Big Boys Hobbies

Detecting around old iron mine settlement.

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eightstrgs

New Member
Joined
Dec 9, 2018
Messages
24
Location
Upstate NY
I plan on checking out a old settlement around old iron ore mining operation that closed up back in 1870s. This will be next year after the ground thaws. Looking for your opinions on what kind of havoc this will cause my detector with all the iron in the ground. I'll be searching for relics and of course coinage and whatever. I know I'll find iron. I'm hoping whatever metal detector I decide on purchasing will waive out the iron. I've been thinking about the Teknetics Delta 4000. Or something in the $200-$300 range.
It'll probably come down to how well I get to know the machine or maybe just too much iron.
 
Okay! I didn't get any opinions, so let me try to rephrase here.

Has anybody ever tried detecting around old 1800s closed down iron mine operations? Or is it just a stupid attempt and waste of time with all the iron in the ground?
I've never done it before, but I'd like to hear from anyone who may have tried.

The site I plan on visiting once had a store and mercantile and homes built around the mining operation. I don't plan on going around any of the mines. With my luck, I'd probably fall in one never to be seen or heard of again! I only plan on locating and checking around the building sites with hopes of finding some historic relics and whatever else got left behind after the mines shut down in 1870s.

So has anybody ever tried a place like this? Would like to hear about your experience and how you handled it in a iron infested area.
 
I have had some luck in areas like that, but you need to find where the camps were if any. If you dis iron you may pass up on some good relics. So slow grid around the camp sites would be the way to go.
 
If it were up to me and you want to spend $300-$400, see if you can find a used MineLab 705. I would first hit the place with iron discrimed out as much as possible and just dig the high tones - however, with large junk iron you may face "wrap around" no matter how much you try to customize settings...it's a tough call. If large iron, the ML is good about alerting you to "overload", but again, I would just focus on any and all high tones on my first visit.
 
ollievon said:
If it were up to me and you want to spend $300-$400, see if you can find a used MineLab 705. I would first hit the place with iron discrimed out as much as possible and just dig the high tones - however, with large junk iron you may face "wrap around" no matter how much you try to customize settings...it's a tough call. If large iron, the ML is good about alerting you to "overload", but again, I would just focus on any and all high tones on my first visit.
Click to expand...

Agree! Hit the high tones first, then go from there. Thanks for that! And a section at a time. And probably take along some markers.
 
I think that area would not be too much worse than many old farm sites as to the amount of iron junk.

Not at all sure about what the iron ore would be like.
It could be just like highly mineralized ground like they have in Western Australia then a good Ground Balancing detector would work.
It could have 'hot rocks' (chunks of high iron content) that can not be GB'ed out.
 
Here's a pic of part of the operation in it's heyday. No buildings are there anymore and the place has turned back to forest and has had logging done there.
I will have to get permission, all posted property. Hopefully they won't turn me down because of all the holes in the ground, safety issue.

Well, I'll post a pic when I figure out how anyway.
 
Mud-puppy said:
May I surmise you from the Duluth area? "Iron mine, Ground frozen" clues...'Podunk' is not helpful, although at this time of the year one can assume you are not working the iron mines in Alabama or Australia!.:laughing:..

.For proper direction from the Forum for rigs and even places to hunt....Just a general idea of your AO is fine....
Click to expand...

I ain't from none of those places! I'm an Upstate NYer. Born and raised in a rugged mountain life! Never had running water till late 60s. Had to use a outhouse and get water from the well. Going to school was uphill both ways. I've been a truck driver, carpenter, mechanic, musician, tractor driver and among other things. Now after all those years of hard work, I'm retired, except the musician part. Time to enjoy life and get out and do some detecting and enjoy the fun of finding history! There, you happy now? ;)
 
eightstrgs said:
I ain't from none of those places! I'm an Upstate NYer. Born and raised in a rugged mountain life! Never had running water till late 60s. Had to use a outhouse and get water from the well. Going to school was uphill both ways. I've been a truck driver, carpenter, mechanic, musician, tractor driver and among other things. Now after all those years of hard work, I'm retired, except the musician part. Time to enjoy life and get out and do some detecting and enjoy the fun of finding history! There, you happy now? ;)
Click to expand...

.Upstate NY?Z So you are saying Bal Harbour? I'm from Grygla Minnesota! Ever heard of it? Google it!

