Big Boys Hobbies

Thought I got it all...I was wrong! (warning, a long one)

DIGGER27 said:
I have only been doing this a year and a half, so I am by no means any sort of expert.
Still kind of a newbie in my eyes, compared to a lot of you.
One thing I am very good at, however, is reading and researching and learning.
If I don't know something, I know how to find other more experienced people that do...so I seek out and listen to them.

Last year I was looking for some info on search patterns and came across a guy named Bill Revis who wrote a few articles for Treasure depot magazine.
http://www.thetreasuredepot.com/tdmag.html

He made complete sense to me, about this subject, and some others.
I have come to find out that he is also known as Uncle Willy, and he hangs out at the Finds Treasure forum in the Garrett section...over 800 PAGES of posts, listed.
Seems pretty experienced to me.

(A side note...Bill is a little older now and in the hospital.
I think a few prayers sent his way for a guy that has been trying to help so many in this hobby for so many years is not so much to ask.)

So in one of his articles I read this, and I understood it, but I always thought the numbers were a little mind boggling...

The average coin or ring will fit into a none inch by one inch space. If you are hunting a patch of only 20X 20 this equates to 57,600 square inches or that many potential targets.

Let's say your machine is equipped with an eight-inch coil and you make a four foot pass with each scan. Even if you overlap each pass you will more than likely miss a minimum one-inch strip each scan ( 48 square inches or targets.) Say it takes fifty passes to cover the twenty feet, then you make four more passes up and down to cover the 20x 20 area, for a total of five passes. Each pass you sacrifice 48 square inches, times 50 passes = 2400 square inches. Five trips up and down the site times 2400 = 12,000 square inches or 12,000 possible targets you missed scanning this site. If only one percent of those 12,000 square inches actually contained a target, you left 120 targets behind. Multiply that by every 20x 20 patch contained within the area you are hunting ( such as a park ) and you begin to get the picture. Scary ain't it? And you thought you were doing so good.

Then, a couple of weeks ago, I read another paragraph written by someone else with much experience, and for the life of me I can't remember by whom, but he said pretty much the same thing but in a different way.
He asked a question...

How long would it take you to search a 10x10 area in order to do it right and cover the most ground and locate the most targets?

10 minutes
1/2 hour
1 hour
More than one hour

The answer, according to him, was the last one.

Recently, an experience I had brought these ideas home and something clicked.
A eureka moment, I call those.

Some of you might have read a post or two of mine where I talk about a large high school parking lot with those grassy island dividers, and how many targets I am recovering from this site.

I first hit it last November on a day where I found a record amount of coins and clad, for me, a silver ring and several other cool things.

That day, I had covered most of this large area in a few hours.
Every time I swung it seemed I would find a good target, and I was tired from all that digging, but very happy.
Found over 130 coins including 90 zincolns and copper pennies that trip, and even though they are a hassle, I dig zinc because I have found several really cool medallions, medals, pins and tokens that were made of this metal.
I also know larger gold rings can come in at zinc, too, and I sure don't want to miss those.


I went back a few weeks later and found some more clad, another small silver ring, and a few more pins and other goodies, but much less than before.
That time I covered most of the area again, in a few hours.

Went back again for short hunts a few times after, still found stuff, but pickings were getting slim.

Then, last week, I hit this place again, but this time I decided to go very slow and swing a very tight pattern and really overlap.
I was looking for some jewelry because I figured I already got most of the clad.
Boy was I wrong.
$4.99 in clad, some other trinkets, no jewelry but over 90 coins including over 50 zincolns and copper pennies,
I was dumbfounded!

The first trip here I picked up 130 coins and over 90 pennies.
Subsequent trips I picked up several more coins but a lot less and not so many pennies.

Last week, after covering not the whole area, like I usually do, but just a very, very small section which I had already gone over several times with 2 different detectors, well, it was like I had never hit this place before or had taken a thing out of the dirt from this place in the past.

The difference....going slow and that very tight pattern.

Those ideas and advice from those two experts and others I have read hit me like a ton of bricks...I get it now.
Eureka!!

I had to see if I was right about this.
Sure, every time I go out with any detector I swing I try to pay attention and learn something new and continue to get better at this wonderful hobby, and it seems to be working.
But it was that tight pattern and slow swinging that was making this old site seem new to me again.

