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.

sluice boxes

Daniel Chiapperino asked:


Whether you are a novice or experienced treasure hunter nothing is more important than that one great find of the day, but many treasure hunters miss that great find by not digging everything, or by being asked to leave a site, right before digging that last ping, because they didn’t ask permission to hunt there, well here are some ideas and tips to help you get “your” great find.

1. Can I hunt here?

First and foremost, always get permission to hunt a site, even when it is a public place like a beach or park, one way I have gotten permission for these types of places is to offer a free service, for instance, ask the caretaker if they would like you to remove all the sharp metal objects buried in the sand, like flip tops, and crushed cans, provided you can keep or properly dispose of what is found, they are more likely to allow you access if they get something useful out of it, like having their beach cleaned and unsafe items removed, and feel free to show them what hazards you have removed from their patrons harm, so they will allow you to return often, of course you don’t show the coins, jewelry, or valuables you also sifted out of the sand.

2. Bad times = good times for you!

Although where to hunt is important , it’s also “when” you hunt some places that makes the most difference. When hunting beaches almost anytime is OK but how much better would your hit rate be if you went after a very hot and busy beach day? well you might think that improves your chances of finding some valuables, and it does, but what would be better is take the same scenario as before, but add the element of a mid-day, or late afternoon, thunderstorm that came with out warning, now you are adding the fact that many beach goers, caught unaware of the impending storm until the first cloudburst, are now all racing around to collect their belongings and trying to get out of the deluge, in this instance many people will find they have lost something valuable, and just a note on jewelry, anything found with engravings or inscriptions, you should always try to locate the original owner if possible, most times a reward will be offered, and you will make someone’s day great. Another great time to go to beaches or around lakes is after a huge storm, where erosion has occurred, inland lakes only require heavy downpours or snowmelt to expose items previously buried too deep to find, but on the shore hurricanes, and nor’easters are best for exposing much older, deeper items missed in the past, sometimes including gold coins from ancient shipwrecks. If you live near a northern shore where large amounts of snow accumulates over the winter, the first spring snowmelt is also likely to erode enough beach to expose older buried treasures previously missed by other detectorists.

3. History lessons!

Research your areas history. In my town we have a building that is host to housing a middle aged couple who also have the small luncheonette run by them on the ground floor, and engraved in the wooden columns is a date: built 1786, so while waiting for my sandwich I asked what this place was originally, and was told it was a stage-coach stop, so I proceeded to ask if they also owned the dirt parking area across the street, and they told me no one knows if anyone owns it, I told her why I asked, and she offered to allow me to not only search the public area across the street, but if I let her know when I am there I can search all the property around the building their family has owned for generations. Many area’s local historical societies can provide guidance as to what area’s were first developed and which roads or sites still exist today, and will offer locally written books about the settlement and development of the area, many of which will include a large old building which was a hostel/bordello in it’s day, which means allot of traffic in one place for many people to lose their belongings, even something as seemingly insignificant as a metal button can bring in a high cash value if it is old but identifiable, people have found very old coins and jewelry as well, when I picked out a silver medal of “Mary” I didn’t think much of it, it was all black and crusty, but later when going through my findings I picked it out and carefully cleaned it to reveal the rock she is standing on has the date 1839, and was found on the grounds of a building that was built in 1886, along with a few coins from the early 1800′s, by the way the building was also a bordello during the first world war, it is located near naval docks!

4. Tools of the trade!

Ok you found a good spot to hunt and got permission, you have a metal detector, what else do you need? Well for beach hunting as well as other types of hunting you will need to start with at least two zippered or Velcro pouches, like a belly bag, or you can use a builder’s pocketed apron, one will be used to hold your good or questionable findings, the other you will use for obvious trash dug up, when beach hunting you will need a sand scoop, preferably with a wire mesh basket, wire mesh scoops tend to be lighter than perforated stainless steel baskets, you want the holes small enough to prevent a half dime from slipping through, if they are bigger you might miss out on small rings as well, for other types of treasure hunting you will need a sharp serrated digging tool, many of which look like a hunting knife, but if the blade is shaped like a trowel shovel it will be easier to dig through hard rocky, packed dirt, especially if there are dense tree or shrubbery roots to cut through to get down to your prize, in this case a long metal probe is useful for narrowing down where to dig, by inserting it around the area where you got your ping, you can tell whether it is buried deep or shallow, and with numerous probings you can determine the general shape of the object before digging it out of the dirt. Always wear leather gloves when digging to protect your hands from glass, sharp metal objects, or sharp stones.

