Ever have an embarrassing moment in this hobby?

[WHADIFIND]

I had one of those non-stellar days today. Not "bad", just not stellar. I did however turn up an old war nickel in pretty good shape. Unfortunately, I managed to scratch it right across the face. (rookie mistake).

I moved on and was semi-gridding the place. On the way back to the car, I turned up another war nickel. About the same shape, was right on top, and when I looked a little closer, it had a scratch also. Hmmmmm, interesting. Right across the face too! Almost exactly where I....................wait a minute!!! I checked my found pouch. No nickel. I had just found the same one, TWICE!!! oH! HOW embarrassing!!!! LOL

Thought if anyone else out there had done this, they would now not feel so bad.

HH!

 

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[Noah_D]

This isn't the worst thing... that is, if it happened only once, but it has happened three times so far! THREE TIMES. I was out digging one day with my ACE 300 and I usually put the coil cover on so I don't bang it on rocks or anything but I was field hunting this time and I popped out the plug and while I was grabbing clods to swing over my detector I must have dropped the target on the coil... every clod seemed to have something in it but none of them did. At this point I thought it was just the dirt being funny with my detector so I moved on. The beeping wouldn't stop though so I thought the whole area was just super trashy or something, I finally realized what was happening when me, being annoyed that there was dirt on my coil cover and it was shaking back and forth every swing, dumped off all the little dirt pieces. Then it stopped and I just about started laughing at myself for failing to realize what it was all along.

 

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[Noah_D]

Hit one of my most trusted and cherished sites early one morning. I was blaring to go. Parked the car, got my knee pads on, hooked my lesche up, etc. Took the detector out of the car & walked about half a mile to a certain section in this particular park.

I was off & hunting for 3, maybe 4 hours and was wiped. Mosied on back to the car to call it a day. When I reached my ride, I almost had a heart-attack...

Seems I was SO excited to detect that morning, I left my car door open after taking out my detector. NOT open as in unlocked, open as in the door was FULLY ajar while I was prancing around in the grass playing Indiana Jones.

Glad I was hunting in the "good part of town" that day!

I dunnit too. I left my trunk open (full of stuff as well) for about an hour and a half long field hunt. It's a good thing I parked at someone who I knew's house.

 

[bill from lachine]

DigtoChina,

Yep I quietly took it and thanked him and carried it part way home and discreetly put it next to someone's garbage bin.....lol.

 

[bill from lachine]

Here's another not sure if I shared it before or not. This old school yard which I detected many times has a spot that would give me an overload signal and covered a fairly large area.

I'd just pass over that target, however, one day curiousity got the best of me and I decided to dig the outer edge of where the overload signal was.

I'd dug down probably about 12" and finally the mystery was solved I had hit a manhole cover's outer edge since the field was low lying the obviously had to use drainage for the field and eventually added fill and didn't bother to remove the manholes....

 

[caretaker]

I got one, but I started it out by telling you I dug a Fluff jar about 15 years ago in a cellar and there was 1500 bucks in a plastic bag, 100's and 50's, I was deep in the woods and got a signal and dug a old mason jar with a plastic bag in it, I was excited so I waited to open it until I got home, opening it I found a letter and a plastic bag, I unrolled it and opened it and found a decomposed parakeet, some one buried their pet, felt really bad and had to rebury it, didn't even keep the jar

 

[Truth]

I got one, but I started it out by telling you I dug a Fluff jar about 15 years ago in a cellar and there was 1500 bucks in a plastic bag, 100's and 50's, I was deep in the woods and got a signal and dug a old mason jar with a plastic bag in it, I was excited so I waited to open it until I got home, opening it I found a letter and a plastic bag, I unrolled it and opened it and found a decomposed parakeet, some one buried their pet, felt really bad and had to rebury it, didn't even keep the jar

Classic lol

 

[bologna321]

I had a good one this summer. I was headed up a shallow water creek bed, popular swimming spot. There were about 8 or 9 kids and a few parents. Hit a flat spot on the rocks, slipped, landed flat on my back in the creek.

I told the kids it was ok to laugh because I was ok, and they did. So did I.

 

[Shakakka]

I did something like this! I was beach-hunting, and found a really cool silver "infinity" ring. Two hours later, I'm on the way back to my truck when I look down in the parking lot... and there's *another* silver infinity ring exactly like the one I found!

"Wow! It must be the style, this year!" I think to myself. I pick it up, then go to compare it to the first one I found...

... only I can't find the first one I found.

