No Shovels Allowed!!!!!

[snowskate]

If you didn't see my other post, my picture was in the paper today; I was metal detecting in the park and digging out a plug with my "sampson" type shovel.

Well, tonight I went to the monthly metal detecting meeting in my area and thought someone might have seen it and thought it was neat. Exactly the opposite.

When I first walked in, my friends dad walked over and said, "that wasn't you in the paper was it"?... I said yeah, why, did someone have a problem with it. He said that everyone there was complaining about it because I was using a shovel. So no one said anything until the current issues with the club were brought up. I heard some people whispering and caught the words "pantagraph (our paper) picture". So then they brought it up, handed me a 30 year old sheet of rules that said no shovels allowed. LOL. Other people were making comments, some not even realizing that it was me who was in the paper. I was pissed. I argued my point and said that if they have a problem with my digging tools then I wouldn't be a part of the club. They said that they were worried about me getting in trouble from the city for using a shovel..

Has anyone else had a problem with this? wtf?


Also couldn't help but take the etrac out in my backyard today. Got another old pepsi bottle cap, a '69 mem and a '46 wheatie. So in my last 3 hunts I have found one wheat on each; 44d, 45d and 46 in that order. Maybe next time it will be a '47?

 

[DanB]

when I dig in parks, I use a knife to make a hole....try it you really don't need a shovel.....see how those guys like that...personally I think the law is out dated and should be challenged....a tool is a tool ....shape shouldn't matter..

db

 

[d-dub]

When digging in smaller, local parks I'll use my lesche. In some of the older, larger parks like the ones in Chicago, I'll use my Sampson shovel. I don't see anything wrong with using a shovel, but the lesche is concealed in its sheath and doesn't draw as much attention.

Never had a problem using either.

 

[p2c]

I think you'll get a lot of varying viewpoints. Here in chicago parks, if you look online at the park's legal code, it is against the law to bring any type of digging tool into a park period(let alone use it). However, the police do not care or enforce. They've even talked to some of us and just tell us to cover our holes (i haven't experienced that, but others I know who have shovels have).
I am not into having just a screwdriver (like some of these coinshooter types). If I were to try to just use a screwdriver to pry an old valuable coin from 8+ inches deep, I might as well leave it in the ground. To me, that's destroying history, not recovering. Yet there are those who take great pride in their screwdrivers. I wont ever be buying any of their coins.
I think discretion (between lesche and sampson) is best. If you are in an area which is large, secluded or no one cares use the sampson, otherwise go with a lesche. It is funny, but a sampson often times cuts a cleaner plug and actually is better for the grass than say a lesche, or a screwdriver for that matter.

 

[snowskate]

I can understand if it's a crowded park, or if a property owner did not want you to use a shovel... but I was the only one at the park. Saw 3 people in 4 hours, and the place is pretty big. The excuses they were using were that you can't put the plug back with the shovel and that it kills the grass... it was kind of ridiculous. I think some were jealous that I got in the paper after just a couple months when they have been doing it for so many years. One guy asked me if I knew the paper was going to be at the park... come on.. was this guy trying to say that this was some sort of publicity stunt purposely set up by me? Funny that you mention the screwdrivers p2c because one guy tried to sell me on that idea. And he said if I bought a tesoro from him he'd give me one for free. There was a lot of nice guys there as well that shared stories and some of their finds with me. I was just a little shocked at how immature a few of these guys that are 30+ years older than me were acting about me using a 2 foot shovel at a hunted out park. The park police even drove by once and didn't even stop to say anything. What can you do

 

[olepossum]

if i cant use my lesche hand tool i use my lesche landshark 48 inch model i only use shovels in in fields or in the woods thats just my personal preferance

 

[Lowbatts]

I applaud you for sticking to your blades, but respectfully disagree on your choice of tools. It's not a matter of if but when that nosy busybody will complain about you. Easiest route for the bureaucrats in yours or any area is simply list md'ing as one more thing you can't do in public. Wrong or right don't matter, reality does.

I take my Mauler to the woods and remote areas where digging is not an issue for any of the others who might be thereabouts. In the parks, in public view, I am discrete and always aware of onlookers. That's where the Lesche-type tool and lesser variants rule the domain. The exception to the onlooker rule is demo/construction sites where I have at it ferociously if allowed on site.

