Starting Out With The Garrett Ace 250

Detecting became my new hobby just over a year ago now, following the sudden death of my father. We were both keen motorcycle fanatics and after his passing I just lost interest in the bikes and sought solace in detecting.

I love the sheer solitude and peacefulness where I’m totally alone in beautiful surroundings with nothing in my head except what treasure I will unearth next (pictured below right). I forget about the day to day stresses and I just love getting out in the fresh air, and getting exercise as well.

I didn’t want to spend too much money, so I started out with a Garrett Ace 250 after reading many good reviews – what a brilliant choice. I was instantly hooked and couldn’t wait to get out there unearthing hidden gems. My first find in a local woodland area was a 1909 dated penny in excellent condition. This really kick-started my desire to take this thing further and try to find other local permissions.

During one of my early outings I unearthed a 17th century shoe buckle in very good condition in the local woodland (Fig.1). My wife Mel and I really enjoyed trawling the internet trying to identify what it was and how old it could be. We had both initially thought that it was a belt buckle. When we finally identified it, that was it, I thought “This is definitely the hobby for me.” The buckle was complete and looked so well-preserved – we were amazed!