Stuck in a Tree - Frustration Boils .

Midnightrider08 · May 16, 2008

As some of you know I been working the old foundation site pretty hard lately trying to put in a few hours each day at the same time I am trying to quit smoking.

The last 3 times up to the site have yielded nothing but nails and lots of them ... today I just had my breaking point... I did the 1000 yard in every direction ... dug dozens of numerous signals and guess what I came home with ? Nails and No Detector. I give that thing my best Quarterback Hail Merry Impersonation I could muster and now she stuck about 20-30 feet up in an old maple tree.

I left her there to think about her behavior and I came home for some eats.

Will go back and get her before nightfall but today I found Utter frustration and that's about it .... after 4 straight days of nothing but nails ... I'm beginning to wonder if I'll ever find anything else again.

finderzzs · May 16, 2008

You are to fricking funny :BangHead:

I've thought about doing that soooo many times over the years, but I think you are the first. I feel your pain my brother. Get some food in you and see if that things going to behave the way it's supposed to. HH :cussing:

watercolor · May 16, 2008

One of my golfing buddies did that once. Not with a detector though. . . he had to use his wedge to putt with.

Things will get better when you don't expect it.

StormGazr · May 16, 2008

sounds like your luck there is like my luck on my property...its 'virgin' land (never been detected) the most I've found is 1 clad penny.......I'm about to give up! >:(

Good luck & HH!
Gazr

StormGazr · May 16, 2008

Hey Midnight, I just noticed we both use the same kind of detector....maybe thats what our problem is

?

tapoutking · May 16, 2008

Midnightrider08 said:
As some of you know I been working the old foundation site pretty hard lately trying to put in a few hours each day at the same time I am trying to quit smoking.

The last 3 times up to the site have yielded nothing but nails and lots of them ... today I just had my breaking point... I did the 1000 yard in every direction ... dug dozens of numerous signals and guess what I came home with ? Nails and No Detector. I give that thing my best Quarterback Hail Merry Impersonation I could muster and now she stuck about 20-30 feet up in an old maple tree.

I left her there to think about her behavior and I came home for some eats.

Will go back and get her before nightfall but today I found Utter frustration and that's about it .... after 4 straight days of nothing but nails ... I'm beginning to wonder if I'll ever find anything else again.

Tell me about it. I either find nothing or I dig up lots of nails and trash. I just got back from hunting on my lunch and found.....NAILS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHO'S DROPPING ALL THE GOD DA** NAILS!!!!!!! STOP IT PLEASE!!

djabend · May 16, 2008

StormGazr said:
Hey Midnight, I just noticed we both use the same kind of detector....maybe thats what our problem is?

That could be, how long have you been using it? Perhaps you need to learn your detector some more and move on to a new site.
I am not a fan of the bounty hunter series, but some people are and they still find the good stuff.
HH,
Donny

CRUSADER · May 16, 2008

I always have said; when it gets tough get tougher.

Although I am lucky where I live, I have had plenty of bad times & once I have done 3 days of nothing. I was about to give in on that area but decided to tough it out (I'm stubborn) & the 4 day in the middle of no-one came my rarest Celtic coin, recorded as the 7th one ever found!.

Probability is now on your side, things will get better.

The only difference between success & failure is your state of mind.

Also its like fishing, if you caught lots of fish everyday & it would be easy, & I would get bored. Tough times makes the good times 10 times better!!!

Midnightrider08 · May 16, 2008

I think alot of what pushed me over was I realized we talking a acre or 2 area of nothing but signals all over and all the landscape sorta looks the same , every clump of ground that could be the dump gives a signal. It's mind boggling .. Clay and pottery , brick all over in every direction.

Just was upsetting cause after the 3 previous days of finding nails I had decided to do something different and search wider area ... to come up with only nails was very heart wrenching.

200 yr old nails are cool yea ... but I have such a collection now it's not fun anymore.

I've decided I'm going to concentrate on the area where I found the horse stirrup and just dig a trench all the way inside and outside the foundation up against it ... after that I'll hoe out the middle pile.

I hope the detector is ok ... but if it not it'll be a good damn excuse to get a different one. It serves it's purpose it finds metal .. I'm decent with it at the tot lots and school yards , parks . . . but I'm more into free digging ...Something about shovel meeting dirt and getting dirty ...