Turns out as I was pulling my keys out of my pocket the ring must've jumped out and landed in front of me. Good thing I was looking down!

 

[Noah_D]

I did something like this! I was beach-hunting, and found a really cool silver "infinity" ring. Two hours later, I'm on the way back to my truck when I look down in the parking lot... and there's *another* silver infinity ring exactly like the one I found!

"Wow! It must be the style, this year!" I think to myself. I pick it up, then go to compare it to the first one I found...

... only I can't find the first one I found.

Turns out as I was pulling my keys out of my pocket the ring must've jumped out and landed in front of me. Good thing I was looking down!

Haha! I did that once as well. I guess that's why our hobby exists!

 

[WHADIFIND]

Just had to add this one from today.

I tell myself, every time out, I'm just out for the walk/exercise. If I happened to walk over something good? So much the better.

Anyway, I was semi-gridding a part of my current cornfield. (Trying to stay upright most of the time, mostly stumbling and getting more and more frustrated. )

After one particularly muddy stumble, falling flat on my butt...I decided to quit before I broke something! A leg...an arm...or maybe a detector!!! Over some large cornstalk!!

Had only been about an hour and a half though. I didn't wanna leave yet!

Too late to make this a short story, but I'll try to finish up.

I wound up trying a nearby walking trail thru some woods. I wasn't sure if the property was part of my permission. I went anyway.

I'd only gone about 30 mins, with nothing, and I heard somebody yelling! I looked down the path and here comes a figure that would make any lone hunter's blood run cold. I said..."UH OH!!" and started trying to blend into and behind some trees. As he got closer I confirmed that the thing in his arms was a full blown, double barrel shotgun!!!!!!!

I was hoping he'd pass by my hiding place and he walked right up to me. I'm thinking that this was not where I planned on meeting my maker.

He said, "Hi!"

I sheepishly answered, "....um, Hi there!?"

He continued, "I saw you wuz a metal dectectin' and wuz a wonderin' if you could help us out?"

At that point it was a VERY good thing that I had just recently emptied my bladder or my relief just might have caused a *VERY* embarrassing "medical emergency" right then and there.

Turned out that his buddy, back up the trail had dropped an important part of his rifle and wanted me to help them find it. I looked up where he'd pointed and there was his buddy and girlfriend down on their hands and knees scouring the brush.

I helped them find it and they turned out to be the father of the person who gave me permission!

Scared myself outta a few years growth but I'm still laughing out loud about what I was thinking!!!

WHEW!!! just doesn't cover it!! LOLOL!!

 

[smokeythecat]

So about 2 weeks ago it was cold, and I had decided to dig on the "hill" I have worked on most of the winter. Get up, get the cats taken care of, fish, birds, me. Long johns, check, undershirt, check, shirt, check, sweatshirt, check, heavy duty socks, check, jacket, check, hat, check, stuff, check, boots, check. No pants.

The long johns are the same color as the pants...I did put them on.

 

[NonsequiturI]

Some of my best contacts were with Texas Game Wardens....some of whom materialized from apparently nowhere...( I was always legal.)....and when both sides minded their P's and Q's....there was no problem...I have actually got some good reports where the fish WERE biting....they should know...right? Same with times I've been stopped by a cop for traffic or whatever....manners go a long way, on BOTH sides......saved a few fines from a broken tail-light ticket and just got warnings....just saying...

 

[birdman]

Like alot of people... thought my machine was messed up until about 30 minutes later I realized I had steel toed shoes on..

 

[Megalodon]

Ok, my turn. Three years ago, we sold our home of the previous 18 years. I've gotten the occasional email from them asking questions so I knew they were making improvements. This week, I got an email that there was a letter from social security for my wife, so I decided to pick it up from him, the USPS forwarding having long expired. Yesterday, I drove the approximately 20 miles and he showed me his work on the house and yard. He did very good work. I commented on how the woods were never so clear of brush and that I used the brush piles for wildlife. He said he needed to clear the brush because he was metal detecting the yard (about 3 acres, mostly wooded). And he started to show me his finds - the old bottles I expected since I had found some gardening, but some of the ceramics and stoneware I did not expect. He saved the best for last and pulled out a rusty but perfect flint lock with the perfect flint still attached. My heart dropped - I've never found one and here he had found one about 20' from the BBQ grill I left behind - where I lived for 18 years. Aaargghhh!!!

Moral of the story - always hunt your yard! I'm encouraging him to join tnet and post pics. If he doesn't, I'll post pics of the lock with flint.

