Big Boys Hobbies

Old place, old finds?

Metal detecto

Metal detecto

Elite Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2021
Messages
1,014
Location
California
It seems like I don't find much old stuff. They're many parks where I am, but to what I know, they were built at the oldest in 1996. I have done my research, (fiddled around with google maps) and even asked a few people. From what I know, my location is a big, fat, modern clump :no:. I'm getting tired of clad (and felixes ;)) only getting around 50 cents, where I could have been holding George Washington's false teeth. What do you do to rake all those finds that make me jealous? (Yes coinboy, I'm talking to you :lol:)
 
I'm not one of the "experts" who is going to give you any hot tips for improving your game. I'm kind of in the same boat so I'll be watching this thread. I've been detecting off and on for nearly 40 years. A few times I came across silver coins. I've found plenty of broken old relics which were probably well over 100 years old. But nothing really very stunning. I could never figure out why some people just seem to do so much better than me. I have lived near some very historic places too. I used to live in an 1872 brick house built for a Civil War brigadier. I detected on that 1-acre lot quite a bit and never found anything very old or valuable. I had access to the house from 1975 - 2007 and never saw anyone else detecting on it. My stepfather's family owned it from around 1940 to 1998. A new owner kept me as a tenant. Once I did find a curious thing there. In the SE corner about 10ft from the road, I dug up a chunk of lead with the impression of a wheat penny in it! And it was about 12" down. I think even the date was visible, 195x. Cant remember exactly. No one in our family had a clue of it

One possibility for lack of good finds in a seemingly good loc might boil down to one thing: Fill. And that especially goes for parks engineered in the time period you mentioned. Old stuff could be gone or just buried so deep you cant pick it up.

I have walked extensively around in the woods with a detector too, but never found more than old tools or an occasional penny or bullet that way. And I KNOW those woods had people doing all kinds of things in the past. I have found stone foundations (surface, not dugout) that yielded NOTHING. I even tried the locations of old churches that burned down, etc.. still nothing special. I know. BOO HOO! It gets frustrating.

Anyhoo, some people may just have a knack for knowing what types of places have been undisturbed. I hope some folks come along and can shed some light.
 
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I'm no expert either, but to add to the advice already given, unless your town did not even exist as a town until the 1990's you would think there should be at least some public places to detect that might not have a thick layer of fill dirt.

I live in a small town that dates back to the 1700's but I didn't get my first detector until 2016 and I think the public areas had already been hunted a lot long before I ever got into detecting, but even so, I still was recently surprised with a Merc in a public area, so that shows me there still could be some good finds left that others missed. I do need to try to get more private property permissions to hopefully have a better chance at older coins.

Private property permissions are a possibility too, just make sure you have gotten good at digging and replacing plugs so as to make it look as if you never dug to begin with. At your age you might want to stick with permissions from relatives, neighbors, and friends, rather than strangers just to be on the safe side.

As far as getting deeper targets it seems detectors should pick up deeper targets when the ground is more moist like the first few days after a good soaking rain.

Also, if you do try detecting in wooded areas at all check yourself for ticks after every hunt in the woods, you definitely do not want to get Lyme disease from a tick bite.
 
Josh, I am going to let the cat out of the bag since I have exhausted all my resources on how to do this.

In order to find old coins you have to get your coil over them AND your machine has to be able to get deep signals if you are in a place that has been hammered. I used to hold contests on Friendly and I was going to hold another one for a machine that will soon be out of warranty but I bought a new one so I have another 3 years to go. I gave away two Fisher CZ-21's and a brand new Equinox 800, along with cash, scoops, and silver.

The machine I have is a used Equinox 800. It is yours if I can find a way to get it to you. That is why I wanted to talk to your father. It took a lot of courage to come here at your age and then take the heat that was given you. I was impressed.

Anyway, I have everything it came with waiting for you at no charge. Let me know how this machine can end up in your hands. Maybe just maybe it will give you an edge to recover some awesome stuff.

The mods, owners, and most all the folks that have been on here for a few years know about my contests, my integrity and my finds. Your posts have impressed me as you are not playing video games and you really want to enjoy this hobby and find history.

Your father can reach me on Facebook as Robert Grattan, my pages Scuba Detector or Scuba Detective.
 
ScubaDetective said:
Josh, I am going to let the cat out of the bag since I have exhausted all my resources on how to do this.

In order to find old coins you have to get your coil over them AND your machine has to be able to get deep signals if you are in a place that has been hammered. I used to hold contests on Friendly and I was going to hold another one for a machine that will soon be out of warranty but I bought a new one so I have another 3 years to go. I gave away two Fisher CZ-21's and a brand new Equinox 800, along with cash, scoops, and silver.

The machine I have is a used Equinox 800. It is yours if I can find a way to get it to you. That is why I wanted to talk to your father. It took a lot of courage to come here at your age and then take the heat that was given you. I was impressed.

Anyway, I have everything it came with waiting for you at no charge. Let me know how this machine can end up in your hands. Maybe just maybe it will give you an edge to recover some awesome stuff.