I was video-taped by a city offical (Barlett) at a carnie cleanup a few years back. He was following me around a bit and I asked him if he was interested in what I was doing. He replied he was only gathering video evidence of the damage I was making to the grounds there and he intended to put a stop to it. I did not even have a digging tool and was only gathering surface finds. He was video taping me and my daughter, and taking shots of the wheel ruts and large tent post holes as evidence of our intrusion on "his property".

I had to dress this a-hole down short and sweet and gave him about five pounds of crap I had picked up, including drug paraphernalia, those pesky curtain pins the carnies use and other sharp objects, told him to make himself useful and beat feet the heck away from me, in a much more all-caps and foul way than I'll describe here. The local police officer watching the site got a laugh out of the scene, later joking over it with me.

Pick your fights carefully and know you're in the right and it's all good. I'll be doing that carnie cleanup site again this year, BTW.

 

[p2c]

The excuses they were using were that you can't put the plug back with the shovel and that it kills the grass...

Have any of them used a sampson? You kill the grass if you do it wrong, but you can do that also with a lesche, a knife, your hand, or a screw driver. I cut U shaped flaps with my Sampson, just as I would with a lesche, fold it up, and fold it back down. Since the sampson is sharp and I can put considerably more force on it, the cuts are cleaner. I think they don't know what they are talking about. I have seen guys in parks up here actually using full sized shovels, and they do make a big mess, but the sampson is a different deal. Perhaps you should just refer to it as a "digging tool" (or a screw driver on a stick) and not a shovel around those clubbers.

I do agree with lowbatts, which was the point I was making about using discretion. That is the better part of valor. Obviously since you got into the paper, it was visible enough there. Do the clubbers get mad over the use of Lesches? If not, just bring your lesche to group hunts. If it is a screwdriver only affair, I'd look for another club.

 

[Sandman]

I promote screw drivers use for shallow coins as it saves time and the grass an I have yet to scratch a coin. I also use a shovel and Lasche where digging is not a problem, but prefer my bayonet. When I have a deep target I will cut a 3 sided plug, place dirt on a cloth for placing it back in the hole. Many times the coin falls out of the dirt and it is easy to see on the cloth. You can not tell the ground was disturbed when I am done.

We are our own worst enemy when it comes to retrieving coins in parks. We've all seen the holes in the grass that were never filled back in an the trash they found laying near the hole too. Managers will close the parks to metal detecting before descending on the ones doing the damage. Sorta like out lawing firearms because some boob shot up a stop sign. Some people dig up the shrubs in parks thinking they paid for them with their taxes so they should be able to take them home and we also get blamed for that.

At one park I ran into a guy that was leaving holes so I politely ask him why he didn't fill them in. I got cussed out an told to mind my own business. Since I work for the parks, I called my manager which came over with a deputy. Guy got a ticket for destroying park property, paid court costs, and had to pay to have park grounds repaired to the tune of couple thousand bucks. Judge said they had to send a message to detectorist. I thought it was a little steep and a warning would have done well.

 

[tmanfromtexas]

Dude, you have an etrac for 4 days and are already starting trouble. LMAO!!! I use a short shovel everywhere i hunt. I make cleaner holes with it then the lesche. (GOIO will disagree but he is OCD when it comes to covering his holes. LMAO. HEY GOIO ) I just think your club buddies are jealous that 1. you are new to the hobby and have an etrac. and 2. you are new to the hobby and have already been in the paper. I hope you smoke their asses and bring in 20 silver pieces next month. That will definitely get their attention. SMAN...

 

[snowskate]

From what I understand, most of them use hunting knives and screwdrivers. They were acting like I was digging graves with a huge spade.. maybe they couldn't tell it was a tiny little shovel, I'm not sure if it would have mattered anyway.

I'm sure I'll smoke their asses sman. The few I talked to keep saying everything is hunted out, so they don't even go out and detect anymore.. only on club hunts. There was one or two who were interested in hunting.

And they didn't know it was an etrac. I asked one guy in a minelab hat if he hunted with one and he said no, and that no one else in the club does either.. so I'm the only one lol.

Can't wait for that first sweet silver..

