How to tell if a spot was metal detected

[blong10]

I was wondering how you tell if a spot was once metal detected like for example the woods or a park the only thing I heard was if you see iron against a tree or laying on a rock's someone has been there but any more clues.


Also how do you tell if a site is virgin or not meaning never had a metal detector there

 

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[BC1969]

odds are unless it is private property, it has been detected. a good detectorist leaves zero trace they were ever there. if you had asked this question say 25 years ago, and it was a public place, odds are it had already seen a detector.
you won't know until you try.

Mike

 

[Carolina Tom]

If you do not find anything, odds are that someone (or a bunch of someone's) has already been there.

Around here, the sign that a place is good, is that you immediately hit coins. If you get only zinc cents, someone probably cherry picked the place, leaving the zinc. The older guys that I know will frequently pass on the zincs. If you get quarters, then the place probably has not been hit, because quarters are large and easier to find, so they get dug up first. Wheaties indicate potential silver coin bearing places. If you are getting wheat cents, a silver coin could easily be the next hit. GL&HH!

 

[Coin Digger]

If you do not find anything, odds are that someone (or a bunch of someone's) has already been there.

Around here, the sign that a place is good, is that you immediately hit coins. If you get only zinc cents, someone probably cherry picked the place, leaving the zinc. The older guys that I know will frequently pass on the zincs. If you get quarters, then the place probably has not been hit, because quarters are large and easier to find, so they get dug up first. Wheaties indicate potential silver coin bearing places. If you are getting wheat cents, a silver coin could easily be the next hit. GL&HH!

If all you find are zinc pennies and pull tabs it's been cherry picked. Should you start to find quarters and dimes you need to grid the area off and spend a few hunts cleaning it out before some else finds your spot.

 

[ecoast]

Also how do you tell if a site is virgin or not meaning never had a metal detector there

just post the actual location and we'll get back to you....

 

[DDancer]

For me the differences in virgin, lightly hit, heavily hit and cleaned out are educated guess's. Like others are saying the presence of older coins, their depths and types of trash and other objects, are the primary indicators. Note this if for largely public areas~ private property falls under different consideration as do wooded areas for me. A little research helps to see the historical use of public areas. Knowing when a public area was created helps.

Finding silver coins, especially quarters or above, strongly indicate virgin and lightly hit areas. Large amounts of trash and clad at shallow depths where large silver is present and shallow are considered virgin to me. Lightly hit has some larger silver at depth or in odd areas shallow with wheats and clad showing in more common areas of detection.
Wheat pennies, Indian heads, silver dimes and various nickels are mid-level indicators of virgin and lightly hit areas depending on depth with virgin areas having shallow finds and lightly hit areas deeper than 4 to 6 inches depending on trash content of the top layers.
Heavily hit areas tend to show only wheats at various depths with clad and trash being the majority. The absence of modern quarters at any depth and presence of dimes, modern or silver, at depths greater than 3 inches with moderate trash tell how heavy the area is hit.
Cleaned out means just that~ your lucky to find anything and nothing shows at depth.

For me these are just my rules of thumb. It can vary from area to area. I've found virgin patches in heavy hunted areas just by paying attention to the trash and lightly hunted areas where the rest of the place has been cleaned out just by going off the grid that most people hunt.

 

[K1DDO1979]

Or when the spot is full of unfilled holes and trash lying around like I did at two separate old homestead foundations in the woods the other day. Did a lot of research and thought a good chance they were virgin sites. Who ever it was must have just beat me there recently because the holes were fairly fresh! They missed some flat buttons, belt buckles, two spoons and a 1832 Nova Scotia token though. Also looks like they just hunted the easy spots so when the grass goes away I'll be back!

 

[madforclad]

Or when the spot is full of unfilled holes and trash lying around like I did at two separate old homestead foundations in the woods the other day. Did a lot of research and thought a good chance they were virgin sites. Who ever it was must have just beat me there recently because the holes were fairly fresh! They missed some flat buttons, belt buckles, two spoons and a 1832 Nova Scotia token though. Also looks like they just hunted the easy spots so when the grass goes away I'll be back!

I've seen this too on occasion but it was from bottle hunters. Most of the time the way to tell is that they will stack shards of broken glass, ceramic, bottles etc.. aside. But it could very easily be a detectorist who has no ethics.

 

[K1DDO1979]

I've seen this too on occasion but it was from bottle hunters. Most of the time the way to tell is that they will stack shards of broken glass, ceramic, bottles etc.. aside. But it could very easily be a detectorist who has no ethics.

For sure metal detectors. All the trash was metal and a axe head with a root growing through it was still in a big hole sticking out!

 

[BC1969]

Well I have a method for knowing if the oldest best stuff is still down there, most guys/gals cherry pick the easy stuff. me I'm the opposite I look for the trashiest places I can find, I'm talking the kinda places where 99% of the detectorists will after 5 mins pack up and head for greener pastures or risk insanity..I love digging trash! yes there are more modern detectors that can see through..sorta..but no matter what anybody says, the masking effect IS very real, and will hide loads of great finds.
So if I'm trying a spot and pulling old tabs and caps from the 70's at 5 inches, to me and my undying patience..it may as well be virgin ground because it is!
in life the harder you work at something, the greater the rewards!
So please keep leaving the deep trash where it is, I'll dig it.

Mike

 

[DigIron2]

A indicator to me is usually seeing where people have been digging. Even though people fill their holes and even fix them real nice,"sometimes' heavy rains over time can expose them enough to tell.Even just soft indentations or seeing places where the ground has been disturbed.Another thing I pay attention to is what I am finding.Batteries are a dead giveaway,or the intentionally buried soda can.What I like to see, is finding allot of stuff that anyone who detects would dig.Like allot of old shotgun shell brasses that are somewhat deep,deeper old style pull tabs,old bullets that been in the ground since who knows when,allot of big deep iron that would sound good on most machines and stuff like that.Even in a place you know has been hunted it's good to find stuff like that, because if that stuff was missed,who knows what else is there.HH

 

[CladGrabber]

You never know until you swing and dig.
There are so many different variables at play, for example I've had multiple silver days on homes built in the 50's and then go to homes built teens, 20's, 30's and only pull one silver.

 

[mr helton]

Well I have a method for knowing if the oldest best stuff is still down there, most guys/gals cherry pick the easy stuff. me I'm the opposite I look for the trashiest places I can find, I'm talking the kinda places where 99% of the detectorists will after 5 mins pack up and head for greener pastures or risk insanity..I love digging trash! yes there are more modern detectors that can see through..sorta..but no matter what anybody says, the masking effect IS very real, and will hide loads of great finds.
So if I'm trying a spot and pulling old tabs and caps from the 70's at 5 inches, to me and my undying patience..it may as well be virgin ground because it is!
in life the harder you work at something, the greater the rewards!
So please keep leaving the deep trash where it is, I'll dig it.

Mike

I started doing this a lot more this year and I gotta say it's really paid off.

 

[OZARKS]

If there are no signals, it's been detected before. If you find metal items thrown near trees, it's been detected before. If you don't find any quarters or dimes, it's been cherry picked... which I love because I find a lot of jewelry in those types of areas!