and decide to notch it out. Ooops, no more digging wheat pennies for the day.

Since you are such an expert, what I want to see is a video of you going out and getting a deep coin hit, telling us exactly what you think it is and how deep it is. And then digging it showing us what is in the hole as you dig it out. Then do this 10 times over in the course of a single day.

How many 10 silver days in public parks have you had in the past year or two using a Garrett? Could somebody link me to some posts like that on this site? I would LOVE to see it.

I feel sorry for the people that walk into your shop and you only know a couple of brands, so you can't offer advice about any other machines, so you steer them in the direction of the WRONG machine for them.

Bazinga

I'm the guy born2detect is talking about. I have been detecting for 1 year 2 months. I started with a Ace 250. Up until 2 months ago I used it exclusively. Still use it quite often. In a trashy park in the last year I have pulled over 200 silver coins dating all the way back from a 1833 Capped Bust half dollar, Seated coins, Barbers and Standing Libertys. The same trashy parks I have pulled between 200-300 IHP, Large Cents, King George's, Civil war buttons, Colonial Shoe Buckles and Gold jewlery numerous amounts of clad and tokens. Feel free to search my posts on here to see pictures on what the Ace 250 can find in trashy parks. A lot has to do with the user and getting to know your machine but I can honestly say the Ace 250 can hold it's own in the right hands. My best find with the Ace was a 1877 IHP. Recently found the 1793 Chain Cent on the banner but it was found with a GTI2500. Keep in mind I have only been detecting a little over a year but the park I usually pull all my goodies from is infested with iron but the Ace does the job for me. The thing with trashy parks is you have to pull the shallow layers of trash off to get to the deeper older stuff and sometimes that large iron nail you dig can be blocking say a 1833 Capped Bust Half dollar or even a 1877 IHP. You never know unless you dig it. If you ever get down this way and want to have a friendly hunt I would put my Ace 250 up against any machine. I know how to use it and for $212.00 its hard to beat. Bartman could verify this as well I have been beating the snot out of his T2 and Born2detects explorer for over a year now. This is just my opion and feel if you used the Ace250 enough you would agree with me.

 

[bazinga]

Even though I had a EXP II and knowledge of it I could not find as much as you guessed it, An ACE 250. What?

Ed D.

if you had an explorer and was getting beat by an ace250, then you have not learned how to use your machine properly. No way an ace could touch an explorer

Let's face it, we are going to lose this argument every time. People who aren't experienced with an explorer or never hunted with a TRUE experienced explorer user in a public park will just never understand the difference.

They also don't realize that the bulk of us arguing against the Ace 250 in this thread have personal, hands-on experience using one. I have one sitting in the corner. Anybody interested in purchasing one? I'd be glad to sell it.

 

[bazinga]

Maybe I did misread the post, but here is what I am reading: "YOU will be spending the day.......YOUR purpose.......YOU will be searching.........YOU will be provided........YOU may keep.....YOU must choose.......the machine that YOU believe.....", and finally "What model will YOU choose"?

Now, if you can find where in the thread it says which one you would or would not RECOMMEND then I will stand corrected.


All the nonsense aside, I would choose the GTI 1500 under the guidelines given. (While under normal circumstances I would 100% of the time spend the extra on a 2500,) but for this purpose I need to be below $1000. In coin mode with the Graphic Target Imaging you will have a quick confident reading, the first post 1964 coin you find you would simply press the reject button and no longer worry about that metal composition. From that point on when you get a belltone and the proper reading you can be rather confident you are getting a pre 1964 coin.

This coming from someone who has not used a Minelab, but has had much success with Garretts. Following the which would "I" choose I have given MY answer.

A dealer actually saying to find more old coins, you need to turn UP the discrimination?

So you dig a 1965 penny and decide to notch it out. Ooops, no more digging wheat pennies for the day.

Since you are such an expert, what I want to see is a video of you going out and getting a deep coin hit, telling us exactly what you think it is and how deep it is. And then digging it showing us what is in the hole as you dig it out. Then do this 10 times over in the course of a single day.

