The Best Cheap Metal Detectors for Jewelry, Relic, and Gold Prospecting

The world below our feet is a gold mine of discovery, history, and fantasy – and simply put, a whole lot of fun. People are walking on all kinds of interesting and valuable objects every day – and most of the time, we have no idea! This is what makes prospecting the joy it is – the ground between you and your discovery makes treasures so close, yet so far. But with all these unknowns, it's not easy to know the best detectors and tools to suit your needs. This article provides our top suggestions for cheap metal detectors for coin and jewelry discovery, relic hunting, and gold prospecting. Read on for more.

Background: The Factors for Suitability

Metal detectors are made up of several parts that work together to detect objects beneath the ground and alert the operator. The main components are the body, a control box, and search coils. When detectors scan an area, their magnetic field picks up on objects and sends a signal to the coil, creating a sound through the headphones. Coils play a big role in the performance of metal detectors, as different types have various sensitivities and can identify more objects. Larger coils can detect deeper into the ground, but they can lose sensitivity to smaller objects – so while they're more powerful, they're not always the most reliable. Alternatively, smaller coils have an impressive sensitivity to a large range of objects but are restricted to the depths they can reach. These are the factors that make particular metal detectors suitable for different types of detecting.