Frustrated digger

[rjeffw]

I can't lie, I have dug, and dug and the best finds I have are a plastic cup from a tea set and a arrowhead, neither of which are metal. Heck I can't even find cool junk. All i find is aluminum. I really dislike aluminum. The places I have permissions for should be good spots. Old houses, old inn you would think they would produce something. So my question to you is, what to do? I see some of you vets, say ignore the VDU, why? Some advice would be appreciated.

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

A History of Mining on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska - Grab it through Amazon!

[digger27]

What kind of detector are you using and how long have you been using it?

 

[sprailroad]

Same question as digger27, also, the VDI numbers are a helpful guide, but not to be the only guide, I believe going by sound is main source of detecting, and of course aluminum (as in pull tabs) will almost always fall in with the same numbers as gold rings. Really cannot add anything more because again as digger27 asked, :what kind of detector are you using", it CAN make a big difference, along with size of coil etc. etc. With alittle more infro. rjeffw, lot's of fella's here would be more than willing to try and help out. Hang in there.

 

[chub]

Try and think what actions the people were making at the time that would have possibly led to something bieng dropped. Was there a horse rail where people would mount and dismount? Where was the well or nearest water source? Where did people congregate etc.
It also sounds like you are in monotone or your detector cant discriminate. Try running full discrimination to cherry pick the high tones (silver).

Chub

 

[Mzjavert]

Modern trash can hide the great stuff below. So you have to get it out. That's why I normally hunt with low discrimination and dig everything. If I'm just in the mood to dig keepers, I'll turn the discrimination up. I have found that most display machines frustrating. Which is why I prefer audio only.

It can take a 100+ hours digging everything to really learn a specific detector. That's one thing I wish I'd known when I started out.

 

[RustyGold]

Do some air tests with known targets for example, a quarter, dime, penny before 1982 and a nickel.
Listen with headphones and as you wave the coins past your Coil try to discern the sound of each one. Are they clear sounding from edge to edge as you wave each one over the coil. Some will be similar.

Now do the same air test with a bent rusty nail, pulltab, foil and a screw cap. Again listen for the subtle changes in the sound or tone they make. They will have a different edge to them. For instance, some will warble a little while caps may have a harsh tone as it enters and leaves the detecting area under the coil.

Compare all of the above with the TID display and after some time in on the detector it will be easier to score better targets cause you won't leave them behind as often.
Take some time checking out target masking like when a Merc is between two rusty nails.

Have fun with it and stay positive.
Best of luck

 

[dirtlooter]

there is a ton more trash than good stuff in most places, you can easily dig 2-3 lbs of trash in some places. Sometimes I think I am digging the 20th or 30th pull tab like two days ago and it turns into a buff or even a ring. hunted hard for gold for two years and then in about one and a half months, ended up with 5 gold rings and several silver rings. it isn't all good stuff but it is addicting, especially if you do find something good. the trash can make a gold or silver even more precious to you as you find out the cost (for most of us) in trash and time. read my post Ever wonder if I'm doing this right, really good finds are mostly hard earned. it only takes one good place to turn your hunts around. good luck

 

[junkhunt]

I can't lie, I have dug, and dug and the best finds I have are a plastic cup from a tea set and a arrowhead, neither of which are metal. Heck I can't even find cool junk. All i find is aluminum. I really dislike aluminum. The places I have permissions for should be good spots. Old houses, old inn you would think they would produce something. So my question to you is, what to do? I see some of you vets, say ignore the VDU, why? Some advice would be appreciated.

That's all part the game.

 

[rjeffw]

I have a Garrett AT Pro. Which I think is a good unit, from reviews and many guys on You Tube that I enjoy watching use it as well.

As far as time, I am less than 100 hrs, I admit to being a novice, maybe I am expecting to much to quick.

Are headphones that important? I don't currently use them.

 

[Loco-Digger]

You can only dig what's there. If you are hunting prominent sites, more than likely they were detected to death over the decades since the 1970's. My virgin sites are old and less prominent and on side streets in the older parts of town. By prominent site I am meaning sites on highly traveled roads or have a lot of local history or interest.

 

[Loco-Digger]

Headphones are not necessary, but I always use them. They save battery life. I am a coin shooter who digs more trash when good targets are slim. At a good site my trash to treasure ratio averages 5 good targets to one bad.

 

[diggingthe1]

As long as you keep getting out the finds will come. I don't expect t much when I hunt. I maybe get something 1 out of 10 hunts. Sometimes its better sometimes worse. Keep at it, finding those old untouched area is key!! I unplug my headphones sometimes. You sure have some great advice from other members. Good luck!

