Great day but the owner took half

[iAmMike]

Went out door knocking today and got permission at an 1877 home. At first the owner, 92, said no because it's been done so many times and no one ever finds anything so she just knew I wouldn't either. But after she said no we continued to talk and during our discussion she had said she didn't care one bit if I went but no one finds anything. So, before I headed off to the next door, I asked, one more time and she said OK.

Lots of targets at this site. I had a feeling it would be good when the first target was a pocket watch. 15 or 20 minutes later a V nickel, then some wheats, Indian head penny, buffalo nickel, tiny jewelry lock, a Minié ball, key, and a copper, maybe brass ring.

I was so excited with all the finds, when the lady came back home I couldn't wait to show her. I told her that her yard was great, she said what did you find? I told her about the V nickel and IHP first, then she says well, I'll let you pick, give me the V or IHP and you can keep the rest. So, I offered her the nickel. Then she asks if I found anything else, and told her about the rest, but then she wanted the Minié ball and lock too. I think she would have taken the ring too, had she not already asked for everything else.

I gave in and gave her the V nickel, lock and Minié ball to her in exchange for coming back tomorrow. The yard is huge and i swung over just a bit.

 

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[BennyV]

Win win.

 

[sibbley]

It's too bad you didn't find anything. 😃

 

[scruggs]

Very nice recoveries! You need to get back it's loaded! Good luck!

 

[lenmac65]

That property sure gave up some cool stuff. I love old keys, and that bullet is great. Hopefully it gives up more and the owner is willing to share. Congrats!

 

[ToddsPoint]

I love the stories when owner says it’s been hit a dozen times and you won’t find anything. Hope you find a lot more.

 

[oldmxrat]

I think I would have set better ground rules since she expected nothing to be found. Good hunting though, congrats!

 

[iAmMike]

Very nice recoveries! You need to get back it's loaded! Good luck!

That property sure gave up some cool stuff. I love old keys, and that bullet is great. Hopefully it gives up more and the owner is willing to share. Congrats!

I love the stories when owner says it’s been hit a dozen times and you won’t find anything. Hope you find a lot more.

Thanks guys. I went back today but didn't do that great, just a wheat cent and some clad change. Up where I found the good stuff there must be 10k targets, tons of nails and spikes. The yard is huge though, I may return again in the future.

 

[Almy]

Good story and nice finds. Sharing with the owner is something I don't mind, either. They would not likely find any of it themselves, so that's your contribution. And you wouldn't have found it without their cooperation. Good deal for both, I think.

 

[aShardOfHistory]

These stories make me think some butthole detectorists have been there before and picked all the good stuff and only showed them trash, could explain why they always say they found nothing.

Or just bad at detecting, I've been to 3 fields where "it's been so overdone that you won't even find scrap metal" yet I found so much good stuff like lead musket balls, a lead pistol bullet, a WW2 aircraft bullet casing and much much more.

 

[ARC]

What year was the V ?

 

[ModernMiner]

Those are some great finds. Finding a mini ball and V nickel is always a good day.
That same thing happened to me yesterday. 1800's house. The young lady was kind of standoffish at first but I won her over. I had one hour to hunt before she had to leave. I dug a wheat, 1906 IH, tent tensioner (posted in the what is it section), and a nice brass 5" cross with a little boy praying (silver). I wanted that cross for myself, but she took it. What could I say? I'm hoping to hit it again as its a huge yard.
I'm currently detecting another house and started making the owner a shadowbox of relics. Sometimes I give away more than I should, but it has really helped me get onto other permissions.
Thanks for sharing,
MM

 

[ModernMiner]

These stories make me think some butthole detectorists have been there before and picked all the good stuff and only showed them trash, could explain why they always say they found nothing.

Or just bad at detecting, I've been to 3 fields where "it's been so overdone that you won't even find scrap metal" yet I found so much good stuff like lead musket balls, a lead pistol bullet, a WW2 aircraft bullet casing and much much more.

I'm right there with you.

"These stories make me think some butthole detectorists have been there before and picked all the good stuff and only showed them trash, could explain why they always say they found nothing."

How many times have we gone to choice properties only to find the silver coins have been sucked up, but there are other old non-silver coins and relics everywhere.

 

[pepperj]

Well done on the hunted out yard.

Though one will never know if the permission was just pulling out the "Hunted/never found anything" card to avoid saying "yes" for hunting it.
Then there's fear of loosing the keepers have kept some from showing the really good stuff to the permission.

Maybe this is why I love cellar/homestead sites the best, as the permissions have little, or no interest in what has been dug.

Lots of the permissions have historical homes with great yards, and I haven't even bothered in asking to do the grass around them.
I have even been invited to do yards/homes, and I just tend not to get into their personal space.

