What type of store would sell metal detectors?

[enchantedhiker]

Okay...you all have me convinced that I need a metal detector ready and available for April when the ground thaws!
Are there other places besides on line that sell detectors? I'd really like to be able to see several and determine which would be best for me. I would be walking in the woods sometimes for several miles and can't carry anything cumbersome.
Appreciate any suggestions...
Hope all of you in the warmer states are enjoying yourselves;I'm jealous!
Meantime,I'm going for a walk in the 25 below( with windchill) day!
Linda

 

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[funkman]

some sproting goods stores carry them and also radio shack. DIcks Sporting Goods and GAnder Mountain I know have them in the stores. The Radio Shack ones are made by Bounty Hunter.
Go to the main website for Whites or Garrett or whatever brand you are looking to purchase and do a dealer locator to see who in your area carries or can purchase them for you.

Hope this helps and look forward to some nice finds from you.

Funkman

 

[Born2Dtect]

Cabela,s also sells detectors. Don,t overlook the internet, KellyCo http://www.kellycodetectors.com/ is a good vendor. I have bought 4 over the years and have been pleased. They usually have a package deal with some extras. Even if you don,t buy from them you can look at and compare models.

Ed D.

 

[TonyinCT]

I'll go along with what funkman said. Go to the manufacturer sites and look there for your closest local dealer. If you are not pleased , let me know. I am sure I can help you out.

 

[diggummup]

Here's a couple dealers in Maine-http://www.republicjewelry.com/
and http://www.mastorck.com/ .The first one is in Auburn and the second one is in Portland.They both deal in Whites.Hope this helps.

 

[jeff of pa]

Well,

I wouldn't buy one at Dicks, Wallmart, Radio shack, or any other store.

If you ask a Clerk about the detector, all they can tell you is the Price.

the ONLY advantage I see is you can return it within a reasonable amount of time to the store, No questions asked

 

[pcolaboy]

Well,

I wouldn't buy one at Dicks, Wallmart, Radio shack, or any other store.

If you ask a Clerk about the detector, all they can tell you is the Price.

the ONLY advantage I see is you can return it within a reasonable amount of time to the store, No questions asked

I couldn't agree with you more here Jeff. I made a very poor, uninformed choice by buying my Bounty Hunter at Walmart. The unit I have works great but I think a knowledgable dealer would have pointed out a few features that I would have made me willing to shell out a few more bucks for what I really wanted.

Pcolaboy

 

[diggummup]

Here's a couple dealers in Maine-http://www.republicjewelry.com/metaldet.thm
and http://www.mastorck.com/ .The first one is in Auburn and the second one is in Portland.They both deal in Whites.Hope this helps.

Be cautious, last account i had, a gunshop nearby, bought 4 detectors and they made him a dealer, he told me he has never even turned one on or used one, they were Whites, buy where they use them

I don't know about these particular dealers i've mentioned but the first link sounds like they are fairly reputable.The also rent metal detectors so you can try before you buy.I am having trouble getting the link to work though,when I click on the link it says page cannot be found try opening home page blah,blah ,blah.It works when I open the home page and then go to metal detectors on the menu from there.Anybody else have this problem?

 

[enchantedhiker]

You guys are awesome! Thanks for all the suggestions and advice. The Portland place is right around the corner from where I work and I never would have thought of a store like that selling detectors. I get the same message about pages unavailable when I click the weblink too.
Going to a place in person and evaluating is what I need to do since I have never used one and don't know what would be best...the thought about spending a little more and getting the best one is good advice too.
My primamry use would be going around foundations,cellar holes,rock walls and early 1800s sites out in the woods...and it's just for fun...I think the novelty may wear off and I won't be driving all over the state looking for places...just need something that will locate things I can easily dig to.
Ha! I know lots of you proably felt the way I do to start and are now consumed with metal detecting fever! I'll be careful to take the right vitamins to protect myself from that!
Linda

 

[RON (PA)]

I would agree with Jeff, too. Go to a dealer in your area. They use the machines and tell you the best machine for what you will use it for.

As far as Metal Detecing Fever, I don't think there are any vitamins to prevent you from getting it. Once you get it, you got it bad. If you have to have a disease, this is the one to have. Hope it helps and let us know what model you decide to buy.

 

[larrybass]

Welcome to the TNet Forum, Linda!

It's good to see someone new in here that doesn't even have a Detector yet and are still all excited, and charged up like you seem to be, here in your posts.

I hate to ruffle a few feathers in here for a minute or two, enchantedhiker, but according to what I think you are telling us, in that :

"My primamry use would be going around foundations,cellar holes,rock walls and early 1800s sites out in the woods...and it's just for fun...I think the novelty may wear off and I won't be driving all over the state looking for places...just need something that will locate things I can easily dig to."

...then, it's my opinion, for whatever that's worth, that you need something light, inexpensive, non-technical, no steep learning curve or great time element involved and something that won't be too costly, if in the future you lose interest or whatever in the whole, poking around out in the woods, thing.

