Metal Detecting With The Garrett Ace 250

Good Service From Subtech.co.uk

2012-01-16T07:08:00.000-08:00

Good Service From Subtech.co.uk

I bought my C Scope CS1MX from http://www.subtech.co.uk, and I must say, the guy who I dealt with was very helpful. There was a problem with the delivery of my item where it was sent to the wrong house. Not just to my next door neighbours but 5 doors down! Subtech were straight on the phone to C-Scope. At this time I wasn't aware that the item was sitting in my neighbours house 5 doors down because I didn't recognise the name of the person who signed for the detector on delivery. Subtech came back to me and said if the items lost C-Scope will send you another one. Anyway, in the end I found out where my detector had been delivered to and I went down and collected it.

But because of all the hassle Subtech phoned C-Scope and managed to get me a free pair of headphones, which I really need! On my first outing with the CS1MX I had to use earphones! What a pain in the *ss that was. So full marks to Subtech, they were very quick to sort out any problems and were also very quick to keep me informed and answer my questions by email. I'd definitely use them again. Highly recommended.

http://www.subtech.co.uk

First Hunt With The CS1MX

2012-01-15T13:48:00.000-08:00

First Hunt With The CS1MX

Went out for the first time with my new C- Scope CS1MX. It performed pretty good. I went to two sites that I used to go to with my Ace 250. It did feel a bit strange not having a screen to look at. Both these sites are a nightmare for trash, so although I was a little annoyed at the amount of trash I was digging with the CS1MX, I had to remind myself that I was exactly the same when I had the Ace 250 over at the same sites.

The main problem seemed to be ground mineralisation. It fooled the CS1MX quite a few times, giving me really good signals only to be met with nothing but mineralised soil. And the CS1MX can't discriminate foil, not without missing good targets anyway, so that was a bit annoying also. Once it got on to cleaner ground though it worked really well. In a spot where I had previously been over numerous times with the Ace 250 I had some good signals, which ended up being a 10 Pence coin and a broken bullet. My best find of the day was a musket ball found about 8 inches deep. Never found a musket ball before so it was a nice thing to find, and it shows that the site does have some history that dates back further then the second world war, because I seem to find mostly bullets from WWII at these sites.

Kynoch Bullet Shell

Finds For The Day

Musket Ball

Overall I'm happy with the CS1MX, although it would be nice if the discrimination was a little better. But everything else is good, and no detector is perfect, even the ones costing a small fortune. Ive only been out with it once so can't judge it fully yet. After more time spent using the machine I'm sure I'll learn to identify the sounds better and be digging less junk after a while.

Just Ordered A C-Scope CS 1MX Detector

2012-01-11T16:17:00.000-08:00

Just Ordered A C-Scope CS 1MX Detector

I have been without a metal detector for a little while now. I sold my Garrett Ace 250 a few months ago on eBay, so Ive been eager to buy a new metal detector and get out there and have a look around. At one stage I had £250 to spend on a new or used Metal detector but due to money getting tight again that budget dropped to about £150. So, what metal detector can you buy for £150? Not many to be honest. I knew for that money I would have to get one second hand from eBay. But from watching many auctions come and go, even the used detectors on eBay were going for more then that, the decent ones anyway.

So I kept looking and looking, and finally I came across the C-Scope CS 1MX. This detector is £159 brand new, plus it comes with a 5 year guarantee! Reviews of the machine are rare, but with what reviews there are, they are all very good. It has about 8 - 10 inches depth max and runs at 17 KHz. I was looking at buying a used Tesoro or Laser from eBay but they go for at least £120+ and although they are very reliable machines they are still very old. Well, the ones I could afford anyway! (1990's) and could get a problem within a few weeks of buying one.. And from what Ive read (almost the whole Internet!) they get around the same depth as the CS1MX but may be better amongst the iron infested sites. I would rather play it safe and get a brand new machine with a 5 year guarantee. I know it's not an E-Trac but it is said to be an excellent machine for the price and that's good enough for me. Very simple to use also, just turn on and go!

I'm just waiting for it to arrive. Can't wait to have a look around some of my old sites. Stay tuned.

Minelab Musketeer Metal Detector

2011-11-24T16:22:00.000-08:00

Minelab Musketeer Metal Detector

For a while now I have been looking to upgrade from my Ace 250. After watching countless videos and reading many reviews and individuals opinions on metal detectors I think I have narrowed it down to two metal detector models. Bear in mind, I only have around £250 to spend.

The two metal detectors are the XP ADX 250 and the Minelab Musketeer. I think the Musketeer, whether it's an older model or the newest model, the Advantage, it is the detector I'm swaying towards buying. The Musketeer XS and the Advantage are said to be the same machine, the only difference being the control box housing design. It seems like an excellent detector for the price. The recovery speed and discrimination capability's of the Musketeer looks absolutely superb. This would suit me perfectly as most of the sites I go to are very trashy and iron infested.

Take a look at the two videos below which give demonstrations of the Minelab Musketeers discrimination capability's and recovery speed.

Metal Detecting In August

2011-08-15T07:56:00.000-07:00

Metal Detecting In August

It's been a while since I have been able to get out with the metal detector. I have wanted to but for one reason or another it hasn't been possible. Mainly due to work and other commitments. I managed to get out the other day to have a little hunt around in a wooded area. It's the same old story for me though, every site I see from afar that looks great always ends up being trashy as hell.

As soon as I turned the Ace250 on it was going crazy with signals. This site is just swamped with foil and other bits of junk like ring pulls. I turned the sensitivity down and adjusted the discrimination settings but it was still hard not to end up digging junk because of the good sounding signals. But hey, one of those junk signals could of been something good..Sadly, today it wasn't to be.

Found this car sign about 2 inches deep. I think it's off a diesel Ford car or van. I think it should read TCDI or TDCI, but I just found the TC.

More Junk: A metal lid found very shallow

The story of this site: Ring pulls grow on trees here. There were so many signs of the 1970's at this site. Things like the style of the ring pulls, old car seats, 70's bottle tops etc. But nothing older then that.

An 1970's TIZER bottle top. My find of the day!

I'm planning on trying to get out more to go metal detecting. I'm even thinking of changing my detector. I have had the Ace250 for almost 2 years now, time flys! And I feel like a change. I have been reading about the Minelab Musketeer XS Pro and it seems to be a very good detector that's well within my price range. I also have my eye on an old XP Pro Compass. I was reading some of the reviews on this old detector and many of the experienced detectorists say it's an excellent machine. Not sure which one to go with. I might wait a while until I get enough money and just go all out and buy either a Minelab Sovereign GT, or an XP Goldmaxx Power..Or possibly a Minelab Musketeer Advantage. Stay tuned folks.

Check out this strange caterpillar I spotted. It's mostly all fur.

Strange Caterpillar: Someones lost their eyebrow

Strange Caterpillar

Until the next time.

How To Clean Copper And Bronze Coins

2011-02-07T20:10:00.000-08:00

Metal Detecting: How To Clean Copper And Bronze Coins

I found this helpful video on YouTube showing how to clean copper and bronze coins. For quite a while I have been looking for better ways to clean the coins I have been finding. I usually clean them with powerful concoctions like vinegar, soda, and other random ingredients from around my house like stain removers and bleach, which most of the time ends up ruining some of the coins.

I have tried the method used in the video and it's much more effective then anything I have ever used before. I found that it not only works on copper and bronze coins, but also with silver coins as well, just use slightly less lemon juice. I hope you find the video as helpful as I did. Video by YouTube user: Digging Norway

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com

Forgotten Metal Detector Finds

2011-01-20T15:45:00.000-08:00

Forgotten Metal Detector Finds

Here are some of my forgotten about metal detector finds that I have found over the time Ive been metal detecting. Most have just been put in my shed and left there, so I thought I should get them up on here for you to take a look at. As your probably aware, most of them are not very valuable, but some are quite interesting. There's some decent finds here. A fair few keepers. This post will be updated with new finds regularly, so keep checking back.

Pigeon I.D Ring With Leg Bone Still Inside

1971 Half Penny

1971 Half Penny

1971 Half Penny Back

I found this Wren Davis Ltd milk bottle a few months ago. It was quite deep down. I was searching for a signal and seen the top of this bottle in the hole so decided to dig it up. Wren Davis Ltd has been going since the 18th Century, but I think this bottle dates from the 1960's or 70's. It has Wren Davis Ltd in fancy writing on the front.

I found this old Gordons Special Dry London Gin bottle about a year ago. It was only about 2 inches under the ground. It's in excellent condition. I think this bottle dates to around the 1920's or earlier. It has a very strange dragons head at the base.

