National Metal Detecting Association??

Perquimans

Forum Supporter
Joined
Oct 2, 2011
Messages
1,864
Location
Eastern NC
Is there a national organization that promotes the interests of those who metal detect? I know there are local and possibly state organizations. Seems like that would be a great way to have our voices heard!
 
I don't know of any but I have never looked into it. I know that Dick Stout from Stout Standards has a strong feeling that MDers, prospectors, and other treasure hunters should join together and protect our hobby/interests. I have to say that it makes since to me.
 
I guess I’m still wondering why they don’t have members everywhere??

My guess is that your typical really-serious-about-it treasure hunter is a loner, unlikely to join any group. There's a large amount of secrecy attached to this hobby for a lot of practitioners, and they'd just as soon not be noticed at all. Leave 'em alone and they're happy.

For the hobbyist coinhunters, there just aren't enough of them in most communities to form a club. I've seen maybe 5 people metal detecting my town in the 31 years I've lived here. (And they may all have been the same guy.)

As for FDMAC, I'm not sure what they offer an individual. They have a link to their forum on their website, but the link is dead. Dead links on home pages are not good.

They don't run contests or give away prizes, they don't publish a magazine - they just want your dues. (I quit Cub Scouts because I had to pay a dime dues fee every week and never saw a return on that investment.)
 
My guess is that your typical really-serious-about-it treasure hunter is a loner, unlikely to join any group. There's a large amount of secrecy attached to this hobby for a lot of practitioners, and they'd just as soon not be noticed at all. Leave 'em alone and they're happy.

For the hobbyist coinhunters, there just aren't enough of them in most communities to form a club. I've seen maybe 5 people metal detecting my town in the 31 years I've lived here. (And they may all have been the same guy.)

As for FDMAC, I'm not sure what they offer an individual. They have a link to their forum on their website, but the link is dead. Dead links on home pages are not good.

They don't run contests or give away prizes, they don't publish a magazine - they just want your dues. (I quit Cub Scouts because I had to pay a dime dues fee every week and never saw a return on that investment.)
Didnt even get to see any brownies, Dan??????????????
 
Didnt even get to see any brownies, Dan??????????????

Never saw a Brownie at Cub Scouts meetings, but there were plenty of them in my school class. Wore their brown outfits every Tuesday, I think.

(My wife was a Brownie, but I didn't meet her until college.)
 
Maybe one day we wished we had. Allot of the reason why us long time hunters are always saying to save the dirt ,fill the holes(sand or dirt) and be respectful,clean about it is we don't want our hobby to be taken away from us.
I would move if my state or state I lived in ever banned detecting, They wouldn't care but it would be a disposition for me and a few others.
 
I want a single, well-funded advocacy group that embraces social media technology to achieve its goals, and has full accountability and reporting on its efforts. I want a meaningful, nationally-recognized certification program that allows skilled, thoughtful and ethical detectorists to leverage the group's credibility when they are practicing their hobby.

I will be happy to pay healthy dues to such a group.
 
we seem to be losing one park, one city, one state at a time. if we do not stand up and be heard, our hobby is doomed. i would pay dues for the voice of our hobby to be heard. mostly it is letting folks know what we are about, not what they think [ boom baby]. HH blev
 
Help for our hobby

we seem to be losing one park, one city, one state at a time. if we do not stand up and be heard, our hobby is doomed. i would pay dues for the voice of our hobby to be heard. mostly it is letting folks know what we are about, not what they think [ boom baby]. HH blev

Help for our hobby WWATS.ORG World Wide Association of Treasure Seekers
Public Lands for the People, Inc. WWW.PLP2.ORG
 
My guess is that your typical really-serious-about-it treasure hunter is a loner, unlikely to join any group. There's a large amount of secrecy attached to this hobby for a lot of practitioners, and they'd just as soon not be noticed at all. Leave 'em alone and they're happy.

For the hobbyist coinhunters, there just aren't enough of them in most communities to form a club. I've seen maybe 5 people metal detecting my town in the 31 years I've lived here. (And they may all have been the same guy.)

As for FDMAC, I'm not sure what they offer an individual. They have a link to their forum on their website, but the link is dead. Dead links on home pages are not good.

