Garrett Ace 250 Information & Questions

[Ferrous]

So we bought our son a Garrett Ace 250 for Christmas and would love some tips on how to use it. We had a quick play around with it yesterday but its a different to operate than anything I have ever used so it might take a little getting used to.

 

[Nugget]

Hey Ferrous, my Nephew just got an Ace 250 as well, did you get the pack or standalone detector? I think Prospector Pete is the guy to talk to in regards tips and what not.

 

[Pete_The_Prospector]

Hi All. I think the ace 250 is an awesome machine, although this detector does require you to put in some work so you get to learn its every sound and indication. It will not be long before you have figured out what is worth digging and what is trash. For starters knock the Sensitivity back a couple of notches from flat out and set it to All Metal and initially dig everything to learn what indication and sound is given for each item. Pinpointing is dead easy with this machine and you can easily pinpoint a coin to within an inch, there is a trick with pin pointing with de-sensitizing the machine when you pinpoint but dont worry about stuff like that till you get good at it. Once you get to know the machine you will ultimately still dig trash that may be shown as a coin but this is no hardship and doesn't happen very often. It is a sensitive beast especially on the wet sand at a beach. You will have to knock the sensitivity back to quieten it down a bit which will unfortunately mean loosing some depth but theres not much you can do about it. My Ace 250 paid for itself on the beach within about 3 months after purchase and thats just in spendable coins. Just before Xmas this year I got the tumbler out and started cleaning all the years coins before cashing them in. The total come to $1896.65 in spendables, cant complain about that with a sub $400 machine. Also if youre going to dig the beaches its better to get a sand scoop in metal instead of plastic. I have 3 detectors and the funny thing is that I seem to take the Ace250 with me more then anything else these days If theres anything else I can help you with dont hesitate to ask.
Pete The Prospector

 

[Nugget]

I took my nephew out for a swing this arvo and was surprisingly impressed with how the Ace 250 performed, no great finds today but it ran quite smoothly over trashy ground with the sensitivity backed off to about 60-70%. For the price I think its a great unit, packed with features and really lightweight.

P.S. I would suggest reading the manual from front to back and watch the DVD if it came with one.

 

[jimnyjerry]

Just the machine I have. Very easy to use. Some mates of mine have had a lot of success with them in the local parks.

Have not tried it on a beach yet as I usually head inland.

 

[the duck]

they are like a vacuum cleaner on a beach for 1 and 2 dollar coins but dont like the wet sand so much

 

[Pete_The_Prospector]

Yeah your not wrong there Duck, the AT Pro dont mind the wet sand though

 

[Ferrous]

Thanks everyone for the help. He's starting to get the hang of it. Finding lots of bottle tops and pulltabs but also some coins which seems to keep him interest. For the time being anyway lol.

 

[the duck]

bottle tops make the same noise as 1 and 2 dollar coins but you can take out pulltabs trouble is you wont find rings

 

[Ferrous]

Yeah I think it's just a matter of having a play around with it. I set up a test bed in the backyard with different objects and coins for him to practice with.

 

[the duck]

good ideaon the test bed, he needs to find something old to fire him up thats what happened to me

 

[Paleoworld-101]

Hello everyone!

I just bought my first metal detector a couple days ago, it is currently on its way from the USA so I should get it in a couple weeks. I am so excited to go for my first hunt!!!

I bought a Garrett ACE 250 as it seemed to be the best detector for the price, but have no experience with metal detecting whatsoever.

Where should I go looking?? I live next to a beach on Sydney's south coast, that's the first place that jumps to mind, but are there any other interesting or seemingly unlikely places I should be detecting? The cost set me back quite a bit (im only 17, no job lol) so first thing I want to do is make back the money I used to pay for it in the form of coins. Where do you guys find the most coins? The ACE is a US detector, forgive me for asking such an amateur question but does it detect US coins and Australian coins much the same and how do I try to minimise the amount of garbage it detects instead of coins?

Also final question- is metal detecting slightly embarrassing? What I mean is, surely people stare at you as your detecting or little kids come up and ask you what your doing, does that happen a lot? What do you do when there's heaps of people watching you? Serious question.

Cheers guys!

-Paleo

 

[Nugget]

Hi Paleo, it's great to see someone getting into this hobby at such a young age, there's certainly worse things you could be doing with your time.

In my opinion, the Ace 250 is one of the easiest to learn detectors on the market as well as providing the best value for money. It shouldn't take you long to make back what you spent with this machine.