Established In 1769

Calling All Midlands Farm Land Owners

2011-01-12T06:19:00.000-08:00

Calling All Midlands Farm Land Owners

I wanted to throw this out there just on the off chance that someone that owns land in Birmingham, Coleshill, Sutton Coldfield, Solihull, or surrounding West Midlands areas might read it. I'm looking for places to metal detect. I would be willing to travel, and would also pay you a fee for the day(s). If you would prefer half of anything I find instead then that's fine too. Obviously if I paid you a fee for the day but just happened to find a huge haul of gold, or anything of significant value, you would still get half of the find.

Let me just add, I'm not out to rob anyone or rip anyone off, I'm an honest guy just looking for some new places to go metal detecting.

If you are willing to allow metal detecting on your land then just post a comment on this page and I will get back to you as soon as possible. I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you.

Latest Metal Detecting Trip

2011-01-09T11:17:00.000-08:00

Latest Metal Detecting Trip

Hello everyone, happy new year!. It has been quite a while since I was last out metal detecting, so I thought I would get out and have a look around. I had my eye on a new site so I thought I'd get down there and give it a go. The site has changed since I was last there in the 1980's, not so much the layout, but the security. I think the sites been heavily used by off road motorbikes (scramblers), and now there are a few obstacles in the way to deter the bike riders from going there, disturbing the animals and destroying the land.

On my way to the site - Under the Motorway

Rocks to prevent people getting their motorbikes over to the fields

Luckily for me there was a way through other then climbing the rocks with all my gear. That puddle is deeper and wider then it looks. Thanks for the wet foot.

There were other obstacles too, in the form of big metal gurders, placed tightly together so only the thickness of an average sized person could get through to the other side. Thankfully I'm a slim guy otherwise it would of been very tough getting through.

A moat and fence are also now in force..This one was a bit of a pain in the *ss to get over.

Once I finally reached this site and got set up it was clear that there was way more junk then I thought there would be. I was finding bottle tops, bits of foil, shotgun shells, pulltabs, you name it. It's shocking, I never expected this site in the middle of nowhere to be so trashy. Saying that, I only stuck to one wooded area as the whole site is huge. So another part of this site might be really good. I'll get over to a different part of the site some day soon.

Part Of The Site

I did manage to find a bullet shell not very deep down. It has no markings at all.

Almost in the same hole as the bullet shell I found a shotgun shell

I didn't need the metal detector for this find

Ever had the feeling your being watched..

Check out the size of the horns on this fella!

Almost everthing I found was junk, but I did find a coin! It turned out to be a 1937 Three Pence. It gave off a good signal and was only about 4 inches deep. When I found this coin the only thing I could make out on it was the date. This date is quite special for this coin because if I were to find a Three Pence dated 1937 with Prince Edward on the face - This very rare coin in "uncirculated" condition is worth £30,000GBP. So I figured finding one in reasonable condition would still be worth a fair amount of money. Like I said I couldn't see the face so I wasn't sure if this was an Edward or a George. A George is worth nothing in comparison.

Three Pence Find

Sadly, it wasn't to be, on getting it home and cleaning it up I could see "GeorgIV", So it was just a George. And in a way I'm glad it was a George because after trying to clean the coin up it just totally went bold on the face. Absolutely corroded. I think this is because it's made of Nickel and copper. If it would of been a 1937 Edward Three Pence I would of been completely gutted. If you enlarge the picture below by clicking on it you can just see the "GeorgIV" at the bottom left hand side.

1937 George Three Pence Front Corroded Beyond Recognition

1937 George Three Pence Back

Next time I go to this site I'll venture somewhere on the other side of the gate. This really is a huge site that will take many many weeks or months of hours to fully search. As far as the eye can see in the picture below is the size of the site, and then you have behind me too, which is huge also. Bit by bit I Suppose.

I would really like to know what some of you people use to clean up your old coins? Any suggestions? Thanks in advance.

Until the next time..

Bad Weather For Metal Detecting

2010-11-29T16:42:00.000-08:00

Bad Weather For Metal Detecting

Hello everyone. The weather here in the UK at the moment is just pure snow, and the temperatures have been as low as minus -18. This is not the type of weather for standing about outside metal detecting. Driving conditions are very dangerous, and my car is playing up due to the severe cold. so I don't really want to go too far out to metal detect incase I get stranded. There is a place close by to where I live though that I could walk to. It's about 5 miles from where I live and I have been meaning to go there and have a look at some point. This place does have history, there was a castle from the 1400 - 1500 Century about 1/4 mile from it, so this site would be situated at the back of the where the castle once stood..

I remember when I was younger, I was over at this site playing about, and I seen a guy with a metal detector, at the time I wasn't into metal detecting at all, didn't even know what one was infact. From what I remember of him he looked like he hadn't found anything. He didn't look very happy, but this was in the early 80's, so his metal detector was no way on the same level of todays machines. As you probably know if you follow this blog, or happened to read the big title at the top, I use the Garrett Ace 250, and I can't see a metal detector from the 1980's being more powerful then that. Hopefully no one has been over to this site metal detecting since the 80's..Maybe I'm wishful thinking, but if this is the case, I think I could have some luck. We shall see. Just got to find some time from somewhere now and I'll get over there.

Is This A Meteorite?

2010-11-07T20:27:00.000-08:00

Is This A Meteorite?

While I was digging a signal at this site, I was about 2 inches deep when this strange blue stone pops out. It wasn't the item giving me the signal, but it did make me stop digging. I wanted to see what this was, as it just looked strange and out of place.

Part of it is still a stone and the other part looks like it's been subject to a very high temperature. It goes from very dark blue to a very light sky blue. The stone part glistens, as if it's got little crystals embedded inside.

This stone is not magnetic, and after doing some research on Meteorites, 99% of them are magnetic, but there is 1% that are not. The Meteorites that fall into the 1% are the more rarer and most valuable. I'm not sure if this is a Meteorite or not, but whatever it is, it looks weird. It looks like it's been burnt and ended up melting onto the sides of itself. If you look closely in some of the pictures you can see the blue remnants on the sides. Could this be the result of it travelling through the earths atmosphere..

I sent some pictures of the stone to a Meteorite expert and he said he had never seen one that looked like this, but could not rule out that it wasn't a Meteorite. He also said the only way to be certain is to send the item to the National History Museum for tests. I have tried to send them an email but there email form seems to be broken.

Is This A Meteorite?

Until the next time..

Latest Metal Detecting Search

2010-11-07T19:19:00.000-08:00

Latest Metal Detecting Search

Been out having a little look around. I went into a seperate part (in the middle) of where I have found quite a few World War II bullet shells. I have never been in this part before, so I just wanted to have a quick look there. I didn't get to detect for very long as it was raining, and also here in the UK at the moment, with Winter here, it's starting to get dark at around 4 - 4:30pm.

Here is the site where I went to. I was detecting in the wooded area across the road.

As with all the sites I have been to in this area, they look clean from the outside, but they all hold there fair share of junk, mainly because there all surrounded by busy roads. So when people driving past throw there rubbish out of their car windows, it ends up being blown into these bushes by the wind. The amount of foil I found today was unbeleivable. And the bad thing is that foil gives off a very good signal on the Garrett Ace 250. I have to dig it because the digital read out is showing under the "pull tab" sign, which is also what gold happens to comes under..The "You have found gold" signal is what I have been hearing all day, only to be met with foil.

Foil Paper! My Worst Enemy. I did find much more then this, beleive me.

I also found quite a few big chunks of metal a few inches down.

This is some sort of aluminium handle. Not sure what it's off.

Found these glasses under some leaves. I remember when this style was in fashion in the early 90's. They look like John Lennon style glasses.

If rope was valuable I'd be rich. Found two huge bales of blue rope. Must of been dumped there by workers of some kind that didn't need it anymore. I think it was dumped by cable workers as there was a metal feeder with the rope. You can see it in the second picture, and that is something cable workers would use to feed the rope through a pipe.

Dumped Blue Rope With Red Feeder

While searching around I got a good signal that I decided to dig, and was met with a 1971 Half Penny Coin at around 4 inches deep. It's in fairly good condition.

1971 Half Penny

I didn't find much as this site, but at least I went and had a look there. I will probably go back to this site soon because I didn't have long enough there on this day, and there was much more land to search. I did find one more item at this site, which I think could be a Meteorite. I might be wrong, but it does have some of the characteristics of a Meteorite. This post is getting a bit long so I'll make a new post dedicated to the strange stone I found.

