Bounty Hunter Tracker IV Review 2026: The $94 Detector, Checked Against Its Own Spec Sheet

Quick Answer: The Bounty Hunter Tracker IV (TK4) is a genuinely usable first detector, not a toy, at $93.99 direct from First Texas Products, the company that also builds Fisher. Its spec table lists a 6.6 kHz VLF circuit, an 8-inch waterproof coil, three modes (All Metal, Tone, Discrimination), preset ground balance, 2.6 lb and 20-25 hours on two 9V batteries. It has no target-ID screen, no pinpoint and no depth readout, and the warranty is 2 years, not the 5 years many listings still repeat. Buy it if $94 is your hard ceiling; if you can find $16 more, the Quick Draw II ($110) adds a target-ID screen on the same coil size and frequency.

The Tracker IV turns up on almost every cheap, beginner and kids’ detector list on this site, including our Bounty Hunter rankings, cheap metal detector roundup and best metal detector for kids guide. It never had a review of its own, and the price quoted for it has drifted from $70 to $139 depending on which page and which month you read. For this review we went back to the maker. First Texas Products publishes a spec table, an FAQ and a list price for the TK4 on its own store, and we checked all three on October 30, 2026. In a few places, that spec table says something different from the marketing copy on the same page.

Bounty Hunter Tracker IV at a glance

Unless noted otherwise, every figure above is from First Texas Products’ TK4 product page and spec table. The length range is the one exception: First Texas doesn’t publish it, so it comes from Kellyco’s listing.

What the spec sheet says vs what the marketing says

First Texas’s TK4 page carries a marketing description, a spec table and a short FAQ. They don’t fully agree. The spec table and FAQ are the more conservative of the three, and they line up with how a fixed-frequency analog machine at this price actually behaves, so that is what this review goes by.

The ground-balance point matters most. A preset balance is set at the factory for typical soil, and you can’t adjust it. That works in most park and yard dirt. The trouble comes in strongly mineralized ground, and in wet salt sand, which is conductive and makes a single-frequency VLF chatter. Detectors built for that, such as Bounty Hunter’s own Tracker II with its manual ground-balance option, or the multi-frequency machines in our beach detector guide, give you a control to fight back. The Tracker IV doesn’t. Use it on dry sand and in the parks, yards and old homesteads First Texas lists as its core uses. For why ground balance matters, see our ground balance guide.

How the Tracker IV actually works in the field

All Metal responds to every metal, iron included, and is the deepest mode. First Texas’s FAQ puts coin-sized targets at 6-8 inches and larger objects at over a foot, “especially in All Metal mode”. Discrimination lets you turn a dial to ignore more of the low-conductivity junk, such as foil and small iron. Tone adds the two-tone audio, low or high, with a broken tone on pull-tabs according to First Texas.

There’s no number and no icon on a screen, so every decision is made by ear. That is the real learning curve. A numeric target ID, the kind our target ID guide walks through, tells you “probably a quarter” before you dig. The Tracker IV tells you “high tone” or “low tone”. Expect to dig more trash in your first month than you would with a screen. Also plan on carrying a pinpointer: the Tracker IV has no pinpoint mode, and First Texas sells its own Bounty Hunter Pin Pointer for $39.99.

The one-ear trade-off has an upside. Without a menu, a 12-year-old helper or a parent who has never touched a detector can be swinging it within minutes. That’s why it stays on beginner lists, even though most detectors near its price now have a screen.

Tracker IV vs the rest of the sub-$180 lineup

First Texas’s store lists 24 Bounty Hunter detectors (plus a pinpointer). Only the kids’ Junior ($69.99) and the Gold Digger ($91.99) cost less than the Tracker IV. The useful comparison is the handful of machines within $20 of it, and the Garrett most buyers cross-shop.

Bounty Hunter prices, specs and warranties are from First Texas Products’ store and spec tables, checked October 30, 2026. Garrett ACE 200 figures are Garrett’s US list price and specs from our ACE 200 review; dealers often sell it for less.

Three things stand out:

• The Gold Digger saves $2 and costs you a lot. It has one fewer mode, a smaller 7-inch coil and half the warranty (1 year against 2). Spend the $2 on the Tracker IV.
• The Quick Draw II is the real rival. For $16.01 more you get the same 6.6 kHz frequency and 8-inch coil size, plus an LCD target-ID screen, Notch and Auto Notch modes and a depth indicator. The cost is 0.2 lb of extra weight. For most adult beginners, the screen pays for itself in fewer junk holes.
• The Tracker II is the ground-balance sibling. It costs $17 more, has a smaller 7-inch coil, and is the only machine in this group with a manual ground-balance option. That’s the control you want on mineralized or wet ground.

The warranty is 2 years, not 5

Many Tracker IV listings and reviews still say Bounty Hunter backs its detectors with a 5-year limited warranty. Our own Bounty Hunter rankings said so until today. On October 30, 2026, First Texas’s spec table for the TK4 listed Warranty: 2 Years. Its store banner promises “up to 2-year warranty coverage”, and the Quick Draw Pro, Land Ranger Pro, Time Ranger, Tracker II, Fast Tracker, Quick Draw II and Tracker Pro pages all show 2 years. The Gold Digger shows 1 year. Two years is still reasonable for a sub-$100 detector. But if a seller’s listing promises 5 years, don’t count on it: go by the warranty on First Texas’s own page, and buy from a seller who can show you’re the first owner.

Sizing: a teen-and-up machine

Kellyco lists the Tracker IV at 45-53 inches assembled. Our kids’ detector guide uses CDC growth-chart medians and a rule of thumb that the detector should be about 70% of the user’s height. On that basis, a 45-inch shortest length fits someone about 64 inches tall, a typical 14-year-old. At 2.6 lb it isn’t heavy, but a 9-year-old will be swinging a shaft that’s too long for them. For younger children, First Texas’s own Junior T.I.D. ($98.99, two AA batteries) is built to their size.

Who should buy the Bounty Hunter Tracker IV

• Buy it if your budget really stops under $100 and you’re a teen or adult. It’s also a good pick for a family “do we even like this?” detector for yards, parks and dry beach sand.
• Buy the Quick Draw II instead if you can stretch to $110. Same coil size and frequency, but with a screen that tells you what a target probably is before you dig.
• Skip both and save for a Garrett ACE 200 ($179.95) if you already know you’ll stick with the hobby. You get a 3-year warranty, an on-screen target ID and a stronger resale market. Our beginner rankings cover the step up.
• Skip it for wet salt sand or wading. The control box isn’t weatherproof and the ground balance can’t be adjusted. Look at our waterproof detector rankings instead.

The bottom line

The Bounty Hunter Tracker IV is still the cheapest full-size detector we’d hand a new adult or teen: $93.99, 6.6 kHz, an 8-inch waterproof coil and 20-25 hours on two 9V batteries. Its own spec sheet is honest about the limits. There’s no target ID, no pinpoint and no ground-balance control, the control box isn’t weatherproof and the warranty is 2 years. Buy it to find out whether detecting sticks. If the extra $16 isn’t a problem, the Quick Draw II gives you a screen on the same platform. For the full brand picture, see our Bounty Hunter rankings and the cheap metal detector roundup.