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Metal Detecting 101 -- Got Questions?

Started by gedis3,

245 posts in this topic

bsshog40

bsshog40

Posted
Posted
Perhaps I should purchase a metal detector since this was found within not many miles of where I live. hm

 

Rey

 

I bought me a garrett1500 off ebay last year. I upgraded from an old garrett. It's an $800 detector I got off ebay for $400. This thing will shoot some coins now. I have found dimes, Qtrs , and pennies on the spot and wind up digging maybe a little 2" square hole and whatever the depth is. They say the little shooters at radio shack work fairly decent too. I just wish I had more time and places to go.

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bsshog40

bsshog40

Posted
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Second time I heard a story like that. In a little town here in texas the sidewalk caved in and lo and behold, an old tavern under the existing building. Didn't find a whole lot but was some old coins and a few old bottles.

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rrantique

rrantique

Posted
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Pack up Bobby and lets head to San Antonio.camel_bt.gif7_6_8.gif I heard there is an old fort there called the "Alamo" or something like that. We could wear our tourist shirts.

ugly-men20copy.jpg:grin:

 

chawk2.gif Darn how was i supposed to know it was a "National Historic Site." (:

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dooly

dooly

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Hi all i nave been out detecting over in Cumbria this weekend and thought you may like to see this Irish coin i picked up over there

 

I1733.jpg

I1733r.jpg

 

ABOUT COIN:-

 

It is a James Stanley, Tenth Earl of Derby Isle of Man halfpenny dated 1733

Second issue. unsure of the exact on at the moment possibly 7410 (spink)

 

History of these coins:-

 

Manx minor coinage was not introduced until 1709. these Penny's and halfpenny's were cast in molds,and have the earl's motto SANS CHANGER together with the Stanley crest of an eagle clutching a child upon the cap of Maintenance. the reverse bears the Triune, or "three legs" with the motto QVOCVNQUE JECERIS STABIT (Whichever way you throw it, it will stand) in 1733 a second issue of coins (as pictured above) were die-struck and not cast.

 

This coin is in very good shape for being in the ground for so long and i think it is worthy of conservation and NCS encapsulation.

 

all the best dooly

 

 

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bsshog40

bsshog40

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Now that looks like a pretty decent haul there Irvin. About how long have you been hunting? I really just started back last year when I bought my Garrett 1500. I had an older garrett that had me chasing junk all the time and I wound up losing interest until I got my new one. I like it alot.

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rrantique

rrantique

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My first detector was a garrett deepseeker i purchased back in the 80's. Traded it in on the one i have now a Quantum with a blue Max coil(Whites). The Garrett was a good machine. I just got lazy and wanted one with ID and depth display. (shrug)

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bsshog40

bsshog40

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I hear ya Irvin. Mine was and old garret 300 series. My 1500 now has depth and size display. really nice. It will pinpoint close enough, that the hole I dig is about the size of the coin. It's pretty darn accurate. The only thing I have a hard time looking for are nickels as there are alot of garbage signals associated with these. I have probably passed over a few because I just discriminate those out now.

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bsshog40

bsshog40

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I agree Bobby, if you discriminate the nickels you will miss all the rings along with those pull tabs you reject. (thumbs u

 

 

I guess maybe this summer I will just have to get used to digging more. I'd like to find some of those rings!! (thumbs u

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TJ

TJ

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Unusual to find two war nickels today at a park, '43 and '45, both "S". Wish the camera would show how clean and "silvery" the '43 is...

49560-warnickobv.jpg.052ef9314dd09d6ff26055e94a0bd4c8.jpg

49561-warnickrev.jpg.f99ee3bf9151d6f4e7e9c11ff384eb60.jpg

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bsshog40

bsshog40

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Dang cool finds there Irvin. I actually just got back from and old school and found .74c. One cent was\a wheatie. Looks like somewhere around 42'. I have it sitting in olive oil right now next to my FEC.