 

[p2c]

From what I understand, most of them use hunting knives and screwdrivers. They were acting like I was digging graves with a huge spade.. maybe they couldn't tell it was a tiny little shovel, I'm not sure if it would have mattered anyway.

I'm sure I'll smoke their asses sman. The few I talked to keep saying everything is hunted out, so they don't even go out and detect anymore.. only on club hunts. There was one or two who were interested in hunting.

And they didn't know it was an etrac. I asked one guy in a minelab hat if he hunted with one and he said no, and that no one else in the club does either.. so I'm the only one lol.

Can't wait for that first sweet silver..

Sounds like I need to come down and visit my folks and go out on some hunts with you...

 

[Newt]

I guess that was your last meeting and your DUES will go to a much better place like gas for your next trip.
Newt

 

[jeff of pa]

From what I understand, most of them use hunting knives and screwdrivers. They were acting like I was digging graves with a huge spade.. maybe they couldn't tell it was a tiny little shovel, I'm not sure if it would have mattered anyway.

I'm sure I'll smoke their asses sman. The few I talked to keep saying everything is hunted out, so they don't even go out and detect anymore.. only on club hunts. There was one or two who were interested in hunting.

And they didn't know it was an etrac. I asked one guy in a minelab hat if he hunted with one and he said no, and that no one else in the club does either.. so I'm the only one lol.

Can't wait for that first sweet silver..

I see Nothing wrong with a Small scoop.

What were you in the Paper for ?

Was it Positive ?

This is what matters to Me.

I Must admit it is one of the reasons I Would Never
Join a club, Especially one that
Tries to Force their Rules on me.
There are too many Nannys out there already.

 

[kimsdad]

When I see a reporter, I run away!!! Bad experience once, I guess....

Yep. I see I'm still gonna run!

I've gotta agree with Lowbatts on this one. In parks, I dig with a trowel, and especially when I'm in an area where houses and people are near, I carry a canvas detecting bag. When I'm going to dig a target, I block the view of what I'm doing from three sides (the bag, the detector, and me). When I'm done & stand up, the grass looks normal. I'll use a Predator shovel in the woods, or occasionally in an open picnic area that's part of the woods. Gibbsium showed me that I can actually cut better plugs with the shovel, but the perception of the public is a real factor that we have to deal with, like it or not.

 

[snowskate]

yeah it was positive. this reporter said she was just out looking for signs of spring and saw me in the park, so it was just a pic with about 3 sentences saying what I was doing. the title of the pic was "Buried Treasure"

I wouldn't use a shovel in certain situations like others have mentioned, but these people are anti-shovel in any area. Just stuck in their ways I suppose. Not sure if I will give up on the club all together since there are a few that I like to talk to.. we'll see how it goes next time. Just seems like the majority are a bunch of grumps. Maybe I'll start my own club.. who's comin with me?!

 

[Newt]

Your part of a huge club right here!
Newt

 

[midwest hillbilly]

i also hunt this same park (hope to see ya around snow) and i to use the same kind of shovel i've dug alot of holes there, never had any trouble i've talked to a few of the park guys nobody cares just as long as you fill your hole. i do understand though that it does look better (not having a shovel in your hand lol) but it looks like only the guys in the club care what you use!! i have nothing against any of these guys and i know none of them i just know what works for me i dig better plugs with my shovel than i do with anything else i use not to mention my hands are not sore anymore. i did see his pic in our paper and it was taken as he was digging he had a perfect plug not to mention the ground is still frozen he would of needed a ice pick not a srewdriver!! snow i haven't been out yet still waiting for it to warm up but seeing you in miller park with that e-trax makes me think i better get out there before you get all the goodies. you see me if you hunt miiler park i'll be the hillbilly with the shovel (lol)

 

[twistidd]

Personally, I'd never use a shovel in a park. But that's just me.

I use the Lesche exclusively.

Though I don't necessarily agree you should have been harrassed the way you were, you probably got it more because you're new to the hobby...and they all know it.

Just please do us all a favor and dig nice clean plugs. If a park official tells you to put the shovel away, just do and use the Lesche. The last thing we all need is pissed off park officials!

Joe

 

[DPBOB]

Your part of a huge club right here!

I agree who needs them when you got " The Illinois Section of Treasurenet " the best of all states and countries...

Stick with us and forget about them......