They don't run contests or give away prizes, they don't publish a magazine - they just want your dues. (I quit Cub Scouts because I had to pay a dime dues fee every week and never saw a return on that investment.)

I agree. I could easily not get involved and hunt as much as I want where I live. I’ve even hunted behind the police station and was asked the next day by a police office if I found anything good!! I guess a huge determining factor may be where you live. I would join a national group however for the good of our sport if I knew for sure they were dedicated to our cause...
 
I want a meaningful, nationally-recognized certification program that allows skilled, thoughtful and ethical detectorists to leverage the group's credibility when they are practicing their hobby.

Then it would cease to be a hobby and would become a trade. An un-needed, unpaid trade which requires expensive and time consuming training to be certified.

NO THANK YOU!
 
If the government is banning detecting based on the removal of say, Indian artifacts by the irresponsible few, isn't it reasonable to insist on training and signing an agreement on how to treat those sites and report them to regain access to those lands?

Either way we have two options that PS alluded to, we organize and standardize metal detecting, or the hobby dies.

Waiting until we have no place to go and people are frustrated and giving up is a bad time to try achieving solidarity. It's better to start when there is high interest, numbers, and we are already communicating.
 
If the government is banning detecting based on the removal of say, Indian artifacts by the irresponsible few, isn't it reasonable to insist on training and signing an agreement on how to treat those sites and report them to regain access to those lands?

Either way we have two options that PS alluded to, we organize and standardize metal detecting, or the hobby dies.

Waiting until we have no place to go and people are frustrated and giving up is a bad time to try achieving solidarity. It's better to start when there is high interest, numbers, and we are already communicating.

The government doesn't want us to remove Indian artifacts, but it was the same government that authorized the slaughter of millions of Indians. Such a happy hypocrisy we live in. I also love the argument that we destroy the soil. That one always makes me chuckle. You mean I'm "destroying" dirt, or grass that grows back, but it's OK for kids to play football on the same soil and turn it into a patch of mud, since that's "OK"? Seems legit. o_O
 
The government doesn't want us to remove Indian artifacts, but it was the same government that authorized the slaughter of millions of Indians. Such a happy hypocrisy we live in. I also love the argument that we destroy the soil. That one always makes me chuckle. You mean I'm "destroying" dirt, or grass that grows back, but it's OK for kids to play football on the same soil and turn it into a patch of mud, since that's "OK"? Seems legit. o_O

Yes sir. I guess if it had not happened like that it wouldn't be such a sensitive issue.

Personally I only really care about coin and jewelry hunting. The fact that we can't hunt National Parks for example is annoying from an MD standpoint, but also personally offensive because I'm being singled out like some kind of criminal.

I will put my money where my mouth is, when it comes to flipping over these bans.
 
I think it would be good to have one group as Pocketspill mentions. Where do you start though? In my mind manufacturers should take the lead. I teach motorcycle safety classes for the MSF. The MSF is sponsored by all the major motorcycle companies and work towards educating the masses as well as work with governments on all levels. It seems to work well. I think you could have a board of directors that steered the group and then a group that acts on behalf of the organization representing the members. If everyone pitched in either financially or by sweat work we could have a powerful group who could probably change the perception that the general public has about MDers.
 
I think it would be good to have one group as Pocketspill mentions. Where do you start though? In my mind manufacturers should take the lead. I teach motorcycle safety classes for the MSF. The MSF is sponsored by all the major motorcycle companies and work towards educating the masses as well as work with governments on all levels. It seems to work well. I think you could have a board of directors that steered the group and then a group that acts on behalf of the organization representing the members. If everyone pitched in either financially or by sweat work we could have a powerful group who could probably change the perception that the general public has about MDers.

That's a great idea.

Here's the trap that we can fall into.

If an organization existed before, effective or not, it is "easier" to endorse. But don't just take the "lazy" route. This means that we're more likely to keep plodding alone with old-school advocacy just because organization X has a new president, or because organization y published a new newsletter. STOP... don't do it.

It is 2013, not 1975. It's time to move on.

Model this after existing successful organizations. Get good advice from experienced organizers in other disciplines that are successful nationwide. There is no reason to start from scratch.
 
I actually have a chapter about this in my book (The Metal Detecting Manual). My idea was to model the institution after the B.A.S.S. fishing organization.
 
Back
Top Bottom