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WoodenJefferson

WoodenJefferson

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I posted this ATS and figured it would fit well into this thread, wow, this one has not been added to in awhile. Like we always say, threads are worthless without pictures so I pulled some out of the scrap book and yeah, that's me standing next to the buoy, but many moons ago.

 

In the mid 80’s I personally scoured the area north of the Port Mansfield Jetties, not with a metal detector, but by walking the wind and water eroded back dunes. At the time, metal detectors were not allowed to be used within the boundaries of Padre Island National Seashore and the Texas Antiquities Act forbid the removal of any and all artifacts.

 

In 1986 while fishing in this 4 wheel drive only stretch of beach, we encountered the University of Texas, Austin geological survey team and got to wondering why they would be doing studies in such a remote area. The access road to the beach was 70 Miles to the north and the southern route to South Padre Island is cut off by the Mansfield Channel.

 

The survey team had a manned surveyors transit set up about half way out on the north jetty. There was also a manned boat about 3/10 of a mile north of that point, sitting just out past the third set of waves and a land vehicle (Land outside-affiliatelinksnotallowed) stopped along the beach.

 

We stopped and inquired as to the goings on and were simply told they were plotting coordinates for marine navigational information. We bought into that and proceeded to fish in that area, camping for the night near the jetties.

 

The team returned the next day and more plotting took place only this time with anchor buoys being dropped out in the surf. We quickly concluded that they were in fact locating the wreckage sites from the 1554 ship wrecks and this was getting interesting.

 

That evening, we went to the spot triangulated by the transom, boat and land vehicle and found this huge piece of ossified timber. The worm eaten old wooden timber was half covered by sand and water and we proceeded to hand dig around the tip. It was huge, about 20” thick and disappeared under the sand about 10’ from where we were standing. It was obvious that it was the main beam from a wooden ship and it was old, very old.

 

We looked around the area and this was the only thing we could find that resembled a ship wreck and only dreamed of finding gold and doubloons scattered along the sandy beach. With the sun setting and hungry bellies, we returned to our camp and that was that.

 

After that inspirational trek, I went to the local library and dug up as much as I could about those 1554 wrecks and discovered that tropical storms and hurricanes would move the artifacts from place to place. One author described how he would walk the scoured dunes for bits of silver just sitting on little tufts of wind scoured sand. The wind would blow the sand around the Piece of Eight and erode it into a little column of sand, easy pickings or so it seemed. The other thing he mentioned is that the coins did not look like coins at all. Some were covered in “tar balls” a natural occurring petroleum product that accumulates on the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico and adheres to just about anything and everything and other coins would be contained inside irregular shaped concretions.

 

After that original contact, we went back to that area on numerous occasions, but as of yet, have not found a single coin. We also did not find any gold bars or silver dished out rounds that are reputed to be scattered along a 3 mile stretch of beach. There were stories floating around of people finding huge stashes of silver coins, gold bars and round silver ingots that weighed 25-30 pounds. It is illegal to even posses any artifact, so rumors abounded about what was exactly recovered by non-authorized methods. Some of those rumors are probably true while others were pure myth or speculation.

 

I do know of one rather “colorful” person who may have profited from these wrecks, he went from a simple fisherman to a seafood restaurateur literally over night. We will never know since his secrets, that is if he had any at all, went to his grave.

 

I never gave up hope that one day I would return to sift out a bit of treasure from this area…dreams are fanciful, reality is real.

 

 

~Woody~

 

Mansfield.jpg

Tri-angulations of wreck site, Mansfield Jetty

 

Padre.jpg

Top image #1 The main boiler of what’s left of the wreck of the Nicaragua.

Middle image #2 What’s left of a sunken wooden shrimp boat.

Last image #3 A marine buoy that has washed ashore.

 

The forces of Mother Nature are not to be taken lightly.

 

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KAA

KAA

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That is some very interesting stuff, 1554 wrecks off Padre Island? Those ships really were off the beaten path for that era!

 

Thanks for the cool story!

 

 

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