The next generation can do them, and stare at the mitt full of keepers.

 

[robertk]

I have even been invited to do yards/homes, and I just tend not to get into their personal space.

I think that sentiment is probably why I have seldom had the nerve to ask about hunting a yard.

 

[pepperj]

I think that sentiment is probably why I have seldom had the nerve to ask about hunting a yard.

There was a time I knocked/asked to do the private yards.
Then a few weird things that happened kind of threw me into the bush/fields type of hunting.

One weird one was I knocked asked and received a smiling 👍.
Detecting away digging a few targets, making invisible plug returns.
A car comes speeding up into the yard, guy jumps out and just about assaulted me. Screaming at me, asking me what F I was doing.
I just waited till the guy stopped, as I hadn't said a word.

Then I calmly stated I had permission from the owner.
The guy went totally ballistic, swearing, telling me to get the F off his property.
The Mrs interjected with "I gave him permission "
The guy told her to shut the F up, and to get in the house.
I calmly said to the woman
"I'm truly sorry to have caused you such trouble, I'll be leaving now. But I thank you for your hospitality "

 

[jfreakofkorn]

heck of a score there

would be interested in seeing at what you ll find on the 2nd go around

 

[ModernMiner]

There was a time I knocked/asked to do the private yards.
Then a few weird things that happened kind of threw me into the bush/fields type of hunting.

One weird one was I knocked asked and received a smiling 👍.
Detecting away digging a few targets, making invisible plug returns.
A car comes speeding up into the yard, guy jumps out and just about assaulted me. Screaming at me, asking me what F I was doing.
I just waited till the guy stopped, as I hadn't said a word.

Then I calmly stated I had permission from the owner.
The guy went totally ballistic, swearing, telling me to get the F off his property.
The Mrs interjected with "I gave him permission "
The guy told her to shut the F up, and to get in the house.
I calmly said to the woman
"I'm truly sorry to have caused you such trouble, I'll be leaving now. But I thank you for your hospitality "

Holy crap! No wonder you gave up yards. What a jackass. Some of these people act like you are going to dig up a buried pirate chest full of gold and jewels.
Since I moved away from my old stomping grounds around Raleigh, to a small town, I’ve resorted to yards at early 1900’s houses. It’s been 50/50 on getting permissions, and when I do I can tell someone has beaten me to it. At least for silver. I spend hours gridding the lawns and come home with a few wheats or if I’m lucky an IH. It sucks!
There is a metal detecting club in the area so I’m sure they’ve beaten me to it.
I need to get more into researching older properties outside of my area.
-MM-

 

[iAmMike]

Win win.

I think I would have set better ground rules since she expected nothing to be found. Good hunting though, congrats!

And you wouldn't have found it without their cooperation. Good deal for both, I think.

Sometimes I give away more than I should, but it has really helped me get onto other permissions.

Then there's fear of loosing the keepers have kept some from showing the really good stuff to the permission.

While I agree it was a win-win experience overall, I believe that discussing how finds will be shared is ideal during the permission request stage. This avoids any potential ambiguity later. Of course, if after the search the owner discovers something genuinely meaningful to them, whether a cherished childhood memory or a sentimental object, I'm more than happy to share it. In this case, however, the owner initially discouraged me to detect without mention of claims to finds because she thought there was nothing to find. So, when she requested an item after suggesting nothing was there, and then asked for more shortly after, it felt inconsistent and slightly off-putting.

When I get permission, I feel it is implied I'll keep the finds unless otherwise discussed.

 

[iAmMike]

These stories make me think some butthole detectorists have been there before and picked all the good stuff and only showed them trash, could explain why they always say they found nothing.

The young lady was kind of standoffish at first but I won her over.

How many times have we gone to choice properties only to find the silver coins have been sucked up, but there are other old non-silver coins and relics everywhere.

Though one will never know if the permission was just pulling out the "Hunted/never found anything" card to avoid saying "yes" for hunting it.

would be interested in seeing at what you ll find on the 2nd go around

The owner initially assured me there wouldn't be much luck detecting in her yard, which sometimes holds true. In this case, however, my detector went wild with thousands of signals! When I showed her the finds, she was surprised and I mentioned they were all from the front yard. She then remarked that most people focus on the back, offering a possible explanation.

I returned the next day, covering both the front and some of the back yard. While I encountered many signals, unfortunately, only a wheat cent made the keeper cut. My first theory was that the sheer number of signals made for "advanced detecting," meaning I needed to dig even deeper and everything, as I did, since the VDI readings weren't promising. So many signals also meant it was stannous on the detector for target separation and also for me to pinpoint. However, Pepper's theory – that the owner downplayed potential finds to avoid the hassle of granting permission – also holds merit.