HF Metal Detector any good?

[texasjohn]

Harbor Freight has a metal detector on sale for $20.

I'm wondering if this is worth having in case somebody loses a ring in the hay, or if I were to drop a tractor pin into tall grass... or?

Sometimes, I use old lumber and this might locate hidden nails and save a saw blade?

I'm not planning to do treasure hunting with it.

Anybody have any experience with this model, 43150?

 

[HomeBrew2]

I have one. I only use it for steel and it's mostly marginal. I would not expect to find nails. I think a 2" x 2" piece of flat bar may be it's limit. Sorry I don't know about other metals.

 

[texasjohn]

OK... gonna strike that from my want list... thanks!!!

If it won't find nails in a wood plank, then it's use to me nears zero.

 

[HomeBrew2]

Yeh, that's just my take on it but I think you're moving in the right direction.

 

[shvl73]

I had the same results, $20 wasted.

 

[texasjohn]

Done deal..... no deal! Thanks for saving me $20

 

[shvl73]

Done deal..... no deal! Thanks for saving me $20

Actually, I could UPS you Mine!

 

[kennyd]

John,
You really knew the answer to this before you even posted the question didn't you

 

[texasjohn]

Well, Kenny, I gotta tell you I was suspicious... but you never know.. and I thought I'd call on the combined TBN wisdom to see if I was missing out on a really good deal. You know, some of the HF stuff actually works!

 

[VA_Joe]

Harbor Freight has a metal detector on sale for $20.

I'm wondering if this is worth having in case somebody loses a ring in the hay, or if I were to drop a tractor pin into tall grass... or?

Sometimes, I use old lumber and this might locate hidden nails and save a saw blade?

I'm not planning to do treasure hunting with it.

Anybody have any experience with this model, 43150?

I think the main difference between the "cheap" and "expensive" detectors are their ability to discriminate between different metals. Other than that - the detectors are pretty simple in construction. If all you are trying to do is find metal (like a property marker) even a cheap one should work. However - if you are trying to do beach work I would look for a much more expensive unit (unless you enjoy digging up bottle caps).

For example - I bought an xmas leftover metal detector at TSC about a year and a half ago for something like $15. It was good enough to find dog tags in a pile of leaves, locate property markers, and find a conduit run that I buried in a wall five years earlier.

Some elaboration on the conduit - while redoing a room on the first floor - I decided to take advantage of an open wall by running a couple pieces of 3/4" EMT from the crawl space up to the second floor. About five (or six) years later - when it was time to run the electrical and CATV/telephone lines - I used the metal detector to locate the conduit within the second floor wall. It found the conduit in about two seconds.

Anyways - my two cents. Your mileage may vary.

Joe