Should I Upgrade (Bounty Hunter D3300->ACE250)?

P

poco

Jr. Member
Jun 24, 2006
22
0
New York
Howdy,
New to detecting.. Have a question.. Should I upgrade from the Discovery 3300 to the Ace 250?
Basically, long story short, the Discovery 3300 is a floor model from RS that I have 30 days to try out.
I received it as a gift, but they wouldn't be offended if I were to upgrade.. Do you think it's worth the
$100 on my part to move up to the Ace 250? The Discovery isn't bad, but I'm just wondering if the
durability, name brand, reliability, and warranty, and reccomendations are enough to warrant an upgrade
to the Ace 250? Any opinions would be great. Thanks!

Now the question is; which pinpointer to get??? ???
 

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for me that is a tough question. I have the 2200 from RS but also have the Ace 250. From what I have read on the Bounty Hunter section on this forum (under metal detector reviews) that the Discovery is not a bad machine. It is made by Bounty Hunter but probably not the top of the line components that they would put in one of the machines that they sell normally. Not having tried the 3300, but having tried the 2200 and the Ace, I can say that the Ace is better but the 2200 has netted me more coinage so far. I have found a 1941 Mercury dime with the 2200 but also have found a buffalo nickel with the Ace. The 3300 has the pinpoint function that my 2200 does not have but the Ace has this so I am okay.
IMO...I think that the 3300 will be fine for you and maybe if you really want to spend that other $100, add a few more to it and get a pinpointer which will make your detecting travels much easier. I am keeping my 2200 as a spare or if I have someone that wants to go with me they can use that. You can always upgrade to another machine down the road, but to me the Ace just seems like a better built machine than what the 3300 is. It seems to have the same bells and whistles that the Ace 250 has.

now let the bashing begin at my post cause I know some will think I am nuts for telling you to keep the Discovery...again just my opinion. If it was me like I said I would spend the extra money on a pinpointer probe, especially since I don't have one....even better yet, keep the Discovery and use the extra to buy ME a pinpointer probe ;D

HH

Funkman
 

I'm not sure that you can call that an upgrade. for one thing you would lose the ground balance feature that you have on the 3300. also bear in mind that the discovery 3300 sold for 299 before the clearance and kellyco sells the Titan 3000 for 400, they are the same machine execpt that the titan has a color face and a little beefier arm sadle. Check out the reviews, some have said the 3300 outperforms their ace 250. If the 3300 is giving you too many targets in a small area it may be a trash problem. take some of that 1 hundred you want to spend and buy a 4" coil for your 3300 (around 40 bucks i think) heck, you could go all out and buy the 10" coil also, but the 10 would only help you in non trashy areas. Hope this helps.
 

Ok, from what I'm seeing, it would be best to either a) save up for a real mid-high end detector, or b) buy
a pinpointer and/or 4" coil.. I think I'll be going for the choice b.. I've been looking at the White's Bullseye II
and the 4" BH coil.. Sound good? I'm leaning towards the White's because of the size.. I'd prefer not to carry
a "nightstick" on my waist while I'm detecting.. I think it'll probably mean a bit less success, but with the pinpointer
in general my success should go up somewhat right?
 

Yes Poco, I highly recomend you get a pinpointer, although Im a little leary about recomending a Whites Bullseye2. Ive been detecting a little over 4 months & I have gone through 2, my buddies went to crap after 2 months as well. The buttons are very cheap & just dont last. Have never used another brand so I dont know what to tell you to get............. :-[
 

From what I've been reading, the Vibraprobe 560 seems very durable.. The only con that
I see about it is it's size. It's 14" long, which is pretty long if you think about it.. I guess
I could make some kind of a mount to attach it to the MD itself so it wouldn't be so big/nightclubby..
It's so hard to choose a pinpointer because everyone has their favorites.. The Sunray X-1 seems
highly rated, but there's no version for the BHs.. The Automax is on sale at Kellyco for $89 and is
their "Best" out of the Good, Better, Best options.. But it is gigantic!
automax-clipped-on.jpg
So maybe I should make a new poll for what type of Pinpointer to get haha.. All opinions are greatly
appreciated!
 

If you're talking hand held pinpointers then it doesn't have to be for bounty hunter. unless you are talking about one that plugs into your detector. If you really want to be a matched set then I think that the teknetics is made by Bounty Hunter and sells around 60 bucks unless you can snipe one cheaper on ebay. I myself am going to build my own for no reason other than I think It would be really cool if I build it and it works, LOL. find plans here. http://www.tomstreasures.com/probe.html
 

yep, i'm looking for a handheld one.. So far it's a toss up between; Vibraprobe, White's Bullseye II, and the gigantic Automax..
 

I think the 4" coil should be first priority tho. smaller coil means you can get between the trash and closer to fences and other metal objects and it should make for much easier pinpointing seeing that your x will mark a smaller spot.
 

After smokin 2 Bullseye pinpointers Im done with em, realy like the way they work too, but at $100 a pop they should last longer than 2 friggin months! Ive been lookin at the technetics(bounty hunter) pinpointers on ebay, I think I'll try one of those out, I'll let ya'all know how they work.
 

on one of the dealer sites I saw that the Teknetics has a 5 year warranty too.
 

I'm using the Wizard Vib-Probe with my 3300. Great combination of performance, features, and low price. Shop around at dealers and on the web. You can get this pinpointer for around $35 plus shipping. It's not as sturdy as some of the others, but if you don't use the tip to pry into the side of the hole, it'll work for a very long time. Hope this helps. BBJ

Here's the manufacturer's link: http://wizdist.com/wizprobe.cfm
 

BIG BAD JOHN said:
I'm using the Wizard Vib-Probe with my 3300. Great combination of performance, features, and low price. Shop around at dealers and on the web. You can get this pinpointer for around $35 plus shipping. It's not as sturdy as some of the others, but if you don't use the tip to pry into the side of the hole, it'll work for a very long time. Hope this helps. BBJ

Here's the manufacturer's link: http://wizdist.com/wizprobe.cfm
Click to expand...

what are your thoughts on the depth and how long have you been using it? if i were to really spend some $ on a pinpointer
i'd probably end up getting the treasuremate one from tesoro.. but i'm all about budget as well.. the thing that threw me
off from the wizards were that they looked kind of toy-like/flimsy, so i wasn't sure about their durability/mechanics..
 

Personally, I've got no problem with the quality. As long as you understand it's no Vibprobe 560 and don't use the tip to probe and pry in the hole, it'll last a very long time. I've been using mine for 2-1/2 years now with no problems. Mine detects a coin within 1 to 1-1/2 inches of the tip, but there is a potentiometer inside that others have adjusted to get the depth to a bit over 2". IMHO, 2" on a pinpointer is too much, especially if you're swining a sniper coil and have the find pretty much nailed down anyway. In short, mine works well enough and is durable enough with proper care and handling that I've felt no need to upgrade. BBJ
 

I have two of the older style bullseye. One with the push button and one with the toggle switch. The one I have with the toggle switch just does not work and I got it brand new! the one with the push button was used and it works a lot better. I have never had a problem with it.
 

I'm sorry I can't remember where,but I just saw the 'TinyTec Delux' on sale for 40.00.It's suppose to be a great pinpointer.
 

warsawdaddy said:
I'm sorry I can't remember where,but I just saw the 'TinyTec Delux' on sale for 40.00.It's suppose to be a great pinpointer.
Click to expand...

It does look like a good deal, but they only seem to have that deal on the site, and being a NY resident, I'd have to buy
from one of their dealers and not from their site directly for some reason.. Strange
 

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