This past Sunday, I went back.
Just a very, very small section was targeted again with that slow and tight search pattern
Over 100 coins, 70 of them zincolns or copper pennies, a few nice pins and trinkets, and another cool and different large zinc music medal/ award...the second I have found at this place.

Now I realize my old sites that I rotate and hit...the ones I have been getting bored with because there is less and less to find, those probably need a return visit too...only this time there is a new sheriff in town with a new way of hunting.

Not to mention that hitting the exact same areas that I have pulled so much out of in the last two weeks, maybe by coming at them from a different angle they might produce even more.

Several of you have said it...grid the area...hit it from different angles, swing slow in a tight pattern.

Yea...I get it now.
An old dog can learn some new tricks, it seems.

My eyes are now truly opened and I am really looking forward to my next several hunts at my old haunts.

Just thought I would let you guys know.

HH.
Click to expand...

Great story Digger with some great tips. Can't wait to try some of these ideals on todays hunt. Well done sir!
 
I read this post again Digger - very good - I did the same thing at the first park I ever hit last year. It continues to come up with stuff and when you use a different machine it helps.

I see ppl going way to fast swinging but that's good for me, more for me!!
 
hey fishin,

I use the discrim all the time and usually have iron, foil, and tabs disced out. I am going to hit the same park again and dig everything. I have not found one gold item yet but have found silver. I disc out items b/c its hard work digging everything but then I miss things. Lot of articles on that web page.
 
demyansk1942 said:
hey fishin,

I use the discrim all the time and usually have iron, foil, and tabs disced out. I am going to hit the same park again and dig everything. I have not found one gold item yet but have found silver. I disc out items b/c its hard work digging everything but then I miss things. Lot of articles on that web page.
Click to expand...
Try it!

Imagine a walk through security metal detector was in use but the screening officer turned up the discrimination because it was annoying to hear all the extra beeps. One of those extra's could turn out to be (in this case) a weapon... Yep it's an odd analogy.

Same as ground detecting, if the point is to search for objects, why not slow down and desensitize the machine a little more and take the annoying with the possibility of a good value or sentimental item being found.

Can't wait to get out in a bit to test this new approach :)
 
DIGGER27 said:
Thanks.
At least a helpful blog, anyway.
Click to expand...
Should I do the same slow, overlapping hunt on the beach as well? Usually I have about 2 to 2 1/2hr of hunting time and I'm not pretty sure where the good targets are, so I tend to swing faster, hoping to cover a bigger area before slowing down when I hit a good target. I have tried swinging really slow and overlapping every swing on the beach, but I could only cover less then 50m in 2 hours of hunt. So, what should I do? Where should I start when I hit the beach, so that I can have higher chances of getting the best target, and concentrate in covering the entire area by swinging slow. Thanks.
 
demyansk1942 said:
hey dig,

another good article on coin shooting and discrimination

http://www.thetreasuredepot.com/issue2/coinshooting.htm
Click to expand...

That article was written over a decade ago (last updated March 2002), and technological advances have made much of what is written there obsolete.

All those nickels it shows with the caption "Using high discrimination would have left all these nickels behind." is just no longer true. Notch discrimination and meters with number ID readouts now allow you to skip pulltabs and still find nickels.

And some detectors (the Fisher CZ series, for example), do not lose depth as discrimination is advanced.
 
Mosaic puzzles are small pictures (single grids) merged together to form a large picture (whole unit) right? Imagine the overall beach the large picture.
Now break down the beach to smaller grids (maybe 10x10 feet or slightly larger) and make a decision within twenty seconds which one to cover. Why only twenty seconds? Because the detector should be on the ground as soon as possible. It really does not matter which is a perfect spot. Approach a grid area as if you believe that is the general area you lost something and this may help trick your mind to focus more.

The beach pros on here could probably assist on a rough idea where to start but this may help.
 
demyansk1942 said:
Dan-- So, with the newer machines the article is sort of out of date?
Click to expand...

Though the article is out of date technology-wise, it is still right on in that too many people are sloppy in setting their machines and listening to and evaluating the sounds they are hearing.

