SO... You want a detector to make money ? The rude reality of "life in the slow lane"

ARC

ARC

Gold Member
Aug 19, 2014
38,273
139,100
Tarpon Springs
Detector(s) used
JW 8X-ML X2-VP 585
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
SO... You want a detector to make money ? The rude reality of "life in the slow lane"

For those of you who joined or are watching Tnet to try and "get the scoop" on detecting to "strike it rich"...
Or even "make extra money"/"living"...
Here are the harse realities from some of our members...

POST YOUR THOUGHTS ON THIS T-NETTERS...

Here is my general thought/statement on this...

People get into to detecting thinking it is a money making opportunity...
It USE to be... before the spots that were "virgin" have been hunted thin.
AND CAN be ... IF you are on the right spot.
But even the best spots do not last forever...

It is rare these days...
And a hard life for those who depend on a find for a meal.
This applies to gold dredging... stone scouting... etc...
and pretty much all aspects of "finding" things to live.

But every now and then someone "scores"...
This is what drives us.
You will dig your weight in pull tabs and bottle caps long before that for many.
And for some...
Never.

PS> "virgin" grounds... only exist on private land... Protected lands or off limit land...
And even most of those have been scoured at some point in time.
 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Cry Of The Eagle: History And Legends Of The Cherokee Indians And Their Buried Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!
How very true. I wonder how many newbies view our forum thinking it is just that easy. It's not. Detectors are getting better every year, going deeper, even now you can dig two feet for a one cent coin. At one time, there was more coins in the ground than trash, now it's the other way around.
 

ARRC - You said it all... no need for me to comment further.
 

Good article there W on the Hunt Brothers and the silver market. I recall stories of how the local pros "Hooverd" up all the silver that was easy to get too in our area then went after areas where they weren't really welcome at.
 

We (the regulars) don't hunt for profit. We know it's not there.

How many clad coins would it take to pay off or machines, accessories, gas, parking and so on.... it's not about profit for me.

It's about getting out, getting a little exercise, and enjoying the outdoors in the woods or on the beach.

Look at the coin roll hunters. They go through thousands of dollars in coins to find $5 in silver. Probably works out to about 12 cents an hour.

My beach hunts generally work out in the negative when I factor in all the financials of the hunt.

But it's a hobby- not a living.

I get just as much (sometimes more) enjoyment out of finding a 1963 pull tab as I do a cheap ring.
 

It comes to simple math, 55 or so years folks have been detecting the public green spaces, water, and anything that's historical that has been allowed or night hawked.
The odds of finding a little corner a missed spot within the well known area is still a possibility, but as the hobby gets more attention the odds dry up.
Research,research, research & thinking out of the box will produce the keepers.
What are the odds of finding something that's a home run treasure? Slim to almost none for most, there's a few that have the odds bumped up as live in an area of old, availability to hunt private lands that are rich in history.
It's like buying a lottery ticket we all dream of winning, the glory, the blah, blah, blah, but in 45yrs of playing with this obsession and sure there has been some really nice items and a few cherished memories but none are life changers.
 

I look at it in comparison to a weekend fisherman. He spends money on gas and bait, then sits for several hours on the shoreline,seawall or bridge and may,if he's lucky enough, come home with something to show for it all.Then...he has to clean it before cooking it. In the end , it would be easier for him to just go down to the local fish market and buy some already prepared filets of fish of his choice and cook them up. It is easy to see that the weekend fisherman doesn't do all of that because he is hungry and needs to eat. He does it because it is relaxing, it is enjoyable being outside, the thrill of the possible catch and the camaraderie he has with his fishing buddy. He enjoys all this whether he catches anything or not. You can literally substitute the "fisherman" in this analogy with the "detectorist" in all comparisons.I know, I know..I am preaching to the choir...but this is for those newbies out there.
 

Unless a proven lead requires a detector, or researching until a item(s) is/are known and the location is the basis of using a detector, it is a past time.
Insite into sites applies as well.
Locating property stakes might be a more steady generation of revenue, but clad coinage can be hustled. How much depends on the hours and locations covered but a persons time and investment in gear and batteries has to be considered.
Always good to hunt determinedly and optimistically but not to be disappointed with the results when randomly swinging.
Could money be made detecting? Sure but by someone being creative and also making work out of it. Who is willing to put in 40-60 hrs. a week swingin till they hit big,year after year...? Might take the fun out of it.
Do some folks turn up screaming honker finds ? Yes. But a great possibility exists that only a minority of detectorists, (at least if counting all detector owners as detectorists) generate finds enough to cover what they have in to it. All could make more recoveries by longer hours and better research and travel if required..
A start is covering equipment costs.What someone might cover in a day, others may take decades.
A person could be really lucky, or really good and beat the odds.
But making work out of a hobby (if a hobby depending on user) is not what everybody swings for.
A person using a detector might get rich. Some great recoveries have been made but I won't insure great riches. Luck , hardest research and work might still not be enough; just like other ways of acquiring money.
Hedge your bets and gamble wisely.
 

What do you mean you can't make extra money detecting, I found $2.78 on my last hunt and I only hunted 2 hours, man that's a $1.39 an hour...[emoji106]
 

Most times I go out I average about $1.50 per hour or less. I have found 2 virgin areas and at those sites I averaged about $5.00 per hour, but as ARRC stated they dry up. Overall last season I invested about 450 hours in the hobby and pulled a total of $510,00 in face value. But now lets start to deduct the expenses. The detector cost, detecting accessories (i,e, pinpointer, gloves, finds pouch, digging tools, headphones, rock tumbler) and let's add in the research time, and expendables such as batteries, gas for the vehicle, wear and tear on the vehicle.

