0 and 3 on permission requests..

I have found one way that catapults the ice-breakers, increases the "yes's", etc.... : Join historical societies in your area. Docent/volunteer at any/all local history museums in your area. It might require 6 hr. per month duty-time (or whatever). Where you man a desk, for example. Attend monthly and quarterly meetings. Get involved, write historic interest articles for their newsletter, etc....

After a few years of this, when you are now on a "first-name basis" with "the system", then things begin to change, when you "cold call" on someone : You have your badge on a lanyard, that you casually flash, while you introduce yourself : "Hi, I work at the such & such museum, and am doing research for an article on the development history of this area....". And morph it into whatever applies. Eg.: ".... And I was wondering if you knew anything about the stage stop that was said to have been on the back 40 of this property, supposed to be in the mouth of that canyon over there...."

Also : Best to "catch them on their front porch", so-to-speak. Because if you're knocking on their door, then it's as if you're a door-to-door salesman. Or if you're cold-calling them on the phone, then guess what we ALL do with phone-sales calls ? You hang up, right ? Or if you cold-call email them, guess what we all do with spam email ? We hit the delete button, right ?

So it's best if you can catch them on their porch. This might mean getting to know someone who-knows them. So that your introduction is something like "Hi, I'm friend of So & so's down the street, who said you knew about the stage stop at such & such back in this mountain ....". People will drop-their-guard , when you've mentioned their neighbor, their friend, their cousin, etc...

Hey Tom, thanks for the input ... One area in town is listed as a historic village ( location of a old school that was always there since 1800;s) a post office that was moved there as well as a Doc office that was moved there. Its a "Public place" and I have thought about just going there mid day/mid week and scanning the school ground, its public right? But after reading your thoughts I think I might approach the historical society and volunteer / offer my services and ask saying anything found would be give to the society to put on display in the school ( at least I'd have photo proof of my finds plus the enjoyment of finding)...

Had that happen to me yesterday. I was at customers house and asked the owner if I could hunt the yard with my MD. At first, she said sure and asked what I was looking for. I told her that I hope to find some old silver coins. Though, if I find anything of real value, I would be happy to split it with her.

I think the word silver and value brought out the greed monster in her and she changed her mind and said she would have to ask her husband first.

Most of the permissions that I have gotten, I have used the words "relics" and "older coins". They do not seem to trigger the greed monster.

castleberry said:

Frustrating as a new guy, 0 and 3 on the last 3 requests ... Even had local connections with two of them knowing my son-in-law , third was a realtor who's mom owned the 1900 house ... I thunk its a southern thing, its my land and I down want nobody fooling around on it or taking something ...

I see all these posts of people hunting these sweet old home places, how the heck do y'all do it... I've read all the stickies, heck I even tried giving 2 of them silver quarters I had as a token of my appreciation thinking it might lean them towards a yes since they received a gift...

At least my public place research is paying off a little, found a merc this week at a local park.

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Maybe you appear a little nervous or unsure in your request?

The "southern thing" cracked me up!

Bill_Ace_350 said:

Maybe you appear a little nervous or unsure in your request?

The "southern thing" cracked me up!

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Oh Im definitely nervous, Im a shy introvert so this is way out of the box for me.

castleberry said:

Oh Im definitely nervous, Im a shy introvert so this is way out of the box for me.

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have your friends get permission for you-

" Hey Bob, if you see Mr. and Mrs. Smith before I do, ask them if I can detect their place".



Bob must know you very well and explain what you do, how you do it etc. Best when Bob knows the Smith's much better/longer than you.

There is nothing in it for Bob, so he just asks the question.

It honestly works.

castleberry said:

.... I have thought about just going there mid day/mid week and scanning the school ground, its public right? ....

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Now you're talking about a different question. Different than your starting question, which was about private property (yards, etc....).

In the case of public school grounds, no.... No need for permission strategies. Just go. Naturally you pick low traffic times (eg.: Sunday crack of dawn, etc....). Because, of course, md'ing has "connotations" in manicured turf. But as for simply being there on the school grounds, I consider myself no different than the person who goes there to shoot hoops, jog the track, etc....

TNTGross said:

....
I think the word silver and value brought out the greed monster in her and she changed her mind and said she would have to ask her husband first.

Most of the permissions that I have gotten, I have used the words "relics" and "older coins".....