Here is one picture of what I found. Read the post and view more pictures of this item.

Old Metal Button Finds

2010-10-24T18:37:00.000-07:00

Old Metal Button Finds

Recently, I have yet again been back to some of my old sites. One site in particular, which the last time I went to had been fenced off. Well, this time the fence was open so I went over there and had another look around. It's a wooded area that's now being developed into some kind of walkway..It looks as though there wouldn't be much junk in this area with it being a derelict woods, but surprisingly, there was a fair amount.

Anyway, I did manage to find some old metal buttons. I have found an old button at this site before. This time I found 3. I think this site used to have houses or buildings of some kind built on it many years ago, as I have dug up what look like footings to a building. And with all the buttons I have found, all different in appearance, there must of been people living on this site at some stage.

The button on the left in the picture below is made by Hyam & Co. I can just make the writing out. After researching Hyam & Company I found out that Hyam & Co were a clothes manufacturer in the 1800's, based on Oxford Street in the UK. They have a boys suit on display in the museum of childhood, which was made by Hyam & Co.

I'm not sure about the other two buttons, but they must be fairly old. Specially the button on the right. It does have some writing on but it's very hard to read. I can just about read the word "Gilt". The button in the middle has no writing or marks.

I have been reading about certain places near to where I live. Some of the areas were Celtic settlements. I went over to one site just down the road from where I live, but it is so overgrown with stinging nettles and blackberry bushes that it's impossible to do any metal detecting there. I can't even walk over there without getting tangled in the bushes. The ground cannot be seen. It never used to be like this, as the area used to be looked after by the council, but over the past few years they have disowned it.

Until the next time.

Metal Detecting Bullets Find

2010-10-09T11:53:00.000-07:00

Metal Detecting Bullets Find

Been back to a few of my old metal detecting sites recently, in particular a site across the road from here, which was where I found an SL43 shell bullet casing. This area must have been fairly active in Word War II because I have found more bullets. One bullet was still live but it has snapped in half, probably due to how long its been buried for.

As you can see from the picture below, the bullet has never been fired, but has snapped in half. This bullet has "RL 39" and a little arrow symbol on the base but it's very hard to see.

Live Broken Bullet

Various WWII Bullets, except I'm not sure about the item on the far left..

This is the end of a rifle bullet. Not sure if it's been fired or not, but it looks like it hasn't. This bullet is much thinner, sharper and longer then the others I have found.

Another broken bullet found almost right next to the rifle bullet pictured above. It's not part of the rifle bullet as it's way too wide and looks like it's come from a handgun.

I might go back over to this site again soon when I have enough time. It seems as though there could possibly be a rifle or gun buried over there somewhere. No doubt it would be in bad condition if it's been lying there since World War II, specially with how mineralised the soil is there. Coins found there have holes going straight through them, but to find a weapon from WW2, whatever the condition, would still be a very neat find! I'm also pretty sure I found a bomb lol, no joke. It was totally smashed to bits, but was without a doubt still live. I could see the blue and white powder charge, just like the first picture in this post you can see the gun powder in the live broken bullet. Except in the bomb the powder looked much more heavy duty, similar to damp washing powder. The bomb shell was too smashed for me to take, but when I think about it now, I might go back over and get it, clean it up and take a few pictures of it, well, whats left of it. I know where abouts it was..

Until the next time folks. And a big thankyou to TreasureFiend for following me. Hopefully the first of many more followers ;)

Metal Detecting An Old Barn

2010-09-27T19:04:00.000-07:00

Metal Detecting An Old Barn

Had my eye on this old abandoned barn for a little while. I wanted to metal detect the inside, just to ease my curious mind. Not sure how old the barn is, but it looks fairly dated.

The Old Barn

Once I got inside this barn and got the metal detector out there was just none stop "beep" "beep" from the detector. Iron signals..My worst nightmare. They just never stopped, iron was everywhere..And that's all there was, JUNK. Nails and chunks of lead.

Inside The Barn

The ground in this barn was a few inches of sand, more inches of very hard clay, then it changed to a softer soil. The few other signals I did get that weren't iron related, where either lead or nails, there was just no getting away from it. I'd get a decent signal, only to dig it and see a rusty nail..

A Sheet Of Lead

A Rusty Nail For My Efforts

Check out the clay soil in this barn, it was solid to try and dig.

You can see here where the clay stops and a much softer dirt begins.

After this let down I went into the wooded area right next to this barn. It was getting late so I just had about 30 minutes in the woods. Sadly, I didn't find anything but junk. But at least the metal detector wasn't going off non stop like it was in the barn.

I managed to find a Nintendo Candy / Sweet box that looks like a game controller! Lucky me.

Not sure what this last item was. It was about 25 inches long, heavy, with a funny joint at one end. Could be off an old piece of machinery, or even possible an old fence.

Until the next time..

Old Medicine Bottles Find

2010-09-24T19:06:00.000-07:00

Old Medicine Bottles Find

Not long ago I went over to a new site on a country lane. I didn't find anything, and the detector was going crazy with all the junk signals so I decided to leave. Before I left I did get a decent signal, so I thought I'd dig it and see what I came accross. After digging a fair way down I unearthed the corner of what the signal was. It looked like a huge square piece of metal. From what I could see it was junk, so I thought, forget digging it anymore, it's junk, it's massive, and not worth it, so that was the end of that.

When I got home the thought hit me..Was it a buried safe! The more I thought about it the more I convinced myself that it had a chance of being a safe because I didn't dig enough of it out the ground to reveal the whole thing, just a corner as it was huge. About the size of a washing machine. I was eager to go back over just to be sure that I didn't leave a safe.

So, after a few days I went back over there, and straight away I was digging. I dug the whole top of this item out the ground. It wasn't a safe, it was a huge square metal drum with a round hole through the middle. Probably worth a bit of money sold as scrap! Ah well, at least I went back and eliminated all doubt from my mind.

In the process of digging though I did find two, old and intact medicine bottles, or they could even be chemical storage bottles?. Not sure how old they are, but there both identical except for the colour. I might go back over this site again and just dig for glass bottles. There was also a very small old lemonade bottle, but sadly it was cracked so I left it.

Old Medicine Bottles

Both bottles have some numbers and "4 Oz" embossed on the base.

Two Shillings 1938 Coin Find

2010-09-17T05:56:00.000-07:00

Two Shillings 1938 Coin Find

Found this Two Shilling coin in another wooded area a few weeks ago. It wasn't very deep down, maybe about 3-4 inches. It gave off a really good signal from the Ace 250. It's also in very good condition. The coin does still have some dirt / ground in grease on, but it's so ground in that it would take some hard rubbing to get it off and that might damage the coin. I might go back to where I found this coin soon for another look around.

Two Shilling Coin Dated 1938

Metal Detecting Latest Outing

2010-09-10T09:40:00.000-07:00

Metal Detecting Latest Outing

Went over and paid a visit to the site I have been looking at recently, equipped with all my tools of the trade. Once over there and set up, strong signals where present instantly. The "You've found something good" sounding signals. Sadly, all these good signals where mostly junk. Big bits of deep junk that gave off really good signals, so I just had to dig them all to see what they were. This made my day quite tiring because of the huge amount of holes I dug, only to be met with huge bits of metal for my efforts. At one point I was digging a signal that was so big I actually thought I had found a buried car! It wasn't a car, just a huge hunk of wrought iron. Such a disappointing day. My back was killing me at the end. Tree roots were also quite a problem, some were very thick. Some of my finds included, cans, lumps of lead, copper, nuts and bolts.

Here is one of my finds. This heavy iron spear / steak was pretty deep down.

Some of the tree roots that I was having to karate chop with my spade.

Phantom signals were driving me crazy too! I dug one hole for so long it was a joke. Every time I re-scanned the hole with the detector the signal was still there. There was just no finding the target. And I didn't find it. In the end I gave up. Still though it was nice to go over and check out this site. Like I said before " If you don't go, You'll never know".

I did manage to find something worth keeping though..A huge bullet shell casing. It has to be from World War II, and looks way too big to be from a handgun. After reading about this shell casing it seems that it's possibly come from a high velocity, long range World War II Sniper Rifle. Though at first I thought it was from an anti-air craft gun because of it's size. The bullet is stamped with "SL 43" at the base.

SL-43 World War II Bullet Casing

Until the next time..

