Metal Detector?
 

So I am wondering if a metal detector is a worthwhile purchase for trying to recover lost arrows?

I looked up Top 10 Metal Detectors and there's a Pancky on Amazon for $190.

It's rated as top rated 'value, beginner type'.

I want to go back to where I shot my bull moose this year, to try to recover my crossbow bolt.

I lost 3 arrows in one area and got one of the best detectors on the market I gridded the whole area, ended up finding a musket ball (cool man!) and I didn’t find one arrow. A detector can easily find an arrow but the metal parts are quite small and you have to pass right over them, not just “in the vicinity.” I love metal detecting but it’s not too fruitful for finding arrows.

^ Ya I guess the only metal is the broadhead? Everything else is carbon, plastic.

A buddy asked me about the metal detector idea, when I said how I hadn't been able to find my arrow.

Guess I need to think on it?

I hunt with a guy who won’t give up on a lost arrow, he’s really good at finding them but mostly because he misses a lot 😜 You could make an arrow scratcher, all the trad guys carry them because we’ll shoot at any log or leaf that catches our attention, we lose a out of arrows!
The scratchers will help you find the ones that submarine in the grass and under the leaves etc.

My kids use them
 

...all the time to find lost arrows. Landowner at a place I hunt with horse tenants appreciate that we have them (detectors). They are worried about a dropped broadhead. Even the cheap ones pick up points, inserts and nock collars just fine. Other treasures too.

That’s true, if you want a detector only for arrows you don’t need something fancy. It doesn’t have to discriminate between metals, all you need it to do is go beep when it’s over metal.

I bought one from Canadian tire on sale. Use it at home near my practice target. It works good to find lost arrows. But like said before, need to sweep right over the point. That said, I only never recovered 1 awol arrow. I’m going to look again after I prune some spruce branches off the ground.

You need a fishing reel / line attached to your bow, when you miss just reel it in, if you make a hit hang on.

why not take your arrow down to a detector shop and see which one gives the best reading at the furthest distance and depth? you might be surprised on what you find on which one is the best, not all work on Aluminum, stainless steel or non ferious metals.

I found a few vids of guys using metal detectors to find arrows.
They def' work.

I like the idea of comparing them using your own arrows, but I can't imagine any place that would let you do that?

Family was out shooting years ago and we lost an arrow in tall grass, gave up on finding it that trip. About 5 years later was back with one of our sons and decided to look for the arrow. Pulled out the metal detector that I had acquired since then and within a half hour located it. The reason for the length of time searching we couldn't exactly remember where we had been shooting.

Forgive my ignorance, but what does an arrow cost?
I kind of assumed stone age tech like bow and arrows would be cheap, but I'm getting the feeling I'm out to lunch...

^ Nothing to do with the cost of the single bolt.

For me it's trying to figure out just how far through the moose that crossbow bolt went.

Forensics... I want to see what the arrow looks like?

And I don't like the idea of leaving a razor sharp broadhead out there, even if it is buried. It is a stainless steel head, it's going to be there a long time if I don't recover it.

Silly ideas to some I suppose.

Well I've done an awful lot of research (translation: Youtube reviews) on metal detectors and I ordered a Minelabs Vanquish 540.

Seems about dollar for dollar the best metal detector going.

Guess I've gone and stumbled onto a new hobby... and I'm damn sure i'm going to recover that dang crossbow bolt too!

Victory VAP Elite Arrow - $25
Grizzly Stik Broadhead - $50
Firenock Light up nock - $30

That’s about a $100 arrow. I’m looking for it every time.

I really had not thought of it in a monetary sense.

I do not use Luminox(yet) but Carbon Express Piledrivers are not cheap, and Excalibur broadheads are like $10 a pop.

Ya to me it's more the principal of the thing. That's my arrow out there, which could last generations, and it's going to be lethal for a long frickin' time.

First thing I do once I get that metal detector is I test it on some of my other broadheads, to get the 'signature' of them. Then I'm going hunting for that bolt!

Heard a story recently about a guy who shot under a mulie buck in a canola field. He went back and searched diligently for his arrow as it was a very expensive setup and also didn’t want to leave his sharp broadhead in the field but he never found it. Next harvest season he gets a phone call from the farmer asking if he shot an arrow into his field last season… answer was yes and he went out and checked out the arrow. Once he confirmed it was his arrow, the farmer was fuming mad because it had popped the tire on his tractor tire. Can’t remember the exact bill but the hunter had to pay all of it, and believe me, it was a lot of money!

The point is, it made me think about some worst case scenarios of what could happen with a lost broadhead and the importance of finding your arrows.

Demonical… I wish you could luck with your new hobby and finding that lost bolt that went through the moose:)

I tried this once on my practice range, had lost 3….I placed an arrow in the grass, and turned up the sensitivity until it picked up the point…then proceeded to find about a thousand little pieces of tin foil, rusted iron, washers, screws etc etc etc. and not one lost arrow.

Gave up and got lighted nocks. Lose maybe 2-3 arrows per season where either the nock breaks or gets completely covered, or the arrow deflects into parts unknown.

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Certainly possible but not very probable. The head lies flat, tractor tires are thick as hell and what are the chances that driving over a shaft will flip it up at the right time for the tire to get punctured. I’d offer to drive that fired all way with my pick up and wouldn’t be the least bit worried.

Yep I would definitely agree with that. I would be more worried about the safety aspect then anything else. Other hunters crawling around in the field could slit their hand open. Even that would be unlikely tho!

I already had a metal detector kicking around but I have had good success finding arrows with it. My arrow setup isn’t cheap so I put a decent time into finding them.

Would I buy a detector to find arrows…. You need to find a bunch of arrows to pay it off and if your missing that much you might be better suited to buy a barn stall mat for a backdrop. They work great.

^ Yes well I intend to find my lost bolt, but I also dabble in gold panning.

I'm going to use the metal detector to search parks, beaches etc as another stupid hobby, haha.

I also bought a Garret Pro Pointer to use with the detector. Not for hunting lost arrows of course.

The Pro Pointer will help when I'm trying to pan out some gold, and for finding coins and such.

I use a 3 tined garden hoe, rake it at 90 degree angle to shot with some downward pressure, The prongs will catch shaft and pull up, also great for making mock scrapes,

^ Cool. Ya I've got the metal detector now, just waiting for days off and good weather.

Talking cold here, rain/snow etc...
If it gets real bad I'll wait until spring.

Crazy as I am, my plan is to take my weed whipper out there, along with the metal detector.
I'm gonna lay down all that high grass and weeds out in the area where the arrow was likely to go.
There's a good chance I'll find it just by doing that.
But that will also define my search area better, and make sweeping with the metal detector a lot easier.

I'm going to scan one of my other broadheads with the metal detector, to get the signature of that signal.

I'm really interested to find out just how far the arrow traveled after passing through the bull moose.

Which may only make sense to me...

Someone needs to come up with a screw in insert that goes between the arrow shaft and the broadhead. Such a sensor could maybe be inserted and secured into the arrow shaft too. Or made to be part of the nock. The insert would have a sensor that is available for keychains already.

When you whistle the sensor in the arrow would whistle back.