How many 10 silver days in public parks have you had in the past year or two using a Garrett? Could somebody link me to some posts like that on this site? I would LOVE to see it.

I feel sorry for the people that walk into your shop and you only know a couple of brands, so you can't offer advice about any other machines, so you steer them in the direction of the WRONG machine for them.

Bazinga

I'm the guy born2detect is talking about. I have been detecting for 1 year 2 months. I started with a Ace 250. Up until 2 months ago I used it exclusively. Still use it quite often. In a trashy park in the last year I have pulled over 200 silver coins dating all the way back from 1833 Capped Bust half dollar to 64 silver. The same trashy parks I have pulled between 200-300 IHP, Large Cents, King George's Civil war buttons, Colonial Shoe Buckles and Gold jewlery numerous amounts of clad and tokens. Feel free to search my posts on here to see pictures on what the Ace 250 can find in trashy parks. A lot has to do with the user and getting to know your machine but I can honestly say the Ace 250 can hold it's own in the right hands. My best find with the Ace was a 1877 IHP. Recently found the 1793 Chain Cent on the banner but it was found with a GTI2500. Keep in mind I have only been detecting a little over a year but the park I usually pull all my goodies from is infested with iron but the Ace does the job for me. The thing with trashy parks is you have to pull the shallow layers of trash off to get to the deeper older stuff and sometimes that large iron nail you dig can be blocking say a 1833 Capped Bust Half dollar or even a 1877 IHP. You never know unless you dig it. If you ever get down this way and want to have a friendly hunt I would put my Ace 250 up against any machine. I know how to use it and for $212.00 its hard to beat. Bartman could verify this as well I have been beating the snot out of his T2 and Born2detects explorer for over a year now. This is just my opion and feel if you used the Ace250 enough you would agree with me.

I really wish that I had virgin parks to hunt like you do. Maybe Shambler and I will have to make a trip out there to prove you wrong one of these days.

 

[lonelyduckhunter]

Maybe I did misread the post, but here is what I am reading: "YOU will be spending the day.......YOUR purpose.......YOU will be searching.........YOU will be provided........YOU may keep.....YOU must choose.......the machine that YOU believe.....", and finally "What model will YOU choose"?

Now, if you can find where in the thread it says which one you would or would not RECOMMEND then I will stand corrected.


All the nonsense aside, I would choose the GTI 1500 under the guidelines given. (While under normal circumstances I would 100% of the time spend the extra on a 2500,) but for this purpose I need to be below $1000. In coin mode with the Graphic Target Imaging you will have a quick confident reading, the first post 1964 coin you find you would simply press the reject button and no longer worry about that metal composition. From that point on when you get a belltone and the proper reading you can be rather confident you are getting a pre 1964 coin.

This coming from someone who has not used a Minelab, but has had much success with Garretts. Following the which would "I" choose I have given MY answer.

A dealer actually saying to find more old coins, you need to turn UP the discrimination?

So you dig a 1965 penny and decide to notch it out. Ooops, no more digging wheat pennies for the day.

Since you are such an expert, what I want to see is a video of you going out and getting a deep coin hit, telling us exactly what you think it is and how deep it is. And then digging it showing us what is in the hole as you dig it out. Then do this 10 times over in the course of a single day.

How many 10 silver days in public parks have you had in the past year or two using a Garrett? Could somebody link me to some posts like that on this site? I would LOVE to see it.

I feel sorry for the people that walk into your shop and you only know a couple of brands, so you can't offer advice about any other machines, so you steer them in the direction of the WRONG machine for them.