I'll get over it and I appreciate all the kind words. If I had one of them fancy detectors though I'd know the difference between a nail and a good piece of iron though. The overload signal on the Quick Silver is just a pain in the tail IMO .

hogge · May 16, 2008

Don't know much about Bounty Hunters. My brother has one and doesn't seem to find much. He's found a couple of coins, sure, but not the kind of stuff I find with my White's Prism IV. He finds alot of iron stuff along with nails. I filter this junk out. I only upgraded slightly and it has sure paid off. I dig less holes and find more coins and relics.(just look at my posts from this yr.) My Prizm cost me $385. It's well worth it. I think my brother will be upgrading soon. You live in a state where you can find some of the oldest coins and best relics in this country's history! One good find could pay for your detector and then some. Look around and invest....I could not afford anything more than what I got, but boy am I happy with it! GOOD LUCK and HH HOGGE :thumbsup:

tapoutking · May 16, 2008

I use a Bounty Hunter my wife bought for me from Radio Shack. It is the absolute best detector for finding nails hands down....but, it has a mind of its own sometimes......I have to re-set it sometimes because it will simply stop detecting. I carry a coin in my hand and throw it on the ground in front of me to test it as I am hunting....I could swear it also goes nuts when it hears the ice cream truck......

I_Dig_NYC · May 16, 2008

I feel your pain. I thought of doing the same thing after digging 8 to 12 inch deep holes and finding nothing but can slaw for months in a supposedly historic park. :BangHead:

Find another place to hunt for awhile.
I don't want to read the newspaper one day and see the headline;

"Treasure Hunter Goes on Killing Spree"

CRUSADER · May 16, 2008

My big grass field was similar. Just grid it & stick to the system. never give in until all land is covered. Don't be distracted by what might be in the next field.

Ron B · May 16, 2008

Man oh man;I love this post!
We've all been in your shoes at one time or another. It's easy to blame the detector; they deserve it too.

IMO, it's time you think about investing a little bit more in the hobby we all love to hate; you'll be glad you did.

GRB

Silver Fox · May 16, 2008

Midnightrider08 said:
As some of you know I been working the old foundation site pretty hard lately trying to put in a few hours each day at the same time I am trying to quit smoking.

The last 3 times up to the site have yielded nothing but nails and lots of them ... today I just had my breaking point... I did the 1000 yard in every direction ... dug dozens of numerous signals and guess what I came home with ? Nails and No Detector. I give that thing my best Quarterback Hail Merry Impersonation I could muster and now she stuck about 20-30 feet up in an old maple tree.

I left her there to think about her behavior and I came home for some eats.

Will go back and get her before nightfall but today I found Utter frustration and that's about it .... after 4 straight days of nothing but nails ... I'm beginning to wonder if I'll ever find anything else again.

I feel your pain but I gotta tell you something without adding to your frustration, from an "old pro." And that is that there's some mistique associated with owning a metal detector; that because one owns a metal detector one is ALWAYS going to find goodies, keepers, etc. As you and many others found out the "right" to find something keepable is a myth. There's more frustation than satisfaction although the frustration is quickly forgotten when one finds a hell of a keeper such as half, or SLQ, or an old coin, or some nice jewelry. Finding such falls into the low percentage for time expended.

Finding keepers is a fortunate thing, not a dependable one. If they're there and your coil goes over them, you're fortunate. If they are not it isn't that you are not fortunate, it's simply that you weren't over the objects.

Go back, get your miracle machine and if it still works, move on to other areas and keep trying until the machine delivers. But always keep in mind that it's not the machine but the area you are in. There's no law that says that you are always going to be in an area where goodies were lost. And even if they were you still have to be fortunate to pass your coil over them.

Hang in there, man, and don't lose it again. BTW, your detector has no sex. It's an IT, not a she or a he.

Silver Fox

liftloop · May 16, 2008

I think siver foxs is right

Damien12 · May 16, 2008

I hear ya. I get frustrated when I spend a day in a park and dont dig up anything but clad coins. I cant imagine
digging only nails.

If I were you ..I would get mad enough to be persistant. Hit other sites but come back to this site for an hour or two once a week until you dig up all the nails. Once the nails are gone...you're bound to find other stuff
right? Hang in there..and good luck climbing the tree to get your detector back

Natman · May 16, 2008

You've got to remember that this hobby is all about fun and the thrill of the hunt - try not to let what looks like a great spot frustrate you when there's no keepers to be had..I've received permission to hunt what looked to be prime places for loads of old silver coins, only to come home empty handed..it happens more than you know to the best of us.

I'll bet that detector will respond if treasure is really there..if you don't find anything after an hour, it's better to go elsewhere than toss your machine into the trees. What if you killed a bird?

Hope the support from some of us here helps, and good luck on your next outing!

Nat