Cross-machine master charts
Metal Detector Weight Comparison: Published Weights and Swing Fatigue
Quick answer
Most current machines are published between 2.5 and 2.9 pounds. The Garrett ACE Apex is listed at 2.5 lb, the Nokta Simplex Ultra and Legend 2 at 2.6 lb, the Equinox 700 and 900 at 2.8 lb, and the X-Terra Pro and Vortex VX9 at 2.9 lb. Balance matters more than the total.
Weight is the specification that decides how long you hunt, and therefore how much you find. A machine you can swing for four hours will out-find a better machine you put down after ninety minutes. The published figures cluster tightly, between about 2.5 and 2.9 pounds for nearly everything current, which tells you that the number on the box is not where the differences live.
Where they do live is balance and coil weight. A machine that carries its mass near the handle feels lighter than a lighter machine that carries it at the coil, and swapping to a large coil such as the Minelab EQX 15 Coil (15 inch) adds weight at the worst possible point on the shaft. The coil size chart covers that trade in full. A sling or harness moves the load off the forearm entirely, which is the fix that actually works for most people.
Top pick
Minelab Equinox 900
Minelab publishes 2.8 lb with carbon fibre shafts and a 24 inch collapsed length, which is light for a flagship and short enough to pack.
Price was accurate when this page was compiled and changes often.
What do current machines actually weigh?
Only figures the manufacturer publishes appear below. Where a listing does not state a weight, the row says so rather than carrying an estimate, because an invented weight is worse than a gap.
Published weights across this catalog run from 2.0 lb for the Fisher F22 to 2.9 lb for the X-Terra Pro, Vortex VX9 and Gold Bug 2, a spread of under a pound across the whole field.
| Machine | Published weight (lb) | Collapsed length (in) | Where the figure comes from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fisher F22 | 2.0 approx | Not published | Fisher listing, approximately 2 pounds |
| Teknetics G2+ | 2.0 plus | Not published | Teknetics listing, just over 2 pounds |
| Garrett ACE Apex | 2.5 | Not published | Garrett listing |
| Bounty Hunter Land Ranger Pro | 2.5 | Not published | Bounty Hunter listing |
| Fisher Gold Bug Pro | 2.5 | Not published | Fisher listing |
| Nokta Simplex Ultra | 2.6 | 25 | Nokta listing |
| Nokta The Legend 2 | 2.6 | Not published | Nokta listing |
| Bounty Hunter Tracker IV | 2.6 | Not published | Bounty Hunter listing |
| Nokta Triple Score | 2.7 | Not published | Nokta listing |
| Minelab Equinox 900 | 2.8 | 24 | Minelab listing, carbon fibre shafts |
| Minelab Equinox 700 | 2.8 | 24 | Minelab listing, carbon fibre shafts |
| Minelab Vanquish 540 | 2.8 | 30 | Minelab listing |
| Minelab X-Terra Pro | 2.9 | 25 | Minelab listing |
| Garrett Vortex VX9 | 2.9, or 3.05 with coil cover | 24.75 | Garrett listing |
| Fisher Gold Bug 2 | 2.9 | Not published | Fisher listing, hip-mountable control housing |
| Garrett ACE 200 | Under 3.0 | Not published | Garrett listing |
| Minelab Manticore | Not published in the listing | 24.8 from 56.7 | Minelab listing publishes the fold length only |
| Garrett AT Pro | Not published in the listing | Not published | No weight in the Garrett listing |
| Nokta The Legend Pro Pack | Not published in the listing | Not published | No weight in the Nokta listing for this pack |
The X-Terra Elite listing repeats the X-Terra Pro weight text word for word, so it is left out of this table rather than reproduced as if it were an independent figure.
Why does a lighter machine sometimes feel heavier?
Because what your forearm feels is torque, not mass. Weight at the far end of a three foot shaft acts through a long lever, so a coil that weighs half a pound more feels like considerably more than half a pound in the hand. This is why a 2.9 lb machine with a short, well-balanced layout can be more comfortable than a 2.5 lb machine with a heavy coil hung out front.
