Post your lf I knew then what I know now stories.

excav

Jr. Member
Jul 16, 2011
43
44
northwest coast of ohio
Primary Interest:
Beach & Shallow Water Hunting
Post your 'lf I knew then what I know now' stories.

l'll start:
When I was at the age when the most important things lived under rocks in the creek my friend and I spent a lot of time haunting a small creek near his house. This creek, as I said, small but with a few larger pools. We hunted the same areas a lot and I had noticed a different shaped object on the bottom of one of the pools on several occasions. I never paid much attention because the most important things lived under the rocks or jumped in the water when you spooked them.
One time one of the kids from the trailer park came with us. He took one look at the object in that pool and was gone. Soon he came back with his much older brother. I have been calling this a pool but it was more like an oversized puddle maybe 16 inches deep. He got the rusted muddy thing out of the puddle and left. I don't think he had much use for little kids.
After we were done creeking we went over to this other kids house and there was older brother scrubbing something in a bucket of kerosene. What it was, he told me, was a German Lugar. As I remember it couldn't have been in the water very long because it was cleaning up pretty good. He was trying to get the action working. If I knew then......
Another time, when I was much older - maybe late twentys I took my family to an island in Lake Erie for a short vacation. A friend had built a cottage on this island, we had done the excavating really cheap, and he let me use the cottage for free.
There were no real beaches there but there was a place at the water's edge where the water had washed the soil away and there was a gravelly area. It was a small area, maybe only 6'long and16" wide. I was looking around there one day and noticed some very small donut shaped thing mixed with the gravel. I picked one up and thought "I wonder what kind of animal would make a shell like that in this lake?". I was going to pick some up before we left but never did. I think there must have been at least a dozen of them from what I could see.
I've always looked on beaches as I now live very near some of them. I never find donut shaped things. Then not long ago, lurking on tnet I ran across a thread about pre-historic stone beads, small ones. If I knew then.........

 

Charlie P. (NY)

Gold Member
Feb 3, 2006
13,004
17,108
South Central Upstate NY in the foothills of the h
Detector(s) used
Minelab Musketeer Advantage Pro w/8" & 10" DD coils/Fisher F75se(Upgraded to LTD2) w/11" DD, 6.5" concentric & 9.5" NEL Sharpshooter DD coils/Sunray FX-1 Probe & F-Point/Black Widows/Rattler headphone
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
I would have put fewer gum/baseball cards in my bike spokes and more in a strong box.

I would have shot fewer bottles at the dump near the Kilmer's Swamp Root factory where I grew up.

I would NOT have set my G.I. Joes up in the back yard and shot them all up with BBs.

I would have bought a lot of Apple and Home Depot stock when it first went public.

I would have asked my Dad to take me fishing more.
 

FreeBirdTim

Silver Member
Sep 24, 2013
3,786
6,776
Scituate, RI
🥇 Banner finds
1
Detector(s) used
Garrett AT Pro
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
My girlfriend bought me a Radio Shack metal detector for Christmas in 1988. She thought I might have fun with it. I used it a few times, but never found one coin with it. Just dug up a lot of trash. I sold it at a yard sale a few years later. I started metal detecting again in April 2013 and have been doing it ever since.

If I had stuck it out and found a few coins back then, everything would have been different. I wonder how many silver coins and relics I would have found if I hadn't wasted those 24 years in between metal detectors...
 

tennessee

Full Member
Feb 8, 2013
228
85
East tennessee
Detector(s) used
Garrett
Primary Interest:
Relic Hunting
Been hunting Civil War relics for past 35 years. Ruined a lot, A LOT, of relics because of my lack of knowlege of preserving them. Not all recipes for preservation are good ones. Cleaning and preserving are two seperate things. Over cleaning can ruin some artifacts. Should I thank you for reminding me? Well okay, thanks for your post.
 

DeepseekerADS

Gold Member
Mar 3, 2013
14,880
21,725
SW, VA - Bull Mountain
Detector(s) used
CTX, Excal II, EQ800, Fisher 1260X, Tesoro Royal Sabre, Tejon, Garrett ADSIII, Carrot, Stealth 920iX, Keene A52
Primary Interest:
Other
IMAGE0007.JPG

That's me in about 1951 or '52 standing in front of the log house built in about 1803 by my maternal ancestors. At the other end of the house, not shown on this picture, was an added room. My great grandfather was a jack of all trades, and a photographer... That added room was full of crates of photographic plates on glass.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photographic_plate

We were little, my cousins and I. We'd take handfuls of those glass plates up into the woods and throw rocks at them.

None survived, we destroyed them all
 

Last edited:

Hitndahed

Hero Member
Dec 4, 2014
866
874
Deep in the woods in South Central Pa.
Detector(s) used
Fisher CZ7 Pro
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
View attachment 1243098

That's me in about 1951 or '52 standing in front of the log house built in about 1803 by my maternal ancestors. At the other end of the house, not shown on this picture, was an added room. My great grandfather was a jack of all trades, and a photographer... That added room was full of crates of photographic plates on glass.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photographic_plate

We were little, my cousins and I. We'd take handfuls of those glass plates up into the woods and throw rocks at them.