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com/

New Metal Detecting Site

2010-09-08T18:10:00.000-07:00

New Metal Detecting Site

For a little while now I have had my eye on a place that I would like to go and metal detect. This site is a small piece of left over land in between two very busy Dual Carriage Way roads (Highways). My idea is that this small piece of land is the original land, and has not had a road built on top of it. I would think the surrounding roads where built many years ago, possibly in the 1960's or earlier.

Hopefully, this bit of land could hold some good finds. I was driving past the site today and decided to stop my car and have a look. I was dressed in smart clothes and did not have my metal detector with me, so it just had to be a look. From looking at the site I would say it looks excellent, and the soil there was very very soft. We have had some heavy rain here over the past few days, this has made it ideal for metal detecting. I best get over there.

I know I said the site looks excellent, but if there's one thing I have learnt since I started metal detecting, it's that a site can look excellent but can be totally rubbish. That also works the other way too. So Im not going to expect anything good, I'll just go over there within the next few days and see what it's like.

" If you don't go, You'll never know "

Will keep you posted. Fingers crossed.

Half Penny Find

2010-09-04T17:51:00.000-07:00

Half Penny Find

I found this very badly corroded 1922 Half Penny a few days ago. It's so badly corroded that it actually has two holes going straight through it. The site where I found this coin has lots of trash, and some parts of the site make the detector go crazy! The ground there differs so much every few feet.

Some signals were very annoying. I'd get a good signal, dig it for ages, then not be able to find what it was, even though the target had been dug up and is hiding in the soil somewhere..Turns out it's the smallest ball of metal you would ever see, or not see! I had about 7 of these digs. I did also find some up to date coins, 2 Pences, and two smaller half pennys dating from 1970.

I'm gonna go back to this site soon and give it one last look.

Check out the holy Half Penny dated 1922.

Until the next time.

Metal Detector Find

2010-08-08T20:22:00.000-07:00

Metal Detector Find

Been to another new metal detecting site recently. Seems like a good site. But as with every place I go to there all very big, and will require much more then one visit to get anywhere near searching the whole site. Also with the Garrett Ace 250, most places I go, as soon as I start swinging the coil I'm getting good signals, and I can't not dig them. So I end up covering very little ground but digging loads of signals, mostly junk. But if I don't dig them I'll never know that they were junk and be left wondering if I have left something of value there. Catch 22 situation.

Anyway, here is the site I was at. It's about 10 miles from where I live and it's huge. I only hunted the actual land you can see in both these photos. I have to park my car very far away too as there's nowhere else to park it that's nearer.

At this site I found a few things. A few bits of junk, many phantom signals, which were quite irritating because I was getting attacked by Mosquitos! Next time I won't go just wearing a t-shirt! I did manage to find an old coin, but It was so badly corroded that it's totally bald! No marks at all. See the pictures below. I also found an old button, but I'm still trying to clean it up. I can see it's got writing on the back but it's very hard to read. It says "gilt", next to that a star *, then it says something else which I can't make out. Looks pretty old, possibly from early 1900's.

Here is the old coin

Until the next time..

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com/

Garretts Out Hunting Again

2010-07-26T15:14:00.000-07:00

Garretts Out Hunting Again

I went out for a quick hunt with my Garrett Ace 250 in the park. I can't resist lately, any spare time and I'm out hunting around. I don't think it's actually a park I went to, but more an open grass field that people use to play football, walk dogs etc. I only had about 1 hour so just had a enough time to dig a few targets. Pull tabs and football boot studs were everywhere, some quite deep too, and beings that they give the same signal on the Ace 250 as gold gives, I had to dig them all. I didn't find any gold, but did manage to find a very dark coloured One Pound Coin about 2 inches deep. I also found a 5p, and just as I dug the hole and peeled back the soil there was a little plastic Scottish Terrier dog pendant staring at me.

Not a bad site, but quite a lot of trash. Saying that, I think amongst the junk there could be some lost jewelry somewhere as the site is used by a lot of people on a daily basis. I might go back there again soon.

Scottish Terrier Plastic Dog Pendant found in a hole.

How Deep Can The Ace 250 Go?

2010-07-25T18:52:00.000-07:00

How Deep Can The Ace 250 Go?

Recently I have been reading other peoples reviews about the Garrett Ace 250. The reviews I have read have been quite mixed, but most of the people agree that it's a very good detector for the price. One thing all of the reviews I read don't agree on is how deep can the Ace 250 detect..Some people said their Ace 250 only detects down to about 4 - 6 inches. Other people said theirs goes as deep as 8 - 10 inches..One reviewer of the Ace 250 claimed that they had been chatting about this subject with the guy who worked in the metal detector shop, and they said he laughed when they asked him "can the Ace 250 go deeper then 8 inches". He reply'd, "Don't read into the hype, It's a good starter detector, but it does not detect down to 8 inches, 6 if your lucky"..

Well, I'm not sure if I have received an extra powerful, freak of nature Ace 250, but the other day, as written in my post, my Garrett Ace 250 detected an old bottle top 12 inches (a foot) down. My whole spade head and some of the neck was under the ground..

I truely beleive that how deep the Ace 250 will detect matters on what type of ground you are using the detector on. When I detected this bottle top 12 inches down the soil was nice and soft, easy to dig, maybe that was why it could go so deep?. I did not have the sensitivity turned on full either, It was set with two bars left blank at the top.

I know from my own experience using the Ace 250 that it can detect an object 12 inches down. But also, in different soil conditions maybe it will only detect to 6 inches. Just like it will not detect too well in wet sand or under water, but there are specific metal detectors made for those conditions. All in all the Garrett Ace 250, in my experience, is a great all rounder for the price, and under the right conditions it can detect deep targets. My average depth for finding objects is around the 4 - 6 inch mark, but on some occassions, throughout the days hunting, finds are as deep as 8 - 10 inches down. But like written above, and in my post, I have found an object 12 inches down, this was only once, but it just shows that the Ace 250 is capable of doing it. Well it was on that day anyway! Maybe it's the Duracell batterys I use, who knows..

Latest Metal Detecting Finds

2010-07-23T19:29:00.000-07:00

Latest Metal Detecting Finds

It's been a while since I made a post about my own metal detector finds. I have been going metal detecting, but just not really finding much of interest. It's mainly been junk. My luck might be starting to change though because I have found a few decent finds over the past week or so. I've been on a mission of elimination, crossing the sites I want to hunt off the list, visiting them one by one. The first site was a wooded area that I drive past regularly, and always say to myself ,"I bets there's something good in there". Well, I went over to find out. What I found was lots of junk, although from looking at the site from a distance, you would never of thought that. It just looked like a nice, clean wooded area. It was anything but clean. I found a huge amount of empty condom packets, foil, cans, bottle tops, and loads of other bits of junk.

I did manage to find an up to date Two Pound Coin near a big oak tree about 2 - 4 inches down. It was like someone had been lying against the tree and a Two Pound coin fell out of their pocket. This could have happened over 10 years ago as the £2 coin is dated 1998. That was my best find on this day. The coin is in bad condition beings that it's a newer coin. It seems like the newer coins corrode more badly compared to the older ones..

While hunting around £2 richer I had some strange signals by another tree, and It came to mind that people must have been over this site, possibly sitting down, leaning up various trees. I decided to dig the strange signals and came accross bits off an aztec style chain or bracelet. It's not gold or silver, more like base metal of some kind..

So, not a bad day really. As long as I find something, and got to give the detector a work out, I'm always happy with that. By the amount of junk over this site I don't think I'll be going back there in a hurry. At least my curiosity about this site has been seen to. Sometimes the places where you think would be really good for metal detecting are terrible, and the places you think are a joke turn out to be really good..You just never can tell about a site until you go over and find out.

Like I say almost every time I write a post after using the Garrett Ace 250. It's a great detector. I actually dug a strong signal that ended up being a foot deep! It ended up being an old bottle top, but that just shows, the Ace 250 can find small objects pretty deep down.

I have got my eye on a few other sites so stay tuned, more finds to come.

Million Dollars Worth of Gold

2010-07-14T09:41:00.000-07:00

Million Dollars Worth of Gold

Now and again I watch a video, or read a story about metal detecting that seriously leaves me lost for words and eager to keep on hunting. This guy, who lives in Australia, goes out hunting for gold, and after some time and effort finds it. Every time I watch one of his videos it makes me wish I lived in Australia. Some areas in the outback of Australia are hiding big lumps of gold. This guy has found some huge nuggets! Check out this YouTube video below where he has well over a million dollars worth of gold! 1100oz (ounces) to be exact!

