Big Boys Hobbies

Helpful Tip for Newcomers

Dirty Nails

Dirty Nails

Elite Member
Joined
Apr 19, 2018
Messages
938
Location
Chesapeake, Va
This may seem like common sense to the seasoned detectorists here, but I bet it'll help many of the newcomers. Last night I was collecting in a field where buildings sat in the 40's through the 90's. My detector sounded and I dug up a dime 6" deep. I filled in my hole and when I stood up, my detector sounded again. A quarter 6" deep about 2" left of my original hole. Before refilling this hole, I swung over the area several times and sure enough, I had .57 cents in all coin denominations, all from the 60's and 70's, in an area no bigger than a bathroom sink. So my point is, don't dig, retrieve, fill in. Instead dig, retrieve, and swing away before filling in. It seems like common sense, but I'm doing this without a mentor and learning as I go...I hope this helps some folks.
 
Dirty Nails said:
This may seem like common sense to the seasoned detectorists here, but I bet it'll help many of the newcomers. Last night I was collecting in a field where buildings sat in the 40's through the 90's. My detector sounded and I dug up a dime 6" deep. I filled in my hole and when I stood up, my detector sounded again. A quarter 6" deep about 2" left of my original hole. Before refilling this hole, I swung over the area several times and sure enough, I had .57 cents in all coin denominations, all from the 60's and 70's, in an area no bigger than a bathroom sink. So my point is, don't dig, retrieve, fill in. Instead dig, retrieve, and swing away before filling in. It seems like common sense, but I'm doing this without a mentor and learning as I go...I hope this helps some folks.
Click to expand...

Great advice, always recheck holes and surround area of good targets
 
Dirty Nails said:
This may seem like common sense to the seasoned detectorists here, but I bet it'll help many of the newcomers. Last night I was collecting in a field where buildings sat in the 40's through the 90's. My detector sounded and I dug up a dime 6" deep. I filled in my hole and when I stood up, my detector sounded again. A quarter 6" deep about 2" left of my original hole. Before refilling this hole, I swung over the area several times and sure enough, I had .57 cents in all coin denominations, all from the 60's and 70's, in an area no bigger than a bathroom sink. So my point is, don't dig, retrieve, fill in. Instead dig, retrieve, and swing away before filling in. It seems like common sense, but I'm doing this without a mentor and learning as I go...I hope this helps some folks.
Click to expand...

Now I wish I had read this a month ago.. I had to learn the hard way ;) Since then the Carrot goes to work and then the coil goes at it again..

Good advice..
 
This cannot be emphasized enough! Good work finding it out on your own and YES....always rescan the hole when it’s filled back in.
 
Very helpful[emoji106]So tricky when digging a trashy site. Sometimes if I’m not sure what’s happening underground and I don’t want to risk hitting a nice coin I will run the pinpointer over the surface before digging to see if I can get to the shallow object(s) first. Then swing again to see what changed or what remains.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
another tip is if you find one good target then spiral around it in widening arc's to see if other items are in close proximity before moving on. This would apply to both beach and land settings.

Ray
 
Well this trick came into play again today.. In the soggy outfield of baseball diamonds I pulled two coins out of the same hole and was just about to cover the hole when... 'I remember us chatting about just this thing in the forums' and sure enough, there were a bunch more coins to be pulled out.. twas my first coin spill, small as it was anyway ;)
 
Always recheck your holes is good advice that needs to become second nature. A few days ago, I hit a solid quarter tone and ID with the CTX. I pin pointed it and dug up a nickel. So I rechecked and hit the quarter tone again. I dug over a couple inches and found the quarter.

Once you know you detector and you dig something that surprises you, then that should be a clue that there is still something else in the ground.
 
halfstep said:
Always recheck your holes is good advice that needs to become second nature. A few days ago, I hit a solid quarter tone and ID with the CTX. I pin pointed it and dug up a nickel. So I rechecked and hit the quarter tone again. I dug over a couple inches and found the quarter.

Once you know you detector and you dig something that surprises you, then that should be a clue that there is still something else in the ground.
Click to expand...

I've had that happen to me before as well with rusted metals.. I'll even rebury it and scan over it again to see if it will still give the same results as confirmation to what it gave me as a signal the first time.. So much depends on the angle and dangle of the item as well.. Found a crushed pop can and filled in the hole and the MD beeped again.. really? Dug the hole again and sure enough a couple of pennies were found adjacent to where the can was.. neat.
 
I rehunt the same site often. If I got it all the first time around what need would I have to keep going back??? :lol: Just call it saving it for later. :D
 
Was at a favorite park the other day for some clad digging. Saw where someone had cut a plug but swung the coil over it as is my habit Got a high tone about the middle of the plug/ Popped the plug out of the ground pin pointer said the target was in the plug. A quarter came out of the bottom of the plug. I wondered how someone missed a target that obvious
 
georgeinsc said:
Was at a favorite park the other day for some clad digging. Saw where someone had cut a plug but swung the coil over it as is my habit Got a high tone about the middle of the plug/ Popped the plug out of the ground pin pointer said the target was in the plug. A quarter came out of the bottom of the plug. I wondered how someone missed a target that obvious
Click to expand...

I love that. :laughing: I was in one a year or so and it was like the place was pre-dug! Targets in 3 out of 6 plugs...
 
missed targets

Oldsjunkie said:
I love that. :laughing: I was in one a year or so and it was like the place was pre-dug! Targets in 3 out of 6 plugs...
Click to expand...

When i first started , and before i had a pin pointer , i recall a number of plugs where i never found the target. Seemed to move around or just disappear . Didn't help that many of the coins became very discolored about the same color as the soil . Sure i made it easy for the next guy that hit it. Now if i see where some one has cut a plug i go back over it ,and often find what they left behind.
 
I always recheck my hole after I remove the original target. I also use the pin pointer before I even cut my plug. That usually works and it keeps my plug down to a reasonable smaller size.
 
davidlhyde63366 said:
When i first started , and before i had a pin pointer , i recall a number of plugs where i never found the target. Seemed to move around or just disappear . Didn't help that many of the coins became very discolored about the same color as the soil . Sure i made it easy for the next guy that hit it. Now if i see where some one has cut a plug i go back over it ,and often find what they left behind.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm sure someone grabbed a couple of my abandoned ones from early on as well. The circle is complete...:aok:
 
I think I spend about as much time filling holes others have left. I always check them first. You would be surprised at how many coins i have found because they couldn't pinpoint them.
 
Something else to consider. As I read these comments about finding coins in pre-dug plugs, I think that many newcomers often never think about the use of a screwdriver. All the choice and talk about high quality diggers such as the Lesche and White's diggers, a newcomer may not know the simplicity and ease of a plain ole' screwdriver. Plug cutting is the best choice for deeper targets and helps to keep the grass alive. But a shallow plug can be damaging to the grass and is hard to get to stick back down to the ground so a lawn mower won't suck it up. When coins are shallow, under 2", a screwdriver is the best way to retrieve the coin. It is quick and does not damage the grass.

There are exceptions to using a screwdriver such as sliver coins. One doesn't want to scratch a silver coin and digging plugs is your best bet. But with clad, a screwdriver is fine.
 
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