Digging Pull Tabs Doesnt Pay!

simmonds · Jul 8, 2013

Spent a couple hours today at a local HARD HIT park and figured I'd try digging pull tab signals to see if it would pay off. Well after digging 68 pull tabs in the blistering sun without any real goodies, I finally realized why everyone notches or discriminates these buggers out. Only paid off with 8 lousy memorials, small brass flag buckle thingy, and a very small sterling silver ring. Well suppose it wasnt a total skunk with the silver find but boy oh boy!...the parks are loaded with these little pull tabs. How are you fellows finding all those gold and chunky silver rings if you are leaving all these danged pull tabs behind?

Oh well, I have been away from detecting for several years and it feels GREAT to be back! Had to find another MD and got this little Whites Classic ID on Craigslist for $125 and it is a great performer and quite HOT as well. Pull tabs or not, it's GREAT to be back swingin'

mariposagold · Jul 9, 2013

I found 3 Gold Rings last year with my White's Classic I, and you have the bigger brother. A huge difference between working a single tone no ID machine and one that ID's. There are some places where I would rarely dig a pulltab signal and others that I would always dig them. I've never dug 68 in one hunt. Though with that ratio, you could easily get 1 pound in about 15 - 20 hunts and that would get you $1.90 at a recycle center. :headbang:

Seriously, I hope your luck improves.

Mariposa Gold

Bigshooter 67 · Jul 9, 2013

I commend you for your work ethic, I'm pretty sure nobody else would take this on!

CoinandRelicMan · Jul 9, 2013

Hi Simmonds welcome back! Thanks for cleaning up those tabs =)

Rawhide · Jul 9, 2013

I like to spend a few minutes digging those tab signals to slowley clear the area out. I dont dig as many as you. I also pick a lot of the and bottle caps off the ground. To add to this list, small pieces of foil go into the pouch too. Makes for a much nicer hunt the next trip out.

simmonds · Jul 9, 2013

Thanks guys...I think

. I tell you what, I could go back tomorrow and dig hundreds more if I wanted too. WTH! These kinds of push tabs are supposed to stay on the can...why the heck do so many wiggle them back and forth till they break then lodge them under the turf?!? Must be a lot of evil anti metal detecting folk out there lol. The old classic ID does a great job indentifying these tabs though, but I still couldn't resist. Got to learn to trust the machine...it knows more than I.

simmonds · Jul 9, 2013

Oh yeah, and you'd think digging pull tabs in a park that just a few days ago had hundreds of fireworks spectators would pay off better than this! Some or many must have beat me to it. Probably the morning after the 4th.

L0STANDF0UND · Jul 9, 2013

You know something? I feel your pain brother! At the same time though, I once did the same thing....told myself "screw it", I'm going to dig all the tab signals for a day and see where it gets me...I ended up finding a 1.6 gram 14k hockey mask charm, among a heap of tabs. Some days are better than others I guess...I think my charm was beginner's luck to be honest, I had only been detecting for a month at the time, some people go years without the Au...not to mention, my Tesoro Vaquero is unforgiving when it comes to finding gold. It took me three months to even halfway finesse my understanding of it's physics. The next detector I buy will have a screen! Although, I will keep the Vaq for relic hunting due to the fact of how deep it beeps the relics/ HH-James

MTHershey · Jul 9, 2013

I admire your ethic, but I can't get myself to do it. I hunt a very old fairgrounds and there are hundreds of pop tab signals. They even told me a woman lost a gold and diamond ring there and I still can't commit to that much digging. After the 10th one or so, I'm done!

pl8man · Jul 9, 2013

Don't give up on digging pull tabs ! That is where the gold is ! I know it's sucks digging all the trash but if you don't it will be hard to find gold :icon_thumright:

I have heard that it takes 100 pull tabs for every one gold item . Good luck !
Glen

Silver Slayer · Jul 9, 2013

pl8man said:
Don't give up on digging pull tabs ! That is where the gold is ! I know it's sucks digging all the trash but if you don't it will be hard to find gold I have heard that it takes 100 pull tabs for every one gold item . Good luck !
Glen

I agree it sucks but you have to do it to get that GOLD! And lets not forget the foil :BangHead:

grlangfitt · Jul 9, 2013

The digging Gods are just reminding you of the way it was way back when you got out of detecting. Dig 100 tabs then dig a penny....lol

