Need a Recommendation for a Lightweight Detector

[lukeaa]

I recently moved to the beach in California. I will be doing a lot of dry sand detecting. I an getting older, and my White's VX3 is getting heavier. I need a good lightweight detector to use on the beach. The lighter the better. My budget is $700. Any suggestions?

Luke in Morro Bay. CA

 

[stalker1]

At pro. Or a minelab 705 .

 

[Mega]

If the weight is a very big issue then prehaps one of the DetectorPro Headhunter detectors would tick a fair few of your boxes,as basically all you are swinging is the coil on the shaft as all the controls are in the headphones and also they come well within your budget

 

[ROBOCOP]

Might look at the White's MX5. It has a coil compatibility with your VX3 (if you have extra coils).

I have a Detector Pro Wader and a Pulse, I like them both.

I also have a MX5 which I added a 13" ultimate coil. Still lightweight and great features like your VX3.

ROBOCOP

 

[WV62]

You can rig up home made harness and use your V3X. I have 2 different types of detectors and I can take just about all the weight off them. My rig does not require a bunch of garbage attached to the detector, just a wire tie and small key ring. The harness is on me and can pick up either of my detectors and go.

$7 is better than $700

Ron in WV

 

[Mike Hillis]

F19

Beach hunting dry sand.....It would love it.

HH
Mike

 

[berryman]

I hunt dry sand beaches almost exclusively in SoCal. I've used a number of Whites machines - M6, MX5 and IDX Pro. I've also used the Gold Bug Pro and now the F-19. I'm an older guy too and detector weight is definitely a strong consideration when making a choice. Right now I usually opt for with the Gold Bug Pro or the F-19 when I hit the beach. This is primarily because of their light weight (both under 3 lbs.). Performance wise, I find the Fisher machines to be as good as or better than the Whites machines for dry sand beach hunting.

So my recommendation for you would be the Gold Bug Pro (or Teknetics G2) or the F-19 with its added back lite and notching features. The F-19 retails for $799, so it's a little over your budget. But you shouldn't have any trouble finding the Gold Bug Pro/G2 or the aforementioned Whites machines for the dollars you have budgeted.

 

[airscapes]

Can not comment on any detector but from a logic point of view, spend a tiny bit of money for a harness and keep the machine you know..

 

[cal]

Switched to Teknetics Gamma and Omega, just because of the weight. I also like the large display that you can see and the tone selections( especially the 2 tone) I don't water hunt much (being inland), but have fun with parks,volley ball and sports fields. HH Cal

 

[ken ward]

Tesoro vaquero or tejon. Ground balance would be nice. Just a little over 2 lbs. One 9 volt battery... KEN

 

[tabman]

If I was hunting dry sand, I'd grab my Tesoro Vaquero with the 5 x 10 DD coil. Amazing depth and it's as light a feather. It hits nickels and gold jewelry super hard.

tabman

 

[Fletch88]

Xterra 705 is lightweight and has beach tracking ground balance.

 

[yowow#1]

X-terra 705 smokes everything in it's price range that i've used, and it's plenty light enough.