Can You Take A Metal Detector On An Airplane?

Can you take a metal detector on an airplane? The answer is yes. In fact, the TSA recommends that a metal detector be transported as checked baggage and not carry on luggage. However you can check with your airline for their recommendations or guidelines. Some airlines may allow you to store the metal detector in the overhead compartments or bins if you fly domestically. Check with your airline to get the facts before you fly.

Should The Batteries Be Removed?

Should you remove the batteries from your metal detector before checking your luggage that contains your metal detector? The answer is yes. For some of us who have internal batteries inside the search coil you obviously won’t be able to take out the battery but if your metal detector requires AA, 12 Volt, AAA, C or even D batteries, its is best to remove them prior to the trip. I would also recommend taking out any other types of batteries as well. The batteries most of the airlines don’t like are the lithium batteries. If they check your gear and come across them in your camera, metal detector etc., you will probably have to remove them. The safest thing to do is check with the airline first before your trip begins.

How to Pack Your Metal Detector Safely For The Trip?

Most of us who really enjoy metal detecting treat our metal detector like it is one of our children. We have a lot of money invested in our gear. Our metal detectors aren’t cheap and the last thing we want to see is our metal detector coming off the baggage claim in pieces. Therefore it is best to do what I call “travel proofing” your metal detector. You should carefully pack your machine in a suitcase or hard case made specially for your metal detector. If you don’t have a hard case and you are looking for one I’ll provide some links to them below. If you have to pack your metal detector in your suitcase what is the best and safest way to do it?

Howto Pack Your Metal Detector in a Suitcase.

I recommend packing a layer of socks or shirts as the base layer in your suitcase and wrap your coil in bubble wrap while placing it in the middle of your suitcase. Add another layer of shirts, socks, towels etc. over the coil to ensure it has enough padding to withstand the bag being dropped or thrown around under the plane (we’ve all seen this happen at one time or another).

In addition, I recommend doing something similar for the control box, arm cuff, headphones, pin-pointer etc. Bubble wrap is probably the safest method to use but it will take up additional room in your luggage so make sure you pack a big enough bag for your other items that are necessary for the trip and watch out for the size restrictions of the bags.

Do They Make Travel Cases or Suitcases for Metal Detectors?

The answer is yes. A quick search on Amazon produced numerous results for numerous vendors. I was quite surprised to see so many. I’ll provide a table below of the most common hard cases that are listed on Amazon and I’ll provide a link to the price for comparisons. Here is a little warning up front, they aren’t cheap but they will protect your machine and that is the most important part to all of this.

Hard Shell Travel Cases

I searched around a lot and tried to find a Minelab hard case but I wasn’t successful. They do have a couple of soft shell cases which I will list below in the next table.

Maybe you aren’t traveling by plane and you don’t need a hard case. Instead, you just need a soft case for your metal detector. There are plenty of them to choose from as well and they are a lot cheaper. However, I would not recommend using them for a plane trip unless you wrap your metal detector in bubble wrap. If you are looking for a soft case bag, here are a few I found on Amazon.

Soft Shell Travel Cases

Travel With Confidence

Taking a metal detector on an airplane is a little bit of a hassle but don’t worry. if you plan ahead, check with the airlines, and pack your metal detector correctly, it will arrive safely in one piece and you will be metal detecting before you know it. I hope this article was helpful for you. Good luck and safe travels.

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