What is our detecting world coming to??

[gunsil]

I saw this ad on craigslist: Will pay to metal detect your land - $50 (Hudson Valley)
© craigslist - Map data © OpenStreetMap

(google map)
I am looking for old property that i can Metal detect on. I do this as a hobby and collect the things I find. I'm happy to bring some neat relics for you to see. The metal detecting will not disturb your property and you won't even know I was there. When the detector beeps I simply dig a small hole and then fill it back in neatly. I can offer a payment of $50 For properties built in 17 and 1800s that have a decent size lawn.

This guy or gal is going to make it harder for others to get good permissions!! PAYING $50.00 to detect a place, even if it is an old one?? Must be a newbie since around here most really old places have been landscaped over the years making it harder to find old goodies. Often the woods surrounding these old sites are where the goodies are more available. Heck, I have detected a lot of homes of this period in the area they are referring to and have been lucky to even find a toasted KG111 penny. Once in a while I have found some goodies but I doubt if I ever recovered fifty bucks worth of relics or coins at any of them. Fifty bucks for a few wheaties and a couple of toasted coppers, or even a barber quarter thrown in sounds inane to me. Maybe I should get his fifty, my house was built in the 1800s, he doesn't need to know I have been detecting since 1970 and have hunted it with several generations of machines!!

 

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[vpnavy]

I agree with ya gunsil. It only takes a few to mess it up for us. Hey, it only took a few (in relationship to the total number of MD'rs) not back filling holes dug to take away MD'ng in many parks, etc. Such a shame...

 

[Holyground]

Soon, he will run out of $50,00 bills...unless he hits a gold coin cache. Then he will be paying attorneys. It does belong to the land owner.

 

[dirtdigginfool]

I agree with ya gunsil. It only takes a few to mess it up for us. Hey, it only took a few (in relationship to the total number of MD'rs) not back filling holes dug to take away MD'ng in many parks, etc. Such a shame...

Exactly, word will spread that ppl (even one) are paying big bux to MD their property...and then everyone will have their hand out. But..IMHO, he's going to get VERY tired, very fast handing fifties out and rolling out with little to nothing, just as Gunsil sez. I honestly don't believe we have anything to worry about, this will fizzle out fast...Ddf.

 

[dirtdigginfool]

I saw this ad on craigslist: Will pay to metal detect your land - $50 (Hudson Valley)
© craigslist - Map data © OpenStreetMap

(google map)
I am looking for old property that i can Metal detect on. I do this as a hobby and collect the things I find. I'm happy to bring some neat relics for you to see. The metal detecting will not disturb your property and you won't even know I was there. When the detector beeps I simply dig a small hole and then fill it back in neatly. I can offer a payment of $50 For properties built in 17 and 1800s that have a decent size lawn.

This guy or gal is going to make it harder for others to get good permissions!! PAYING $50.00 to detect a place, even if it is an old one?? Must be a newbie since around here most really old places have been landscaped over the years making it harder to find old goodies. Often the woods surrounding these old sites are where the goodies are more available. Heck, I have detected a lot of homes of this period in the area they are referring to and have been lucky to even find a toasted KG111 penny. Once in a while I have found some goodies but I doubt if I ever recovered fifty bucks worth of relics or coins at any of them. Fifty bucks for a few wheaties and a couple of toasted coppers, or even a barber quarter thrown in sounds inane to me. Maybe I should get his fifty, my house was built in the 1800s, he doesn't need to know I have been detecting since 1970 and have hunted it with several generations of machines!!

Place the call, take his $$, but only after you've seeded your yard with a couple rolls of new Zincolns...Ddf

 

[Ammoman]

I think its a great idea! If it means getting access to places close to home and not having to deal with overnight stays and gas and food and all the other expenses related to getting permissions.

Heck, it cost me 50 bucks to go out to the movies. 25 for tickets and as much for popcorn and a drinks

 

[Rookster]

I do it free. And metal detecting. Seriously, getting a good permission takes a little salesmanship. I sold industrial supplies for 42 years and knowing how it talk to people face to face goes along way. No brag but I've been lucky this last year in retirement just stopping and talking to prospects. Good luck to all.

 

[Ammoman]

I do it free. And metal detecting. Seriously, getting a good permission takes a little salesmanship. I sold industrial supplies for 42 years and knowing how it talk to people face to face goes along way. No brag but I've been lucky this last year in retirement just stopping and talking to prospects. Good luck to all.

I agree, most of the time i gain permission by talking but posting an advertisement might be good for those prospects you never knew existed.

 

[smokeythecat]

I have considered asking this one place to go detecting and actually thought of giving them a tip to watch the car. I first tought of this 10 years ago but never did it.

 

[Ammoman]

Now that its been posted here on T-net we are going to see more advertisements on Craigs list. LOL thanks for the tip.

