I still don't have a metal detector yet, and have no experience asking for permission to MD on someone's property, but I do have some experience that may be useful to my friends here on the forum.
I think that we can improve our image and our chance of success by doing a little organizing and joining ranks.
Do any of you remember the "Lone Ranger"? If you do, you probably know that he had never ending problems due to his hidden identity. But do you remember that at the end of every episode, he was recognized as the "Lone RANGER"? He was (or had been) a member of the Texas Rangers.
The Texas Rangers, individually and as a group have had their ups and downs, but they do have a certain amount of recognition and respect.
Maybe we need to develop a group identity, do some good works, get a little recognition, and do ourselves a favor.
Some people tend to think of all Metal Detectorists as vandals, thieves and looters. Obvioulsy, those elements do exist amoung us, just as they do in all sorts of professional and hobbyist groups.
Wouldn't it be nice if we were requested to help in archeological surveys and digs? How about for finding lost keys? What about crime scenes?
Can you imagine the places that would open up to us if we had that kind of good will and respect?
Our strength is that we have the equipment and the knowledge to use that equipment. Many of us are retired or semi retired.
I think that we could address our lack of recognition through a little PR and a little self recognition.
I think that we need to have some educational materials, some levels of detector mastery that can be measured and acknowedged, and once that is in place, we, individually and as a group, reach out to the people and organizations that can use our help.
I have been reading this and other MD forums for a few months and I am convinced that there is an ENORMOUS amount of knowledge and wisdom about MDing stored here. If we could start and maintain a wiki of all this good stuff, we would have several centuries of data at our fingertips.
If we can find relevant archealogical training to go along with our skills and equipment, I think that once we pass a quiz or two and attend a walkthrouogh with one of our masters here that we ought to be able to add to our "certifications".
Ditto for crime scenes, and so on and so forth.
Obviously we would be setting ourselves up for a lot of grunt work and un-appreciated headaches, but I think it would sure open things up for us when getting permission.
In terms of training materials, I think we could put things together pretty rapidly for the beginning MDer. For instance, Lesson 1 - Types of Metal Detectors and the strength of each type. Lesson 2 - Conductance of metals, the halo effect, Depth and the overlay effect.
We just start at the beginning and work our way through the "merit badges".
Then we start reaching out to other organizations, such as museums, police departments, historical societies, etc.
Ladies and Gentlemen, what do you think?
Thanks,
John Morton
I think that we can improve our image and our chance of success by doing a little organizing and joining ranks.
Do any of you remember the "Lone Ranger"? If you do, you probably know that he had never ending problems due to his hidden identity. But do you remember that at the end of every episode, he was recognized as the "Lone RANGER"? He was (or had been) a member of the Texas Rangers.
The Texas Rangers, individually and as a group have had their ups and downs, but they do have a certain amount of recognition and respect.
Maybe we need to develop a group identity, do some good works, get a little recognition, and do ourselves a favor.
Some people tend to think of all Metal Detectorists as vandals, thieves and looters. Obvioulsy, those elements do exist amoung us, just as they do in all sorts of professional and hobbyist groups.
Wouldn't it be nice if we were requested to help in archeological surveys and digs? How about for finding lost keys? What about crime scenes?
Can you imagine the places that would open up to us if we had that kind of good will and respect?
Our strength is that we have the equipment and the knowledge to use that equipment. Many of us are retired or semi retired.
I think that we could address our lack of recognition through a little PR and a little self recognition.
I think that we need to have some educational materials, some levels of detector mastery that can be measured and acknowedged, and once that is in place, we, individually and as a group, reach out to the people and organizations that can use our help.
I have been reading this and other MD forums for a few months and I am convinced that there is an ENORMOUS amount of knowledge and wisdom about MDing stored here. If we could start and maintain a wiki of all this good stuff, we would have several centuries of data at our fingertips.
If we can find relevant archealogical training to go along with our skills and equipment, I think that once we pass a quiz or two and attend a walkthrouogh with one of our masters here that we ought to be able to add to our "certifications".
Ditto for crime scenes, and so on and so forth.
Obviously we would be setting ourselves up for a lot of grunt work and un-appreciated headaches, but I think it would sure open things up for us when getting permission.
In terms of training materials, I think we could put things together pretty rapidly for the beginning MDer. For instance, Lesson 1 - Types of Metal Detectors and the strength of each type. Lesson 2 - Conductance of metals, the halo effect, Depth and the overlay effect.
We just start at the beginning and work our way through the "merit badges".
Then we start reaching out to other organizations, such as museums, police departments, historical societies, etc.
Ladies and Gentlemen, what do you think?
Thanks,
John Morton
I'm on a list for the Arapahoe District Parks for them to call if they have anyone contact them about lost metal objects, ie keys, rings etc.
