🥇 BANNER Paid for the new detector on the first day!

smokeythecat

Gold Member
Nov 22, 2012
20,803
41,063
Maryland
🥇 Banner finds
10
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
XP Deus II
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Excited enough I need a tranquilizer. I just got a new to me but used Tesoro Tejon. It was priced right so I said what the heck. I went to my new permission and figured out which end to blow on, har har har. Anyway, it's a Civil War 1864 site in Virginia. Switched loops, put the big loop on it and started beating bushes. Wasn't getting much, I mean like NO signals. So By the end of the day I had tried several different strategies. First was just wander around in the woods. Got a couple pieces of iron from ration cans and some nails. This time I did NOT trip over the wire fence.

Second strategy was to do some "tree and sticker bush bumping". The English translation is to go real close to all the trees with the loop and same thing for briars (go right through them), and see if anyone there previously left anything. Well, got some more iron and half a horseshoe.

Third strategy was to explore this here rock pile. Got a couple iffy signals. Dug down a few inches and about 8 inches down picked up a layer of ash! Fire pit! Nails, a kepi buckle in brass, melted lead, a very pretty small porcelain button, an iron underwear button, most of a bullseye canteen in parts and FIVE eagle buttons in perfect condition with shanks. Well, that made my day. It was getting a little late, so I carefully filled in the hole and started "tree bumping again". Got a very nice nearly complete CW flat tin can, whoopee. I haven't gotten everything out of the bucket yet.

But then.....headed back to the truck. Got a signal right next to the road (it's a private gravel road) and pulled out my FIRST (and probably only and last) CSA plate. It's very much like the one posted here a few weeks ago. Has the same kind of weird hooks on the back-at least weird to me. Looks like a Virginia Arsenal and looks most like Mullinax's #108. I now have a massive stress headache. Too much excitement.

Three plates in 2016! Who would have thought it! (Also found what may be a small meteorite, but I have to check it out.) Got so excited I left it in the truck. Sorry about the pics, haven't had time to wash anything up yet. Took the pieces to a well known Virginia CW dealer to look at and he advised me not to wash the buttons, but when they were totally dry to flick the dirt off with my fingernail. HE said that way the eagles and shield would stand out much better. I told him I was going to clean the buckle, looks like a rich green patina under the red dirt, but he suggested not touching it at all. IMG_0569.JPGIMG_0567.JPG As you can see I was wiping the high spots on the plate. The color in the photo is a little off, it's a little too bright. Took it with the cell phone. Need a tranquilizer.
 

Upvote 97
Fantastic CSA plate! That is one of my dream finds. I love the look of the patina and dirt just the way it is! Congratulations!!

Steve
 

Wow awesome plate

I know they are rare

Congrats

Jer
 

some front and back photos would be awesome Great find!!!
 

Here's the picture of the buttons and kepi buckle "dry brushed". View attachment 1282129

I'm Still Scrolling through your post. My the Good Lord Will Bless Me With a CSA Plate Someday.

When the guy told you Fingernail the dirt off , I thought " I'd just dry brush them" .
Good call .

P.S. The Tejon Loves to find Small Gold also. So you will likely pull another Gold Coin or 2 this year + the Beach.
 

Hey, Metalev4 what do you mean water and old brass don't mix? I over cleaned some eagle buttons in the past and they look like ark blobs now.

Sorry but "Arc Blobs"???
 

dark blobs. I fixed it. Ark blobs would be what Noah's elephants left behind. har har har
 

Here's a picture of what came out of the hole the 5 buttons were found in. I did not include what's left of a canteen, most of the canteen is still in the truck. The plate did not come out of the same hole.

The area dug was about 18" x 18" x 10" deep. After 10" it went back to solid red clay. There is more to dig there though.IMG_0577.JPG There are numerous pieces of camp lead, an iron button, a brass "thing", a carved bone button and NAILS. I think what the detector picked up first was one of the U shaped straps off a canteen.
 

Thats awesome csa buckle. love it.
 

Very nice looking buckle, congrats on finding it and getting it up top. It deserves to be there for sure.
 

Well. between you and me I don't ever expect to find another one. I'm getting a little too old to do this for many more years and I don't climb mountains or scuba or any of that other stuff.
 

Congratulations on finding that beautiful CSA Belt Plate and on making your first BANNER! :occasion14:

Dave
 

Incredible plate!
 

I'm going back to dig the rest of the hut out this weekend. There is enough land there and enough large iron left another big something or other could be left there.
 

The hut didn't like me. Found a perfect cuff eagle button, the back of one, a metal underwear button and a scrap piece of lead plus some big horse carriage iron.
 

It's ok, you are so good, you scared the bee gees out of the relics there. Maybe they will give up at a later date :)
 

Went several places this weekend including the place with a hut. Got 3 eagle buttons, 4 underwear buttons....nails....more nails...a white porcelain button....ration can pieces....more nails....some camp lead, a damaged J hook and a stupid and HEAVY complete Civil War ax. Had to drag that back to the car......
 

Ya it gets a little challenging when you dig up relics in the heavy weight range, especially when it's long walk to the car!
 

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