Colonial finds today (huge lock) and other finds from the weekend

mangum · Jun 23, 2013

Hello all! I got out to a couple sites Friday with minimal (good) finds. My best find was a navy button although I'm unsure of the age. I will clean it better when I get home. It is flat in shape not domed. Any help is appreciated. I had a wedding to attend Saturday so no hunting. I got out to one of my usual colonial sites today for about 4 hours & was beat by the heat! It's hard hunting in an open field with the sun beaming down on you. I'm sure I'll be as red as a lobster tomorrow! I did manage a few finds although the signals are few & far between (Ok with me though!) I found 2 flat buttons, 1 is marked and fairly legible. I also found a saddle or harness decoration that is filled with lead, first one I've found like that. My favorite find of the day is this huge colonial lock! It is definitely worthy of electrolysis (which I have yet to try). I also found a broken arrowhead. Still not a single coin from this site but I haven't given up! Now time to drive back to the big city and back to work tomorrow :-( Thanks for looking & HH!!!

The Patriot · Jun 24, 2013

Some great saves there...still looking for my first monster padlock like that...thanks for sharing

Flathead25 · Jun 24, 2013

awesome find! If I could put my 2 cents in, you may want to try electrolysis on the lock. It seems to clean very dense iron up much better than vinegar. I've cleaned crusted over axe heads that were barely recognizable and with a regular old car battery charger, they come out looking nearly new. I looked at a lot of YouTube videos and they seem to over-complicate the process. If you decide to do it, just remember your positive lead goes to whatever metal you decide to use as the "sacrifice" and the negative lead attaches to the piece you want to clean up. You need to add salt or baking soda to the water to make it conductive. After that, just plug it in and let it sit. Check it every few days and unplug it all to pull and clean if need be. Also, keep it outside! I think you'll be a lot happier with the results if you use electrolysis. Maybe try a piece you don't care much for to get the hang of it. Like I said, just my 2 cents.....

Erik in NJ · Jun 24, 2013

That would be "Rich Orange Colour" (note the "u" in "Colour" which means it was made in England--the "u" was dropped in the word "Color" on the American made buttons) which is a popular backmark text and should help to date the button :icon_thumleft:

mangum said:
Frank- it does appear to say Richgrange now that you pointed it out. Underneath it says colour. I probably won't clean this anymore as I don't want to lose any detail. I did a quick search & couldn't find anything. This is actually the second one of these I've found at this site, any info would be appreciated. As a side note- I never reply to my own posts this much - just questions I need to answer. Not bumping intentionally! (Some of you will recall one if my previous frustration posts!)

mangum · Jun 24, 2013

Erik in NJ said:
That would be "Rich Orange Colour" (note the "U" in "Colour" which means it was made in England--the "u" was dropped in the word "Color" on the American made buttons) which is a popular backmark text and should help to date the button

Thanks Erik! I've seen those before, that's definitely what it says, sometimes these small letters can play tricks on the brain.

huntsman53 · Jun 24, 2013

mangum said:
Thanks Erik! I've seen those before, that's definitely what it says, sometimes these small letters can play tricks on the brain.

Those letter sure can! I was using the old "Wheel of Fortune" guess as to the "G" to get RICHGRANGE and I was sure wrong. No wonder I couldn't find much when I googled it!

Frank