Bazinga

I'm the guy born2detect is talking about. I have been detecting for 1 year 2 months. I started with a Ace 250. Up until 2 months ago I used it exclusively. Still use it quite often. In a trashy park in the last year I have pulled over 200 silver coins dating all the way back from 1833 Capped Bust half dollar to 64 silver. The same trashy parks I have pulled between 200-300 IHP, Large Cents, King George's Civil war buttons, Colonial Shoe Buckles and Gold jewlery numerous amounts of clad and tokens. Feel free to search my posts on here to see pictures on what the Ace 250 can find in trashy parks. A lot has to do with the user and getting to know your machine but I can honestly say the Ace 250 can hold it's own in the right hands. My best find with the Ace was a 1877 IHP. Recently found the 1793 Chain Cent on the banner but it was found with a GTI2500. Keep in mind I have only been detecting a little over a year but the park I usually pull all my goodies from is infested with iron but the Ace does the job for me. The thing with trashy parks is you have to pull the shallow layers of trash off to get to the deeper older stuff and sometimes that large iron nail you dig can be blocking say a 1833 Capped Bust Half dollar or even a 1877 IHP. You never know unless you dig it. If you ever get down this way and want to have a friendly hunt I would put my Ace 250 up against any machine. I know how to use it and for $212.00 its hard to beat. Bartman could verify this as well I have been beating the snot out of his T2 and Born2detects explorer for over a year now. This is just my opion and feel if you used the Ace250 enough you would agree with me.

I really wish that I had virgin parks to hunt like you do. Maybe Shambler and I will have to make a trip out there to prove you wrong one of these days.

Virgin Parks lol I wish. Just a decent machine in the right users hands. Recently went on a club hunt with around 20 members using all types of different machines to a hunted hard area. I pulled 4 silver dimes the rest of the club pulled 1 silver a barber quarter. Put your coil over something and know what your listening to and the rest is the easy part. Anytime you get this way let me know I'm up for the challenge just to have a chance to make someone a ACE250 believer. Forgot to add I run a 9x12 garrett pro performance coil on the ace way better then the stock one they put on it. Maybe I'm just extremely lucky with no skills. Keep in mind I also try to average 12-15 hours a week detecting in.

 

[lonelyduckhunter]

Even though I had a EXP II and knowledge of it I could not find as much as you guessed it, An ACE 250. What?

Ed D.

if you had an explorer and was getting beat by an ace250, then you have not learned how to use your machine properly. No way an ace could touch an explorer

Let's face it, we are going to lose this argument every time. People who aren't experienced with an explorer or never hunted with a TRUE experienced explorer user in a public park will just never understand the difference.

They also don't realize that the bulk of us arguing against the Ace 250 in this thread have personal, hands-on experience using one. I have one sitting in the corner. Anybody interested in purchasing one? I'd be glad to sell it.

Beings it such a piece of junk I'll give you $50 for it tell me where to send the money.

 

[bazinga]

Even though I had a EXP II and knowledge of it I could not find as much as you guessed it, An ACE 250. What?

Ed D.

if you had an explorer and was getting beat by an ace250, then you have not learned how to use your machine properly. No way an ace could touch an explorer

Let's face it, we are going to lose this argument every time. People who aren't experienced with an explorer or never hunted with a TRUE experienced explorer user in a public park will just never understand the difference.

They also don't realize that the bulk of us arguing against the Ace 250 in this thread have personal, hands-on experience using one. I have one sitting in the corner. Anybody interested in purchasing one? I'd be glad to sell it.

Beings it such a piece of junk I'll give you $50 for it tell me where to send the money.

I can find a sucker to pay way more than that for it.

 

[lonelyduckhunter]

Even though I had a EXP II and knowledge of it I could not find as much as you guessed it, An ACE 250. What?

Ed D.

if you had an explorer and was getting beat by an ace250, then you have not learned how to use your machine properly. No way an ace could touch an explorer

Let's face it, we are going to lose this argument every time. People who aren't experienced with an explorer or never hunted with a TRUE experienced explorer user in a public park will just never understand the difference.

They also don't realize that the bulk of us arguing against the Ace 250 in this thread have personal, hands-on experience using one. I have one sitting in the corner. Anybody interested in purchasing one? I'd be glad to sell it.

Beings it such a piece of junk I'll give you $50 for it tell me where to send the money.

I can find a sucker to pay way more than that for it.