As always, I suggest thoroughly reading the user manual and watching the DVD that came with it (you'd be surprise at how many people that don't do this), also check out plenty of YouTube videos, and most importantly get out there and book some hours up on your new detector. This is the best way to learn.

I would start by using the predefined search modes while you're getting the hang of things, you can always alter the notch discrimination (for target elimination) to suit your needs once you've learned to differentiate between targets (i.e. coins, bottle tops, nails etc). Listen out for clear signals that sound very similar from left to right, right to left, as these are often quality targets such as coins and jewellery. One way or broken up signals are more likely to be trash.

Detecting in public, yes this can be a little embarrassing at first but don't let it get to you. You could try detecting during non-peak periods until you become more comfortable. And always remember when detecting in public to be mindful of your surroundings and try not to bother anyone.

Have a search around the forum as there's quite a bit of information on the Ace 250.

Nugget.

 

[Paleoworld-101]

Thankyou Nugget for the reply and for the tips.

I'm not sure though if i'll be able to play the DVD, wrong region code?

 

[Nugget]

Did you purchase from the US?

You can watch them on YouTube also.

[video=480,360]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWyRKFjz1IY[/video]

[video=480,360]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZfwA56ssLc[/video]

[video=480,360]http://youtu.be/VfmXkc6Ho7w[/video]

[video=480,360]http://youtu.be/tQd586E8M60[/video]

[video=480,360]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYYCHX5O4cE[/video]

[video=480,360]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8BVj3ujJo0[/video]

[video=480,360]http://youtu.be/prZGf-PrP2I[/video]

Nugget.

 

[Paleoworld-101]

Yes I got it from the US, but those youtube videos certainly solve the problem.

Cheers mate!

 

[Paleoworld-101]

Hi everyone!

I just got my Garrett Ace 250 today in the post. It took a record 16 business days to arrive, for a while there I thought it was genuinely lost! So glad it finally showed up. Pheww!

Anyway, I got it late arvo so only had about 30 minutes to take it for a spin but I managed to find 4 metal objects just in my backyard in that short time. A fishing sinker, some kind of metal tube, a nail and a can pull ring. My question is- I tested Australian silver coins (a 20 cent piece) by swiping it in front of the search coil, and it comes up as a ring pull tab? This goes for all silver coins. Then I swiped a gold coin and it comes up as a 1 cent piece? I know it is an American machine and American coins are made of different stuff but does this mean ill always have to dig it even if it says it is a pull tab, under the slight chance it could be a silver coin or dig a '1 cent' piece thinking it could be a gold coin?

Doesn't that render the 'coins' mode totally useless in Australia? By picking that mode, it would result in silver coins (which it thinks is a pull tab) not being picked up? By the looks of things, ill have to dig EVERYTHING. Which could get old if all im getting is rubbish. Any ideas? How do you others use the Ace 250 to find coins, Australian ones, separated from rubbish?

 

[jason78]

Hi Paleo,

the diagram on the top is just an indicator, did you get the detector from the states or from Australia? you will have top learn the tones of different types of coins, it is all a learning curve.
feel free to ask lots of questions there should be allot of people that have to answer your questions.

 

[Nugget]

Yeah I wouldn't pay too much attention to what the lower target legend is telling you.

The best thing to do is keep testing targets such as $2, $1, 50c, ring pulls etc etc and determining where each sit on the target indicator. You can either take a mental note or mark them out on a piece of paper tape or something and sticking it over the default target legend. Eventually it will become second nature though so I wouldn't stress too much about it.

When you take it out for a spin next, try canceling out the first 2-3 notches as nothing good usually comes from those except ring pulls and aluminium foil. Also set your sensitivity to maximum and only backing it off one notch at a time if you're finding it to be a little unstable (chirpy).

One last tip, the coin depth indicator is just that, i.e provides a rough depth indication of coin sized objects.

Good luck with it mate, they're a great little machine in the right hands.

Nugget.

 

[cabwoody]

I have had my Ace 250 for about 12 days.As stated elsewhere, it recouped it's cost in ten days and it gave me an awesome start to a new and exciting hobby.So much so that I got on the phone yesterday afternoon and ordered an AT Pro International.It arrived this morning and I can't wait to take it on it's maiden run.A big shout out to Upton's Camping for the professional,helpful service,fast free delivery and great pricing(esp.with on-line ordering discount).They even threw in some freebies!My nine year old son is wrapped because he has inherited the 250 and we're both looking forward to some great father/son times ahead.Happy swinging!