Roman Coins Haul Found In UK

2010-07-11T18:38:00.000-07:00

Roman Coins Haul Found In UK

A man in England found 52,000 Roman Coins worth around £250,000 GBP! What an unbeleivable find. This guy is just an amateur metal detectorist that had a funny sounding signal and decided to dig it. What he found was a huge pot full of Roman Coins weighing in at 160KG. This ancient pot was buried under the ground approximately 12 - 14 inches deep.

The lucky guy, named Dave Crisp plans to split the money generated from the coins with the owner of the land from where they were found. This huge find will have metal detector sales rocketing again in the UK. The last time was when the huge amount of gold was found worth millions of pounds - which was only around 2 - 4 inches deep!. This recent Roman Coin find is free enthusiasm for all the metal detectorists ( including me) that have been too busy doing other things. Now I want to get out there and have a look around. There's valuable treasure out there!

Read more about this heart stopping find

Recent Metal Detecting

2010-05-10T12:24:00.000-07:00

Recent Metal Detecting

I have been going metal detecting lately, but just not finding anything worth taking pictures and writing posts about. I have mainly been finding junk. Pieces of bent / deformed metal have been at the top of the list, with foil being a close second..

I did however find a coin. It looks like some sort of machine / token coin. I think they were used in the 1970's in arcade machines, I could be wrong. It's some sort of token anyway. It has the letters, P.R.W on each side. See the pic.

Latest Metal Detecting Adventure

2010-02-20T10:45:00.000-08:00

Latest Metal Detecting Adventure

The last time i went out to do some metal detecting I was stopped in my tracks, first by my usual site being under lock and key, then secondly, the other site I have had my eye on was too hard and steep to get to, it was also very bushy and thorny that i didn't want to put my dog through torture of it all just for me.

So yesterday i went back on my own. My curiousity got the better of me. I just had to see what was down down there. So after walking about 2 miles on foot i got to this site, climbed down the steep, uneven, thorny hill sides to be met with some seriously uneven ground, with deep pot holes here and there, which were much harder to spot because of the snow. Yes, it's been snowing here.

Looking at this site from the roadside I could not see how many moats were actually stopping me from getting to certain parts of the site. The moats are all joined together, but come to an end on the outskirts of the site, shaped like the letter "T", but not straight.

Anyway, once i got past all these obstacles there was some decent ground to do some metal detecting on. But while i was setting up my metal detector it became clear from looking around that this site was very trashy. Crisp packets, old bottles, FOIL! There was loads everywhere, but i hadn't come this far for nothing.

Well, actually i had in a way! I found nothing but rubbish! Moslty foil. I did get some good signals that all turned out to be junk of some sort. One signal i dug for about 10 minutes, which was pretty deep, and blocked by thick tree roots, ended up being an old rusted shandy can.

Most of the signals were foil, but it was still nice to get out there and do some metal detecting. And at least my curiousity about this site has been seen to. I really thought that this site could hold some treasure, but it wasn't to be. Don't get me wrong, there could be something good there, I didn't search it all, that's impossible in one day, but from all the junk i found, and how hard this place is to get to, i don't think i'll be going back there in a hurry.

The Garrett Ace 250 was the thing that impressed me most. It can pick up the smallest bit of foil, so small that it took me 5 minutes to find it!

Here are some photos of the metal detecting site. And an old can of shandy.

Until the next time..

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com/

Worst Day Metal Detecting

2010-02-17T16:24:00.000-08:00

Worst Day Metal Detecting

I have had the worst day i have ever had metal detecting. I wanted to go and hunt two sites, one that ive never been to before and one where i have found a few coins in the past. Both turned into a disaster. The first site, the one ive never hunted before was just too hard to get to. Stinging nettles and big thorn bushes where all over the place, blocking every possible way of getting in there. And to top it all off the whole place was protected by a moat! I had my dog with me and didn't want him to get thorns in his paws. This place was seriously thorny.

So after this i thought i would go to my usual site, the one where ive found a few coins amoungst other things. Bad news, It's been blocked off by the guy who owns the surrounding fields! The gate that i have to go through so i can cross the field to get to this wooded area has been locked, so now i can't even go there.

Basically the metal detector didn't even get taken out of the bag! I'm really going to have to find some new sites. I cannot beleive that, i wouldn't of minded if i hadn't found anything but got the chance to actually do some digging..But to not even get one go of the detector, now that's the worst day ever.

I'm going to think of some new places.

Going Metal Detecting Soon

2010-02-15T15:39:00.000-08:00

Since the new year i have been wanting to go metal detecting, but many things have stopped me from going. The weather has had it's moments, and this has been one of the reasons. My dog has also had a bad leg too, so i haven't wanted to push him too hard. The main reason has been that i have been looking for a new job. No luck so far im afraid. But now that i have given the job hunting some of my time, i think it's only fair to give the metal detecting some as well.

I have been thinking of a few places i want to go and have a look at, one being the site where i found a few coins, i only managed to search very little of that entire wooded area, and im convinced there is something good there, just waiting for me to find it.

My metal detector has not been used now for over 2 months, all i have done is turn it on every few days and run it over something metal just to keep it running ok. I don't like that, i bought it to use it, not leave it sitting there. But other things, higher in priority have to come first.

Stay tuned...I will be going out for a hunt soon, it's been too long and i want to get out there.

More Snow: No Metal Detecting

2010-01-13T02:16:00.000-08:00

More Snow: No Metal Detecting

Bad news for anything metal detecting related::: More Snow! Just as it was starting to clear up a little, it's back and hasn't stopped falling for 18 hours. It's not thick snow but it's been snowing for so long that everythings turned white again.

I haven't been metal detecting since last year. That makes it sound really long, but in reality it's only a few weeks, but jeeez, it feels like ages! I turned on the metal detector the other day, just because it's been turned off for quite a while, and i thought i best give it a power up. I turned it on and thought, "I'll leave it on for five minutes....I ended up getting side tracked, forgot all about turning the metal detector on, and left it on, unknowingly for about 10 hours! Well, at least it got a work out.

If this weather keeps up i might just have to go out metal detecting in the snow.

Too Cold Outside To Hunt

2010-01-07T11:47:00.000-08:00

Too Cold Outside To Hunt

It is absolutely freezing here, the weather has gone from bad to worse. The roads are like an ice rink. More snow has been forecast overnight, tomorrow, and throughout the weekend. Needless to say, metal detecting is on the back burner until the weather gets a lot better.

The snow is around 5 inches deep here. The temperature tonight is minus -10, some places are even colder at minus -15! All the snow that hasn't turned to ice already will do tonight. Millions of people are off work, and off school in the UK. Because the UK isn't used to snow, when it comes theres total chaos! The whole country comes to a halt, people are even out panic buying from the shops..There's no food left on the shop shelves lol.

Metal Detecting Will Have To Wait

2010-01-05T16:48:00.000-08:00

Metal Detecting Will Have To Wait

Well, the weather here has been shocking! It's been snowing for two whole days, and it's still coming down. If driving, the roads are quite dangerous. I was sliding down the road earlier, and i seen many others sliding too. It's the type of weather that you just can't do much until it clears up. So much for getting a good start to the new year in terms of metal detecting..I can't wait untill spring / summer. Now when the spring / summer comes, i can have some nice long days out metal detecting, due to the sun going down a lot later.

I'm sure it will start to clear up in a few days.

Here are some pictures of the snow in my area! There's my dog!

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com/

Metal Detecting In The New Year

2010-01-01T14:40:00.000-08:00

Metal Detecting In The New Year

~With all the holidays, Xmas, new year, and even the bad weather etc, it's been very hard for me to do any metal detecting. I just haven't had the time. But with the new year just starting i want to have some good finds. I plan to get busy this year with metal detecting. Because i haven't been out for a while, i feel eager and really want to get out and find something..

I was watching a video on Youtube today, about some guy showing his metal detecting finds for certain months of 2009. This guys had some seriously good finds, lots of them too! Mostly old coins, gold and silver rings, and odd bits of jewelry. I'm yet to find any gold or silver.

I'm going to try and go to many different locations this year..Because there's one thing that is key to successful metal detecting, and that's location. You can buy the best metal detector in the world, but if your not metal detecting in good locations you won't find a thing. That is why i am going to travel to different places this year.

I would like to find some of the old hammered coins, so maybe i will try and find some old roman sites. I was over at Kenilworth Castle the other day (Not metal detecting), but the thought came to me while i was there. The castle has been there for about 600 - 700 years i beleive. Just think of how many items could be lost there, buried under the ground, waiting for me to find them. I'm not sure if people are allowed to metal detect there, but im going to look it up on the internet and see if i can contact someone who is in charge of the castle or surrounding grounds. I'm sure that the grounds of Kenilworth Castle have some hidden treasures!