The only machines that lose everything below the discrimination point nowadays are the ones with straight linear discrimination (no notch filter and no meter).
 
dan said:
That article was written over a decade ago (last updated March 2002), and technological advances have made much of what is written there obsolete.

All those nickels it shows with the caption "Using high discrimination would have left all these nickels behind." is just no longer true. Notch discrimination and meters with number ID readouts now allow you to skip pulltabs and still find nickels.

And some detectors (the Fisher CZ series, for example), do not lose depth as discrimination is advanced.
Click to expand...


Incorrect. Given high discrimination is part of the equation it is assumed it's talking about hunting in trash and notch or not added discrimination is going to make you miss targets, and most likely the ones that are nearest the segment that's notched out because that's where there's the smallest margin to be accepted.
 
I haven't seen a detector yet that can guarantee this is a pulltab and not a nickel and vice versa. Some pulltabs read and sound just like a nickel, plus then you add the other ground variables. If you're skipping pulltabs, you are potentially missing nickels and gold jewelry no matter what detector you are using. JMHO.
 
I have started my 3rd year metal detecting. I love my machine and wouldn't trade it for anything else. It serves a purpose very well. I don't consider myself a rookie, and I am definitely not a seasoned veteran. By being a "seasoned" veteran, I mean a person who knows their machine, the nuances and quirks I'm sure they all have. They know how to fine tune the machine for the specific ground conditions and for the targets they are seeking. They know the sounds, signals, what the machine is telling them. They are able to pick out the subtle information, even amongst the iron and trash. They are then able to interpret that information. They have the ability and their machine has the capabilities to pull a silver coin 10 inches or more between two nails. They know how to set up their machine for any situation they come up against. They are one with their machine. The brand matters not, it's the person and the techniques developed through trial and error. Lots of books have written on specific brands. Lots have been written on where and how to hunt. I got a library full. Topics include maximum performance, maximum depth, coin shooting, jewelry, beach hunting and relic hunting, where to go, what to look for, the list goes on. I got them all. Knowing my machine isn't good enough. I found a new book. (OH NO, NOT ANOTHER ONE!) It is written by an active metal detectorist, who uses methods to get the results I want. He writes about changes in detecting strategies and techniques. At first read, I thought the about things I already knew. I read about simple things I either forgot or didn't know. This book has workouts listed in the back. I did the first workout at a park known for its trashy and I mean trashy areas. Even with my 4x6 DD coil, it was a workout. The point being after going over a 5 foot by 10 foot area trying to ID ALL targets before I dug them up, in the process I ended up with 39 good clad coins and part of a silver bracelet. I am looking forward going back with a larger coil. This park is over 100 years old, what else is under the trash? This is an example of why books can be an excellent tool for dectorists. I'm here to learn how to become better. I think I just need to go back to METAL DETECTING BOOT CAMP. It’s like Magic.
 
Got to be honest digger... I enjoy reading your posts. So much info your handing out to the rest of us. I decided I'd go back out and start moving real slow and overlap in what I thought was my own emptied out yard. Guess what?! I'm racking up! Its pretty much all clad except for three or four wheats which I was very excited to see. Its going to be a while now before I ever say my yard is hunted out. Plus it gives me and my little girl something to do during the day without having to leave the house!
 
shaggyfrog said:
Got to be honest digger... I enjoy reading your posts. So much info your handing out to the rest of us. I decided I'd go back out and start moving real slow and overlap in what I thought was my own emptied out yard. Guess what?! I'm racking up! Its pretty much all clad except for three or four wheats which I was very excited to see. Its going to be a while now before I ever say my yard is hunted out. Plus it gives me and my little girl something to do during the day without having to leave the house!
Click to expand...

I know some stuff.
Nothing that seems to impress the wife, however.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

O
Looking for iron
Replies
2
Views
185
jmaclen
J
maxxkatt
MyTrashyPark program for the XP2
Replies
5
Views
198
Big Boys Hobbies
Big Boys Hobbies
V
Trying out the legend
Replies
15
Views
584
markinmichigan
markinmichigan
W
Nox 600
Replies
13
Views
245
Big Boys Hobbies
Big Boys Hobbies
maxxkatt
Update your Profile and Signature
Replies
0
Views
84
maxxkatt
maxxkatt
Back
Top Bottom