Almost gave up...

[sandchip]

I hadn't looked the yard across the street from my house lately which had produced a handful of odds and ends, but no coins. I worked a little closer to the street than I had in the past and got a fairly stable 45 and figured I'd dig it. A lot of oak roots in the way, couldn't pinpoint it, nail bits, and so forth. I didn't have my pruning shears but I did have my shovel, so I cut out a shonuff plug. All this time the signal had gone up to the high 50s, so I was thinking a nickel. I was really sick of chasing whatever it was, but it finally showed its crustyass face (the soil is a b!tch on copper around here). My 81 year-old neighbor always joins me if he sees me over there. I said, "It ain't no nickel. Looks like a penny, but I can't tell what kind." He says, "Let me see." I learnt my lesson, fortunately, with a clad find a year or so ago, so I looked up and he already had his pocketknife opened and ready for bidness. I politely declined and rubbed it with my finger enough to see what looked like an Indian princess, took it over to my son, who said it looked like 1865. After a couple more Lincoln memorials, I headed back to the house and started hot peroxide soaks. After 6 or 7 baths, it looks like there may be a decent coin under all that mess, but that's gonna take several more days and toothpicks, then I'll probably drop it into olive oil for a few months.
So, here it is. Don't know what to make of the low signals, but I'm glad I didn't quit. Ended up being my oldest coin to date.

 

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[Professor of Engineering]

Congratualtions on the great looking IH!

 

[Phishfindr]

Woohoo! That is one sweet find. Congrats!! 1865 IH would blow me away if I found it! For that matter, any IH would do the same! Moral to the story....never give up on a beep!

 

[peruna]

that is actually a pretty good example of an early Indian...dropped by a jubilant Yankee, or a downtrodden Confederate?

Nicely done!

 

[Kurios1]

Very nice old Indian. Looks like you are getting some great detail across the headband. LIBERTY! Sweet!

 

[Argentium]

Wow ! Great looking early Indian !! Full liberty - could be VF /XF details .

 

[vpnavy]

..: NICE FIND SandChip :..
Thanks for sharing!​

 

[trapperart]

Pretty injun congrats

 

[sandchip]

Thanks, everybody. It's only the third IHP that I've found. The other two were plum pitiful.

 

[Trezurehunter]

Congrats on your oldest coin to date. Thats a nice looking Indian.

 

[dirtlooter]

congrats on the IH and the cleaning job looks good too

 

[sandchip]

congrats on the IH and the cleaning job looks good too

Thanks, but it's got a ways to go yet. My old fingers were about ready for Madge and a Palmolive soak, so I turned it over to Olive Oyl. Anybody had any luck with ultrasonic cleaners on crusty copper?

 

[bill_wabo]

Great indian, hard to get out but you got well rewarded I guess we have to dig everything exceding 40 mark. I have a Delta and I think I would have missed it completely. I have the tendency to dig only from the 60s and up while coin hunting, not the best idea it seems. Curious to know why it rang in the 50s for a copper, I know there's a lot of variables but still curious.

 

[A2coins]

There it is good job!!!!!!!

 

[Underwonder]

That is a nice looking Indian Head Penny and doesn't look ruined by cleaning. Do you have a before/after picture of penny and peroxide treatment? Thanks.