No wonder that

[youcancallmesir]

people new to the hobby might get discouraged easily. I read on so many forums about coins being found at 10 to 12 inches. Really? think about what the diameter of the hole would have to be just to dig that deep and get a hand in there. There must be some nice 8 or 10 inch plugs out there in our parks. I am thinking that there is a bit of poor estimation going on . Maybe in the woods where the leaves pile up and rot year after year some coins might be that deep, but in general I don't think so. I have since 1980, found a few deep coins around 8 to 10 inches. But the majority of coins of the same general age(including large coppers) have been less deep. Hey maybe I'm not that good at finding those elusive deep items or then maybe I am just good about making an accurate estimate. A hole can look deeper when you are looking straight down into it.

 

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[K Zack]

I think there are many factors to think about as to Why a Newbie would give up on this Hobby.
First off, it can be a lot of work and consume a lot of time with very little return.
Second, some will find that they just do not like being outside as much as they thought they would.

Gee, I have been hunting for a month now and I still have Not found that $ 5000.00 Ring.

The list could go on and on.


I would say the Best find I have ever made is Learning the History of the Area that I hunt!!!!

In 15+ years I Have Dug coins well over a foot deep, I have spent 20 minutes trying to find a Mercury Dime that was just under the Leaves in heavy brush, I lost it when I kicked the Leaves out of the way.

If I do not find my target in the first 6 or 8 inches, I put the shovel aside and dig with my hand, lesson learned with some nasty marks on some nice coins. If the tone is Good on my machine, I will get my Hands Dirty.
The Deep coins are out there!
Happy Hunting
Kevin

 

[leprechaun]

Youcancallmesir,You think your a relic,I started this hobby in 1968 at age 16.The only problem was from18 to 45 I stopped,The good news is I've been back at it since 2000 and It's been a great hobby for me,I'm addicted.

 

[U.K. Brian]

The hobby loses so many people to depth hype. People don't want to build a test bed or carry a tape measure (or mark the side of their digging tool in inches). Then add that many can't pinpoint for toffee and spend their lives digging past targets which then fall down into the hole after its been dug deeper.

An engineer for Whites told me he dreaded each new detector coming out as soon the rubber tape measure boys would be out suggesting they were digging coins and rings at huge depths. Then those who followed up in buying the new wonder machine would be ringing up the manufacturer thinking they had a faulty detector.

 

[Frankn]

I think the biggest problem for the new hunters is they haven't developed a good BS filter yet. Let's look at it! A coin found at 12" would have been in the ground ,in most cases, almost 200 years. I know there are exceptions like in the desert and erosion areas. The only thing that I have found, at that dept, that was orginally left on the surface is an ax found at app.13" and it had been there for over 200 years. Oh yes I have found Items over 2' deep, but they were buried caches. Now I can understand a coin found at that dept in areas like England because it has been occupied for a much longer period of time by coin bearing people. I can see how a high end PI detector could find a single coin at 12", but it would be an extremely rare case for the average detector and possibily a little imagination required.

 

[RGINN]

I don't worry about depth. A lot of that goes to soil conditions and how the dirt got there in the first place. I found a 1982 quarter once at 8 inches. Lots of fill dirt had been brought into that area. I found an 1876 dime at 1 inch, exactly where it had lain since probably the 1880's. Most of the things I find here in Colorado related to the mining area are 2 inches down or less, and these date back to the 1870's, IF the area has not been disturbed by man or nature. In Oklahoma, I found 12,000 year old mammoth bones at 4 ft. We generally can find 1,000 yr. old Plains Village Era artifacts in an undisturbed area from the surface down to about one foot. Deep doesn't necessarily mean old, and surface finds aren't necessarily new.

 

[woody_g]

i think people get discouraged because you dig a lot of trash to get a little treasure.some days i get out i may dig for hours and not find anything significant.what keeps me going is that next signal might be the find of a lifetime.some folks just don't have the patience they expect something every time the dig a target. happy hunting

 

[Jeremy S]

I bought my first detector in March and have probably spent a good 20 or so hours hunting total. If I add up the value of the items and coins that I have found, I think that I have made back roughly 1.4% of the purchase price of my detecting gear and accessories. That is not counting gas for my car, extra batteries, and food purchased while hunting. At this rate, in a few decades I may pay off my Ace 250 and Pro-pointer

But I've had a ton of fun finding that 1.4% of my investment. If you go into this hobby expecting to get rich, then I could see how you would get discouraged easily. I don't worry about depth much, most of the stuff that I have found have been within the first 6 inches or top soil. Most of the deep targets that I have dug ended up being garbage. I just like the thrill of the hunt and the experience.