Click to expand...

Loved your post TNT-gross ! On a recent reconn. to a spot that a buddy and I hoped was some virgin country picnic grounds, we were able to interview an elderly lady who is a 4th generation rancher family patriarch of the area. Hoping she had some info. on where the picnics occurred.

And .... eventually .... the curious question came out from her, as to why such a specific niche interest. And instead of saying "coins", my buddy says "children's trinkets and toys" . It was as if her heart melted, and she immediately delved into all sorts of regional historic info.

Gotta tug at their heart-strings, eh ?

Tom_in_CA said:

Now you're talking about a different question. Different than your starting question, which was about private property (yards, etc....).

In the case of public school grounds, no.... No need for permission strategies. Just go. Naturally you pick low traffic times (eg.: Sunday crack of dawn, etc....). Because, of course, md'ing has "connotations" in manicured turf. But as for simply being there on the school grounds, I consider myself no different than the person who goes there to shoot hoops, jog the track, etc....

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Tom,

While it is/was a school, its now a community center/historic village deal of sorts so maybe slightly different, but still city land and open to the public ... the local schools, if the playgrounds are not padlocked, I hunt at will, so far with no issues...

castleberry said:

.... but still city land and open to the public .......

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Well, be careful . You might open up a can of worms, and become the latest victim of the "No one cared till you asked" routine. Where .... no one ever gave it thought before, nor would have noticed, until the 'pressing question' crossed their desk.

If you are skittish, you can look up the rules/laws for this area, by yourself. Eg.: Dogs on leash, no fireworks, park closes at sunset, etc..... And if there's nothing there that says "No md'ing", then presto, it's not prohibited.

Yes, of course, just like any park or school, be discreet on your timing, so as not to rouse up griper lookie lou's.

My Brother in Law has gotten me some good permissions. Unfortunately i live 500 miles from where he lives. Got a permission in a town about 20 miles from my house and I cant go detect due to tearing tendons in my foot Maybe January will be better.

One lady that I have known for years said Sure BUT I get half of what you find. I was tempted to dig a bucket full of trash and take it to her for her share. But I just dropped the subject

If in doubt about city, county, public places hit them on the weekend when there usually are no bureaucrats wandering around.

When you are turned down on a request simply start digging and make some

noise, when the occupant/owner comes out yelling reach into your pocket and

reveal several old wheaties and maybe some silver dimes and show them off,

hand them the coins and say these are yours.

They will be so impressed that they will most likely say go ahead and continue.

1. When talking to property owners, always show interest in the history of their home and neighborhood. If you know a little tidbit of history specific to the neighborhood, share it with them during the conversation. This helps bolster your credibility.

2. Per Tom's advice, try to catch them outside, to avoid disturbing them from whatever they might be doing. I usually start with a statement that I am not selling anything, politicking or evangelizing. Once assured, they usually give you a few minutes to present your case.

3. I always ask how long they have lived in their house. If it is a reasonably long time, I ask if there might be any identifiable jewelry that they may have lost and if so, make sure you tell them if it is found, it will be returned.

4. If they ask what you are looking for, be as vague as possible without sounding deceptive. Never mention that you might find something of value. I usually tell them I am looking for historic relics (true), that I find the occasional old coin (true), and that I usually find and recover way more junk than interesting stuff. ( VERY true) Then I show them a wheat penny or two, or a beat up tootsie toy and all of the junk in my bucket.
Most people don't believe that there is anything of value buried in their yard, unless you give them a reason to believe it.

5. Never use the word "dig". I say recover , extract , rescue, or save. Tell them about your extraction technique and assure them you will treat their property like the greens at Augusta.

6. ALWAYS tell them that you will be respectful to their property in every way. Ask about sprinkler system locations or any underground wiring. I alway tell the homeowner that after I am done, they will never even know I was there . And be sure and make that a reality.

7. Don't dress like a bum, don't have beer on your breath,or smoke cigarettes during this process. Like it or not, people judge strangers by their appearance.

Using this technique I am successful in gaining permission in 9 out of 10 attempts. I have hunted some of the oldest yards in my town with varying degrees of success and there are scores more still out there, most of them never detected, waiting for my coil to pass over.

Good Luck!!

TNTGross

Give this a read

http://detectinglife.com/blog/door-knocking