Treasure Wiki

David Cowley asked:


People who use metal detectors for treasure hunting do tend to run up against an image problem.  The media and comedians like Steve Martin have poked a lot of fun at people who use these detectors.  But perhaps treasure hunters can have the last laugh when their detectors turn up something valuable, which has happened in the past and is sure to happen again in the near future.

It’s Easy To Get Started

The price of good quality, lightweight metal detectors have been going down in recent years.  You can find them at Sears, for goodness’ sakes.  A basic metal detector will cost you less than $200.  You can always add on bits and pieces from treasure hunting supply stores (usually found online) and from online auction sites like eBay.  It’s good to get a taste of the hobby before making a big financial commitment.

There are professional-quality metal detectors that can be used on boats, as well as other vehicles.  There are those with ground radar that can usually detect how far down in the earth a piece of metal is and some even guess what the metal is and in some cases determine the shape of the metal object.  Metal detectors are used in this case by surveyors, utility companies looking for pipelines and miners.  The detectors used for these professions can often run into five figures.

There are many different types of detectors on the market.  If you are just starting out you may want to consider the Land or Relic detectors.  They have fewer features and are easy for the beginner to start with, just turn in on and go.  Then can be used on land and even in a couple of inches of water.  Most of the coils are waterproof, just keep the electronics out of the water and you will be ok.

As the price increases for the detectors the more complicated they become.  More and more practice will be needed to become an expert with the device but in the long run you will spend less time digging up trash.

You Are Not Alone

Treasure hunting is a hobby that not only lets you get to play with big toys, perhaps make some money, but also gets your outside and exercising.  You should be exercising regularly, anyway, but just doing the same old exercises over and over again can get boring.  And, you can also make new friends with the treasure hunting hobby.

There are treasure hunting clubs all over the country.  In order to find out the closest one to you, contact the Federation of Metal Detector and Archeological Clubs (FMDAC).  Although most of these clubs cater to adults, there are some clubs strictly for kids and some clubs will allow kids to enter with an adult.  There are treasure hunting clubs in other countries besides America.  For example, in England, the use of metal detectors for treasure hunting has gone up 20% in the year 2006.

There have been incredible things found by regular people with metal detectors.  These finds include rare coins, buried cars and ancient artifacts.  And if you loose your wedding ring in a forest, chances are you’ll be able to find it again before your spouse finds out about your little accident.

Happy Treasure Hunting.

Mara Mark asked:

All gold detectors are based on the same technology. Of course there are different types and models but they are all variations of the same electromagnetic technology. A magnetic field is created inside the gold detector that reacts with the magnetic field of a metal on the ground. The metal detector has the ability to convert this reaction into a signal that tells you that metal has been found on the ground.

The most important aspect of gold detectors is tuning. You have to carefully calibrate the gold detector to properly receive the signals from the ground, depending on what you are searching for. Often, this process must be performed (usually by pressing a button) every few minutes depending on the gold detector type.

Another important factor is motion. Some gold detectors require a fairly slow swinging action while others need a much quicker action. For best results you have to use the speed which is considered as optimal by the manufacturer. Carefully read the gold detector’s manual before performing any searches.

Last but not least, frequency. Most gold detectors operate in low signal frequencies between 5-10khz and 15-20khz. The reason for that is because low frequencies go deeper into the ground. If you are targeting objects like rings, coins or similar objects then low frequencies between 5-20Khz is what you need. Some multi-frequency gold detectors (which are very expensive) have appeared in the market the last few years, claiming advantages in gold detection and depth performance. In my opinion all these claims are overstated.

I’ve noticed that not a single gold detector manufacturer ever specify the detection depth of their machines. This is always confusing. The reason is that there are many things that affect the depth detection like the ground type, moisture etc. Gold detector manufacturers will not specify a specific depth range (eg. 10 meters) because another manufacturer will immediately specify a higher range (e.g. 11 meters). In my opinion gold detector depth range is almost the same for all brands of the same type.

Another half-truth is that the deeper you can go into the ground the more treasure you can find. I think that this is not the case. The deeper you go, the less you will find. If someone would burry a treasure 300 years ago how deep do you think he would dig? I think the average depth would be about 10 meters. Archeologists discovered treasures hidden for thousands of years, buried in the ground in less than 5 meters in depth.

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