Argentium · Jul 9, 2013

I've only dug eight gold rings in aproximately nine years of detecting , and most have been in the nickel/pulltab range - but you might
try to play your "hunch" or gut feeling about how many of these you'll dig in a given area on a particular hunt . Like one of the earlier
posts mentioned , site selection for gold jewelry losses/finds -plays a part in your decision here as well . Your patience will be rewarded.

bush13st_beav3r · Jul 9, 2013

Awww...man....where do you hunt?....if you don't dig foil &up....I will... Mainly bc I got gold fever last week when I dug 2 gold bands in 3 days....since then, I've got 3 more rings, but they r junnnkkk, except one, maybe, that may be something good, havnt got it checked tho... ...don't give up on those signals....you'll hit it big sooner or later.. patience is key, and it walks hand in hand w perseverance..
GL&HH

-beav3r

Davers · Jul 9, 2013

Been there done that & will do it again u just gotta be in the mood & have nice weather , the silver ring def, saved your day, also I see you got a lot of the newer style pulltabs[ [ if someone is not going to save them, then why take them off the can].. For the GOLD thats what you have to dig IMO . Good luck in the future.

JunkShopFiddler · Jul 9, 2013

In the ancient treasure legends a dragon always guarded the gold, today the pull tabs guard the gold, I call them "teeth of the aluminum dragon". I can usually handle only so many "bites" before I notch them out, foil wads too, they are the "droppings" of the aluminum dragon. That's a lot of teeth you got there! More than I could handle. :notworthy:

Uncle Jeff · Jul 9, 2013

OK.. First off these are not really pull tabs.. they are "pop tops" .. and half of a pop top at that, They came up with this design to keep people from pulling off "pull tabs" and discarding them. Which brings me to my next question.....
Why are these still not attached to the can. That is why the government took away my "pull tabs" so I would stop breaking my pull tabs in half and using the tongue portion to fling the circular part in the air like a mini Frisbee disc thing
Pop Top Close-up Stock Image - Image: 5557421
File:Beverage pull tab.jpg - Wikimedia Commons

Crud.. forgot to post.. Somewhere in these forums just a week or so old, is a thread about a lady tieing a string to these, and selling them in her shop for $10.00 USD each and calling them necklaces ( so you got a couple hundred bucks there LOL hahahaha ) LOL

Treasure_Hunter · Jul 9, 2013

simmonds said:
Spent a couple hours today at a local HARD HIT park and figured I'd try digging pull tab signals to see if it would pay off. Well after digging 68 pull tabs in the blistering sun without any real goodies, I finally realized why everyone notches or discriminates these buggers out. Only paid off with 8 lousy memorials, small brass flag buckle thingy, and a very small sterling silver ring. Well suppose it wasnt a total skunk with the silver find but boy oh boy!...the parks are loaded with these little pull tabs. How are you fellows finding all those gold and chunky silver rings if you are leaving all these danged pull tabs behind?

Oh well, I have been away from detecting for several years and it feels GREAT to be back! Had to find another MD and got this little Whites Classic ID on Craigslist for $125 and it is a great performer and quite HOT as well. Pull tabs or not, it's GREAT to be back swingin'

I have at least a dozen or more gold rings, several are diamond that all sounded the same as pull tabs..

You discriminate out pull tabs you will be leaving gold for someone else to find.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

Jarl · Jul 9, 2013

Have heard that I should always dig the tabs for the gold rings and such. Think I'll just do this next time I go out for the hell of it. I'll take some kind of cushion to sit on...maybe rig up a short pistol grip for my coil and wear the brain on my belt...that way I don't destroy my knees...yep just slide around on the ground pulling tabs. Call me frugal but I scrap my tabs...every damn discernible piece of metal I find that isn't nostalgic or collectable...goes to scrap.

mr helton · Jul 9, 2013

Jarl said:
Have heard that I should always dig the tabs for the gold rings and such. Think I'll just do this next time I go out for the hell of it. I'll take some kind of cushion to sit on...maybe rig up a short pistol grip for my coil and wear the brain on my belt...that way I don't destroy my knees...yep just slide around on the ground pulling tabs. Call me frugal but I scrap my tabs...every damn discernible piece of metal I find that isn't nostalgic or collectable...goes to scrap.

Do you have to separate everything yourself or do they do it for you at your scrapyard?