The mods, owners, and most all the folks that have been on here for a few years know about my contests, my integrity and my finds. Your posts have impressed me as you are not playing video games and you really want to enjoy this hobby and find history.
Click to expand...

Scuba, you are one of the most generous people I have ever "met." God bless you!
 
ScubaDetective said:
.... your machine has to be able to get deep signals if you are in a place that has been hammered. ....
Click to expand...

This is true only IF the location "has been hammered". Then, sure, you have to have better ears and superior machine to the prior hunters.

But I'm of the opinion that the "trick to finding old coins" is only 1% of the above "trick". Instead, the much bigger "trick" to finding old coins is: Location location location.

Why knock yourself out in hammered parks, trying to 'one-up' your competition, when you can find spots where no one's hit ? I've found seateds, gold coins, reales, etc.... that were only an inch deep, and could've been found with a harbor freight detector :laughing:

metal detecto : A good place to "get your feet wet" and find some common silver & wheaties (to get your "practice" in), is: The yards of post WWII tract homes. You know, those urban sprawl neighborhoods that sprouted up in the late 1940s and early 1950s. That was a very prosperous time in the USA economy. Every kid had a few coins jingling in his pocket in those years, all the way through the 1950s and into the early 1960s. And those yards have probably never been hit (no hardcore guys are chasing common silver that requires door-knocking).
 
Tom_in_CA said:
This is true only IF the location "has been hammered". Then, sure, you have to have better ears and superior machine to the prior hunters.

But I'm of the opinion that the "trick to finding old coins" is only 1% of the above "trick". Instead, the much bigger "trick" to finding old coins is: Location location location.

Why knock yourself out in hammered parks, trying to 'one-up' your competition, when you can find spots where no one's hit ? I've found seateds, gold coins, reales, etc.... that were only an inch deep, and could've been found with a harbor freight detector :laughing:

metal detecto : A good place to "get your feet wet" and find some common silver & wheaties (to get your "practice" in), is: The yards of post WWII tract homes. You know, those urban sprawl neighborhoods that sprouted up in the late 1940s and early 1950s. That was a very prosperous time in the USA economy. Every kid had a few coins jingling in his pocket in those years, all the way through the 1950s and into the early 1960s. And those yards have probably never been hit (no hardcore guys are chasing common silver that requires door-knocking).
Click to expand...

Tom he is 12. Door knocking at his age might be VERY hard or dangerous especially in California. He doesn't drive and he probably has only parks right now at his disposal. Yes he probably needs other spots, BUT until he is older that might not be in the realm of possibilities.
 
ScubaDetective said:
Josh, I am going to let the cat out of the bag since I have exhausted all my resources on how to do this.

In order to find old coins you have to get your coil over them AND your machine has to be able to get deep signals if you are in a place that has been hammered. I used to hold contests on Friendly and I was going to hold another one for a machine that will soon be out of warranty but I bought a new one so I have another 3 years to go. I gave away two Fisher CZ-21's and a brand new Equinox 800, along with cash, scoops, and silver.

The machine I have is a used Equinox 800. It is yours if I can find a way to get it to you. That is why I wanted to talk to your father. It took a lot of courage to come here at your age and then take the heat that was given you. I was impressed.

Anyway, I have everything it came with waiting for you at no charge. Let me know how this machine can end up in your hands. Maybe just maybe it will give you an edge to recover some awesome stuff.

The mods, owners, and most all the folks that have been on here for a few years know about my contests, my integrity and my finds. Your posts have impressed me as you are not playing video games and you really want to enjoy this hobby and find history.

Your father can reach me on Facebook as Robert Grattan, my pages Scuba Detector or Scuba Detective.
Click to expand...

That is super of you Robert !!!! :thumbsup:

I agree it is encouraging to see young people who want to do metal detecting rather than just playing video games.

I can definitely vouch for Robert's integrity, for those newer members who were not on the forum in 2019, here is a link showing Robert definitely is a man of his word and followed thru with delivering what he said:

http://metaldetectingforum.com/showthread.php?p=3155713#post3155713

(the above link shows all the prizes I won in Robert's contest back then, they are pictures I took after they were delivered back then)

Thank you again Robert, your generous contest allowed me to enjoy a detector (Nox 800) that was way out of my humble hobby budget, and all the other included prizes was a very nice bonus too, especially the Garrett "carrot" which was a big improvement over my HF budget pinpointer, members can check out the post at the above link to see all the prizes !)
 
ScubaDetective said:
Josh, I am going to let the cat out of the bag since I have exhausted all my resources on how to do this.

In order to find old coins you have to get your coil over them AND your machine has to be able to get deep signals if you are in a place that has been hammered. I used to hold contests on Friendly and I was going to hold another one for a machine that will soon be out of warranty but I bought a new one so I have another 3 years to go. I gave away two Fisher CZ-21's and a brand new Equinox 800, along with cash, scoops, and silver.

The machine I have is a used Equinox 800. It is yours if I can find a way to get it to you. That is why I wanted to talk to your father. It took a lot of courage to come here at your age and then take the heat that was given you. I was impressed.

