Garrett Ace 250
Price: $250
Avg. Score: 
4.2
Based on 260 reviews
4.2Based on 260 reviews
Avg. Durability:
4.05
Avg. Ease of use:
4.50
Ace 250 Troubles
November 03, 2005
I recently purchased a Garrett Ace 250 and went detecting today and have
been fairly disappointed. I used the notch discrimination in coin mode to
block out nickels which fall right in the middle of trash targets. Despite
this, I would get quarter signals and still dig nails and pull tabs. My
biggest frustration is the pinpointing. It hardly ever beeps in the same
place twice, and its not an analog varying sound...just 3 different
computer beeps that delay. I previously had an old school Whites Coin
Getter with one knob and I knew exactly where the target was and could tell
junk from goodies by the varying tone. So this Ace 250 detector is good,
but frustrating if you aren't 100% comfortable with the machine.
Overall Rating
Jeremy Harris from
Redmond, OR USA
2073
Great Begining
October 15, 2005
I am brand new to treasure hunting. I wanted to get started in hunting ciil
war relics and with no knowledge of metal dectors I visited a dealer and
they gave me some demonstrations. In quizing the dealer about quality and
value and the fact that I am a novice he suggested the Garrett 250 Ace.
After reading the manuel and a short practice I put it to a real test at a
local park with a beach. I found 13 coins in the sand. Walking across a
grassy area toward my truck I kept the dector on walking in a straight
line. The ground was as hard as a brick. The 250 popped and I dug down
about 3 inches and found a penny and a dime together. A great first day!
Overall Rating
Phil from
AR
1462
Ace 250
October 15, 2005
not real good trash seperation, also make sure you have a magnifying glass
handy, Screen is SMALL.
Overall Rating
Jerry (Tx) from
Russia
7418
Ace 250 Comparisons to others
October 05, 2005
I have had the Ace 250 for 3 months or so and have a dual and multiple freq
units the dual unit worked best in michigan soil, until i tryed the Ace 250
in the same areas and it was like starting over in what i found including
on edge coins. Around metal playground equiptment 4 or less on sens, try a
moderate sweep speed until a weak signal is heardhen vary sweep speed for
best response and use that speed.Sensitivity at 5 until weak signals then 6
or 7. To pinpoint deep coins and such run sens at 8 to pinpoint
Overall Rating
Jeff Bernard from
Flint Michigan
1964
FIRST TIMER FINDING COINS WITH ACE 250
September 22, 2005
I HAD NEVER TOUCHED A METAL DETECTOR IN MY LIFE UNTIL I BOUGHT AN ACE 250
ON 8-27-05. I HAVE ONLY HUNTED MY YARD, TWO PARKS AND TWO SCHOOLS. I
COUNTED MY COINS LAST NIGHT. I HAD $15.55 IN NICKELS, DIMES, QUARTERS, (1)
HALF AND (1) SACAGAWEAN DOLLAR. I ALSO HAD 147 PENNIES. NOT BAD FOR A
NOVICE IN LESS THAN 4 WEEKS. ACE 250 IF VERY EASY TO USE AND IN THE
ENVIRONMENTS I HAVE USED IT, I HAVE NOT HAD TO DIG UP THAT MUCH TRASH.
Overall Rating
RON from
NORTHWESTERN ILLINOIS
867
Ace 250 - Worth every cent!
September 22, 2005
The 250 is my first detector, I have officially had my 250 for two months
now. In that time I have found approximately $10.00 in change, a
gold/diamond ring, a sapphire/diamond/gold ring, a man's gold ring, two toe
rings, two earrings, and a ton of junk. If you don't dig the junk then your
not going to dig gold either!I've hunted lots of different places, and I have taken this hobby seriously. I've detected as little as once a week and as much as five times a week, I've determined that if you don't get out there and swing then you're not going to find anything no matter what detector you own.
As for the Ace 250 I've found coins at 10 inches deep, mainly pennies and nickels at that depth. The rings were at five inches or less. Pinpointing was difficult at first but practice makes perfect. It also took me about a month to really trust and learn the machine.
Since getting the Ace 250 I also purchased a Whites SurfMaster, I prefer the Ace over the SurfMaster on dry sand; however, the Ace cannot function as well in the salt surf. I also found that the Ace goes deeper and discriminates better than the SurfMaster on dry land.
The negative reviews I have seen on the 250 seem to be coming from people who have obviously refused to read the manual or from those who assume the coins and jewelry are going to come to them. I have been completely pleased with the 250; I only wish the display had a backlight to help with hunting at dusk and dark.
The 250 has the ability to mask or eliminate other metals and only search for what you want. For example, I almost always notch outĀ iron so that I only hear silver, gold, and coins. However it cannot discriminate between gold and aluminum, so I dig the aluminum targets as well. Which accounts for all the junk, but it also accounts for all the gold!
The Ace is a great machine for anyone just getting started in the hobby, mine has more than paid for itself in the short time I have had it. As far as depth goes I feel that it is probably missing rings that are just a few inches deeper, but I don't think its missing the coins. The 250 is a great idea for anyone who isn't sure if this hobby is for them, try it and don't be afraid to get you feet wet. The 250 is worth every cent!
