Treasure Hunters/Metal Detectors

[Ambu]

Alright, who else watched the premiere of American Diggers?
Own up to it.
I'm pretty engrossed. I wanna try this out!

Who here is in to metal detecting? It looks like it'd pay itself off pretty quickly..

 

[AGarbers]

I had a White metal detector 30 years ago that I paid $600.00 for and I found about five bucks in change. I did find an old .32 rimfire and a V nickle while using the mtal detector but not with it. I just happened to look over and see both items laying on top of the dirt...
I moved to Arizona and it didn't want to work right with all the iron in the rock and soil so I traded it for a $100.00 black powder pistol, which got promptly dropped on the concrete floor and scratched. Not one of my better investments nor one of my best trades.
However, my wife and I are looking into getting a set new models just for the fun of it, however I don't know how quickly they'll pay themselves off. I would imagine everyone and their brother is buying them now, like buying storage units did after Storage Wars.
There are a few clubs in the state that get together and bury things just to have the fun of finding them, like finding Easter eggs.

 

[Hammer]

Who here is in to metal detecting? It looks like it'd pay itself off pretty quickly..

I have an older Whites and it does good for it's age. Some of the newer ones will discriminate some of the "Junk" but it also does not detect some of the good stuff too.

Pay off pretty quickly? LOL yea, what is the going rate for pull tabs?

 

[goinggreyfast]

Yeah, I watched it too. I think Ric Savage is a bit over the top. (s.a. when they found that bear trap) Considering his history, that's about par for the course with him though.

My Stepmother and her twin sister were into this years ago and it was strictly a hobby. I don't know that they ever really hit pay-dirt so to speak.

 

[hodgej1843]

I wanna do it

 

[fullmetaljesus]

Just get some of these fancy shoes, then you can detect metal every where you go

 

[LockStocksAndBarrel]

I have the DVR set.

 

[clt46910]

Back in the late 70's, I met a retired guy that searched the beach early every morning with a metal detector just for something to do. He did find a lot of rings, necklaces, and such. He never sold any that I knew of, he had a lot of cigar boxes full of stuff.

He said sometimes he did not find anything but most days he found a piece or two.

This was in Fort Walton Beach in Florida.

 

[meyer4589]

There was another show with two guys that went around digging on the national geographic channel I think it was called "Diggers"

 

[sonovasailor]

I have had a metal detector for 40 yrs+ now. There is treasure everywhere. I have found gold jewely in my own front yard.

 

[moischmoe]

There are a few clubs in the state that get together and bury things just to have the fun of finding them, like finding Easter eggs.

Just had an awesome idea: GeoCaching + metal detectors!

 

[Sasquatchhunter]

Pay for itself quickly? haha...no. It's just a hobby. Most people will not get rich with them. For every halfway interesting thing you find, you find buckets full of aluminum foil, sardine cans, nails, pull tabs, old coke can tops, bottle tops,.....you see where I'm going. I've been at it for three years now, and the neatest things I've found have been a horseshoe, horse bridal, a super old hoe digging tool head and an old children's toy shovel. On "American Diggers" its hard to tell the hours and hours and hours they spent looking for that kind of thing, and I wouldnt be shocked if the items had been planted sometime before.

 

[Ambu]

Pay for itself quickly? haha...no. It's just a hobby. Most people will not get rich with them. For every halfway interesting thing you find, you find buckets full of aluminum foil, sardine cans, nails, pull tabs, old coke can tops, bottle tops,.....you see where I'm going. I've been at it for three years now, and the neatest things I've found have been a horseshoe, horse bridal, a super old hoe digging tool head and an old children's toy shovel. On "American Diggers" its hard to tell the hours and hours and hours they spent looking for that kind of thing, and I wouldnt be shocked if the items had been planted sometime before.

I'm thinking more along the lines of finding gold jewelry, not so much 200 year old saws used by mountain men

 

[yotewacker]

I have one. I look for caverns underground with it. It was made for this.

 

[nicajack]

I bought a Garret Groundhog model in 1980. Was living in Fla. at the time. I think it cost about $269 at the time. I paid for it in about a year with the silver coins fund with it. Silver was about $30 an ounce. Didn't find but a little jewelry but only hunted a beach one time. Found a few neat old artifacts, also. Haven't used one in several years. Own 3 detectors right now. An old Whites Coinmaster and 2 Garrets. Probably should get one out and hunt a little with it.
I talked to a guy at the Kokomo gun show about 3 years ago, who claimed that he and friend found gold in the bedrock of the Wabash river around Pru, and Logansport. That wouldn't surprise me. Said they found mostly small nuggets in the cracks. That is where gold would accumulate....Hmmmm

 

[1$Chuck]

Just get some of these fancy shoes, then you can detect metal every where you go

Nice! and you'll also get left along because people will think your wearing a house arrest ankle monitor

 

[odie]

I agree with the guy on the pull tabs. My wife and I spent about 3 hours hunting this weekend and found about 30 pull tabs and 51 cents( I found 29 of the pull tabs and a penny)

 

[selinoid44]

I started detecting in January of this year. If you think your going to get rich your wrong. I've found a lot of cool relics and a couple of merc dimes. Clad count is about 5 bucks to date. Its strictly a fun hobby and if you want to get a good detector plan on dropping 650-1500 bucks. Do the research and get the machine thats right for your needs. Make nice plugs and put the dirt back just like you found it. Some states dont allow detecting and I think most state parks you have to have a permit to do it. These shows are giving ppl a bad impression of metal detecting when it comes to digging. Ppl dont want their yards dug up and left full of holes. These shows are giving us bad names so to speak. Kinda like it's the guns fault somebody got shot.

 

[gvsugod]

My dad does it alot. He has a small fortune in gold and jewelry and artifacts he has found. He loves it, I am not so much into it but do enjoy it from time to time. The best stuff he finds are when old towns tear up sidewalks, and in the summer he uses his water machine alot.

 

[Endofdays]

I roll a Garret 500. It's a blast digging up the strong sound of a diamond ring, only to reveal a nickel plated hex bolt. It's the thought that counts.