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Garrett Ace 250

Price: $250
Avg. Score: 4 stars 4.2
Based on 260 reviews

Avg. Durability: 4 stars4.05
Avg. Ease of use: 4 stars4.50
Maximum detection depth
Submit your review for Garrett Ace 250

Not reading the manual = bad results

September 03, 2010
Garrett have spent years and years perfecting detectors so if anyone knows how to operate one: they do, the manual has to be read and understood before using this 250, and need I say it takes practice, you have to work the detector as the manual says, if you don't you will not work it to it's full advantage, and you will be giving a bad remark for it, give it time and practice like I have, it pays off in the end, I would opt for the extra size coil, the 9"x12" is a great investment for field and farm land, it gives slightly more depth and is better on pin pointing for beginners, the coil here in the uk sells for average £99.00, you wont be let down with these, you will if you don't read the manual..

Overall Rating 5 stars!

40111

Excellent value

August 19, 2010
This Ace 250 is a very good buy and a really good machine as well. I am enjoying learning it and have found lots of clad coins in addition to all the usual other stuff.
If it had a backlight for the display and a volume control I would give it 5 stars. I bought some cheap headphones that have a volume control so that took care of one minor problem. At some point I will try to figure out how to illuminate the display so I can night hunt.
The Ace 250 is easy to use, lightweight, and as accurate as other units that cost more--in some cases a LOT MORE. What more could you want?

Overall Rating 4 stars

35126

Sweet Little Machine

August 14, 2010
Hi, hope this review prompts who ever is still on the fence with the ACE 250 to try it!

I am a 100% "Beach Hunter" (White's Dual Field PI Pro)that was looking for a "dry sand" detector. I did my homework on the ACE 250 and decided to go with the "Spring Pack".

This machine is true value for your money!

Pros:

1, It's very good on coins

2, Light weight

3, loads of options to fit your hunting level and needs

4, Will find EVERYTHING! LOL

5, EASY TO USE

6, PRICE IS RIGHT

CONS:

1, Pin Pointing is off (yup the only fault)

Please get the "Spring Package" with the Pro Pointer, with the PP and the ACE 250 you'll be finding and recovering quickly!With the PP you have a 5 star set up!

Tip:

1, Pin point with the ACE 250 and if your target is 2-4 inches guess what?! just use the PP to find the exact location of the target!
without the PP you will be digging trenches lol!

2, Please bench mark and study the machine with "Junk" and "good" targets to see how the ACE responds. If you are using the ACE in another Country test the local coinage.

3, Gold falls in the 1st notch blow "Pull Tab" which is also in the Gold Range, the key to the ACE is, ONLY DIG A SIGNAL THAT IS SMOOTH & STEADY! If it jumps between two coins it's probably modern pull tab or a coin by "junk". Circle the signal if you get a smooth constant read on it, dig it. If the Signal is all over the place, 100% JUNK.

For me, I eliminate 50 cent and 1$ cause I live in the Caribbean and the chances are very slim I'd find them plus a crushes soda can or a piece of one comes in smooth without distortion in that range!

I have been metal & cable detecting for a living at my local phone company for 10 years so I know a little something. Metal Detection is not a perfect science cause a lot on metals have similar "signatures" but with practice the ACE Will Impress you, like it did me.

P.S.>>> I was only getting the ACE for a Beach Back-up and then Christmas get a White's Spectra V3i(Cause I am a Gadget Freak LOL). To be honest, the ACE 250 with Pro Pointer have been working so well for me I really don't NEED the V3i.(though I still WANT IT LOL)

Bottom line the ACE 250 with PP is ALL you will really Need.

Happy Hunting :-)

Overall Rating 4 stars

41112

Garrett Ace 250 - Great with few flaws

August 02, 2010
I started with a Bounty Hunter and gave that up very quick because it had no pin pointing. The Garrett, for it's price, has a nice pin pointing system and is pretty accurate.

Light weight, anyone in family can use it for hours.

With All-Metal on and sensitivity all the way up, you can get 8+", but of course, you get lots of sporadic tones and meter readings. But even with sensitivity down to factory setting, you get sporadic readings, especially if a coin is near iron. This takes a little practice and many times requires a dig. I've read that many buy a 4.5" sniper coil and say they will never put the original coil back on. The 4.5" coil is on my list to get. From what I've read, this smaller coil helps with the sporadic readings.

I give the Ace 250 4 stars, because in salt water or very wet ocean sand, the unit beeps sporadically. But I've walked the beach and it does ok near wet sand, but does great in dry sand.

I wish there were more tone id's, but it does ok. It has 3 tones, but should have 5 or 6.

I do dig lots of junk/trash. But I run with a higher sensitivity for depth and like many will tell you, gold and some silver scans in the trash range. Pop cans scan as $1 (use the pin pointing to figure size and you probably won't find a $1 coin (Morgan size) today in a modern park), gold scans between pull-tabs and a zinc penny. So if don't want to miss a potential "good find", you will dig trash. And please take trash you dig with you. Nothing worse then scanning someone's trash they could have removed. Be good stewards and give MD'ers a good name.

About trash. I wouldn't have found a handful of square nails (1820-1920) if I hadn't dug iron, or trash for most. Now that I've found the nails, I know the time period and I know there's more to find in that area. I keep a log of my finds and I do research of the area for any history. And guess what, there's always history.

So trash has it's rewards by giving you an age of what's in the ground.

I bought the Ace 250 as a second unit for my family and it was worth the price. I've found jewelry, coins, toys, bullets, keys, etc.

No matter what detector you buy, I strongly recommend the Garrett Pro-Pointer. It cost about $128. but it well worth it. It will save you so much time and less digging. And it's fantastic in dry sand you don't need a scoop.

