Garrett 1138070 ACE 150 Metal Detector

Product Information

It will be able to suggest whether the find contains traces of iron, silver or gold (bear in mind that not all metal detectors can identify gold as they need to operate at a very low frequency, which not all detectors can do). It’s more of a ‘toy’ detector compared to many of the others models featured on this list. Although it has enough power to detect metals close to the surface of the ground, it’s not got the strength to uncover much buried treasure. However, it performs as you would expect for the price.

To be fair, this is a good move for a beginner’s metal detector as manually adjusting ground balance is both boring and time-consuming. Metal detecting can be a great hobby for the ‘technology-obsessed’ younger-generations to get involved with. It offers users the chance to explore and appreciate the great outdoors. Plus, it can create a reason to go on different outings with your children. You can enjoy metal detecting in the park near your home, or head to the beach or nearest river for a little hunt around. Metal detecting is also a great way for you and the kids to get to know the local area. Max had to dig a larger hole than necessary to find his target. He found that scanning the removed soil helped locate the find, but there was more mess and faff than necessary. You’ll get used to the audio really fast and it makes a nice change from constantly looking at the control box. Forgot your glasses? No problem, just listen.

What Will The ACE 200 Find?

If you want to get your children into metal detecting, the DR. OTEK Pinpoint Metal Detectoris a great introductory tool. It’s suitable for ages 10 + and is a great way to ignite interest in the hobby. No coil is better than another, they just better suit your target preference and search ground. How The ACE 200 Compares to Other Garrett Detectors? In the depth test, the Garrett Ace 150 could pull out targets from approx 6 – 8 inches. However, it is worth noting that this depends on ground conditions as some people have reported having pulled targets with the 150 from deeper. As you shop for metal detectors, you will notice that they have differently sized search coils. The coil is the circular part of the detector that scans the ground. On reflection, I think ground balancing isn’t necessary for a kids metal detector or for a beginner either. It’s a nice feature that helps conquer difficult soil conditions, but it’s fiddly and distracting when you just want to spend some relaxing time scanning for Roman treasure troves.

Metal detecting is something that should be accessible to everyone! However, most detectors have significant disparities between price, features, and user-friendliness. The Garrett ACE 250 aims to solve those issues by providing you with important features at an entry-level price. The settings on the Garrett Ace 150 are very simple to understand and are self-explanatory. With just 3 buttons, Mode, Sensitivity and the power switch. There are 6 buttons on the Garrett Ace 250, Power, Discrimination, Mode, Sensitivity, Pinpoint, and Elim (Short for eliminating) and it features the simple LED display. The Ace 200 is not waterproof so don’t drop it in a river or let the control box get drenched in a storm. You should be wary of setting it down on wet grass too.Finally, metal detecting is a great way to build a bond between parent and child. Spending time together is only going to be good for your relationship, and detecting with others can be great fun. You may even find other families with children who enjoy metal detecting – helping your child to make new friends and socialise! Things to Look Out For It’s great to have choice over the machine and the sensitivity is an important feature, but I’d say it’s for when you’ve got more experience.

As we mentioned earlier, the Garrett ACE 250 has a sizable elliptical coil to cover more ground as you search. That’s not the only good thing about it! It’s also submersible. You can use the detector in a few inches of water without having to worry about damage. These are upgraded from the ACE 150’s tones to include ‘pulse width modulation’ which gives sharper more responsive audio. A low tone indicates low conductivity like iron and a high tone means higher conductivity such as a coin.

Overall the machine I feel would be the perfect starter, and I can see why it is recommended as one of the best beginner detectors. If you are working with a budget and want to know if metal detecting is for you then this machine is a very low price, simple, effective machine. If you have a little bit more money to play with then perhaps it would be worthwhile reading the review for the successor of the 150 the Garrett Ace 250 model. Once you find a target you want to dig up, the ACE 250 can help you hone in on the item. It has a built-in pinpointer. This highly sensitive feature gives you a better idea of how deep to dig, which direction to search, and more. It beats having to pay for a standalone pinpointer. These are best for younger children, between the ages of 4 – 9 years old. They weigh less than 1 kg and are therefore more suitable for children to use and carry without getting tired. Older children (10 +) should be able to support heavier detectors, which can weigh between 1 – 2 kg. Waterproof Search Coil Gold nuggets are the dream of course, but it’s unlikely you’ll find one with the ACE 200 as it’s a VLF machine not suited to ‘wild gold’ land. Gold rings, well that’s a different story! Coils The stem is extendable as you’d expect it to be, ranging between 42 and 51 inches. I took it to the local football fields for two hours and barely noticed it. A longer walk through woodland was easy too – arm ache was never a problem.

A good middle ground is the Garrett ACE 150. This piece of kit is a bank account-friendly metal detector from an excellent brand. The buttons are clearly labelled Power, Discrimination, Mode, Sensitivity, Pinpoint, and Elimination (elim). The LED displays the following features, battery level, depth of the target, the mode selected, and sensitivity. consumer-grade technology is often VLF ( Very Low Frequency). This means the detector hastwo search coils: one that sends out a low-frequency wave into the soil andOn the flip side, there are pricey metal detectors that require delicate handling and no parent wants to hand their child an expensive piece of kit only to see it broken or abandoned. The machine is not waterproof and if you are planning on being out in the rain you will need a waterproof housing cover for the control panel. To my understanding the rest of the machine is OK. This detector does not perform well in saltwater. Saltwater has high mineralization, which this unit is not equipped to overcome. Plus, the water can cause noticeable oxidation issues on the search coil. If you are searching a metal detector for saltwater or beach hunting read this guide. I don’t like talking about the cons of the ACE 200 because it‘s the beginner model and of course, it won’t have the same high-tech features as its more expensive brothers.