What do you do when.......?

saanich2018

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Apr 25, 2018
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Okay, I now have your attention.....and I know this may be a stupid question, but.....

What do you do when you want to go hunting and you get signals, but the ground is so hard it is like a rock?

I went out today to a field I know and after about thirty minutes I gave up due to fact the ground was so hard I could not dig into it. I only found 16 cents

I know this may be a stupid question, but I am sure others have run into this same issue.

When you look at videos of people hunting the ground is always soft and easy to dig into.

Do you just give up and move on or wait till a later time after it rains for a week? :dontknow:

I know now why I like the beach for hunting.....
 

A#1

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Feb 18, 2018
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I run into similar sometimes

Honestly......i carry a dead blow hammer in the truck

If i can get a fairly clean chunk out easy enough, I do. I attempt to make a clean dig, but the places I hunt are a bit more forgiving......full out state forest usually.

If not, i go somewhere else.
 

McKinney_5900

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Jul 30, 2010
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I have one park, ironically the closest park near me,,,that ground is so hard...I just quit going except for surface drops. I literally skip a dig showing a decent high conductor at 3 inches, when my Sampson shovel won't budge the very first inch.

I mean really! When a 220lb man, stands on a 31" Sampson shovel, and nothing gives except for minor scratch in the top of the ground? Fugget about it.

It would have to be a really historic spot to change my mind enough to literally chisel out a target.
 

dirtlooter

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wait for the rain to soften it and then hunt it hard before it gets hard again and it can get rock hard in a hurry at this time of the year
 

RayinAlaska

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Oct 23, 2018
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Okay, I now have your attention.....and I know this may be a stupid question, but.....

What do you do when you want to go hunting and you get signals, but the ground is so hard it is like a rock?

I went out today to a field I know and after about thirty minutes I gave up due to fact the ground was so hard I could not dig into it. I only found 16 cents

I know this may be a stupid question, but I am sure others have run into this same issue.

When you look at videos of people hunting the ground is always soft and easy to dig into.

Do you just give up and move on or wait till a later time after it rains for a week? :dontknow:

I know now why I like the beach for hunting.....

The best thing to do is to wait for the rain to come and soften the ground, but if you can't wait you could always try a prospector's pick like this one:
https://www.amazon.com/SE-GP-PK151-...ovel+and+pick&qid=1562480175&s=gateway&sr=8-6

Or this:
https://www.amazon.com/AMES-Compani...=B00KW4RP5M&psc=1&refRID=BB6EVWWG69T7XHZKWRM2

A shovel like this is also handy for big open fields where the ground is not too hard:
https://www.amazon.com/Lesche-1V_WW...wn-garden&sprefix=leash,lawngarden,241&sr=1-5
 

CoinHunterAZ

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Feb 18, 2013
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I completely understand your dilemma. If it's a good target, I will make every effort to chisel it out of it's hiding place. This Merc was embedded in clay as if it were in concrete. Got her though! Didn't wanna let someone else find it...Edit: had to find my notes from the date in mid-June, this is a Merc, but I chiseled out a Barber dime the same day and actually damaged it when I dug it. Concrete ground sucks.

merc.jpg
 

Last edited:

Goldfinger450

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Aug 28, 2017
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Ya know, there are small battery powered Jack hammer drills etc that make short work out of hard ground, and don't forget Micro blasters. lol I suppose it depends on how bad you want to dig some areas.

High frequency shovels will cut well too......?/? Huhh?
 

smokeythecat

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Nov 22, 2012
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I wait until conditions are better. If it's your permission or a public park, killing the grass won't help you...next time you want to go there and the answer is no because the grass was damaged. In woods, etc., just wait for better conditions.
 

OP
OP
saanich2018

saanich2018

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Apr 25, 2018
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I wait until conditions are better. If it's your permission or a public park, killing the grass won't help you...next time you want to go there and the answer is no because the grass was damaged. In woods, etc., just wait for better conditions.

Where I was going is public field, with no grass, but hard, dry dirt. No permission is required. I was mainly just playing learning my 800.

However, the ground was so blasted hard I could not dig into it
 

smokeythecat

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On great occasion, I carry a few bottle of water with me. If I get a very good signal, I put a few ounces on the ground and give it 5 minutes, then dig. It works somewhat.
 

Dan(NM)

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Dec 3, 2014
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Okay, I now have your attention.....and I know this may be a stupid question, but.....

What do you do when you want to go hunting and you get signals, but the ground is so hard it is like a rock?

I went out today to a field I know and after about thirty minutes I gave up due to fact the ground was so hard I could not dig into it. I only found 16 cents

I know this may be a stupid question, but I am sure others have run into this same issue.

When you look at videos of people hunting the ground is always soft and easy to dig into.

Do you just give up and move on or wait till a later time after it rains for a week? :dontknow:

I know now why I like the beach for hunting.....

Here's what I do :)

 

CoinHunterAZ

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Feb 18, 2013
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Flagstaff, AZ
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Dan, you're an animal!
 

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