Overall Rating
Mark from
Savannah, GA
6854
Digging is believing finding is keeping found$$$$$$$
September 16, 2005
I WILL TELL YOU FOR THE MONEY I PAID FOR THIS DETECTOR WAS WORTH EVERY
CENT!THE ONLY THING YOU HAVE TO DO IS MAKE SURE YOUR COIL IS TOUCHING THE
THE GROUND TO PINPOINT YOUR TARGET THAT MEANS THE COIL MUST TOUCH GROUND NO
SPACE THEN YOU WILL SEE THE RESULTS YOU SHOULD HAVE. FORGET NICKELS DIMES
QUATERS ECT! I FOUND 1800S SOLID SILVER SPOON,SOLID GOLD POCKET WATCH AT 6"
DEEP, AND THE GRAND PRIZE??? IN A CANDY LID 7" DEEP 8 GOLD COINS FROM
CANADA FOUND THIS IN A STATE PARK? I KNOW YOU SHOULD NOT DIG THEIR WELL I
DID AND I PUT THE DIRT THE SAME WAY IT WAS. SO THINK REAL GOOD ABOUT HOW
CLOSE YOUR COIL IS? THAT IS WHAT WOULD THROW YOU OFF OF FINDING GREAT
TREASURES THIS IS NOT A STORY TO MAKE YOU FEEL BETTER ABOUT YOUR DETECTOR
ITS JUST TECHNIQUE WHICH WE ALL HAVE TO FIND I I BEEN IN THIS ABOUT 1MONTH
AND IT PAID FOR MY DETECTOR AND COULD AFFORD 10 MORE SO IF YOU THINK YOU
GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR? HOW COME TODAY A REAL COSTLY METAL DETECTOR CAN'T GET
100% OF WHAT THE TARGET IS.WELL TO ALL OF YOU OUT THEIR AND WHAT EVER BRAND
DETECTOR YOU OWN COMES DOWN TO STUDYING TECHNIQUE. HAPPY FINDINS
Overall Rating
ROBBIT from
NEW JERSEY
3767
Garrett Ace 250 - Views of a Veteran
September 16, 2005
My BACKGROUND - I've been detecting for about 10 years now. Cut my teeth
with an old Garrett GTA 1000 and found a ton of old coins when I lived in
New Orleans (best wishes Big Easy). I switched to a Minelab for about a
week and hated it (way too much info/noise and heavy as hell (like swinging
a sewer lid on the end of a broom handle). After that I went to a Troy
Shadow X3 then an X5. Troys are WONDERFUL machines - but I couldn't justify
tying up that kind of money for as little as I detect these days. So
basically, I know what I'm talking about. I went with the Garrett Ace 250
recently after selling my Troy because: 1) It is light (very important); 2)
it has all the features I need for casual hunting; and; 3) the price is
right. CONCLUSIONS: The machine is constructed of faily cheap materials
(hence the low cost). I had to install a couple of bolts in the shaft to
make it more sturdy (then it was fine). It's light, it's nice looking, and
it performs as well as my GTA 1000. A solid machine - FOR THE MONEY. I dug
a plug test hole about 4" deep and it correctly IDd every coin I threw in
the hole. This is really no surprise because Garrett already has the
technology and I assume they just threw the motherboard into a cheaply
constructed machine to offer a decent detector at a low price. Works for
me. Downsides? I hate the damned belltone that you are stuck with. And WHY,
OH WHY won't manufacturers make a volume control on their machines so you
can use any headphone you want?! Also - they should all go to single 9V
batteries. Se la vie. In PARTING: This is a slick looking, good performing
machine that will serve the casual (and I don't necessarily mean amateur)
hunter well. You really can't beat it for the price. Go Saints!
Overall Rating
Bill from
Savannah, GA
3060
Sold the Ace 250 - Bought a Fisher
September 11, 2005
Bought a 250 to get back into metal detecting after several years absence.
I dug so many empty holes and so much trash that it almost worked me right
out of the hobby. Pinpointing was difficult, discrimination on rusty iron
was useless and the lack of a volume control eliminates a valuable audio
clue to identifying good targets. I never recovered a good target that was
deeper than 4 inches and the lack of automatic or manual ground balancing
meant that the Ace 250 would be extremely unstable in some locations and in
sand. It is a very hot machine and will identify as a coin even the
smallest piece of foil or rusted iron. I still dig some trash with my
Fisher, but I get a lot more depth and tons more visual and audio
information about targets. In the same spots where I used the 250, I
almost immediately began finding some keepers. You get what you pay for
and I would advise those entering the hobby to buy a top of the line
detector from the beginning. You will save yourself some money in
replacing the Ace 250 later on and a ton of frustration.
Overall Rating
Smitty in Oklahoma from
Tulsa, Oklahoma
8214
Dont buy it
September 06, 2005
if your serious in detecting buy a whites classic 3 for example,for almost
the same money.my ace250 is more a jingle bell machine with the anoiyng
noises it makes.it goes only 20 cm deep and the whites 34cm!ive got the
turbo option so mine goes 39 cm deep for small coins.my ace 250 drives me
crazy and is only recommended for people that like jingle bell type sounds!
Overall Rating
Phil from
Belgium
8210