gone

[Wanjman59]

I just purchased a Minelab Equinox 900 and as a newbie It will take a while to learn this machine with its many options. A friend of mine came upon a plastic bucket filled with silver eagles while digging in his yard. It was buried at 12 in in sandy soil. What would be the best way to configure this detector to locate any more without destroying his yard digging holes all over finding other smaller targets? I understand that the lower frequencies are better for depth but there are so many options and adjustments on this machine.

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

A Handbook of Civil War Bullets and Cartridges - Grab it through Amazon!

[pepperj]

I just purchased a Minelab Equinox 900 and as a newbie It will take a while to learn this machine with its many options. A friend of mine came upon a plastic bucket filled with silver eagles while digging in his yard. It was buried at 12 in in sandy soil. What would be the best way to configure this detector to locate any more without destroying his yard digging holes all over finding other smaller targets? I understand that the lower frequencies are better for depth but there are so many options and adjustments on this machine.

If there's more targets as in a bucket full of silver eagles, the signal footprint will be very big.
A single silver eagle at 12 inches will be a good target.
When you use the pinpoint mode you can determine if the target is small or big.

Use a probe also to determine the depth/size of the target.

Now a query: How big was this plastic bucket filled with silver eagles?

Kind of a strange thing using such an holding vessel to bury a precious metal.

 

[Wanjman59]

I am looking for the best configuration on my machine multi-frequency or perhaps a single lower frequency between 4 or 7 kilohertz I don't want to start digging random holes on this guy's property mistakenly pulling up smaller trash targets

 

[Wanjman59]

Now there is also a possibility since the initial Target was found in the area he was pouring his concrete patio that he may have poured the patio over additional targets a concrete patio that contains rebar so now I would need to discriminate between the rebar and the silver when searching over the concrete

 

[releventchair]

Call the utility companies to mark utilities.
Then I'll rent you a tractor to remove the top 2 feet of sand before using the detector.

A bucket of Eagles would scream.
About an hours practice you'll be good to go.

Plastic buckets have not been around long vs silver coins.
And are an odd choice to retain weight and durability underground through varied season and for wanting a sealed top.
So what's goin on there in the line of "coming upon"?

3-5 gallon pails?
Gamma seal lid? Duct taped?

 

[Wanjman59]

I am reluctant To post Actual Photographs Of this find For obvious reasons But there were Close to 2000 Coins, Uncirculated.

 

[Wanjman59]

This is the exact type of containers that the coins were found in

 

[pepperj]

Now there is also a possibility since the initial Target was found in the area he was pouring his concrete patio that he may have poured the patio over additional targets a concrete patio that contains rebar so now I would need to discriminate between the rebar and the silver when searching over the concrete

Seems that this story is getting better all the time.
Common sense screams that if these were discovered in sandy ground @ 12".

Your friend has too much money, to not explore the area before pouring the concrete patio filled with rebar.

Most modern floors/pads use 6 inch concrete mesh. More efficient, cost effective and your detector is probably useless for finding items under it.

Best of luck

 

[Wanjman59]

So is this forum legitimate? No one has actually answered my question regarding how to configure my EQ 900 to properly search for this type of target. I could always reach out to Minelab support.

 

[Tedyoh]

So I've done this test before....but anyway....that's a Monster Box from The US Mint...holds 500 coins, 20 coins per plastic sleeve....believe it or not, with a NOX or Deus, just the opposite occurs, the detectors have a hard time picking up a large number of silver coins stacked on top of each other....hence why we really never see real caches ever posted here....lay a sleeve on its side and the detectors will do better but when the sleeve is vertical (I just did one roll of eagles, didn't feel like digging my other 4 out of the safe) the Deus calls the 20 silver dollars ferrous and the NOX will hit the roll but only as the outer edge of the coil leaves the 20 silver dollars...just a slight blip with a VID of 18.....so I would say go dig all the 18's.
Same thing happens with rolls of silver dimes and quarters....odd but it is what it is....going to try and figure out a solution with the Deus soon as this is my primary machine

 

[PetesPockets55]

Excellent find and question.
Wow, four monster boxes. Were they all the same date?

 

[Wanjman59]

Yes 2010

 

[Wanjman59]

So I've done this test before....but anyway....that's a Monster Box from The US Mint...holds 500 coins, 20 coins per plastic sleeve....believe it or not, with a NOX or Deus, just the opposite occurs, the detectors have a hard time picking up a large number of silver coins stacked on top of each other....hence why we really never see real caches ever posted here....lay a sleeve on its side and the detectors will do better but when the sleeve is vertical (I just did one roll of eagles, didn't feel like digging my other 4 out of the safe) the Deus calls the 20 silver dollars ferrous and the NOX will hit the roll but only as the outer edge of the coil leaves the 20 silver dollars...just a slight blip with a VID of 18.....so I would say go dig all the 18's.
Same thing happens with rolls of silver dimes and quarters....odd but it is what it is....going to try and figure out a solution with the Deus soon as this is my primary machine

Not familiar with those machines as this EQ 900 is only my 2nd one in 15 years. How did you have it configured ? What size coil were you using, what frequency were you scanning at or is it a multi-frequency? I guess I'm going to have to bury one of these monster boxes and see how the target shows up under various configurations. Thanks for comments.

 

[PetesPockets55]

I know you're trying to help your buddy out and this thread is about fine tuning your machine, but it sounds to me like he should be cautious or maybe even nervous. I would be very tempted to move.

I'm not trying to be an alarmist, but someone didn't lose this stash. They buried it on purpose.
Any chance someone may come looking for the stash? Say, once they are out of prison?
Does he own the home or rent?
Has he done a search for the address for any police activity there?

Maybe even consult an attorney to see about turning it over to the authorities so he can claim it once it has been cleared by them. (I know folks will think this is a crazy idea but it's an option worth considering for quite a few reasons.)

All these things may seem over the top, but a minimum of $40,000.00 isn't chump change and "someone" will remember where they planted it.

ps. I like the idea about pouring concrete over the spot and putting a shed there so "someone" can't attempt to dig it up.

 

[Wanjman59]

I appreciate the advice. Prior to my friend purchasing the home, it belonged to an 88 year old man who had lived there for the last 60 years. He passed away within a year of the sale and has no living relatives. My friend did contact an attorney who did all of the proper legal checks as well.

 

[beepbleep]

It was probably dementia. I can't seem any logical reason to bury a monster box of American Silver Eagles in this day. At current prices that's $20,000 per box if they are full. I'd get a small dozer with a ripper and go back and forth.

 

[VTColonialDigger]

What happened to this thread? Did mods take it down for some reason?

 

[PetesPockets55]

Evidently, he was disappointed (upset?) more folks didn't give him info on configuring his detector. Either he (or a mod?) edited or deleted info/replies.

Edit:
He "Edited/Deleted" his initial post: "Last edited: Yesterday at 3:39 PM"
Probably the best thing to do.

 

[Wanjman59]

I got the information I needed and tried to delete the thread for security reasons as I was not comfortable with leaving this on line. There seem to be some less than professional members who use this forum.