The Garrett AT Gold Metal Detector

The Garrett AT Gold falls into the group of metal detectors that has been tried and test as a consistent performer in the goldfields. It has some features that help it perform quite well in mineralized ground commonly found in gold country.

As with most Very-Low Frequency (VLF) metal detectors, the AT Gold is best at locating small gold nuggets at relatively shallow depths. While it is capable of finding very large metal objects at several feet in depth, most gold nugget will be found in the top few inches of soil.

This is because most nuggets are small. You should generally expect to find nuggets ranging from a few grains in weight up to a few grams, but those larger chunks are extremely rare. So a skilled detectorist using the Garrett AT Gold can still do quite well by finding those smaller nuggets that are easily missed by the larger pulse-induction detectors.

Its waterproof design is also of interest to many gold hunters. It can be submerged in water up to 10 feet in depth, which opens up possibilities to hunt bedrock cracks in streams and rivers, or be used in shallow water without risk of ruining the detector if it gets wet.



The AT Gold operates at 18 kHz, which is in the modest range for gold nugget detectors. There are other, much more sensitive metal detectors like the Fisher Gold Bug 2, which will find smaller bits of gold than the Garrett AT Gold will. However, the benefit of a detector that is slightly less “hot” means that it will produce considerably less ground noise in mineralized ground.

The price of the Garrett AT Gold makes it a good “entry level” metal detector for finding gold nuggets. Depending on the options and accessories that you buy, you can usually find it priced for less than $700, which is very reasonable for a good gold-specific metal detector. Considering that one of the newest pulse-induction metal detectors just released costs $10,000, this is a good price.

And don’t be fooled into thinking that a cheaper detector is not as good. There are many detectors that do an excellent job of finding gold nuggets that are priced under $800. When used by a skilled operator, you can still find lots of gold with these lesser priced units.

The Garrett name is nothing new to metal detecting. In fact, some of the first detectors to hit the market for recreational use where designed by Garrett. This company is truly a pioneer in the industry, so it is no surprise that they are still making quality detectors today.

The Garrett AT Gold will not disappoint. If you take the time to learn to use it properly in gold gold-bearing areas, it will consistently produce gold for you. The most important thing is to learn what the detector is telling you. Once you learn the sounds that it makes, you will be finding gold nuggets even in areas that have been hunted hard by other metal detectors.