Anyway, I have everything it came with waiting for you at no charge. Let me know how this machine can end up in your hands. Maybe just maybe it will give you an edge to recover some awesome stuff.

The mods, owners, and most all the folks that have been on here for a few years know about my contests, my integrity and my finds. Your posts have impressed me as you are not playing video games and you really want to enjoy this hobby and find history.

Your father can reach me on Facebook as Robert Grattan, my pages Scuba Detector or Scuba Detective.
Click to expand...
That's very kind of you Scuba.
 
ScubaDetective said:
Josh, I am going to let the cat out of the bag since I have exhausted all my resources on how to do this.

In order to find old coins you have to get your coil over them AND your machine has to be able to get deep signals if you are in a place that has been hammered. I used to hold contests on Friendly and I was going to hold another one for a machine that will soon be out of warranty but I bought a new one so I have another 3 years to go. I gave away two Fisher CZ-21's and a brand new Equinox 800, along with cash, scoops, and silver.

The machine I have is a used Equinox 800. It is yours if I can find a way to get it to you. That is why I wanted to talk to your father. It took a lot of courage to come here at your age and then take the heat that was given you. I was impressed.

Anyway, I have everything it came with waiting for you at no charge. Let me know how this machine can end up in your hands. Maybe just maybe it will give you an edge to recover some awesome stuff.

The mods, owners, and most all the folks that have been on here for a few years know about my contests, my integrity and my finds. Your posts have impressed me as you are not playing video games and you really want to enjoy this hobby and find history.

Your father can reach me on Facebook as Robert Grattan, my pages Scuba Detector or Scuba Detective.
Click to expand...

That is a super offer Robert , glad to see members encouraging the younger members on here they are the future of the hobby.
 
Important to note that recreational metal detecting was already in full force in the 1960's. That's over 50 years of people likely getting many of the same ideas for hunting sites. I'm sure the percentage of truly old lost coins and stuff has dropped astronomically since then. Today we have better detectors and more people doing it than ever before.

But as I wrote before, people continue to lose valuable items and that is unlikely to change anytime soon.
 
Metal detecto said:
It seems like I don't find much old stuff. They're many parks where I am, but to what I know, they were built at the oldest in 1996. I have done my research, (fiddled around with google maps) and even asked a few people. From what I know, my location is a big, fat, modern clump :no:. I'm getting tired of clad (and felixes ;)) only getting around 50 cents, where I could have been holding George Washington's false teeth. What do you do to rake all those finds that make me jealous? (Yes coinboy, I'm talking to you :lol:)
Click to expand...

Persistence persistence persistence! It takes a long time to research sites and get permission if needed. Also digging lots of iffy signals. I dug my Morgan thinking it was a deep can. Scuba’s extremely generous offer will help you! Look for older places and spend time detecting there digging iffy signals. Good luck!
 
A local park that was built in the last 20 0r 30 years at most. i though no reason to detect that place as there will not be anything there. First trip i found a silver washington quarter/ Since then i have found two silver rosies. No reason for those three silver coins to be in that park. It certainly is not old.

When i need an hour or so of dirt fishing and dont want to travel i hit that park. So far i have taken in excess of 400 dollars in clad coins and an untold number of copper pennies out of that park.

One 10k ring has come out of that park and i am sure that there is at least one more hiding there some where.

My best silver sites have been old home sites. However i have hit a couple of old sites that only yielded a little clad so old is no guarantee.
 
Old is no guarantee... most folks did not carry coins to lose... with that said... I hated history when I was your age... once I got into this hobby, I learned more than any teacher or school will teach you. you have to understand history to find history... not just old places, but old places where people gathered... fairs, carnivals, or teens just parking to get out throw a frisbee and blow off steam... ask your neighbors , ask relatives, ask anybody about where people used to hang out "back in the day" . it could be a pulloff by a cornfield, could be a spot by the swimming hole, could be a spot in an empty lot that they used to play ball... research has become half the fun of this hobby, and someday you can use my catch phrase... " I have forgotten more than most people will know"!
 
Coinboy said:
Persistence persistence persistence! It takes a long time to research sites and get permission if needed. Also digging lots of iffy signals. I dug my Morgan thinking it was a deep can. Scuba’s extremely generous offer will help you! Look for older places and spend time detecting there digging iffy signals. Good luck!
Click to expand...

With a machine like that maybe he will find something really cool like you just did.https://metaldetectingforum.com/showthread.php?t=289634 , you have definatly had a few decent finds so far .
 
Scuba, I want to say thank you but that would be the understatement of the century. I can't guarantee that I will be able to accept it, but we will try to reach out.

I was actually dreaming about an Equinox today... I had to pinch myself multiple times.

Say April fools...
 
Metal detecto said:
Scuba, I want to say thank you but that would be the understatement of the century. I can't guarantee that I will be able to accept it, but we will try to reach out.

I was actually dreaming about an Equinox today... I had to pinch myself multiple times.

Say April fools...
Click to expand...

Nope, real deal. A great machine. I have three now and willing to give one up. As you can see, not the first machine I have parted with.

I have 13 machines now, no big deal to let someone who wants to enjoy the hobby have one.
 
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