A Snowy Christmas Means No Metal Detecting

2009-12-21T13:26:00.000-08:00

A Snowy Christmas Means No Metal Detecting

I haven't been out metal detecting for a while now because of the weather! It's been snowing on and off now for a few days. I am tempted to go out metal detecting, but am quite concerned about the hard ground. Not to mention feeling sorry for my dog, who always comes with me. I can't have him standing around in the cold snow for a few hours watching me dig and have a good time!

I guess I'll just wait until the snow stops and the weather clears up a bit. It looks like we might have a white Christmas! Happy Xmas to all. Talk soon.

Latest Metal Detector Find

2009-12-15T15:25:00.000-08:00

Latest Metal Detector Find

I went back to my once new, but now usual metal detecting site today. I decided to metal detect where i found that old metal button. Had some good signals that turned out to be junk. Things like ring pulls, bits of foil etc. But after a while i had the coin signal! So i started digging, not very deep, about 4 inches, and out came a coin. The coin was so dirty that i couldn't see what it was, but i knew it was a coin. I couldn't find out what type it was until i got home because i didn't have any water to clean the coin. All the way home i was hoping it would be a very rare, or very old coin..

Once i got home and cleaned the coin it turned out to be a big One Penny Dated 1948. I have to be honest, i was disappointed. I expected it to be very old because i found it near the spot where i found the old metal button. I suppose i should be happy with it, it's a coin, and it's old enough. I raised my hopes too high i think, driving home hoping it would be a really special find, but it wasn't to be. I will definitely be going back to the same spot in a few days.

One Penny Coin Find

Here is the spot where i found the One Penny Coin

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com/

Old Metal Button Find

2009-12-14T15:21:00.000-08:00

Ground Detector Blog: Old Metal Button Find

Was back at my new site, which has become the only place i have been metal detecting for a few weeks now. I decided to metal detect a part of this woods that i haven't checked yet. I found quite a few items, most were just pieces of Iron and different metals. I did find an old penknife that looked like something from the 1960's, but when i took it home i could not clean it, it had corroded too badly, so i chucked it away.

While i was still in the woods i came accross a signal that was erradic! It was about 4 inches deep, and after digging up the dirt i could not find the item, even though it was somewhere in the dug up dirt. I eventually found the item, and it was an old metal button. It looks like it's off an old item of clothing from the 1800's or early 1900's.

Old Metal Button Front

Old Metal Button Back

It says "Superior Quality" on the back

Here is the area where i found the button

Until the next time..

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com/

Metal Detecting In The UK

2009-12-11T21:21:00.000-08:00

Metal Detecting In The UK

Considering how much history we have here in the UK, because of it being so old, i would say it is a great country to be metal detecting in. Take for instance the USA, it's only a few hundred years old. The UK is thousands of years old, just think of how many items,from coins, to gold, silver and everything else in between can get lost in thousands of years..There must be so much out there.

Research is an important part of sucessful metal detecting, no matter what country your in. Knowing what used to be on a particular piece of land, or what the land was used for in the past is extremely valuble information, and also very time saving. If you know what your doing, you can unearth some very good, and most probably valuable finds.

Reading the history books in your local library on the area your thinking about metal detecting can tell you a lot. Not forgeting the internet, which is possibly the best and most easiest method of finding out about old buildings, old grounds etc.

Of course, sometimes it's nice to just take a punt and metal detect in an unknown spot because you never know what you might find. You could get lucky just about anywhere.

I told someone the other day that i was into metal detecting, and that someone mentioned a place called Fosse Way to me. I beleive Fosse Way is a huge road, one of the oldest roads in the UK. Fosse Way was originally a British road before it was classed as a Roman road. The Romans used this road as a main route in order to get to many different locations in the UK. Fosse Way dates back as far as AD43!.

This huge road goes through a lot of different parts of the UK, but the part closest to me, the part this guy was telling me to visit is situated in Brinklow, Rugby, UK. He said if he were into metal detecting that's the first place he would go. I might drive down there and take a look in a few days. It's about 40 miles from me.

One stretch of Fosse Way, im not sure which part, is said to be haunted by a marching Roman army. They have been seen a number of times by passing motorists. Everyone that has seen these ghosts have reported that the soldiers seemed to be walking on their knees. This is because the road as it is today is 3 feet higher then it was when the Romans marched along it all those years ago.

Anyway, this is a very old part of the UK, ideal for metal detecting, who knows what you might find there. There are thousands of old sites in the UK perfect for metal detecting. And dont forget, places don't always have to be old, beaches, fairgrounds, parks, almost anywhere that people go to, all these places are superb for metal detecting.. To find good stuff, someone has to of lost it in the first place!

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com/

Metal Detecting Junk

2009-12-10T18:01:00.000-08:00

Metal Detecting Junk

I managed to get out metal detecting today at the new site i have been going to, with only an hour to hunt until it got dark. I made the most of this hour, digging a huge amount of holes. I had so many good signals that i just had to dig them all. Sadly, everything i found was junk. Things like shotgun cartridges, ring pulls, foil, a tyre gauge, even a full water tap!, their all there in abundance. Saying that, this new site is so big that even though today i found junk, i could go on another day and just walk in another direction that i have not yet metal detected. Who knows what might be there waiting for me.

As i was digging one signal, i unearthed what looks like an old glass scent bottle of some kind, i might be wrong, but whatever it is, it's old. Unfortunately it was also broken, but i took it anyway. The glass has a dull grey / green colour to it.

Until the next time..Which won't be long, knowing me.

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com/

More Rain | No Metal Detecting

2009-12-07T20:18:00.000-08:00

More Rain | No Metal Detecting

It's been raining hard here for a few days now, which is not good for me and my metal detecting..It's never nice when you are stopped in your tracks from doing something you want to do, and have no control over making the weather nice. So i guess it's just a waiting game..

But there could be some good weather on the way - Metal Detecting weather! I want to go back to the new site i have been metal detecting as i have only been able to spend short amounts of time there so far. I'm always itching to go metal detecting, maybe im addicted to it! I suppose it's a good addiction to have.

I wonder how many millionaires have been made by finding the ultimate metal detector find..Well i know there is at least one: The unemployed guy that found all that Anglo-Saxon Gold in the UK. He found it with a 10 year old metal detector! lol..And apparently most of the gold was only a few inches under the ground. So theres one metal detector millionaire, but surely there has to be a few more?

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com/

Latest Metal Detecting Finds

2009-12-03T19:06:00.000-08:00

Latest Metal Detecting Finds

Since the last time i went to my new metal detecting site i have been itching to get back over there. The last finds i found there have got me eager to go back and metal detect some more. Today i tried to get everything done that i had to do in my day as quickly as possible. I wanted as much time as i could over this new metal detecting site. Well, i managed to get there only slightly earlier then i did yesturday, so this time i had about an hour and a half, still not as long as i would of liked, but hey, i can dig some serious holes in an hour and a half!

I arrived at the site, this time i didn't want to look around, i just got the metal detector set up and off swinging the coil i went. I had LOADS of signals, almost too many, i couldn't swing the coil without getting a decent signal. So what do you do - Not dig them? Forget that, my curiousity always gets the better of me. It's like i just have to see what it is, and i just will not stop until i find it, i can't be reasoned with!. Anyway, most of the signals ended up being bits of electrical circuits, cans, ring pulls, lumps of iron etc. But then i had a slight bit of luck. I found the blade of a knife, just a kitchen knife, not far under the ground. At least it was something.

Then, after i dug a few more signals that turned out to be junk, i got a very strong signal from the Ace 250. This was the signal you mostly get when you have found a coin! So i cleared the area of leaves, bits of wood, and undergrowth with my spade. I scanned the area again, now on the clear ground, the signal was strong. The Garrett Ace 250 said it was 4 inches deep, so i dug a nice square piece out of the ground with the spade, tossed it to one side and scanned it, nothing. I scanned the hole again and whatever it was that was giving off the signal was still there somewhere. So i dug more and more, scanning all the unearthed dirt as i went. After a while one of the dug up mounds of dirt had the item inside, but i couldn't see it at all.