What hurt was that he said "I thought you did some metal detecting...".

 

[WHADIFIND]

Just a little story about a rookie mistake testing my new AT-Max.


I couldn't contain myself after putting together my brand new AT-Max. I've been using an AT Pro for quite a while now. So, I didn't have a big learning curve at least I didn't think so.


Anyhoo, I grabbed up an old penny and a dime and went into my front yard just see what my new detector sounded like. I dropped the two coins about a yard apart from each other in the grass. And because my yard has a lot of iron trash in it, I set the discriminator to discriminate out the iron.


Easily found the penny checked the different modes, different sounds, pinpointing, all that stuff. No surprises. VDI was the same as Pro. I didn't really expect any surprises I just wanted to play with my new toy.


I turned my attention to the dime. Couldn't find it!! It had to be there I just dropped it on the grass! I tried different mode so I tried different heights and directions. It must have flipped up on edge because I couldn't see it either but I knew I dropped it just about a yard away from the penny.


I actually began to panic. Oh no! This thing can't find a dime?!?!??


I hadn't bothered to bring the pinpointer out with me, because I didn't figure I would need it, it was on top of the grass! But after about 5 minutes not finding it I had to go back in the house and get the pinpointer and come back out.


Of course within just a few seconds with the pinpointer I found the dime. So.... what was the problem? Does an AT-Max not find dimes!!!


Of course that wasn't the problem. In my haste to play with my new toy, I had picked up a 1976 Canadian dime and it was completely magnetic!


Guess I'd told the detector not to look for that kind of target. Glad nobody was around to see my red face. :-)

 

[WannaDig3687]

Well, Sir WIF, last week or so, I was out walking the field that had just been excavated for the water way. I don't ever expect much, but you never know. I got a lot of hot rock hits and an iron something or other, Then nothing. I walked up the field and then down again. absolutely nothing. I was wore out and decided I was going to quit for the night. When putting the Max in my bag, I noticed the cable was off. That explains alot! I didn't have it in me to back track.

 

[mglentz4125]

Once I unearthed a PERFECT small "tiara" and was marveling at it only to realize it was 2/3rds of the rusted end of a can.

 

[Hunk-a-lead]

I had one of those non-stellar days today. Not "bad", just not stellar. I did however turn up an old war nickel in pretty good shape. Unfortunately, I managed to scratch it right across the face. (rookie mistake).

I moved on and was semi-gridding the place. On the way back to the car, I turned up another war nickel. About the same shape, was right on top, and when I looked a little closer, it had a scratch also. Hmmmmm, interesting. Right across the face too! Almost exactly where I....................wait a minute!!! I checked my found pouch. No nickel. I had just found the same one, TWICE!!! oH! HOW embarrassing!!!! LOL

Thought if anyone else out there had done this, they would now not feel so bad.

HH!

Last summer, I was hunting a park adjacent to a school. A group of 4 kids on bikes approached and asked what I was doing. I explained a little about metal detecting, showed them all of my finds (they thought the toy motorcycle was cool) and they were off.

In the next few minutes, a mother with a stroller approached and asked me the same thing. This time I explained, answered each of her questions, and even gave her my business card that describes my "free" metal detecting service.

Near the end of my hunt, I was startled by two of our finest, standing just a few feet away. My adrenaline was pumping but I composed myself and pulled off the headphones. They asked for my ID which I produced, including the permit to hunt in the park.

They proceeded to tell me that they were responding to a complaint of a stranger approaching children at the school and that they had been observing me from a distance for quite some time. Then they produced my business card and it was clear that a very overconcerned mother had called this in. They took down all of my information, encouraged me to detect in the park only (which I had) and not to approach any children (which I hadn't). They were reasonably friendly and just doing there job.

I was embarrassed, then ticked off, then just resigned to the idea that this is the world we live in. No harm no foul.

 

[WHADIFIND]

A funny thing happened on my latest walk. As I was swinging I started getting this ping at the end of each one. At first, I thought the end of my swing was just short of the target. So, I sort of circled around trying to catch up to this elusive ping right at the end of a swing. I did a full 360° ....twice!!

Then I noticed that my homemade "anti gravity" band had been rubbing on the coil's connector and had backed off the thumb screw that holds it in place!! The connector was just barely holding on!

 

[Truth]

I was about one year into the hobby and I needed some boots and yes as God is my witness I’m the one who bought the steel toe boots I have no you’ve heard about that happening but I felt so stupid for not putting two into together for about 30 minutes lol