Happy Hunting To All!

Copyright 10/2006

Daniel Chiapperino

http://www.gardeningsphere.com

Peter Bankss asked:




Hobbies are supposed to be fun! And treasure hunting is no exception. There are plenty of fun games and activities you can use to make treasure hunting a fun outing for the whole family.

If you decide to take others treasure hunting with you, whether it is your children or older relatives, it won’t be much fun for them if they’re just watching you all day. Let’s face it, sitting around and watching someone run a metal detector over the ground is hardly a thrilling experience. The key is to get everyone involved. Not only does this make it more fun for them, but you will have extra hands working away at finding the treasure you are after!

Some companies even organize treasure hunts as corporate activities. It’s a really great way to get coworkers working together on a common goal: finding the treasure! People learn to be innovative, creative and persistent during treasure hunts.

Some treasure hunting companies even offer corporate discounts. Each person on the hunt should have a job or task to do. Put one person in charge of navigating or leading the group to the treasure. Another could be

responsible for protecting found treasures from damage. Giving people a sense of purpose will help them to become involved and they will enjoy the treasure hunt that much more.

When planning a group treasure hunting outing, consider using a treasure hunting company as your guide. These people are experienced; they know which equipment you need; where you are likely to find your treasure; and all of the rules surrounding treasure hunting in the area.

Some treasure hunting companies will provide all of the equipment necessary for the hunt. So while it may cost money to book the hunt, you will be saving money by not having to buy equipment for several people. One example of this would be an underwater hunt. If you are taking a group of friends to the beach for a ring and jewelry hunt, it could be quite costly to provide snorkeling equipment for everyone.

A treasure hunting company would supply them for a rental fee. You wouldn’t be stuck with a dozen snorkel masks to store after the trip!

When taking children treasure hunting, it is important that each child has their own tools and equipment. To stay organized, use the grid method that we discussed earlier. Map out your treasure hunting area, and assign each child a square. Assigning a separate area to each child should limit the amount of bickering that goes on. Congratulate each child on their finds, even if it’s a worthless pop can. You could even plant treasures the day before, to ensure that each child uncovers something different.

If you are planning a treasure hunt for children, always consider their safety first.

They will need to be closely supervised during the hunt. One adult per three children is a good ratio. Try to limit treasure hunting with children to areas where you are sure there will be very few threats or dangers. In could be disastrous for a child to dig up a sharp, rusted object, or to stumble across a weapon or drug paraphernalia. Children typically have a short attention span, so keep the treasure hunt brief or have other activities throughout the day. Prizes and a meal at the end of the hunt would make for a perfect day.

Anytime you get a group of people together for a treasure hunt, remember to act as host and to provide a few necessities. If you are treasure hunting in the sun or in a hot climate, you will need to have plenty of drinks on hand to keep everyone hydrated throughout the day.

Joseph Buffalo asked:


If you want to have some fun and have an entertaining treasure hunt, try the Western Ghost Towns.

The ones I’m referring to are the ones you need a four wheel drive vehicle to get to them. The key to finding these ghost towns is “research”. The first place most people start is buying a book on ghost towns in the area they are going to treasure hunt. It is best to have a topographical map of the area also. Another good source is the local historical society. They usually have old photographs of long gone ghost towns.

Let me say something about old black and white photographs. All the building depicted in the photograph appear further away than the actual distance at the ghost town site.

We were searching a long gone town in SE Arizona. We had to four wheel it for about 1-1/2 hours to get to it. We had the Typo map; an old picture of the town dated 1888. There were some visible adobe foundations at the site. We were looking for the old saloon site. Standing on a small rise we thought it was approximately 50 yards away. Fortunately there were other mounds of dirt and hills we good triangulate. We actually were almost standing on top of the saloon foundation.