None survived, we destroyed them all
==============================================
ARRRRGH,,,
Where is that DISLIKE button anyway?
I have pretty much the same tales of loss, misplace and destruction al all here who took time to post.
But I REALLY wish I would have kept my MUSCLECARS.
Deep sigh
 

Brojekk

Newbie
Oct 8, 2013
1
2
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
i would have bought a bunch of the original Star Wars action figures back in the late 70s.
 

Crappies-n-Coins

Bronze Member
Nov 25, 2015
1,154
810
N/W MS
Detector(s) used
Tesoro Vaquero, DeLeon, Cibola(s), Compadre, Fisher 1265x, Garrett II PinPointer
Primary Interest:
Other
Wouldn't have spent $20 on batteries last week before running across a box containing these (all of which tested good/new). :BangHead:

Is there a TV show called "Battery Hoarders"? :laughing7:

PC050001.JPG

I'd also started a post regarding switching to rechargables. Guess I just saved myself some $$
PC050002.JPG
 

Msbeepbeep

Gold Member
Jun 24, 2012
15,787
24,131
MA
Detector(s) used
M-6, pro pointer, pistol probe
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Lived in Colorado in the 50's, Florida in the 60's.....before I got into detecting & treasure hunting...:(
I would still like to know who the diver in Florida was that gave my mom the piece of eight to give to me '64-65.
 

TheHunterGT

Bronze Member
Feb 2, 2015
1,246
1,847
Central California
Detector(s) used
Anfibio Multi - T2 Classic - F75+ - G2+....and MANY more tested and reviewed.
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Born 1975 in California...until I moved to Colorado in 2000. Been here ever since...and have grown to love gold prospecting and then later "general" MDing.

Knowing what I know now about prospecting and MDing at 40....I would have loved to have known at 16. All those summer back-country trips and all those old 1800's buildings near the cobblestone filled rivers....all makes sense now. Oh the fun I could have been having.
 

BigWaveDave

Gold Member
Nov 22, 2013
9,322
16,996
Mountain Maryland
🥇 Banner finds
2
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
4
Detector(s) used
Garrett AT Pro, AT Max, Minelab
Equinox 800
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
I was born and raised in Plymouth Ma... all of my friends and family had houses that were super old, and mine was the best of all... Had a huge backyard, that before then had been the neighborhood landfill.... I moved to FL 20 years ago, and only been MD'ing for about two years.. I can only imagine the number of Pine Tree coins, cobs, shillings, buckles, etc... I'd have dug by now,but instead I get all wet finding Mercury dimes.:BangHead:
 

Peyton Manning

Gold Member
Dec 19, 2012
14,536
18,691
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
MXT-PRO
Sandshark
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
wow, well dating Marilyn Monroe was a waste!

buying all the $300 kruggerands would have been good

I guess selling the rights to my design of the corvette was less than ideal
 

bigfoot1

Silver Member
Nov 1, 2011
3,765
3,399
so.cal.mtns.
🥇 Banner finds
1
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
garrett,minelab,fisher,,,atp current weapon of choice
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
I would have saved all the money I ever spent on partying and women....so I could spend it all right now on partying and women
 

goldkey

Hero Member
May 21, 2013
911
501
Middle Tennessee
Detector(s) used
Nokta/Macro Anfibio Multi / Nokta Fors Core /Ace 250 - w/ 9"x12" Coil /
Whites TRX Bullseye
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I would have bought an ounce of gold each week with my paycheck (when gold was $35/$40 an ounce) and saved it.....instead of partying on the weekend and being broke come Monday.
I would have spent more time with my step-dad when he was out metal detecting the civil war sites (Franklin,Tennessee) when it was legal to do so ( late 60's, early 70's).
We also had a house in the middle of Thompson Station, Tennessee where Nathan Bedford Forrest horse was shot out from under him during that battle. When my step-dad was much older before he died, he told me about hunting that area when there were buckles being found, still on top of the ground.
I would have done more to make sure I married my high school sweetheart....instead of always looking for greener pasture!
Regret is bittersweet.......mostly bitter.
 

joetoilet

Jr. Member
Mar 2, 2013
53
33
Perry Florida
Detector(s) used
AT Pro/Whites M6
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
I would have started out dumb and gotten smarter, rather than starting out dumb and getting dumber.
 

Boatlode

Bronze Member
Mar 30, 2014
1,728
3,034
Florida Treasure Coast
Detector(s) used
Tesoro Sand Shark......
Nokta Pulse dive....
Scubapro Jet Fins...................
Mares Puck dive computer.......
Sherwood Silhouette BCD.......
Poseidon Cyklon 300 regulator...
Primary Interest:
Shipwrecks

Limitool

Gold Member
Jun 9, 2013
5,264
6,816
Middle TN. area
Detector(s) used
White XLT Spectrum E-Series
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
I wouldn't have wasted 31 years working for GM. I hated it and know I could have made much more money and enjoyed life more doing and running my own business. Was thinking with the little head and it got me into trouble... go figure!
 

TheRingFinder

Bronze Member
May 22, 2013
2,223
1,991
Minnesota
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
3
Detector(s) used
Minelab - E-Trac / Excalibur
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I would have saved all the money I ever spent on partying and women....so I could spend it all right now on partying and women

Ha!! Great one Bigfoot - Actually made me laugh out loud!!! I'm right there with ya!!!!
 

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