 

[dsdigger]

The AT Pro is a good machine and a lot on here use it. I think you have a lot of good advise here and it is just remembering that on a lot of days you are going to find the trash piling up fast and the other may not and then you may hit that coil spill or find that spot under the huge shade tree everyone sat under to read and relax and coins and the occasional ring would escape to never be found again. You Tube vids only highlight the hits of the hunt and not the whole days' hunt and sometimes it looks like hit after hit. I like to watch them but remember that they may have gone through ten pulltabs or foil to find that coin or a long bit of silence before paydirt. I am searching around the apartment complex I live in and it is full of pull tabs, bottle caps, foil, nails and clad. I figure that if I keep looking, I clear out the trash and find the good stuff and it is just hitting the right place and knowing what the detector is telling me. Take time and Good Luck!

 

[FreeBirdTim]

Hunt in pro zero mode and discriminate out anything less than 80 (and turn off iron audio). That will eliminate most trash. Going after gold is a waste of time in trashy areas. Signals 80 and up will net you older pennies, dimes, quarters and silver jewelry. Have fun doing that until you get the hang of your machine.

 

[rjeffw]

The sites I have lined up to search, have never been searched, and they are mostly early 1900s and older. I have a few that are way out in the woods, that I hope to hit this fall, that are nothing more than a chimney.

 

[chub]

Feel free to post the pic of the plastic tea cup

Chub

 

[sprailroad]

If and when you can, buy the small 5X8 coil for the AT, love that thing for trash laden area's, you really do not lose much in depth at all, and of course in parks you really cannot dig a "pit" anyway, in woods and raw fields the stock coil is just dandy, and as mentioned, turn off iron audio, (unless you are relic hunting) and turn iron discrim up to say 35 to start with. With the AT I use pro zero mode, and do pretty good, having said all that, yes, I also dig a lot of junk, but it is the nature of the beast, no matter what detector you might use.

 

[pepperj]

I have a Garrett AT Pro. Which I think is a good unit, from reviews and many guys on You Tube that I enjoy watching use it as well.

As far as time, I am less than 100 hrs, I admit to being a novice, maybe I am expecting to much to quick.

Are headphones that important? I don't currently use them.

You answered part of the question right there 100hrs is nothing really when it comes to knowing/understanding a machine. Its like anything one has to put in the time to become efficient in the sport/hobby/or what ever one is trying to do. Example of what I can expect from buying a new machine even after 45+ yrs of playing the dirt digging crap. I think 1000 hrs down the road of digging gets me close in knowing the machine to a point of some confidence. Numbers on the screen lie most times as so many factors come into play for a signal and sound will be your best friend.
I went out this past Sunday, dug for 4 hrs and I had nothing in the pouch(even after emptying it 4 times) to even do a post, not that I didn't dig things it was mostly iron, or bits of aluminum, brass sheeting, and a few items that were ok.
The thing is I don't go out seeking the killer find, I go out to dig and in that process I guess (and wish) what the next target is before I dig. I don't think of anything, I forget about life, and all responsibilities when I go detecting. It's my time to unwind, dream of maybe just maybe it'll be a keeper. Then the unexpected happens I turn the sod and there it lays a round disk, made of copper, and sometimes silver, a cool piece of history, even a button, and it all comes up flooding the senses a keeper.
The main thing is not to get frustrated, enjoy, and when you get a little bummed out go hang it up for the day, and dream of another day to hunt.

 

[pa-dirt_nc-sand]

Here's my advice. It's summertime, take 2 hunts and hit your local elementary school playgrounds. You should find a couple of handfuls of modern coins in the mulch and sand areas. You will also find foil, pulltabs and bottle caps at a 1:1 ratio with the coins. After a couple of days at this, learning a penny sound, zincoln tone, dime nickel quarter, you will start to see how these are slightly different than the trash. You should be able to eventually swing and by the tone know "99% this is going to be a dime 4" down". You may even get lucky at the schools and pick up a ring. Main thing is to have some small success, don't get frustrated. Hunting old home sites is difficult weeding your way around iron, buried pipes and electrical cables and who knows what else took place over the century on these spots. Once you figure it out these old locations will produce for you. Good luck!

 

[junkhunt]

I have a Garrett AT Pro. Which I think is a good unit, from reviews and many guys on You Tube that I enjoy watching use it as well.

As far as time, I am less than 100 hrs, I admit to being a novice, maybe I am expecting to much to quick.

Are headphones that important? I don't currently use them.

I don't think headphones are all that important The only time I use them is when I have too. The mane thing I don't like about headphones is that you are shut off from the world around you. Anybody or anything could sneak up on you and you would never know it until it's to late. But if you do use then watch your back.