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Need Help , Daughter Wants A Metal Detector!!!


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I have a dilemma I hope my fellow forum members could help me with. My daughter expressed her interest to get a detector for her and her boyfriend to use. My dilemma is I have not really followed the evolution of vlf detectors since the Whites MXT days. I still use my MXT and ML 4500 for nugget hunting. I would say I had better then average success with both detectors, but I simply have no idea on what to recommend for 2 -20 somethings on choosing a vlf detector. Their primary interest would be to hunt relics in the gold fields, coins & jewelry on the beaches and on occasion gold nuggets when visiting the Sierras foothills. I was looking at the Minelab Equinox 800 w/ wireless headphones, Nokta Legend as far as those I have NO idea. They are pretty savvy with tech, I would imagine wireless headphones are a must and a machine simple to learn for first time owners. I am open for suggestions..appreciate the help fellas.

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For all around detecting, bang for the buck is the Nokta Legend. 

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 It’s true you can’t go wrong with the Legend but you can buy the Simplex for about half the price from the same company . This way you haven’t spent a lot of money to get her going and find out how serious she is about detecting.

 Chuck 

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If they haven't detected before, you might want to consider something less complicated to start with or they may just get frustrated and stop detecting. The Vanquish 540 is an excellent starter machine and can hold it's own with more complicated and expensive machines. When I got back into detecting, I started with the Equinox 800 and it was perfect for me. Simple to start out without the overly complicated menus and constant software fixes, but with the advanced capabilities they want when they get more advanced. It excels in all hunting scenarios and great on beaches, ghost towns, and goldfields. And it now comes with 6" coil for nugget shooting and relic hunting, as well as the 11" coil, wireless headphones and the wireless module that allows any wired headphones to be used wirelessly. And you can pair many Low Latency Bluetooth headphones and earbuds to it. It's the industry gold standard multi-use machine and forced the whole Simultaneous Multi-Frequency craze. It was one of the best buys I ever made. JMHO

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You are buying for your daughter.  How often do you see her?  Is there any place where you can meet up and 'try' a couple of the detectors before you buy so she can get the feel of it.  She'll learn the software in due time.

After you get hers then he will probably buy one of his own based upon his use of hers and his specific interests.

As I said on another thread about my next purchase it depends on time, location and then detector model which would include pricing.

You've told us the locations where they can use the detector which are varied so multi-function seems best.  How much time do they have?  If the detector is too simple and 'lite' then they may outgrow it.

I've not used a Legend but everyone says it is close to the 800 that I use.  It will take a user a few hundred hours to know the difference.  That means she has to use it and that could just be a feel sort of choice for her.

Good luck.  It will probably be the first of many for them.

 

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Thanks for all the advice folks, my daughter has used a metal detector before but very briefly while growing up here in the Sierras. I had her try my ML 4500 on some areas I found gold and amazingly she found her own piece of gold. Prior to that she found another when she was like 12 years of age under some manzanita bushes. For 24 of her years she seen ole dad hit the hills every week and seen my finds. So I am not surprised but still surprised that she wanted her own , guess some things rub off the ole shoulders onto new youngster shoulders. It would be a weekend thing for them, and when she visits the hills from the big city. I am actually happy about it as perhaps they will visit more often and instead of solo hunts they would join me. They can also take it on their trips to the coast and play around with it. The Legend seems like the one we will pick. Kids these days are pretty tech savvy and I have no doubt they could figure out the machine pretty fast. They will be heading my way in April for a visit so it will give us a chance to try it out on some gold camps..perhaps they will be bitten by this sickness only time will tell, and besides if they dont catch the fever I can always use a new machine. 😄

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22 minutes ago, IronDigger said:

Thanks for all the advice folks, my daughter has used a metal detector before but very briefly while growing up here in the Sierras. I had her try my ML 4500 on some areas I found gold and amazingly she found her own piece of gold. Prior to that she found another when she was like 12 years of age under some manzanita bushes. For 24 of her years she seen ole dad hit the hills every week and seen my finds. So I am not surprised but still surprised that she wanted her own , guess some things rub off the ole shoulders onto new youngster shoulders. It would be a weekend thing for them, and when she visits the hills from the big city. I am actually happy about it as perhaps they will visit more often and instead of solo hunts they would join me. They can also take it on their trips to the coast and play around with it. The Legend seems like the one we will pick. Kids these days are pretty tech savvy and I have no doubt they could figure out the machine pretty fast. They will be heading my way in April for a visit so it will give us a chance to try it out on some gold camps..perhaps they will be bitten by this sickness only time will tell, and besides if they dont catch the fever I can always use a new machine. 😄

As you probably know. A metal detector alone does little good. Many accessories will be needed depending on what she hunts. Good luck with your choice.

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Hey Fred,

The  SDC 2300 is about as simple as they get and will find  the smallest nuggets around your foothills and jewelry at the beach.  The Gold Bug Pro / F19 is super simple to operate, has good discrimination  and could fill in the VLF nitch.   Both detectors can be picked up dirt cheap these days  but still very effective.  

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26 minutes ago, Hard Prospector said:

Hey Fred,

The  SDC 2300 is about as simple as they get and will find  the smallest nuggets around your foothills and jewelry at the beach.  The Gold Bug Pro / F19 is super simple to operate, has good discrimination  and could fill in the VLF nitch.   Both detectors can be picked up dirt cheap these days  but still very effective.  

 The SDC 2300 is a very very nice detector thats for sure, I had a chance to use one for a bit and like you said turn on and go detector. Its one detector I would consider owning as its effective on small gold and its collapsable.

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