Trashy farm, wrong machine?

[mlitty]

505 is only 155 more than 350. Is that enough?

...
Maybe I'll just get a smaller coil..... But a better detector would make me feel more manly

I LOVE my X-Terra 505. But I was upgrading from a BH Tracker IV. It was a massive upgrade for me.

I've never used an Ace 350, but looking at the Kellyco compare chart, aside from manual ground balance and the ability to change frequencies by changing coils (maybe noise cancelation?), I'm not sure you'd notice a big difference going from the Ace 350 to the 505. Those are great things, but you might want to save up for a more significant upgrade?

I'm thinking that what your situation calls for is more discrimination and fast recovery time, not necessarily a deeper penetrating machine. I wonder how a DD sniper coil would feel on that 350?

Anyone else with thoughts here?

 

[Mntnclmbr]

My conclusion...

Been detecting for just a year with my AT Pro. Got lucky with my second hunt and found a trifecta of silver dimes and a 1898 Indian head. Wow, easy peasy.
Wrong!
Went a long time (and many, many sites) with no more silver. Wondered if it was me, the machine or just dumb luck?
Was I missing silver that was just too deep for my machine (or my ability)??
Should I have waited and got an E-Track or CTX?
Hmmm...

Well, I recently tried a old area of town, kinda off the beaten path. Figured I'd dig any repeatable signal especially if deep. I dug everything. Seemed like I found only clad and what looked like a token. I usually don't look too close a my finds until I get home unless it looks like silver or an oddity. About 3 hours into the hunt found a nice Merc and called it quits for the day. Pleased with the Merc, got home and went through my finds. Turns out the token was way cooler than I expected. An 1863 store token with the store name being a street name today. Also had the city name on it. Turns out it is rated R8 rarity (less than 10 thought to have survived. Wow! What else in the pouch? 2 pennies turned out to be Indian heads 1876 dented one and an 1898 nice one.
Have gone back and found 2 more Indians and my first Barber dime.
Have only hunted about 5% of the area.

Sorry about being so long winded, but what I'm getting at is REMEMBER the finds have to be under your coil to find them!
There are tons of places that only have recent clad and junk.
There are places that just don't have much to find.
There are places that you are "just sure" will have wonderful old stuff!
There are places that have been already picked clean.

Take heart!! If you are persistent you WILL find a good location and be in Nirvana!
Good finds aren't sprinkled evenly over the earth. That's why there aren't many rich treasure hunters.
I am convinced that I could have found the above finds with a less expensive machine.
Conclusion: Have confidence in your practice and your machine. The enjoyment is in the search, there is no ultimate find. (Hmmmm, not sure about that one)

Take care and good Huntin!

 

[dan]

Mlitty, I see you're using a Tinytec! Where in the world did you find that?

How long have you had it?

Fred Wagner, the inventor/manufacturer, has been out of business for several years now, due to poor health. He and I used to write for Treasure Quest magazine, back in the day, and he is quite the wonderful guy.

 

[BuckDhamra]

The site I have been hunting this week must have had some kind of festival in the 1950's. I sat and dug nearly all the wheat pennies I found today without getting up. Funny thing about them was almost every one of them had sawdust stuck to one side of the coin. Got me thinking maybe a penny hunt for kids?? There are probably hundreds more as I found similar ones in small groups scattered across maybe 100 yards long by 50ft wide. Also found the silver yesterday in the same areas. This is an old farm and I believe it had a veggie stand at some point.

I guess where I was going with that was on a family farm there may not be many coins. Find the places where people gathered. My next spot is where they held fireman's picnics from the 1940's - 1970's. Might not be real old stuff but silver should be there! The shelter where they served beer and burgers is still standing. Can't wait for that!

Good luck!

 

[MrHobby]

I am recently new to Mding, but I am ready to giving in to digging "trashy" areas as I recently swung on a tot lot working the tot area. I wasn't doing very well so I went to the edge of the shelter house and started working it. I started picking up some clad (20 minutes around the shelter house had done more for me than over an hour of working the playground area). I had on a double D coil to try it out, but I am going to go back and start working the "trash" with my 4" coil. Where as when I thought about first getting into Md-ing I figured I would avoid the trashy areas. But now my thought is working heavy traveled and heavy trash areas might be better. And I am going to start "sniping" the area. And I have figured that after you get done digging the things from the surface, then you can start searching deep.

 

[abbynormal]

Try especially up around steps or sidewalks, and under any trees that look like they might have been a good climbing tree for kids back in the day. Also, I've hunted several farms and at least twice I had folks ask me to keep an eye out for a ring lost while hand milking goats or cows, so find out where things used to be and used to be done. Search those types of areas. Check out the front yard especially well; guests used the front door, such as travelling salesmen, preachers, etc. and might have had coinage to lose. These are the places I have found coins on old farms. Also, look where people might have been sledding or swimming back in the day.

 

[abbynormal]

My first farmhouse, I was using the ACE 350 and finding lots of trash and no coins. When I got frustrated I bought the small round sniper coil and my first 2 finds were a buffalo nickel and an Indian head.
I started searching in layers; using the stock larger coil to remove the junk and then going over it again with the sniper coil and yet again with the stock coil. Found 2 more Indian Heads, a cool token, and tons of other interesting artifacts. Farmyards just need patience and the finds will come.