Looking at the old picture we determined where the front door would have been. Most of the building would have had wooden walks, with separations between the boards. If some one dropped a coin on the walk, most likely it would drop through the floor. Since we didn’t have a picture of what the saloon looked like inside we had to guess where the bar might have been.

Most of the buildings in these old ghost towns are not very big, so you can set up a string search pattern area to make sure you cover every inch. It was a lot of fun researching the site.

Our finds that day were over 50 100 year old square head nails, 3 “V” Nickels, one worth $35-$50. Older pennies, and a few quarters. We were hoping for a Gold coin, but maybe we will find it over the next hill. Happy treasure hunting.

Treasure Hunting items at; Treasures

Peter Bankss asked:




Treasure hunting is a rather contagious pastime. For some, it can become an obsession (in the best sense of the word!). People worldwide are fascinated with the hobby of treasure hunting.

Coming across a valuable item in your treasure hunt can be a real thrill. Even an item that may not have monetary value could be personally attractive to the right hunter.Part of the thrill is in the chase; not knowing what you may find lends a sense of mystery and intrigue to the treasure hunt.

In years past, a treasure hunt could have been a very dangerous quest. Pirating was rampant, with several competitive and devious hunters often after the same prize. Quite often, the myth or rumor of a valuable buried or sunken treasure led to bloodshed and fighting between hunters.

Before airplanes became the preferred method of worldwide travel, those in search of life in a new land would travel by ship to their new destination. As it could take months to sail from one continent to another, passengers were unsure if they would even return to their home land. They would pack up all of their worldly possessions to take with them to the ‘new world’. One might pack several trunks of furs, coins, jewelry, dishware, and other valuable goods to take with them to their new life.

These ships laden with valuable items were prime targets for pirates.Ships were always on the look out for pirates that may try to board and rob, or  even kill, the passengers onboard. While this high seas robbery is certainly not called treasure hunting, it demonstrates just how vulnerable these ‘treasures’ were. People traveling away from home were not only vulnerable to theft while sailing; these pirates had no qualms about robbing a ship after a natural disaster struck.

Ships sailing far from home had to endure terrible storms, barrier reefs,extremely high waves and more as they slowly made their way from one point to the next. Unfortunately, many ships succumbed to the dangers they faced, and sank.

Before GPS and radio, it was really anyone’s guess where they ship may have gone down. Tales and fables would develop about the location of the sunken ship and its possible contents. For example, if a royal family member or businessman was on board, one might assume that quite a bit of valuable merchandise sank with the ship.

If the ship was not immediately located, an air of mystery would develop around the tale as it was passed down through generations of curious people. Those will the resources and desire would undoubtedly go in search of the ship in an effort to recover some of the ‘treasures’ on board. These expeditions were treasure hunts in the truest sense of the word!

A treasure may also be something that a person unfortunately lost. Of course, if you find a valuable item, you should make every attempt to return it to its rightful owner. But in most cases, the owner is never found, leaving the treasure hunter as the new owner. We’ll discuss great places to find this kind of treasure a little later on, but some items that you could expect to come across include watches, rings, coins, or necklaces.

Other treasures may have been worthless when they were disposed of, but have now become so rare or desirable that they have increased in value. Arrowheads from battles past; carvings; certain stones, etc can all prove to be valuable finds.

Before there were designated garbage dumps, unwanted items were often buried or simply thrown into the bush. Over time, these items were long forgotten. However, finding a rare dish, for example, that can be traced to a certain crafter or era could be a real treasure.

Some treasures may have absolutely no monetary value at all, but could be very sentimentally valuable to the right person. Old family photos, a favorite teddy bear, or a letter from your first love would all be great treasures to find. It would rare to stumble across a sentimental treasure unless you were specifically looking for it, but it can happen!

Whatever your reason for treasure hunting; whatever you are searching for, you are sure to find a few surprises along the way! Treasure hunting is truly a hobby for anyone to enjoy.