Finally bought a metal detector

Hope everyone had a great holiday. Finally took the leap and ordered a metal detector. Nothing major. A Teknetics Alpha 2000 Metal Detector with 8" Coil for about $200 bucks shipped. Looked like a good beginning detector. Now to find some good spots around the Dallas/Fort Worth area to hunt.

 

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Good luck on the hunt and always ask before starting on any land that is not yours, it will save you grief.

 

I appreciate the advise. Thank you.

 

Have fun and let us know if you find anything.

 

Sure will Ripley. Thanks.

 

cool, i bought a cheap one for 90 bucks, found 7 cents and a ton of barbed wire.

 

Lol. I am sure you will find some better stuff in the future.

 

Love metal detecting although i haven't owned my own metal detector in forever. The second date i took my other half on was metal detecting, i rented one and we went to a few places, it went from eww i don't want to be digging to "what did you just dig up" then about 10 minutes and 2-3 old bottle tops later "let me do it you just wave the machine ill dig up the treasure." That date ended up lasting over 12 hours as we went from one place to another and "found treasure". Sitting on top of the dresser is a vase filled with all the garbage i mean treasure we found that day. I have tried to throw it all away many times but no dice.

Congrats on your purchase!

 

One must do some research before detecting. It is not something undertaken willy nilly.

 

A few tips. Carry a few 1-page search agreements with you, never know when you need one. I will send you one you can photocopy. Always carry some nasty sharp metal junk in your pocket so you can tell a cop that you are also removing harmful things from the environment.

Also, with a cop, offer to volunteer your time to search for evidence at a crime scene. They will never take you up on that offer, but it promotes a friendly encounter. Give them your card; that really makes a good impression.

KNOW when you are on Federal lands and when you are on private property; the laws are quite different. Buy treasure-hunting magazines, they are full of useful information. A big mistake that novices make, tilting the edge of the coil upwards at the end of its horizontal swing - that means you miss 10% to 20% of what's there. Keep that coil level to the ground at all times. Use rechargeable batteries - they're worth the initial investment. Don't mess with snakes. Stay out of anthills. The usual stuff.

If you have time, run a free ad somewhere offering to locate lost jewelry in someone's yard or garden. Charge one fee if you find it, charge a lower fee if you don't; that way, they know you're not sandbagging.

Old fence rows are a good place to search; out where they used locust wood for fence posts, it was not unusual to cut 3 inches off the bottom of a fence post, lift up the fence, and stash the poke under the shortened post. Locust never rots, and unless someone has run off with the barbed wire, the posts may still be there. Good luck!

 

Nice, doug!

 

I would also suggest that you go to your local park or neighborhoodplayground the first time you go out. You should find coins, junk, and maybesome costume jewelry. It is a great place to start learning how to interpretwhat your detector is indicating.

J

 

Thanks for the great advise. Can't wait to get to it but knowing the rules and places to go will make it more worthwhile. Thanks again!

 

A few more thoughts. Hide your name, address, phone, and email inside the box where it will be very difficult to find. Record the serial number(s). Carry a first-aid kit out in the boonies. In parks, etc., carry a ketchup squirt bottle full of flour to mark where you have been. Carry a few worn-out wheat cents and a worn-out Barber quarter to "surrender" to an irate landowner. Be careful in pastures, you never know what's on the back side of the hill.

Where people gathered overnight, like camp meetings and horse races, that's where you want to be, although most have already been thoroughly searched. Some states and cities have LAWS against metal-detecting; find out. Your cellphone may not work while the detector's on. Don't keep hunting if a storm comes up, that metal box and tube make a dandy lightning rod. Don't wear shorts. Don't wear sandals. Take a dog with you, if possible, one that won't run away and that stays near you; when you get a signal, give the dog a treat. Stay away from bushy creek banks - prime snake territory, all over the country; don't T-H at all during prime-time snake mating season - some are highly territorial and WILL go after you. Don't let kids "try out" your machine "just for fun." Carry a high-volume bicycle air horn on your belt. If you have a waterproof coil, and you see nice shallows, search upstream from the gravel deposits (but water over 6 inches deep is a nuisance). Your detector probably won't find gold nuggets, the coil's too big. Need a 2-inch coil for that, and I personally think it's a waste of time, maybe not in California and Oregon. I'll think of more.

 

Keep in mind it is illegal in just about every National and State Park. There are some where you can get a permit but not many. I know there are civil war sites where you will get a fine for being in the area with a metal detector.

 

I have a cheap one that doesn't have the imaging screen, it just beeps. After digging up about 20 holes in my yard, some wire, coke tabs, and junk was all that was found. Haven't used it since... :bangg:

 

Ah, technology! I have NEVER used one with an imaging screen.

 

I watched a new TV show last night about metal detecting called Diggers. The two guys on the show found a good number of coins. They also talk a lot about the process of metal detecting and history of the sites as well. TC

 

I have never metal detected, but I am curious if their is anything on my property and would like to check it out one time.

 

Thanks Doug. More great advice. Can't wait to try it out.