In 1986, my area was already well-pounded. We'd had a dealer here since the early 1970s. And 3 dealers in the county by the late 1970s. Guys had been detecting our area since about 1964-ish (is one guy I know of anyhow, there could have been others that early on). But I don't think that even when things were "virgin", that those early hunters (with their BFO's and all-metal TRs) were necessarily scarfing up with insane #'s. They still had to work for a 4 or 5 silver day. Because the machines didn't go that deep. And you were constantly fighting foil, tabs, etc... (no discrimination). I'm sure there were exceptions. Like if you read about the first guys to hunt around snack stand/concession booths at carnival sites, etc... But at least where I was at, those guys in the late 1960s to early 1970s, were only pulling 3 to 5-ish silvers on a multi-hour hunt, at the typical 1920's elementary school type hunt.
However, by the late 1970s, the advent of motion discriminators (6000d, etc...) made the parks & schools come alive. Because a) you were you immediately adding an inch or two. Especially in ground that was moderate to heavy minerals. b) you covered ground quick! and c) you were doing all this while simultaneously being able to knock out tabs and foil. So the silver -rush was on for a few years.
But by the mid 1980s, seems that everyone now had a motion discriminator, and the playing field was levelled again. Doh!