Me and my 6 brothers had to share clothes, and boots even... well, not really clothes or boots, just grain sack ponchos and old tire innertube fabricated Jesus Creepers...You took a few steps and handed them off like in a relay race.....We were not allowed to go Doodoo out of doors, or in an outhouse! It had to be in the Hog slop trough and only once per week! We Brothers each had different days, so the hogs got fed..so yeah like 'waste not want not' recycling kind of deal.

To this day I only go doodoo about once per week, and then never in the house! Generally out in some totlot underneath the tire swing......

Our clothes were made out of road killed weasels and pine sap...rags were just too expensive for us..So Momma tarred us up with sap and glued weasel fur onto us boys in the Fall, and we were expected to make it through the Winter without complaining. Good Lord what I wouldnt give for a set of mouse fur mittens!

To this day, I'm not sure about whether or not I like music? The Wife once got us tickets to the Chicago Symphony in a roundabout way off a sidewalk peddler when we were in town setting up a trade show at McKormick place once.........cost me $20 just to park..No beer sold at the concessions either... The night's performance featured a composer named "Wagner" Like the guy who invented the paint spray gun? 'Cept pronounced with a V instead of a W? .....

So I went anyway, since I've painted houses for money, and there had to have been at least a hundred fiddlers sawing away like billy be damned!....I'm like...Holy Friggin bleep! Plus a guy couldnt smoke...so the hell with that! :laughing: So no, I dont like music or hard work of any sort...I'm not so sure I enjoy Life either? Its like theres always something! You must be rich!:laughing:
 
Last edited:
Mud-puppy said:
Sooo..you had an outhouse?, whats running water?, and you even went to school? Me and my 6 brothers had to share clothes, and boots even... well, not really clothes or boots, just grain sack ponchos and old tire innertube fabricated Jesus Creepers...You took a few steps and handed them off like in a relay race.....We were not allowed to go Doodoo out of doors, or in an outhouse! It had to be in the Hog slop trough and only once per week! We Brothers each had different days, so the hogs got fed..so yeah like 'waste not want not' recycling kind of deal.

To this day I only go doodoo about once per week, and then never in the house! Generally out in some totlot underneath the tire swing......

You know the famous Dolly Parton song 'Coat of Many Colors?' Yeah...She lived up the hollow in a good neighborhood, in a nice dovetailed cabin instead of a hole in the ground like us......Her Momma made her a coat out of rags! Our clothes were made out of road killed opossum and pine sap...rags were just too expensive for us..So Momma tarred us up with sap and glued opossum fur onto us boys in the Fall, and we were expected to make it through the Winter without complaining.

To this day, I'm not sure about whether or not I like music? The Wife once got us tickets to the Chicago Symphony..cost me $20 just to park..No beer sold at the concessions either... The night's performance featured a composer named "Wagner" Like the guy who invented the paint spray gun? 'Cept pronounced with a V instead of a W? .....

So I went anyway, since I've painted houses for money, and there had to have been at least a hundred fiddlers sawing away like billy be damned!....I'm like...Holy Friggin bleep! Plus a guy couldnt smoke...so the hell with that! :laughing: So no, I dont like music or hard work of any sort...I'm not so sure I enjoy Life either? Its like theres always something! You must be rich!:laughing:
Click to expand...

So go ahead, is this how you get your kicks coming on this forum and jerking on the noobies? No wonder you got over 11,000 post !
I know the first time I joined this forum and my first post I asked advice on a good detector. And your reply had the attitude like I didn't know zilch about metal detecting just because I'm a noobie to the forum.
I know you ain't told me nothing I don't already know!

I thought it would be humorous to put my location as "Podunk"

I wasn't kidding when I was sharing my life history. So go ahead !
 
eightstrgs said:
So go ahead, is this how you get your kicks coming on this forum and jerking on the noobies? No wonder you got over 11,000 post !
I know the first time I joined this forum and my first post I asked advice on a good detector. And your reply had the attitude like I didn't know zilch about metal detecting just because I'm a noobie to the forum.
I know you ain't told me nothing I don't already know!

I thought it would be humorous to put my location as "Podunk"

I wasn't kidding when I was sharing my life history. So go ahead !
Click to expand...

If you know so much whatcha ask for? Thats a New Yorker for you! Talking! "How do I get to Carnegie Hall?" :laughing:
 
Mud-puppy said:
If you know so much whatcha ask for? Thats a New Yorker for you! Talking! "How do I get to Carnegie Hall?" :laughing:
Click to expand...

See! There ya' go! You tell people you're from NY and they automatically think you're from the f888ing city! That's why I put Podunk.

I lied about uphill both ways to school !

I did enjoy your story though !
 
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