Old shotgun brass, dig or pass?

[RVRoamer73]

Doing a bit of woods hunting and finding some old shotgun brass scattered about and not much else. Can I assume these woods have not been hunted out, or maybe other hunters pass over these knowing what they are leaving and not bothering to dig...?

Thanks and HH

 

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[pepperj]

Digging the old head stamps can be some what rewarding in dating the site, but they get tiring as well if that's the only thing that's there it seems. I've hit areas that it seems that's the only thing left is shot gun shells, and then other things mixed in as well after hitting long enough. The brass sounds so good on certain machines and ring up pretty close in sound and ID #'s but it could be very well another find as a coin or relic. One doesn't really know unless digging it up and having a look. If the machine is giving exactly the same ID for every head stamp at the site, well then one could cherry pick over them and just checking once in a while if holding true.

 

[RVRoamer73]

Digging the old head stamps can be some what rewarding in dating the site, but they get tiring as well if that's the only thing that's there it seems. I've hit areas that it seems that's the only thing left is shot gun shells, and then other things mixed in as well after hitting long enough. The brass sounds so good on certain machines and ring up pretty close in sound and ID #'s but it could be very well another find as a coin or relic. One doesn't really know unless digging it up and having a look. If the machine is giving exactly the same ID for every head stamp at the site, well then one could cherry pick over them and just checking once in a while if holding true.

Thanks for your input pepperj....yes I will have to say on my machine they ID pretty much the same and being very old brass these are usually showing 4-6" deep and this depth does hold true also. Last couple of hunts dug 30 or so with some very old head stamps. UMC etc...only some iron and a couple small cal. CW round balls. In other words not much to show for the amount of woods I have been covering. So this question came to my mind and it might hold true that with all the brass in the area it had been hunted and some of the brass left undug. Thanks !!

 

[pepperj]

In other words not much to show for the amount of woods I have been covering. So this question came to my mind and it might hold true that with all the brass in the area it had been hunted and some of the brass left undug. Thanks !!

If it was truly hunted before these head stamps and lead would of been dug. Machines in the past 10 yrs have really helped in the IDing of finds with more accuracy, but one never knows as folks have been doing this for 50+ yrs now.

 

[RVRoamer73]

If it was truly hunted before these head stamps and lead would of been dug. Machines in the past 10 yrs have really helped in the IDing of finds with more accuracy, but one never knows as folks have been doing this for 50+ yrs now.

I suppose I am trying to justify my lack of relics in this particular area. I dig most all and even quite a bit of iron. Like you say to date the area. I am guessing many a coil has been checking these woods over the years...so much ground to cover with a 11 inch coil that I am sure every square foot has not been detected. Just as I swing randomly over the acres trying to find the iron fields and a possible old home site holding the good stuff...

 

[pepperj]

It's hard sometimes getting finds from certain areas as the foot traffic wasn't there to justify enough losses. Random drops in the woods are far and in between, but when one happens to get one it's usually pretty good. I tend to hot spot the area looking for the iron patches first digging a few to see if there's square nails, and what type. Your area has probably more history and has been inhabited longer than the areas around me. 1800 was still pretty remote for this area, so getting anything prior is hard to obtain.

 

[GB1]

the shot gun head stamps rings up as a penny signal for me but they are still fun to dig

 

[Tpmetal]

cant pass em up, might be buttons

 

[smokeythecat]

I was digging a bunch of these on a CW site, and thought I had another. It was a NY officers' coat button. Only 1 button to go with the 25 shotgun shells, but I took it!

 

[junkhunt]

Even old shotgun brass is better than a pull tab.

 

[Tpmetal]

Even old shotgun brass is better than a pull tab.

not in my neck of the woods. I dig at least twice as many shells than tabs. Sometimes I welcome the tab signals just because it might be a ring, and it's not a shell haha.

 

[Underwonder]

Just recently I had been digging up gunshot shells in the woods, and I was surely digging yet another one........when I was surprised to pull out my first VT copper! I would dig all those hits! Happy woods walking. Love it!

 

[RVRoamer73]

Thanks for all the replies and the why TO dig. It is good to hear most all dig the shotgun brass as I do, so according to this the hunters before me either missed or did not hunt the area thoroughly. This is then a GOOD sign, having the old shotgun brass undug will be keeping me more alert for a possible relic finding my coil. A good iron field wouldn't hurt either...

 

[sawmill man]

Just a few days ago i was digging up umc shells at a old school site ,yes imagine that, but then a signal got me a nice 1912 wheat ,i know not much but i was happy.