It is also why coil upgrades deserve a fatigue line in the budget. Minelab publishes 1.46 lb for the Minelab EQX 15 Coil (15 inch) with its skidplate against 10.68 oz for the Minelab EQX 06 Coil (6 inch), which is roughly a pound of difference at the end of the lever. If you are buying a large coil for open ground, budget for a sling at the same time.
Which machines suit smaller or older users?
Look for three things in this order: total weight under about 2.7 lb, a short collapsed length so you are not fighting the shaft, and a genuinely adjustable stem. The Nokta Simplex Ultra is published at 2.6 lb with a carbon fibre shaft retracting to 25 inches. Nokta The Legend 2 is published at 2.6 lb. Garrett ACE Apex is published at 2.5 lb with a built-in battery, which removes the weight of AA cells at the handle.
For a younger or smaller user specifically, Minelab GO-FIND 44 folds down small and is built around travel, and Bounty Hunter Junior is designed for children with an adjustable length. Do not buy a child a heavy adult machine on the theory they will grow into it: an unswingable detector gets used twice. The beginner setup lists a complete first kit around a light machine.
What actually fixes swing fatigue?
A sling or harness, before anything else. LimbSaver Comfort-Tech Metal Detector Sling takes the machine weight off the forearm and spreads it across the upper body, and Detecting Harness and Swing Support does the same with more adjustment for heavier machines and for people with shoulder trouble. Both cost a small fraction of a lighter detector and work better than one.
After that, the fixes are behavioural. Shorten the shaft so the coil sits closer to your body, swing from the shoulder rather than the wrist, and swap arms periodically if your machine allows it. And plan the session: the dig time budget calculator is a useful reality check, because most people are tired from recovering targets rather than from swinging. Knee pads such as NoCry Professional Gel Knee Pads matter more than the last quarter pound on the shaft.
Sources
- Minelab Equinox 700 and 900 product specifications
- Minelab X-Terra Pro and Manticore product specifications
- Garrett Vortex VX9 and ACE Apex product specifications
- Nokta Simplex Ultra and The Legend 2 product specifications
- Fisher F22, Gold Bug Pro and Gold Bug 2 product listings
Frequently asked questions
How heavy is too heavy for a metal detector?
There is no fixed figure, because balance and session length decide it. As a working rule, most people manage 2.5 to 2.9 pounds for a few hours if the machine is balanced and they use a sling. If you have shoulder or elbow trouble, treat anything over about 2.6 pounds as needing a harness rather than as unusable, because a harness changes the equation completely.
Does a carbon fibre shaft make a real difference?
It makes a measurable difference to total weight and a larger difference to balance, because the saving comes from the middle and far end of the shaft rather than from the control box. Minelab publishes 2.8 lb for the Equinox 700 and 900 with three-piece carbon fibre shafts, and Nokta publishes 2.6 lb for the carbon-shafted Simplex Ultra. Both are light for what they are.
Why do some listings not publish a weight at all?
Usually because the pack contents vary, as with Pro Pack bundles that include more than one coil, or because the listing was written around features rather than specifications. The Manticore listing publishes its folded and extended lengths but not a weight, and the AT Pro listing publishes neither. Where a figure is not published, this site leaves the cell blank rather than estimating.
Will a bigger coil make my machine much heavier?
Enough to notice within an hour. Minelab publishes 1.46 lb for the EQX 15 with its skidplate and 10.68 oz for the EQX 06, so switching between them changes roughly a pound at the far end of the shaft. Because that weight acts through a long lever, the felt difference is larger than the numbers suggest. Plan a sling into the same purchase.
Is a hip-mounted control box worth considering?
For long sessions with a heavier machine, yes. Fisher publishes a hip-mountable control housing for the Gold Bug 2 specifically to reduce arm fatigue, and moving the control box to your belt removes its weight from the lever entirely. Not every machine supports it, and fully waterproof machines generally do not, so check the manual before assuming it is an option.
Researched, not professional advice. This page is compiled from published specifications, manuals and owner-review consensus, not hands-on testing. Target ID numbers, depth figures and settings vary with soil chemistry, moisture, target size, depth, orientation and firmware version, so treat every figure here as a starting point and verify it against your own machine's manual and your own ground. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.