For ages i was sifting through all the dug up dirt, but i just couldn't find whatever it was. So in the end i had to use the pinpoint option on the Garrett Ace 250, in the end i found what it was..It was a coin. It was so hard to find because it was totally black with dirt. I was very happy to find a coin, it made the day worthwhile. It turned out to be a Half Penny Dated 1931. I put the coin in my bag and carried on hunting around, but had no more luck, just a ring pull. By this stage it was dark and i had to use my torch to pack away. All in all a good day. This site really is huge and i can't wait to go there again. I really think there is something valuble there. Stay tuned..

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com/

Metal Detecting - Bent Spade

2009-12-02T18:03:00.000-08:00

Metal Detecting - Bent Spade

I needed a good spade that could fit into a large bag, so i though a good quality fold away spade would do the trick. I had a look around on eBay and came accross a spade that seemed to be just what i needed. I went ahead and bought it. When it came i made time to go out and do some metal detecting, i really wanted to use this spade, it folded up to about 9 inches, and when fully extended out it was about 26 inches.

It seemed like a good quality spade to begin with, but after about 1 hour it was totally useless. I came accross some roots while digging, and i thought this high quality spade, with it's serated edge would slice through roots like butter! How wrong i was..The spade just gave way, bent all the way over on itself! I bent it back to it's original shape but it was too late..The joints that attach the spade head to the shaft have now come loose, so now it's unusable. I made contact with the seller on eBay, told him how long the spade lasted and he gave me my money back, and rightly so. I wouldn't mind if i had had the spade for a week or two, then it broke, that would be fair enough, but after an hour!

One word of warning: Do not buy a fold away spade. All of the ones i have seen on eBay have the same joints that attach the spade head to the shaft, there not strong enough to last, in some cases not even an hour. Get yourself a proper spade. I managed to get another spade from eBay, which is very good, the spade head and shaft are all in one, so there's no joints that can pop or weaken under pressure. It's been excellent to dig with.

Here is my bent spade! Bear in mind that it's meant to be straight.

Metal Detecting Spades

Mini Coin Spill Discovery

2009-12-01T18:40:00.000-08:00

Mini Coin Spill Discovery

For a while now I have been trying to think of some more places i could go and do some metal detecting. I have had this one place in mind for a week or two. It's another wooded area on the side of many farmers fields. Today i thought "Lets go and take a look", so i went over there. The weather has been wet here, so crossing the soggy fields to get to this wooded area was a bit of a pain. I finally got to the woods, carrying half the field with me on my shoes! Once i got into the woods i was impressed by the size of it, this would take a long time to search fully..Probably months. Yet again, I only had about an hour before it got dark, but decided to take a look around before even getting my metal detector out of the bag, as this was my first time there and i wanted to find my bearings.

Once i had a look around i got the detector out and started having a hunt around deep in the woods. Straight away i was getting signals..The first few were junk, so i decided to move from that area and go back on myself, more towards the entrance that i took into the woods. As soon as i swung the coil - beep beep - Good signals..After digging only about an inch i found a few items in the one spot, two were total junk, a small chunk of lead and a piece of metal. The other item i found looks like an old brooch or badge?. It was bent in on itself, but you could still see it was something old, you could also clearly see the pin attachment on the back was broken, but i took it anyway. It's not gold or silver, it feels like very thin "tin" like metal. I have bent it back in to shape: You can click on any of my images to enlarge the picture.

After digging the last few signals and finding this brooch, or whatever it is..It was almost dark, so i decided to get myself back to the entrance i used to get into the woods. Once i got there i thought i would have once last metal detect before i broke the Ace 250 down and put it away. One swing of coil and i got erradic beeping! One small area had a few mixed sounding signals. I brushed away the bits of leaves and wood, then ran the coil over the area again. The Ace 250 said the signals were only 2 inches or less, so all i done was just scrape the surface with my mini spade, and straight away seen a coin staring at me! My heart started to race, i thought "it must be some old coin", but it wasn't to be. It was just a 2p Coin dated 2003!. I scanned the area again and found another two 1p coins..Someone had had a cheapo coin spill!. Just my luck! I was still happy though.

This new woods i was in today is massive, and to find what i did today after only having an hour was very impressive. I have not even looked, or metal detected half a percent of this huge area, i literally only had a few swings of the coil. I think this new place has some serious potential for some good finds. Here is my 4p!

Until the next time..

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com/

Metal Detecting: Glass Find

2009-11-30T19:50:00.000-08:00

Metal Detecting: Glass Find

On my travels whilst metal detecting with the Garrett Ace 250 i came accross a site within some bushes that was totally littered with random pieces of junk metal, loads of them. Within all this metal were loads of old glass bottles, so as i would dig the metal signals i would come accross old buried bottles..I will have to go back to this site (Bottle Dump?) when i get some time. Many of the bottles were damaged, i think i even broke a few being as eager as i am to unearth things!

Some of the broken bottles, some of the small ones, were so nice that i was tempted to take them, but i didn't. With them being broke i thought i don't want to take home pure rubbish, if they were intact i would of took them all home. There are still loads of old glass bottles on this site. Here is one i managed to unearth intact! It's pretty small, about 3 ½ inches high. It must be old because it has blunt glass spikes all over it, except for a smooth, round middle piece in the center, which i presume was where an old sticker or label was stuck on.

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com/

One Shilling Coin Find

2009-11-27T16:39:00.000-08:00

One Shilling Coin Find

Was searching my back garden with my metal detector, found quite a few coins. Most were just copper coins that were from the 1980s, but i did manage to find a One Shilling Coin dated 1960. It's in bad condition, but still a decent find. I might get back out there in a few days and search the rest of the garden. I put this coin into a glass of Coca Cola because i read somewhere that it cleans it really well, but it didn't work..Does anyone know what to use in order to get a coin clean..Soapy water, which was used on this one doesn't bring it up very clean..Or maybe i should just use water and then leave it for preservation reasons..

Metal Detecting - Found The Same Item

2009-11-26T13:43:00.000-08:00

Metal Detecting - Found The Same Item

Went out for another little metal detect today, being pushed for time, and with it getting dark here at about 4pm, i only had 1 hour yet again to have a look around. I went back to the same place i was at yesterday, and as the title says, i found the same type of item that i found yesterday, except where the one yesterday had green plastic inside, this one has white.

There was also lots of foil that i did not come accross yesterday. I must of dug around 15 signals in the time i was there..11 of them were foil!, the other two where phantom signals, i could not find what they were..I think these two phantoms where due to soil mineralization, but i could be wrong.

Here is the item i found today. Same thing as yesterday but with white plastic. I think this could be a screw top for some kind of petrol cannister because inside the middle around the sides there is a thread, so it looks like it's the top for something to screw onto. Weird top!

This is another item i found today. Im not sure what it is, but its a weird item. The metal circle goes through the straight metal on one side, but is welded on the other..Do you know what it is?

Until the next time...

http://ground-detector.blogspot.com/

Metal Detector Find

2009-11-24T19:59:00.000-08:00

Metal Detector Find

I went out for a quick metal detect today, after not going out with it for a while i thought the detector needed a little workout. I only had about an hour or so to metal detect before it went dark. I went back to a spot where i have been before, back to the first place i went metal detecting when i first bought the Garrett Ace 250. This time i strayed off from where i was before, which had lots of junk and foil in the ground, and i went into a wooded area that i have never hunted before. Straight away i had strong signals, i thought maybe it was foil, but thought what the hell, i haven't been out with the detector for a while and i don't mind digging anything! Anyway i dug away and came accross a big square piece of dirty metal. Yes it was junk, but i was happy that it was something different to foil as most of the surrounding area has so much foil it's annoying.

I threw that to one side and carried on metal detecting, i couldn't swing the detector more then twice without getting a signal..So i started digging again, about 2 feet away from the previous hole where i found the square metal sheet. I dug down pretty deep and was having trouble locating whatever it was giving me the signal. After some more digging i seen something poking out the side of the hole, pulled it out and thought, "what the hell is that". This object looked like an old motorcycle helmet, the old ones that use to be made of just leather, with two eye holes that had a metal rim and plastic lenses inside! It was not intact so i just threw it to one side and carried on metal detecting.

By this stage i was happy, it been a while since ive been out with the detector, and im actually finding items other then foil. I decided to walk without swinging the detector for about 20 meters, just to look in a different area. Once i started swinging the detector i got another signal..I pinpointed this signal because it was something pretty small (The Garrett Ace 250 Pinpoint function works really well). The detector indicated that this item was about 4 inches deep, so i dug down, and pretty quickly found what it was..It looks to me like an old part from a heater or lamp? But im not sure because the green inside is plastic, and the base has no holes, except one the has been stabbed into it (See Pic). What is it? Any ideas.. I thought i'd take it with me anyway. The place where i went today seems pretty good and there's much more ground to search there, i only had a bit of time today, but i'll go back there when i have more time to spare. I'll keep you posted.