Any detector, you try or buy even, will take more than a few minutes to start figuring things out. That's with one live, right in your hands. No difference in make, model, frequency or cost in that regard. Manuals alone, have been known to confuse a large number of people over the years and even stopped more than a few of them from becoming detecting people. So even if you have a Well written manual and you have a good (accepted brand name) detector, you still could be stopped before you get out of the gate.

Anyway, what you need to do first, as you are doing right now, is you really want to gain as much info as you can get, about the basics of detectors, from this forum and or anywhere you can learn first, through the writings of others, before even picking up your first machine. 8)

So if you follow some of the, you will see why I highly recommend a little tour to where ever it is that they sell Bounty Hunters. Now, for the younger folks on this forum, whoo may not know this, Bounty Hunters have been around since before many of you were born. They've been bought and sold a few times over the years and have followed along with the detecting technology and bringing out many, many models over their long history. Anyway, I purched my first metal detector years ago at the only place in my town at the time, that even carried MD's. They happened to have 3 different models on hand back then. All were made by a company called Micronta and sold under the Tandy label or Radio Shack as everyone new it as. So because I had been reading a pile of TH'ing magazines and had spent more than a few hours at 4 different libraries, lounging around them and soaking in as much detector and TH'ing info as I could jam into my poor ol' brain, I was ready to make a choice. First consideration was moola! I didn't really have a wad of greenbacks in my pocket back then, so price was an important factor. Turns out, the cheapest one, only had 2 knobs on it and I already knew that I needed at least 3. Then their top line unit at that time was a 6 knobber plus a little red button so you could retune it. Picked it up, and it seemed to weigh a ton. Could have had something to do with the fact it needed a big whack of batteries to make it all work, or mostly I think the $129.00 price tag, but anyway I picked up the middle of the line guy and checked him out. Hmmm. Three knobs, red auto-tune button, battery check switch, nice clear analog meter, totally light weight, extendable aluminum shaft, waterproof search coil, and a one warrenty. Well, under all those circumstances and presented with those particular choices, I picked the one in the middle. Cost me $69 and I treated it immediately as an investment and dug out the little booklet that came with it as soon as I got home. That, like a few other manuals (cars, motorcycles, bicycles etc) that I've had to refer to in the past, was vauge at best and at the least it was quite confusing if you tried to follow it word for word. However, again, armed with the knowledge I had been researching for months, I started putting into practise what I had been reading about. After a fairly short while, I had that little Micronta wailing at silver, gold, pennies, dimes, pull tabs, keys and everything else made of metel in my studio. My air tests got pretty technical for a bit and my eyes were further opened to just what this el'cheapo little unit was capable of. For the money, compared to what I had been reading, this was quite a decent little detector. It covered my needs at the time, better than Most would EVER expect from such a so-called piece of junk or no-name toy thingy. 8) 8) That neat little machine has been with me on many trips over time and it has paid for itself many times over and does it's share of snaggingg the booty for me still, to this day. I've bought and sold even a few other machines in the past and I still have this one and two other detectors in my life. None fancy. None complicated. None costly. All effecient. All totally cost effective for folks out there on a tighter budget than others.

So remember the old saying, knowledge IS the key to success, no matter how you interpret success! Bone up in here as much as you can, then weigh it all and go from there, to make a smart decision to fit your lifestyle, hunt style, pocketbook etc. 8)

Your friend in detecting,

LarryB

 

[DixieDirtDigger]

Ronsdetectors.com ,Ron is a super nice guy and will not lead you astray,he is a dealer for several different brands and uses his detectors in his free time Relic Hunting.

 

[xXx]

Please, PLEASE, go to a local dealer. If you cant find a local dealer, find a MULTI-LINE DEALER online.
First of all, if you go to a local dealer you can get all their advice and knowledge. They will also help you choose which detector is right for you and what your doing and provide a Waranty. That's worth the price of your detector alone. You may not need a $1200 detector if your only hunting a park and don't need it to go from a land detector to a salt/beach detector. Will WalMart tell you what a particular brand detector is best suited for?
Second, a dealer will help you find locations to start hunting. The dealer I got my first detector from not only gave me several great hunting spots, but even invited me along to hunt with him and he showed me how to use all the settings for the best performance.
My last point, and concern, is if we all continue buying from WalMart's, Radio Shack's, Sporting Goods, and especially Pawn Shops (around here they are dealers and I would NEVER buy from them) I'm afraid we will eventually kill the hobby by running the real loyal dealers OUT OF BUSINESS. These are the ones who support our hobby and we punish them. Sure, it might cost a couple extra dollars from a dealer, but your not just buying a detector, your buying the detector, knowledge and training, potential leads, AND A PARTNER/FRIEND.
HELP SUPPORT OUR DEALERS, THE ONE'S WHO KEEP OUR HOBBY ALIVE.
xXx

 

[paul1410]

Hi enchanted, a lot of info to digest here. Permit me to throw in my two cents. Like many things in this world we pay a premium for something new. Some times (this being one for me) it makes sense to buy a used item. If you find MDing isn't for you, you aren't out as much money and may find you can then sell the detector and break even.
However, if you really take to detecting, don't be surprised that you then want a better model with more bells and whistles.
Happy hunting and good luck!!!!