Grass Detecing Techniques

[The Beep Goes On]

I haven't hunted well manicured lawns or soccer/football/baseball fields.? Using a probe, or a coin-popper, is the least destructive, but doesn't work for deep targets.

My question is:? Has anyone ever seen the "flap" or "trap-door" method cause any damage?? Do you have any tips or suggestions?

 

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[U.K. Brian]

Can cause damage but if you have to dig deep its the only way. I should try cutting two sides of a triangle as well as three sides of a square and see what works best for you of the two. Carry a water bottle and damp the turf before flapping it back. And vertical cuts recover far better than if you go in at an angle.

 

[The Beep Goes On]

Thank you Brian.

 

[stoney56]

A sharp knife never hurts either. It makes for a clean cut and a dull tool wears you out faster.

 

[Born2Dtect]

I try to hunt nice grassy areas when it rains so I don,t need to worry about the condition of the lawn. If it gets too dry you just can,t save a plug or flap without daily watering. I use a cloth to collect the soil so I can return all of it to the hole and there is no sign I dug the spot.

Ed

 

[Jeffro]

I try to hunt nice grassy areas when it rains so I don,t need to worry about the condition of the lawn. If it gets too dry you just can,t save a plug or flap without daily watering. I use a cloth to collect the soil so I can return all of it to the hole and there is no sign I dug the spot.

Ed

What he said.... couldn't have said it better! I hunt these spots exclusively in the spring and fall, when it's moist and rain will be coming.

 

[hollowpointred]

even in dry conditions,when your plugs turn brown,9 times out of 10 they will turn nice and green again with the first period of decent rain.

 

[Monty]

Right now the ground is so dry it is hard to cut a plug without it coming apart and leaving a scar. I wouildn't hunt a manicured area here right now for that reason. Monty

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

I coin hunt a local town park and can give you a few tips at keeping the maintenance crew on your good side. I use a very curved, long and narrow trowel designed for transplanting bulbs. Maybe $5 from Lowes. Has a rubber handle and even a calibrated depth scale on the blade. I cut a vertical plug, and then lay it on a sheet of plastic (mine is an old calculator cover). There's a reason for this. It traps the dirt, so after you find the coin ~ a little electronic hand probe is a big help, especially if it's still in the wall of the hole ~ so you get it all back in the hole before replacing the plug. It also prevents a pile of dirt on top of the grass. If you leave that when the dirt dries it LOOKS like a dead spot in the grass.

Another thing I have found to keep on good terms is to carry a gallon pail in your trunk for the trash. I pick up litter and any metal I dig. This goes in the pail. I once had the town maintenance superintendent come over to talk as I packed up. He was impressed with the pins, razor blade, last 3" of a knife, broken glass on a light-bulb base, etc. that I had pulled out of the grass. Since then I've had other folks come over to talk (those as are nice enough to wait for you to finish instaed of try and walk along talking - with my Black Widows I can't hear them, anyway) and they seem impressed that I am finding harmful stuff and not gettin rich off the town. 57? in dirty clad doesn't look too fabulous to most folks. I never completely empty it of the nasty stuff.

Also, make sure you take the first ring you find to the town office and put it in the lost and found. I do this with any good rings anyway. It keeps you in a good light, as some folks equate park detecting with stealing (I've been told that to my face). Usually you can pick it up after 90 days anyway, and if you do get a match-up you are a hero for a week.

I don't use a coin probe to pop coins because a scratch is enough to lower a good find 30 or 40 grade points (on the 1 to 70 scale), equal to two or three grades, which can be 85% in collector value. Ouch.

 

[DugHoles]

Here is a couple of videos showing proper plugging techniques

#1 Front view: http://www.pixparty.com/nctrnlboy/index.asp?ptype=v&videoid=5387

#2 Side view: http://www.pixparty.com/nctrnlboy/index.asp?ptype=v&videoid=5292

GL & HH,

DugHoles

 

[Monty]

I was just discussing this subject with a forum member today! He told me of a nightmare hunt he had made. Seems he had permission to hunt property that had a well manicured lawn. He said he was very careful to replace his 3 cornered plugs so they wouldn't show. The property owner mowed the lawn and the mower sucked all the once invisible plugs out and left dozens of small holes all over the yard! Permission withdrawn! I've not hunted a manicured lawn to date and that tale makes me very leery of trying it. The forum member said he now uses a probe and a "coin popper" tool for manicured lawns. I've tried a probe but not a coin popper. I always have trouble finding the coin with the probe due to rocks , roots etc. I would like to become proficient at it but it would take a lot of frustration and valuable hunting time it seems to me. Monty

 

[The Beep Goes On]

That IS a horror story Monty! Beside adhering to all the great advice here, I step on the plug very firmly, sometimes even stomping on it, to re-integrate it with the soil. They do mow the fields I hunt and, luckily, none of my plugs have been sucked out. I've done a lot of grass hunting since I first posted this topic and one thing I've found is that a decent sized plug, 2" to 4" across fairs much better than if you tried to dig a small one. The larger plugs hold together much better than the small ones do. I use the 3-sided flap method and a sod knife (square tip, flat sides, keep it sharp). I've hunted a field and returned to it a week or two later and you can't tell any holes were ever dug there. This might not be the case in dry season as mentioned above. If a field has sprinklers that are used regularly, dried out plugs are less of a problem.

HH!
TBGO

 

[Born2Dtect]

WHEN I CUT THE FLAP I TRY TO LIFT IT ALONG WITH 3-4 INCHES OF DIRT INTACT. THIS GIVE THE GRASS SOMETHING TO HOLD ONTO. IF YOU PROBE AND LOCATE THE OBJECT AND IT IS LESS THAN TRHEE I TRY TO USE THE PROBE TO RECOVER. JUST ROCK IT SIDE TO SIDE AN USE FINGERS OR TRY THE METHOD DESCRIBEB IN THIS YEARS TREASRUE FACTS? MAGAZINE ABOUT USING LONG HANDLED FORCEPS.

ED DONOVAN

 

[The Beep Goes On]

Good point Ed, me too. After pulling the flap, check the flap and the hole and either dig it out of the hole or probe it out of the flap. When you dig deep plugs/flaps you usually don't have to dig anymore and it is a lot cleaner process. You can use your pinpointer to find out where in the flap the target is located which further reduces damage done and time spent.

HH!
TBGO