Dig everything?

bufaloeletric said:
Do you successful folks dig everything? And do you go all-metal mode? I have the equinox 800 if there are any particular tips on how to use it for cache hunting.
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I think most serious metal detectors discriminate based on what they are searching for and where they are searching. A beach is probably a place where the all metal mode is usually used. But yes, the general rule of thumb is to dig everything. That's why I would not be considered a serious metal detector. I've seen a lifetime's worth of bottle caps, flip top tabs and rusty nails. But if I was searching in an area that was completely devoid of development I'd probably dig everything.
 

It helps if you know what you are looking for--size and shape--and the approximate location. I know a guy who helped a guy recover his stashed silver coins in five gallon buckets. The guy knew the location but couldn't find them. The guy searched for three days with a two-box before he found them. So I assume you have a specific cache in mind and not just out looking for any ol' cache. To check target size/shape come in from all four sides and put a mark on the ground. Probably wouldn't hurt to read some books on the subject.
 

I dont dig everything at first its a great way to learn your machine but some parks you wont move 10 ft in 10 hours cause of the trash it depends where I am and what Im looking for.....Tommy
 

I dig all shallow (i.e. up to 0,5m) large targets. I document all deep large targets, weather or not i decide to dig depends on other non detector research results.
 

I'd walk away from a cache because I generally don't want to mess someones lawn up that extremely. I've also dug up enough auto parts and plow shares, sledge hammers, axes, cannon balls etc. I do wonder about a few that I should have investigated more. It depends on how much time you have and if you have any reason to suspect a cache would be hidden in the area. You won't find one unless you believe they are out there and dig accordingly. They generally sound terrible.
 

i always think about what i walked away from,but sometimes its about digging the best targets in the time you have.start with the best ones then ck what you can.
good luck brad
 

There is a famous thought experiment that sums this up very well, known as "Schrödinger's cache": A person is metal detecting and they get an alert. Below ground is an object that is either a cache of immense value or a chunk of junk. According to the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics, the object is simultaneously a cache of immense value and a chunk of junk until it is dug up and observed, at which point it is either a cache of immense value or a chunk of junk, but not both. Hope that clears it up.
 

I got a headache Ill have to marinade in that overnight..
 

So if I don't dig it, I can presume it is. Saw the Dead in Charlottesville around 15 years ago. Minus Jerry of course.
 

signal_line said:
It helps if you know what you are looking for--size and shape--and the approximate location. I know a guy who helped a guy recover his stashed silver coins in five gallon buckets. The guy knew the location but couldn't find them. The guy searched for three days with a two-box before he found them. So I assume you have a specific cache in mind and not just out looking for any ol' cache. To check target size/shape come in from all four sides and put a mark on the ground. Probably wouldn't hurt to read some books on the subject.
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Yea, I didn't necessary mean everything, so to speak. I usually avoid what sounds like very small size junk. I have a modern day one pint mason jar, turned upside down, stuffed with silver and copper I've found over the years. It sounds like trash, but I attempt to dig anything that size, or bigger, if I have the energy. It would probably help if I brought along something bigger than my Lesch for stuff like that.
 

I have a " test garden " in my yard that has an assortment of modern items && old items I have found with a detector. Most people I know do discriminate at some level or another. I have asked others to run their expensive detectors over a few finds that I have buried, then ask them if they would dig them. The answer has been , " NO ' many times. The signal was poor or didn't exist at all. I then ran 2 of my Tesoro detectors over them & got signals. These are the 3 items that were buried , all about 2-3" deep.

1. Tiny 10k white gold earring back.
2. Very thin 14k bracelet
3. Large Figaro silver bracelet.
 

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I hunt in all metal mode and dig all consistent repeatable targets for my cellar hole sites I also dig the scratchy high tones in those areas....
 

Yep. I tested my Equinox and AT Max on a mexican gold 2 peso i buried in my yard. I'd have passed it up going by sound and VDI numbers. It makes me wish I had either my Umax or Outlaw back that I was dumb enough to sell. At least just to see how they would have responded. Every day that goes by, I'm starting to believe I dug more rewarding stuff with my Tesoros, because I didn't have vdi and multiple tones to confuse me.
 

More trash = more treasure
All metal mode and dig everything, then re-check the hole in case a piece of junk was masking something valuable a little deeper.

The more trash signals in an area means the more chances of something valuable being buried underneath one of them or right next to it.
Try it yourself, bury a diamond ring or gold coin or any non ferrous valuable underneath a tin can lid, or any ferrous trash target of the same size, and use discrimination, no detector will pick up anything but the ferrous trash target.

Forget the bells and whistles they just keep you from digging. You want treasure? Then dig everything.

All metal mode lets you hear deeper signals and wearing headphones lets you hear fainter signals.
And yeah you're going to dig a lot of trash. Get used to it Sonny Jim. :tongue3:

And take a small shovel, something you can put your foot onto when you are looking for serious treasure, a little leche or similar is only good for the small shallow stuff in soft ground.

Doing your research before you detect reduces the chance of going home skunked no matter how many trash targets you dig, plus you have a better reason for digging.

Go for the Gold :coins:
GG~
 

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bufaloeletric said:
So if I don't dig it, I can presume it is. Saw the Dead in Charlottesville around 15 years ago. Minus Jerry of course.
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That's pretty much it. As long as you don't dig it up, quantum mechanics dictates that you can tell all your friends that you found a fortune in gold while metal detecting, and you would be correct. Dig it up and you have either found a fortune in gold, or nothing.


For what it's worth, I've seen the Dead in several venues, indoors and outdoors. With Jerry of course. Always preferred the outdoor venues. Actually hitchhiked several hundred miles with a friend to seem them at Manor Downs, just east of Austin, TX. First and last time I tried the hitchhiking thing. It's fun, but it's also a shifty proposition.
 

If you're not infirm, dig it all, you won't miss anything that way unless your swing is poor. I know I don't get it all. But that is more because I just didn't swing the coil over it. Surely, coin hunters have a different mindset than those of us who are relic hunters. I won't be pi$$ed if I get a few coins, but I'm not going to discriminate down to miss much. Force your body to work and it'll work for you longer. And those that say there is too much trash?? If you dug it all every time, there would certainly be less trash...
 

bufaloeletric said:
Yep. I tested my Equinox and AT Max on a mexican gold 2 peso i buried in my yard. I'd have passed it up going by sound and VDI numbers. It makes me wish I had either my Umax or Outlaw back that I was dumb enough to sell. At least just to see how they would have responded. Every day that goes by, I'm starting to believe I dug more rewarding stuff with my Tesoros, because I didn't have vdi and multiple tones to confuse me.
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One of the Tesoros I used in the test is a UMAX.
 

Samanthy said:
If you don’t want to dig, don’t metal detect !
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I don't think the OP had a problem with digging in general; just whether or not to dig everything. If you dig everything in an inhabited area, 99.999% of what you find will be junk. That percentage is great for gold purity, but not so great when metal detecting. Sometimes I think I would have better luck metal detecting if I built one of those giant, homemade coils you tow behind an ATV and took it out to the wilderness to hunt for meteorites.
 

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