Damaging your find with your digging tool

[goldcoastwayne]

I was just wondering tonight....I have seen many nice finds on TNet lately that have been damaged by their finders digging tools....on a nice coin, that can drastically reduce the value of your find. Has any company come up with tools that have a protective coating on the edges of digging tools that won't scratch your find if you make direct contact? I would think some type of rubber or Teflon coating might help avoid these situations.....what do all of you think? I do understand that hard packed soil requires a nice cutting edge, but there must be a product out there that can reduce damage to your finds. The obvious is to dig your find on a larger perimeter...but lets face it...that is time consuming and the average TH'er won't do that on every hit.

I am fortunate in that any digging I do are sand hunts, (either on beach or underwater finds) and I can dig a much wider hole so that I don't come in contact with my target....what are your thoughts?

Wayne

[locolarry]

Practice practice practice! Learn to accurately pinpoint your target *visually*...by that I mean move your loop left right left,,up down up..until you "See" the"X"..place a non-metallic object over your "spot",
then as a practice...insert a long slender straight blade screwdriver probe or ice pick until you make a contact with the object...leave probe in place...move out and use digger tool, say a bayonet..at an angle..cut a conical shaped plug and lift it out gently..lay it aside and insert your pin pointer into the hole or re-check with your loop.. most of the time if you are coin shooting ..your "find" will fall out of the plug when you lift it out..if not..keep going. After you've mastered your metal detector, you will stop using the screwdriver/icepick probe and go straight for the conical plug..when hunting relics or jewelry spots..go slowly! coin shooting in a playground or newer city park? speed up..Early on we all scratch or damage a few finds until we figure out our equipment...I believe each detector has it's own "sweet spot"...get to know your equipment! Salt some different coins in a practice square in your yard..or get someone to do it for you...cover the spot with sand..wait a few days...now! PRACTICE!
Larry

[George (MN)]

I'd favor a good aluminum alloy digging tool if any are still being made. I was checking Amazon & found these Centurion 179 aluminum garden transplanter with serrated edge $10.99 and Black & Decker aluminum garden transplanter with serrated edge $11.99.

I have several aluminum diggers I can't use. Not because they break too easily, but because I can't force them into my hard ground! Guess they'd be OK for beaches, volleyball pits, totlots made of sand, gravel, or wood chips.

They're used to be a tool advertised in THing magazines called "The Prospector" coin digging
tool. It was about 1" wide, had a circular open aluminum part that was filed on one side near bottom to go into ground easily. It could strike a coin & rarely cause damage. Seems the company went out of business. HH, George (MN)