Overall Rating 4 stars

46114

Excellent Detector

July 10, 2010
The machine is just plain fun to use. It "feels" very well built. I've read on the net that pin pointing was trouble, but after viewing some you tube videos demonstrating this, it became very easy.

If someone is looking for an entry level detector to begin enjoying this hobby, you can't go wrong with the Ace 250.

Overall Rating 5 stars!

51115

Loving It

July 01, 2010
Total noob at this game. Still getting to grips with pinpointing but I found my first coin (buried 3" in a stubble field) last night - an old Penny.
Within a couple of hours (having taken the machine out the box) I found: bit of iron, rusty nail, old coin! Can't wait to get out tonight.
This machine is almost idiot proof. All you need to do is some basic research on pinpointing with the Ace 250 and you're good to go.

Overall Rating 4 stars

16125

Delighted with my Ace 250

June 30, 2010
I just bought my Ace 250. I have no experience in MDing whatsoever. So far I've only found a rusty nail and other bits of junk, mostly around the 2-4" mark.
What's important to me is that the machine is actually doing what I want it to do, ie, find buried metal.
As an added bonus it is light, easy to use and has a load of cool features.
After a few initial false signals (very frustrating), I'm encouraged to know that I am heading in the right direction.
Can't wait to visit some sites of historical interest here in the UK.
Lastly, it's worth pointing out that these units seem to hold their value pretty well. If you purchase and are not happy you could probably recoup 80 per cent of the cost by selling on ebay.

Overall Rating 4 stars

13117

ACE 250 Best Detector I Ever Owned

June 29, 2010
I have been swinging the ACE 250 since last November alone and with treasure hunting friends. The 250 is so a part of me I really am having a hard time upgrading. Buying a second ACE is my best option. Using this detector on the beach, wet sand and in salt water up to knee deep is no problem. I have dug coins at 6 inches in a foot of water. Be sure and get the 9x12 and sniper coil. I have found silver and gold jewelry in parks, schools and playgrounds using the sniper. With all three coils this is all the detector most people will ever need. I offer this post with proof. Videos of my hunt are on You Tube and my web site. Good luck to all of you from the Texas Gulf Coast.
http://www.youtube.com/user/LostRingFinders and http://www.lostringfinders.com/ Email:
John@LostRingFinders.com

Overall Rating 5 stars!

28158

Garrett means Treasure. Good bang for the buck.

June 25, 2010
I've had the Garrett Ace 250 now for slightly over a month. 99% of the time, I am hunting the local beaches in and around Tampa Florida.



Dry sand, no problems at all. I operate in 100% sensitivity, with the first 2 items notched out on the discrimination settings.



In wet sand and salt water line, I have to turn down the sens. to 3 or 4 to keep it quiet. (Just like every other detector in its class) however, it still finds goods, just not as deep. I did find a diamond stud earring in the wet packed sand roughly 4 inches deep.



For the price, you're going to be hard pressed to find a better machine. Garrett has been around for years and years. It's a top brand. I've not needed service, but I'm sure they'll be there if and when needed.



My opinions:



1. There needs to be a backlight feature. Here in Florida, it's hotter than 17 shades of Hades, so most hunts are early evening/into the dark, so we need to see the display at night. I'm working on a prototype light to add to mine.



2. The shaft to the coil could stand to be thickened up. I use a small piece of tape and it takes out the light wiggle.



3. Someone mentioned a clock. That might be a good feature to add. I think I will add a stickon of some sort to it. Although, I'm not aware of any other detector that has one.



Settings:



Again, I run 100% sensitivity in dry sand with little to no falsing, unless the coil is bumped. I notch out iron and foil (first two on the settings) and run the rest as is.



I have found the target ID feature to be right around 90% accurate, as far as depth to dig, and the item type. The bell tone feature is nice.



Depths:



I have found items up to 8 inches. The deepest item I have found was right at 8/9 inches, under a root, against the base of a large tree, which was a metal indian arrowhead. Most coins I find on the beach range from surface, to 4-5 inches.



In my just-over-a-month of use, I have found:



201 Quarters

193 Dimes

148 Nickels

500 Pennies (Guesstimated)



I also found $125 in cash, in a hole with a penny.



I've found diamond earrings, gold earrings, a silver ring, a silver necklace, tokens, foreign coins, and several junk jewelry items. 2 days ago, I also found a Metal indian arrowhead.



You can see photos of what I have found at:



http://www.treasurequestxlt.com/community/showthread.php?t=43988



These photos were taken the same day as me having written this review.



For the price, you're not going to go wrong. Get your machine and get at it. Be patient, be persistent, and keep a positive attitude, and you will have as much, if not more success, than me.

Overall Rating 5 stars!

81172

Dig it all

June 04, 2010
Been out on two serious forays with the 250, first time was 11 hours brand new to the tec scene and I just couldnt stop swinging. Its going to take some getting used to but when I am pleased with this machine.

Found a very old nice brass button and an amazing ping on an old 1936 penny, digging for everything and am a bit frustrated at triple tones and indicators but a bit of iron farm machinery on a triple could be an iron box with brass fittings and be full of coins.
Bits of lead and foil giva good ping like a coin but hey the excitement of digging is awesome, it really gets your ticker going. Found an old cap badge and all sorts of small bits of junk but I think in time man and machine will bond well. Cracking value as well and I am well pleased, just itching to getting out pinging, top tip if feeling addicted and arm fatigue, swop arms, I am getting used to been ambidex already but really a light machine that can easily cope half day in your good arm quite comfortably.

Overall Rating 4 stars

22107

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