Below are the costs of the equipment I invested in

1st elcheapo detector $80. sold it for $40 (-40)
Upgraded to a used Fisher F4 paid $295 sold it to a fellow T-Netter for $225 (-70)
Headphones $30.00, dug through the cord (-30)
Black Widow Head phones used $75.00 and paid $25 after the season to be re-cabled (-100)
Nail apron for finds $0.88 (-$0.88)
1st pinpointer (BH) $42.00 (-42)
Fisher F75 LTD SE used $600 and had it upgraded for $150 (-750)
cheap digging tool to start with (garden trowel) $10.00 (-10)
Lesche digger used $20.00 (-20)
Small Shovel $18.00 (-18)
Modified shovel for field hunting bought used $35.00 (-35)
Relic pouch mounted on Army LBE used $20.00 (-20)
2 packs of tennis balls used to a insure I cover large fields $7.00 (-7)
Used Sand Scoop $70.00 (-70)
Used 1280X Aquanaut detector $200.00 (-200)
Multiple pairs of gloves $12.00 (-12)
Batteries $40 (-40)
2 pair of knee pads $15.00 (-15)
White's Classic ID (back-up/loaner detector $150.00 (-150)
Coin collecting folders and supplies $50 (-50)

Total invested not counting gas and time I am at just under $1680.00

total finds for the 2 seasons so far (face value) $689.11

At this rate I will be even in another 2 years if I do not decide to invest in some aftermarket coils :BangHead:

You will not get rich or make a living wage in this hobby, but I still enjoy my times hunting with buddies, or just getting out by myself and listening for beeps. Part of my pleasure is researching and reading about the history of the areas I hunt.

Aren't we all addicted to that feeling you get when you pull an old coin or token, an interesting relic, a pocket spill or small cache of pennies.:dontknow:



I have yet to water hunt with the 1280x but I look forward to finding my 1st gold ring and many to follow. If I can pull some gold this season I may break even sooner.

It's not about the money but rather the pleasure I get from this hobby and being a member of the T-Net community.
 

Last edited:
I just hope my wife doesn't find out that this is costing me more than I find...:laughing7:
 

"It's NOT about the money!!" should be our rallying cry. I haven't invested as much as many others on here, 2 detectors, one new for $100 and one used for $40 and a garden trowel for $3. Batteries and gas total under $200. I have been lucky enough to have covered the costs IF I sold anything(which would help if you are after a profit). The history of what we dig, to me, is more important than any profit.
 

I have made money,all of our(wife and I)equipment has paid for itself several times over.,well into the 4 figures sold or cashed in.that much again in holdings and I still wonder if I have actually made more than a meager wage,certainly not livable.I am most fortunate to have my mountain ski town primarily all to myself and friends,we have never seen another detectorist.
I know every turnout where snowplay happens,was in the ski school buisness over 20 years,I know where on the ski areas to hunt.
Sooooo...yes We have been particularly successful with high end finds,old coins and relics form mining era,and a ridiculas amount of clad,I would still need to live under an overpass to live on the finds we make and sometimes would sleep hungry.

Its a hobby that can pay its own way,its quality time with my wife,its the thrill of the unknown and the joy of a keeper find.No more for me but certainly no less.
cheers new folks.."c'mon....get in"
 

Last edited:
Good thread guys!! It is the thrill of the hunt, not the value of the find! (at least to me!)
 

I always tell people who ask me the age ole question...
"can you make money metal detecting" ? ...

With so many "variants"... it makes it a hard question to answer.
I tell them "Being a starving artist would make you more money".

Most Mdrs days are similar ...
Paying more for parking than what is found.

Wonder how much money is made from the parking of MDrs at beaches and parks per year.

Dreams of treasures and striking it rich have been sold throughout time.
This type of dream fueled the gold rush...
During which...
Most scratched fruitlessly...
Very few "made money"... And even fewer "struck real gold"... And even less than fewer "hit the big load"...
The odds are against it...
but...
At least there are odds :)
 

bigfoot1 said:
I have made money,all of our(wife and I)equipment has paid for itself several times over.,well into the 4 figures sold or cashed in.that much again in holdings and I still wonder if I have actually made more than a meager wage,certainly not livable.I am most fortunate to have my mountain ski town primarily all to myself and friends,we have never seen another detectorist.
I know every turnout where snowplay happens,was in the ski school buisness over 20 years,I know where on the ski areas to hunt.
Sooooo...yes We have been particularly successful with high end finds,old coins and relics form mining era,and a ridiculas amount of clad,I would still need to live under an overpass to live on the finds we make and sometimes would sleep hungry.

Its a hobby that can pay its own way,its quality time with my wife,its the thrill of the unknown and the joy of a keeper find.No more for me but certainly no less.
cheers new folks.."c'mon....get in"
Click to expand...

SEE prime example of A "variant"...
BF is in an area where this particular situation exists.
 

I don't make any money at it, I enjoy the hobby. But there are not very many hobbies that pay you back anything at all.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.

First cellar hole hunt

⬅️ Previous Thread

SPONSORED VIDEO LINKS

Next Thread ➡️

Top Member Reactions

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 2 (members: 0, guests: 2)
Simplex Metal Detector

Latest Discussions

Back
Top