What am I doing wrong?

[Vaquero45]

Hello. I've been meaning to start detecting for a while and just recently actually got to it. I have been searching on the land I grew up on. There is a house, and three barns. I've spent several days going over the areas I'd expect to find something decent and even checking places that were unlikely. I have found a ton of junk, from pull tabs to rusted pieces of farm tools. I haven't found one cool thing or coin yet though.

i know I need to be patient, but the house is over 100 years old someone had to drop a penny somewhere. I'm getting a little frustrated. I'm having fun...but I am ready for at least one coin even if it is a 1998 penny.

I need some advice. There is a ton of trash and junk on this land. It's all old junk, but its in the way. Where should I be looking? I have been around the bigger trees in the yard. I have searched near the porches. I have searched around the well. The driveway was searched as well.

I don't know where the clothesline used to be and I haven't figured out where the outhouse was yet.

Thanks.

 

[dimedigger]

once you dig out all the junk you will start finding cool things

 

[marjam]

Just a suggestion; go somewhere close by, such as a tot lot, sports field, or any other public place you will find a lot of coin targets, just to get a feel for what coins sound like. If you have little experience, this will help you learn what your detector is telling you. One day doing this may help you identify a target you might be passing up. I still do this and I have been detecting for quite a few years now. It is a lot of fun.

 

[gleaner1]

Look for the iron, then you can avoid it. If you must.

 

[MUD(S.W.A.T)]

Your coil has to get over a good find to find it... You answered your own question, keep looking.
Keep @ it and HH !!

 

[GrizLeeBear]

You are finding things and that is half the battle. As suggested, set up a test with known good targets and learn what they sound like. I've been at it for over fifty years and still get in funks from time to time. While it is good to search good areas as you describe, set up grid areas and just march back and forth testing whole areas. In a hundred years people have been everywhere.

 

[Detector Wars]

I come across a number of these threads from time to time, they all seem to have a common denominator. Unfortunately I cannot tell you what that is otherwise I'll start a war. I'll give you this; find as many "what am I doing wrong"/struggling threads, and you will see a pattern emerging.

All the best in your quest!

 

[bevo]

slow down, ya only live once! I went through three detectors in two months before I slowed.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

vaquero45, there is a common misconception that any old house has to .... eventually ... have some fumble-fingers old coins around it. While that may be *technically* true (no house can be that old without at least 1 silver or wheatie, etc...), yet may not be *realistically* true. I have hunted a LOT of old houses and yards, and results do vary. At some it will be good, others so-so, and others lame. The "lame" ones may be the very factor you're running into: sheer volumes of junk verses any keeper coin. Let's face it: some places are just very junky. If your farm had all sorts of tractors parked out front being worked on, welded on, etc... If the way they fed the chickens and pigs in the old days was just to through the household trash out in the yards and let the hens peck at it .... If they got rid of their trash by having burn-pit barrels out in the yard (which would then subsequently just be spread around the yard to dispose of the ash), etc... You can CLEARLY see that some farms/barns, etc... are just "not worth it".

Do as marjam says: start by going to a place of easy pickens, even if it's only clad. Get your experience there with sounds, tones, etc.... on "gimmee" signals. And if you detest clad (as most of us do), and only want old coins, again, pick a better place than a junky farm yard: research out old stage stops, picnic grounds no-longer-in-use, campgrounds no-longer-in-use, etc....

 

[Vaquero45]

I appreciate the advice. I'm going to keep looking. I know there is good stuff here somewhere. I'm just going to have to get through the junk. I still learning the machine too...so it will take time.

I can remember not long after my parents bought the place 20 some years ago dad and I were in the yard and he looked down and picked up an old silver quarter. We found old sheep shears half buried out there too. So I know there's stuff. I just have to get to it.

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

Definately the first thing you have to do to find coins and cool things is to hunt where coins and cool things are. My current house has almost nothing as far as coins or good stuff. It was built in 1986 in what had been pasture. Lots of bits of farm implements and one dog tag. One clad coin. Zzzzzzzz.

Prior house had all kinds of stuff. Built in 1930. First time I went into the yard with a detector I found a Mercury dime.

 

[oooldman]

Just get a shovel and a wagon..... dig up every thing that your detector registers a hit on. After a while you will at least be able to tell big junk from little junk. Then when the light comes on you will start finding other items some of which will be 'keepers'

 

[liftloop]

that the problem is you need a better detector
I don't think your up grade is going to cut it either
your probably going to find more garbage with your new detector it will just be deeper
but once you get the garbage out of the way you should find sum-then good unless some one was there be for you and cherry picked it clean with a state of the art very high end detector...

 

[fistfulladirt]

I agree with Tom in Ca. I've hunted a lot of farmyards, and they can be trashy. I have also hunted some that give up no signals, it's crazy. Many times fill was brought in and the good stuff is covered up. Like others have said, get the junk outa there, good stuff will show up.

 

[herb n surf]

Pick up a 4 inch coil . The coins are being masked by the junk . The 4 inch coil will allow you to pull coins from between the junk and also allow you to get closer to areas near metal , like fences and metal post..Hope this helps ..