Just trying to help you out didn't want the Ace to contaminate your other machine. I'm not trying to convince you the ACE is a good machine at a decent price you already have your mind made up. Sounds like you did not use the Ace enough to get the full understanding of it or you got a lemon one way or the other. I have used the full line of coils for it. The 9x12 and the sniper are my favorites and no matter how many times you go over a area including trashy parks there is always going to be goodies left to find another day.

 

[bigscoop]

A quality machine only improves your chances to a point, beyond that it all comes down to how well you know your machine. Are some quality machines better in certain situations then other quality machines designed for the same purpose? Perhaps, but not enough to make a huge difference in the final results. A good quality machine is only as good as the person operating it so find a quality machine that you personally like and then really learn that machine. There are several good quality machines out there that I won't buy simply because I personally don't like this or that about them, but it's not say I don't think they are good machines, or possibly even a better machine in certain situations. I choose a machine that is good, of high quality, and most important, a machine that I feel I'll be personally comfortable with. If I'm comfortable with a machine then I will more likely take the time to learn that machine to its maxumum potential, and that's really what will make the most important difference in the long run. Find a quality machine that you're personally comfortable with.

 

[Shambler]

Everyone should own an ACE250 - it's a good reminder of why you spent the big bucks on the other machine.

 

[mrwilburino]

Re: Pick the best coin machine – for this purpose...UPDATE

Please allow me to interrupt this discussion of the ACE250 to give you guys an update. First off, I want to thank everyone who contributed to this post regardless of whether you took it seriously or felt that it was “nonsense.” I appreciate your opinion. Obviously this was about finding a new detector. I tried to be as specific as possible with the park hunting scenario in order to make the choice easier. If I had simply asked for a recommendation I probably would not have gotten anywhere near the amount of responses that I did. I am not new to detecting, but it has been over thirty years since I last hunted. As a teenager I spent a good chunk of the 1970’s with a metal detector practically glued to my hand. I hunted out a number of local parks and playgrounds in the Cleveland area and found some nice stuff. I got away from the hobby sometime in the late 70’s; I can’t really remember why. I definitely know what to do with a metal detector, I just need to get up to speed with the newer technology. My last detector, which I purchased in 1975, was the Garrett Discriminator. It was a BFO and the first discriminator that Garrett made. Earlier this year I bought a Tesoro Cibola. I wanted something not too expensive, simple to operate, and fairly deep. The Cibola is all of those, especially in the depth department. It is however, meterless and monotone and that makes it a bit frustrating to use in trashy areas. Even though I’ve become proficient at “thumbing the disc” as Tesoro owners say, that method, though fairly accurate, is time consuming in areas with multiple targets and lots of trash. Since I still live in the same area that I did when I was younger, I’ve been wanting to go back to some of those trashy old parks to see if there was anything that I or others might have missed. So I used some of the opinions here to research the models that would be best for this purpose. It was very close between the Minelab Sovereign and the Fisher CZ-3D. I decided on the CZ. I did however, break one of my rules and bought a used one at decent price. It’s an older model with a pre-First Texas buyout serial number. Works great and the depth is excellent. Took it out for an hour today to a small old park that I had previously hunted every inch of. Besides finding some newer coins I also found a wheat, an older nickel, and the trigger mechanism from an old rifle. Those were all things that I know I passed over many years ago. That was the whole purpose.

 

[bill-USA]

Even though I had a EXP II and knowledge of it I could not find as much as you guessed it, An ACE 250. What?

Ed D.

if you had an explorer and was getting beat by an ace250, then you have not learned how to use your machine properly. No way an ace could touch an explorer

Let's face it, we are going to lose this argument every time. People who aren't experienced with an explorer or never hunted with a TRUE experienced explorer user in a public park will just never understand the difference.

They also don't realize that the bulk of us arguing against the Ace 250 in this thread have personal, hands-on experience using one. I have one sitting in the corner. Anybody interested in purchasing one? I'd be glad to sell it.

Put a price on it, and continue your E-trac biggoted banter.

