West Jersey Detecting
Gold Member
I got out with my old detecting buddy Pat this morning. He picked the spot which was a wooded area behind a sports field. It would not be my first choice, but I haven't seen him for over a year and it was a beautiful morning just to be out.
Within the first few minutes of detecting I got a jumpy VDI at around 6 inches and dug a silver disk. My first thought was a silver dime sized coin, but when the dirt fell away all I held was a smooth silver disk. I put it in my pouch and examined it a few times throughout the morning trying to see detail. I figured it may be a tombac if I was lucky.
After about an hour with only one flat button and the shiny disk in my pouch, Pat suggested another spot, a former farm field that is now a sports complex.
Within a few minutes I found what I thought would be the find of the day, a $5 bill! I put it in my pocket and kept detecting for about another hour, and then we called it quits.
This evening, after a long day of yard work, I had some time to examine the shiny, smooth disk. I noticed that the edge was reeded, so I got a silver Rosie out to compare the reeds. The coin was a bit thinner than the Rosie, but the reeds lined up. It was a dime, but would I ever know what type? I turned it around and around and could not make out a thing. I decided to weigh it, and it came in at 2.1 grams. I opened The Red Book out and noticed that the Capped Bust dimes weighed more than a Rosie, and the early Seated Coins weighed a bit less. I rotated it a few more times in different light on each side and finally caught the vague outline of the Seated Liberty!
It is even underweight for an early Seated (1853-1872), which should weigh 2.49 grams. This coin lost almost 20% of its mass! The back is totally smooth. It seems like it may have been done intentionally.
It is only my second Seated Dime, and both were found this year.
Within the first few minutes of detecting I got a jumpy VDI at around 6 inches and dug a silver disk. My first thought was a silver dime sized coin, but when the dirt fell away all I held was a smooth silver disk. I put it in my pouch and examined it a few times throughout the morning trying to see detail. I figured it may be a tombac if I was lucky.
After about an hour with only one flat button and the shiny disk in my pouch, Pat suggested another spot, a former farm field that is now a sports complex.
Within a few minutes I found what I thought would be the find of the day, a $5 bill! I put it in my pocket and kept detecting for about another hour, and then we called it quits.
This evening, after a long day of yard work, I had some time to examine the shiny, smooth disk. I noticed that the edge was reeded, so I got a silver Rosie out to compare the reeds. The coin was a bit thinner than the Rosie, but the reeds lined up. It was a dime, but would I ever know what type? I turned it around and around and could not make out a thing. I decided to weigh it, and it came in at 2.1 grams. I opened The Red Book out and noticed that the Capped Bust dimes weighed more than a Rosie, and the early Seated Coins weighed a bit less. I rotated it a few more times in different light on each side and finally caught the vague outline of the Seated Liberty!
It is even underweight for an early Seated (1853-1872), which should weigh 2.49 grams. This coin lost almost 20% of its mass! The back is totally smooth. It seems like it may have been done intentionally.
It is only my second Seated Dime, and both were found this year.
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