Metal Detectors And Rain Dont Mix

2009-11-13T09:26:00.000-08:00

Metal Detectors And Rain Dont Mix

I have been itching to get out with the metal detector over the past few days, but the rain is so bad that it's not worth even trying. I don't think it would be enjoyable anyway in the rain...Having to scan, put the detector on the wet muddy floor, then dig in the wet mud, possibly getting on your knees..In the mud..Soaking wet! Then all that just to find a rusty nail..Hmmm..I think I'll wait until the weather gets a little better. I don't want to break the Garrett Ace 250.

I know there are add-ons you can buy for the Garrett Ace 250, like the cover for the box and coil etc. But with the rain the way it is, it's not worth going out metal detecting full stop. The rain is that bad.

More Metal Detecting - Less Luck

2009-11-08T09:47:00.000-08:00

Went out for a metal detect yesterday up on an old dirt mount covered with trees and bushes..After getting a strong signal from the Ace 250 i started to dig, it said the item was 2 inches deep. Once i dug 2 inches deep the Garrett Ace 250 changed it's mind and said the item was now 6 inches deep..So i kept on digging but could not locate the target. i wasn't going to stop digging until i found what was there. After digging a big deep hole i was met with a concrete floor! There must of been metal within the concrete. I felt robbed!

So i moved on to another part of the same mound. I soon got more strong signals...I started to dig and was met with the same..Bricks and concrete. After a while i stopped digging up these signals because they were all giving off the same signal sound from the Garrett Ace 250.

I think there must of been a building on this mound many years ago, and i think the concrete and bricks were probably the footings of the house / building.

Until the next time.............

First Find With The Garrett Ace 250

2009-10-30T09:28:00.000-07:00

First Find With The Garrett Ace 250

Here is my first ever find with my Garrett Ace 250. It an old milk or cream bottle top i beleive.

It says " Farmers Wife". Double Devon Cream. The only reason i kept it was because it was my first find metal detecting.

Hoping for some much better finds then an old bottle top in the near future. Stay tuned.

Found More Junk

2009-10-30T09:19:00.000-07:00

Found More Junk

Im really going to have to change the places im going as all that seems to be there is junk. Was out yesturday in a small wooded area, right next to lots of farmers fields. I found nothing but junk. Things like, FOIL! Big pieces of rotten metal, and what looked like a hub cap from an old Mini car. Looked like a UFO.

I am going to have to start going to other places, like parks, playing fields, places that the public frequent a lot. Might have more chance of actually finding something worth taking a picture of....Something worth money!

Quick Metal Detect

2009-10-26T18:03:00.000-07:00

Quick Metal Detect

Had a quick half hour metal detect the other day. Had a few good signals that vanished after being dug!!?? What was it? Who knows... I think maybe underground power cables or something.

I found more junk. Many bits of foil. Some pieces of old rusty metal, and also a big, long, heavy metal bar!

Still havent found anything of value. Im thinking about where else i can go..Got a few places in mind.

Fingers crossed!

Metal Detecting - Shotgun Cartridges

2009-10-24T14:11:00.000-07:00

Metal Detecting - Shotgun Cartridges

Metal detecting last week in some woods. Searched high and low but didn't find anything except SHOTGUN CARTRIDGES! Loads of them..All that was left of them was the metal end, the rest had rotted away. Quite annoying really, because once you got used to the sound the metal detector was making when it found a cartridge, you would get another, different sound. So you had to dig it.. ~Only to be met with another shotgun cartridge but made by a different company that must of used a different type of metal then the previous ones i had found.

The only thing I truly found on this day was, the Garrett Ace 250 is one hell of a good metal detector, capable of finding tiny pieces of metal quite far down. I know that sooner or later i will find something good!

Hot Rocks!

2009-10-21T04:39:00.000-07:00

Hot Rocks!

Went and had a little metal detect the other day....It was the maddest i have been since getting the detector..Digging up looads of junk, it was a cold day, i kept on tripping over the headphone wire as its so long. Not a good day.

I was detecting in a wooded area, but then decided to move onto the farmers field and try my luck there. Straight away i was getting good signals.........Yes! i thought. After digging and digging there was no metal item to be seen. I left that hole and started scanning the ground again. Within a few swings of the detector i had another good signal, this time i wasn't going to stop until i found was it was. After digging for ages, the signal went away, so whatever the object was, it was now in the dirt already dug up.

After looking and looking though all the dirt i started throwing stones toward the coil and one of them made a beep! It's what ive found out to be called a HOT ROCK. It's like a hollow stone that has some sort of metal in it, and they are a pain in the ass. Totally worthless. I wasted so much time on them.

Steer clear of the hot rocks.

I Found A Coin Metal Detecting

2009-10-15T19:20:00.000-07:00

Yeah, i went out yesterday on a metal detecting mission, and as well as finding the bottom of a few cans and lots of foil, i found a coin!. Don't get excited, it was only an old ½ Pence piece, which was badly corroded. I could just about make out what it was.

Im planning to go back to where i found it. There were some nice open fields that i want to have a go on. You never know i might get lucky.

I will keep at it, i do not give up easily. I really want to find some gold, because i know once i do, i'll be hooked forever..

I bought a fold up mini spade from ebay, took it with me on my hunt, used it for a few minutes and ended up breaking it! It looked tough enough but it just couldn't handle the tough ground and my brute force. I emailed the seller and told him it bust straight away and he said it much have been defective and gave me a full refund. The spade is still useable, even though its bent you can still dig with it. I will wait till it gives way completely then get a new one...Trying to find a mini spade is hard work, the only ones i managed to find were the fold away ones and there not too good..

Until the next time...

I Found 12 Pence Last Night With My Metal Detector!

2009-10-13T13:51:00.000-07:00

I Found 12 Pence Last Night!

I went out with my metal detector last night, late at night and found 12 Pence lol. The detector (Ace 250) was going crazy.!! I couldn't walk one step without it giving me a good signal. A few stella bottle tops, and a few ring pulls later i found 12 p. I also found a 2 pence that was chewed to bits...Maybe from one of those lawn mowers that the council drive when cutting the grass. But i know there is much more stuff there as i only searched about 2% of the whole green area. It was just too dark and too cold to carry on any longer. Im gonna go back on there one of the days or nights and give it a good search.

The Garrett Ace 250 Is a very good Metal Detector. Sensitive as hell. I know if anythings under the ground where i search the Garrett finds it. Even tiny objects. Until next time.

I don't think it's worth me taking pictures of a dirty 12 Pence, but when i find something good i will post a picture of it on here. Peace.

New To Metal Detecting

2009-10-11T17:01:00.000-07:00

New To Metal Detecting

OK, so after reading the story in the paper about the guy that found all that old Anglo Saxon gold in Staffordshire, UK, thought to be worth a few million it got me thinking. All the old places i go to walking my dog that have probably never been metal detected, why don't i buy a metal detector and give it a go..I have always been interested in discovering things. And the thought of finding old things that might be worth money was enough to make me go out and buy a metal detector.

I had been reading about the Garrett Ace 250 for a while before i bought one. Mostly all the reviews were good. So i took the plunge and bought one off eBay. It came with Free coil cover, free Garrett Headphones, 2 year warranty, and i also got a free coins book because the eBay seller took the P*SS with the delivery and ended up dropping the Ace 250 to my house in person! I was angry at this and felt like leaving negative feedback, but i thought to myself, well, i got it in the end. Im still not sure whether to leave bad feedback or not..I'm thinking maybe i shouldn't beings that i would have to send the detector back under warranty if anything goes wrong with it, and if i left them bad feedback they might be funny about me returning it, or they might take the P*SS sorting it out because of the bad feedback.

Anyway, i have been out a few times with the Garrett 250 and i must say, it's a superb little machine!. It's very sensitive. I have not found anything of value yet but from what i have found, i can tell that if there was anything valuable to find - the Garrett Ace 250 would of found it. I have found lots of junk and a few weird looking items. Locks, battered coins, something that looks like a nut cracker, a fair few keys, a car ignition barrel and lots more junk like foil, can etc. But i do think it's only a matter of time before i find something of value. I think the more i get used to the Garrett the more i will find. I have only been out with it a few times so a lot of learning ahead yet.

I can't wait till the next time i go out metal detecting. I am addicted to it already!.

Will keep you posted on my adventures and any finds i get.

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2008-12-01T12:35:00.000-08:00

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