 

[hammered]

Well heck, the Ace does a great job of it. I am sure lots of machines do. Truth be told, a lot of finding old coins is user experience. It takes time to learn the machine no matter what machine.

Wow, a moderator that knows nothing about detecting.

How did this happen?

When it comes to finding old coins on a REGULAR basis in public parks, an Ace 250 is not the machine for the job.

First of all I started with an Ace 250. Now I don't know what the "experienced detectorist" that posted this comment thinks should be considered old, but the range of coins I have found with this excellent machine (1189-1956 ad) plus Roman, Saxon and Medieval artifacts speaks for itself. In my opinion Felinepeachy's advice was on the button and innocently given and she does not deserve to have spurious comments such as this made against her. I think an apology is in order.

hammered

 

[River Rat]

Well heck, the Ace does a great job of it. I am sure lots of machines do. Truth be told, a lot of finding old coins is user experience. It takes time to learn the machine no matter what machine.

Wow, a moderator that knows nothing about detecting.

How did this happen?

When it comes to finding old coins on a REGULAR basis in public parks, an Ace 250 is not the machine for the job.

First of all I started with an Ace 250. Now I don't know what the "experienced detectorist" that posted this comment thinks should be considered old, but the range of coins I have found with this excellent machine (1189-1956 ad) plus Roman, Saxon and Medieval artifacts speaks for itself. In my opinion Felinepeachy's advice was on the button and innocently given and she does not deserve to have spurious comments such as this made against her. I think an apology is in order.

hammered

Brian,

I'm the other moderator who owns an Ace 250...I love my machine and I don't care what I find with it, if you remember at JD's MO hunt, I was happy finding horse shoes or bullets. What about at CTH1, JD was there, you know most of the other hunters have high end machines...but who finds a 1926 SLQ out in the middle of the field? Me & my little yellow fellow...that's right!!

You should be ashamed of yourself for putting down on FelinePeachy. Yes, I do believe you owe her an apology.

RR

 

[bazinga]

Even though I had a EXP II and knowledge of it I could not find as much as you guessed it, An ACE 250. What?

Ed D.

if you had an explorer and was getting beat by an ace250, then you have not learned how to use your machine properly. No way an ace could touch an explorer

Let's face it, we are going to lose this argument every time. People who aren't experienced with an explorer or never hunted with a TRUE experienced explorer user in a public park will just never understand the difference.

They also don't realize that the bulk of us arguing against the Ace 250 in this thread have personal, hands-on experience using one. I have one sitting in the corner. Anybody interested in purchasing one? I'd be glad to sell it.

Put a price on it, and continue your E-trac biggoted banter.

I am no E-trac user.

 

[bazinga]

Brian,

I'm the other moderator who owns an Ace 250...I love my machine and I don't care what I find with it, if you remember at JD's MO hunt, I was happy finding horse shoes or bullets. What about at CTH1, JD was there, you know most of the other hunters have high end machines...but who finds a 1926 SLQ out in the middle of the field? Me & my little yellow fellow...that's right!!

You should be ashamed of yourself for putting down on FelinePeachy. Yes, I do believe you owe her an apology.

RR

That's the difference between you and I. I DO care what I find with my machine. If I was just interested in frolicking through the park, then I would get myself a yellow dinger, but that's not why I detect.

At JD's MO hunt, everybody was happy finding bullets. I know I was happy with my pile of bullets, misc brass, and eagle button.

I don't know what CTH1 is, so I have no way to comment on it. But from the sounds of it, you were hunting a field and not a park. Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every once in a while.

The reason I commented on the other mod is because people look up to mods on these forums. And when a mod makes a statement on a site as populated as this, there will be a couple of people who go out and buy machines based on those recommendations. But in this case, the mod really has no idea about what she is talking about. There are maybe 10 guys on the site I would listen to and respect when it comes to machine / detecting advice based on their experience with multiple machines. And no, it's not just the minelab guys that I respect, since the minelab is a pretty limited machine in several respects.