Metal detector for a 9-year-old

December 13, 2017 3:35 PM

My kid wants a metal detector for Christmas. The prices range widely. Does anyone with greater familiarity with this have some suggestions?

There is a non-insignificant chance that my kid will give up on this hobby, although he has asked repeatedly over a year. I'd like to spend well under $50 on this.

My initial stab at finding one has this, and on sale too! It is designated "junior" and this one is not.

posted by k8t to Home & Garden (2 answers total)

Response by poster: If it matters, he is big for his age, so I'd guess he could hold/carry something designed for early teenagers.
posted by k8t at 3:35 PM on December 13, 2017

I've been detecting for maybe 12 years, and started with a Bounty Hunter Tracker IV - slightly more than you wanted to spend, but definitely an actual metal detector and not just a toy. My best find with it was a silver dime about six inches deep, so it really does work. The more he's able to find, the more his excitement will be sustained and less likely to get bored with it. And even if he does grow out of it, it's nice to have to find lost keys in leaf piles, lost rings in the garden, etc.

At the very least, this one is the same brand that you found, so I'd expect those to be of similar quality and also work well. The one with the arm rest and headphone jack is more expensive, but those are nice features. The armrest will keep him from getting tired out, and the headphones means you don't have to listen to the constant beeping.

Don't go too cheap though: my brother got his daughter a $20 metal detector toy, which did beep and found coins lying in the grass, but not much else. She gave up on that quickly.
posted by herzogbr at 6:52 PM on December 13, 2017 [6 favorites]