Hole pictures

Semtav · Sep 24, 2016

Can anyone post pictures of what their hole looks like during and after they are done? I spent the last month working in an a very dry area with bad well water, so there weren't very many plush lawns. Now I'm back home more and I really not comfortable digging a hole in a nice lawn. The few I've done I wasn't too proud of. I can't imagine spending the day digging in a nice park if the whole park is going to look that way, so I've really been hesitant to detect these areas.
I've picked a few curbsides that werent taken care of, and found a few clad and one wheat penny in an old tree hole. but its raining too hard to do much yet,
thanks

MrNovice · Sep 24, 2016

Practice in your own yard first. Learn how deep your detector says the target is, dig just to that point or a tiny bit deeper. To help get everything back in the hole, put an old towel down and after retrieval, dump all the dirt back in and then replace the top. Either cut 3 or 4 sided plugs before pulling the dirt up. If 3 sides are cut, you can hinge the dirt off the uncut side. If using 4 side cuts, you can pull it straight up and place it straight back down and make sure to step on the top a little to "seat" back into place.

Semtav · Sep 24, 2016

Thanks
One more hole in my yard and I may be sleeping in the doghouse for a while :lol:

matmit · Sep 25, 2016

I don't have any pictures, but I can tell you what I think is the best way to "cut a plug" (notice never, ever, ever say dig a hole!)

stick your blade in and slice a semi-circle around where you believe the coin to be.
Next, stick your blade in opposite the "hinge" of uncut grass.
Pry up the plug and flip it over.
Pole around in the hole.
When you are done, push the dirt back in and flip the plug back over.
Now for a very important finish - tamp the plug and surrounding area into place with your fist.

With practice, you will not be able to notice somebody EXTRACTED a coin

Oldsjunkie · Sep 25, 2016

matmit said:
I don't have any pictures, but I can tell you what I think is the best way to "cut a plug" (notice never, ever, ever say dig a hole!)

stick your blade in and slice a semi-circle around where you believe the coin to be.
Next, stick your blade in opposite the "hinge" of uncut grass.
Pry up the plug and flip it over.
Pole around in the hole.
When you are done, push the dirt back in and flip the plug back over.
Now for a very important finish - tamp the plug and surrounding area into place with your fist.

With practice, you will not be able to notice somebody EXTRACTED a coin

^^This. Never cut a complete circle or 4 sided plug or you're cutting and separating all the grass roots from one another and the plug grass will usually die. Larger plugs are usually better at looking good and not dying than small plugs. The general rule I use myself is my plug is equal in diameter to the depth of the target. If the machine says my target is 6 inches down, I cut a 6 inch diameter plug. I don't generally go smaller than 4 inches unless the target is close to the surface and then I'll just pop it out with the tip of the digger or a screwdriver/gasket scraper. Good luck and HH!

Big Treble · Sep 25, 2016

matmit said:
Next, stick your blade in opposite the "hinge" of uncut grass.
Pry up the plug and flip it over.

Never heard this before. Great tip can't wait to try it.

OP, also carry a dish towel clipped to your finds pouch, to scout your looks dirt into. It not only helps when pouring the dirt into the hole, but when trying to locate small targets that were scouped out.

alkazoo · Sep 25, 2016

I've always used a 12x12 square of plastic sheeting to dump the dirt on after cutting the p!ug. Dirt rolls right off of it when dumping back in hole.Plus it's cheap and doesn't take up any room in the pouch .

Top-USMC · Sep 25, 2016

There are a number of videos on YouTube that will help with this.

Just one more · Sep 26, 2016

Yeah like has been said, don't cut a full round plug. Cut a horseshoe shape in the sod and flip it back. Any dirt you have to remove, lay it on a towel. When you have retrieved the target, pick up the towel and pour the dirt back in the hole. If the hole is deep, tamp the soil down as you are pouring it in the hole so it settles to it's original level and isn't high. Lay the flap back in place and step on it until it's level and fluff up the grass.

If the ground is dry and you are worried about leaving bad plugs, take a jug of water with you and soak your cuts. That helps a lot.

OneStudPuppy · Sep 26, 2016

Semtav said:
Can anyone post pictures of what their hole looks like during and after they are done? I spent the last month working in an a very dry area with bad well water, so there weren't very many plush lawns. Now I'm back home more and I really not comfortable digging a hole in a nice lawn. The few I've done I wasn't too proud of. I can't imagine spending the day digging in a nice park if the whole park is going to look that way, so I've really been hesitant to detect these areas.
I've picked a few curbsides that werent taken care of, and found a few clad and one wheat penny in an old tree hole. but its raining too hard to do much yet,
thanks

I'll have to check my footage. Think I have a few shots of hole and when done..
Problem when done.. You can't see where the hole was.. No joke I tried to find it after I came back on the footage and couldn't.

I attached a image from another thread on here. While it was kinda sarcastic in that thread I think it gives a good basic idea of technique, but you will find what works.

Diggum · Sep 26, 2016

In case you're interested, I show my technique in several of my videos. This is one: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JbuqIxOTrzo

Semtav · Sep 27, 2016

I think my biggest problem was it had just rained an inch and was still drizzling when I was trying this at home. Kinda left it a little muddy around the hole. I dug about 50 clad and 1 wheat so it got a lot better, but I stayed away from real nice lawns and worked the unkept places. I left before it got dry enuf but tried a few nicer spots here and they don't look too bad now.
thanks all.

NectarDetector · Sep 28, 2016

Thats how I do it

rreahard · Sep 28, 2016

Obviously not serious, but I thought this was a pretty funny "tutorial".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKryHl5sTWg&list=PLB777C4C1896A397D&index=2

Dsm_mechva · Sep 28, 2016

here's a clip from one of my videos if it helps

Semtav · Oct 3, 2016

Thanks for all the advice, pics videos etc. Got a bunch of practice the last few days at the park .

Rusty Nails · Oct 4, 2016

If you live in an area that has raccoons I also recommend going back to
Check your plugs the next day if possible. They are curious and like to pull them up looking for grubs.

A couple years ago I put some sod down and those stinkers had it all over the place until it finally took root.

Hole pictures

Semtav

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