 

[gunsil]

There are often ads on my local craigslist from folks looking for permissions and I don't think they get many answers, but PAYING is another story. I was kinda hoping perhaps the poster watches here and sees that most think it is not such a great idea. Ammoman you must be pretty hard up for places to hunt if you'd pay fifty bucks to hunt a site you have no idea of whether it may be worth it, or you have WAY too much money to throw around in my humble opinion. Here in the Hudson Valley there are thousands of really old homes but as I said many have been heavily landscaped and many have already been hunted back in the early 1970s when few people had seen anybody detecting and permission was more easily obtained just by asking politely. I still think people offering to pay for the privilege will make it harder for many who love their hobby but don't have a lot of money to toss around.

 

[Ammoman]

Ammoman you must be pretty hard up for places to hunt if you'd pay fifty bucks to hunt a site you have no idea of whether it may be worth it, or you have WAY too much money to throw around in my humble opinion..

Hard up? No, what i am saying is, its a great way to get leads and i am willing to pay 50 bucks and take a chance for a great permission. In today's world 50 bucks is nothing. It might buy a tank of gas or a single 2 hour movie or a dinner for two at a chain restaurant. Heck, door knocking can be unproductive and extremely time consuming. Why not use that time swinging at a permission rather than looking for a permission?

If you have a hunting buddy, its only 25 bucks each.

Also, i would not pay 50 bucks up front. I would make it clear before i showed up that i want to check the yard without digging for about 15 minutes. If i decide to dig then the 50 bucks is put down.

 

[Phishfarmer]

Don't worry. He will quickly fifty-dollar himself out. IMO

 

[Ammoman]

Don't worry. He will quickly fifty-dollar himself out. IMO

Remember, every hobby has a cost. It all depends on how much you are willing to put into your hobby. Detecting is a very cheap hobby when compared to others. Restoring a car can cost tens of thousands of dollars. Wood working can be just as expensive. the list goes on and on. If i spent 200 bucks a month for 10 years its only about 25 grand. Less than a cheap car and way more satisfying.

 

[Texas Jay]

I noticed similar ads posted by a local detectorist on Facebook sales groups yesterday but he was only offering $10-$20 for permission to detect yards on which the houses were built before 1964. Heck, it didn't sound like such a bad idea to me although I admit that I momentarily felt a bit of pressure because I live in a small Texas town and word gets around faster than greased lightening. I addition to that, I know that this man had a very successful year of detecting last year, in which he found over $1,000 in clad coins alone. I watched his ads for awhile and in just a matter of a few minutes, he'd already picked up one lady's yard where the house was built over 100 years ago.
But I've had very good luck at getting permissions in person this year. My approach is straightforward and to the point. I just introduce myself to the landowner, tell them that I've been involved in metal detecting since I was 14 (49 years ago) and that I like to recover old coins and historical relics that have been lost over the decades and are now just deteriorating rapidly underground when they should be recovered, preserved, and displayed for the benefit of current and future generations. If the owner is a tough nut to crack or if he/she starts hesitating or is about to say "no", I kind of humorously throw in the statement that "if I find a pot of gold, I'll gladly split it with you." If they're not of the joking kind, I just mention that if I find an item valued at over $50, I'll split it with them. If they still say "no", I just thank them and move on because there are too many great detecting places in this area to lose sleep over one or two rejections. I also have too many great "secret" places to hunt already to let a guy who's offering money to detect people's yards worry me one bit.
~Texas Jay
Central Texas Treasure Club

I found this last month at one of my secret spots in town, 1914-S Barber half dollar.

 

[firemanphob]

Unfortunately, this seems to be the way things are going. I remember when you could hunt (animals for food) on any farm by just asking but many land owners found they could make money and the vast majority of properties are leased for x dollars per acre. Greed rules the world now.

 

[Megalodon]

I have considered asking this one place to go detecting and actually thought of giving them a tip to watch the car. I first tought of this 10 years ago but never did it.

When I used to drive to the old Memorial Stadium in Baltimore and parked on the street, there was always a kid asking "watch your car, mister, for $5". The implication was that if you did not pay, your car would be gone or damaged.
This scheme seems more like an extension of paying a lease to hunt for deer, turkey, etc.

 

[Megalodon]

Unfortunately, this seems to be the way things are going. I remember when you could hunt (animals for food) on any farm by just asking but many land owners found they could make money and the vast majority of properties are leased for x dollars per acre. Greed rules the world now.

It is the gentrification of hunting. May they suffer crop damage.

 

[FreeBirdTim]

It's easy to get permissions if you have a pretty face, curves or a great personality. It's not so easy if you have none of those attributes. Offering a bribe is the only way to level the playing field, in my opinion.

I've had some success offering a bottle of whiskey or a case of beer in exchange for a permission. I even mowed an owner's property once in exchange for permission to detect. I rarely offer cash, though. That makes them think I'm going to find something of great value in exchange for the paltry $20 I was offering. Just my take on it...

 

[Msbeepbeep]

That may be the start of something no one wants, the greed stampede. Like they had for the storage locker auctions that had people thinking every unit had valuables hidden in them, and the prices went way up.

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