How we build each page

We read each detector's tech specs page, product page or spec sheet on the maker's own site. For XP, we also check each fact with a metal detecting dealer before we use it. For accessories with no maker spec sheet, such as gold pans, we use what the Amazon title names, and say so. Nothing comes from a forum.

The facts go into our own tables: frequencies, waterproofing, weight, coils, battery and search modes. Each table names its source and the date we read it.

Minelab

20 pages on minelab.comread Oct. 16, 2026

Garrett

14 pages on garrett.comread Oct. 16, 2026

XP

3 pages on xpmetaldetectors.com (no link)read Oct. 16, 2026

First Texas Products

17 pages on firsttexasproducts.comread Oct. 16, 2026

Nokta

14 pages on noktadetectors.comread Oct. 17, 2026

Kellyco Metal Detectors

5 pages on kellycodetectors.comread Oct. 17, 2026

Serious Detecting

1 page on seriousdetecting.comread Oct. 16, 2026

Detector Warehouse

1 page on detectorwarehouse.comread Oct. 17, 2026

Internet Archive, Wayback Machine

1 page on web.archive.orgread Oct. 16, 2026

XP's legal notice rules out links to its site, so we name its pages without one. The Internet Archive entry is Nokta's Simplex+ page as saved on Dec. 11, 2023.

We don't test products. The pages compare what the makers publish, and say so.

• No scores, star ratings or reviews, and no rating copied from a store.
• No promised detection depth. Depth depends on the detector, the coil, the ground and the target, so our diagrams show no depth figures.
• No prices and no stock levels.
• No text, photo or logo from a brand. The drawings on the site are made for it.

When a maker gives no figure, the table says "Not published". We never fill the gap with an estimate.

When one page gives two different figures for the same spec, we show both and point out the difference. We don't pick one.

A guide lists the models whose published facts answer its question, then links each one to its own listing on Amazon.com.

• It must be the exact model, new, not a look-alike or an open-box or renewed unit.
• It must be sold by Amazon, by the brand, by a metal detecting dealer, or by a seller with no sign of fake goods.
• We check who holds the main offer before each batch of pages. The last check was on Oct. 17, 2026.

A model with no such listing shows "No listing found under this exact model number", never a search link. Our earnings play no part in the pick, as the Affiliate disclosure explains.

Rules pages summarize the official texts: the Code of Federal Regulations on ecfr.gov, and state codes or agency pages. When an official site can't be read, we use the copy kept by Cornell's Legal Information Institute. We read 30 texts, each dated on the page that cites it.

These pages describe what the texts say. They are not legal advice, and local managers can add rules of their own. Check local rules before you dig.

The facts behind our tables are free to reuse, under a Creative Commons license.

Our data repository on GitHub holds two sets of CSV files. One has the published specs of 57 detectors and pinpointers. The other has 62 short summaries of the official land rules. Each set names the pages we read and the date. A README explains each column. Each edition is also kept as a frozen copy on Zenodo: the detector specs and the land rules. Each DOI always leads to the latest edition.

The files are licensed under CC BY 4.0. You may quote, chart and republish them, including commercially, if you credit UnearthKit with a link to this site. They hold facts only, in our own words and layout. They hold no maker text, no product price and no affiliate link. XP detectors are left out of the specs file. The rules are summaries, not legal advice.

If a maker changes a page, or if we misread one, write to contact@unearthkit.com. We fix the table, and the page shows the new date.