This is frustrating

[boojagirl]

Lots of people on here say that parks and playgrounds are good places to look, not around here, I have gone to all the different parks around here and have found nothing, I don't even really bother anymore with them, I think I am just going to stick to the strips between the sidewalk and the road, and I still have to finish looking at the old rink and the church yard.

 

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[DFX-SE Gregg]

The detector may play a major part in your problem....my detector gives me numbered readings and icons if i want to use them..accurate around 90% of the time...

 

[-Jones-]

Hey booja,

Stick with it

The finds will come

I know kids love to go out detectin, take them kids along with ya

good luck

 

[doozis]

You might need to change the times when you go to the playgrounds.
Some other MD'rs might be getting there before you do
Don't give up

Doozis

 

[TORPEDOX]

I agree it's the detector, I have a couple of cheapo detectors and you would be lucky to get it to register a quarter on top of the ground. Whowever that being said,,, how old are the parks? the older the park is the better your results will be. I'm new to this hobby, but whenever I get discouraged hunting someplace, I go to the local park and always find good things. don't give up!

 

[boojagirl]

one park is by the river, my dad said he used to go play there when he was a kid and he is gona be 75 next month, one is the playground at the elementary school, I went to kindergarten there so I know it has been there for at least 30 years and the other one is a park I played at as a kid.

 

[erikk]

In areas that old there is a very slim chance you are going to find old coins with the detector you are using.You need to be able to get down at least 8 inches and probably in the 10-12 inch range would be even better. Tot lots are pretty much put and take

 

[EBCIII]

Do not give up!! Keep looking, I for sure know it is frustrating. Make sure to check around big old trees and next to paths.

I have an old Radio Shack machine along with my X-terra 70. The RS has found items, but not like my 70. Good luck to you, I am sure you can do it, Beale.

 

[DFX-SE Gregg]

I agree it's the detector, I have a couple of cheapo detectors and you would be lucky to get it to register a quarter on top of the ground. Whowever that being said,,, how old are the parks? the older the park is the better your results will be. I'm new to this hobby, but whenever I get discouraged hunting someplace, I go to the local park and always find good things. don't give up!

Very well said!

 

[DFX-SE Gregg]

one park is by the river, my dad said he used to go play there when he was a kid and he is gona be 75 next month, one is the playground at the elementary school, I went to kindergarten there so I know it has been there for at least 30 years and the other one is a park I played at as a kid.

I think foot traffic has a lot to do with it. Is this a well populated area where you can expect to find newer clad. The old coins may or may not be there. As far as depth the 1905 barber dime I found a few weeks ago was only 1.5 inches deep...

 

[-Jones-]

at least in the good ol midwest, we have freeze thaw cycles. coins move up and down through the soil over time

I found this 1853 penny, it was only 2" deep. It was in the side yard of a house across the street from a courthouse built in the 1850s.

Old coins can be relatively close to the surface

 

[jeff of pa]

I'm afraid those who say it's your detector are
correct.

I was reminded Yesterday while watching Gold Fever
of a Good rule to follow when Purchasing a detector.

that rule of thumb is on an average it's
$100.00 to an Inch.

Meaning a $100.00 Detector will find
coins at 1" in an average.

and a $1000,00 detector at 10" on an average.

yes there are exceptions, depending on ground conditions.
and these days Detector Brand. (the ace 250 comes to mind)
But this is a Good Rule of Thumb.

Meaning on an Average yours is reaching half an inch
on small coins. if that $50.00 you quote is Retail.

You can improve those odds, by working slowly
using headphones, all metal & digging everything.

Plus improve them better doing unhunted spots.

 

[desertfox]

Boo, hang in there girl. Don't let it get to you, heck we have all been there one time or another. I have some top of the line detectors and many a time I get skunked. It has to be there and that small coil at the end of that stick we use has to go over it to find it. HH!

Desertfox

 

[re-tek]

1" is hogwash. go slow and that thing should get at least 3 inches. if you want to see how deep it really goes air test it. put it on a non metallic surface with no metal anywhere near it. turn it on, face the coil towards you, take some pocket change and swing it across the coil face. see how far away you can get from the coil and sill get it to go off. i suspect at least 3 inches. remember as the battery wears down, your sensitivity may decrease.

tot lots always produce some coins. kids run, tumble, turn upside down and coins always fall out. here's a pic of the type of playground we're talking about.

 

[thompy]

i wouldn't worry about depth, most of the coins here are about 2" down, talking from mid 1800's. I'm not much of a park hunter, i stick to the woods, old logging camps, gold mines and charcoal kilns, coins are few, but you never know what you may dig up. its just a pleasure to get out and enjoy nature.

 

[sniffer]

I hate to disagree with re-tek but air tests are just that air, even the manufacturers don't rely on that method. Find a club in your area, find out if and when they're going to have a hunt, and than just watch for the people that are finding things and how they find it and the machine they are using, and than buy the one that fits you, you have to be comfortable with your md. Good luck.

 

[Shortstack]

Boojagirl, since you only have a RS for now, you must slow down and use small overlaps. That school yard is pretty old, but if no fill dirt or rolled sod has ever been put in place there, any coins and jewelry will be no deeper than 2 or 3 inches. Look at the older sidewalk sections in the park. If the surrounding soil / grassy areas are higher that the concrete, then it's a good chance fill dirt has been brought in though the years. If the soil / grass areas are the same level or LOWER than the concrete, then you can be pretty sure the areas are then same surfaces, overall, that your Dad played on 75 years ago and any coins dropped then will be within a couple of inches from the surface of the dirt. Also, check the older trees in the park and see if their roots are at the surface (or even on the surface) of the soils. If they are, then that's another indication that no dirt or sod has been brought in and laid down.

Also, in my never humble opinion, the idea that frost heaves bring coins up from deep burial is a MYTH. If that were true, everything from pennies to dinosaur bones (including treasure chests / pots) would be lying around on the surface of the ground from the Mason/Dixon line on northward to the Arctic Circle. I lived for 3 years in Fairbanks, Alaska and all coins I found up there ( 1900 to 1980's) were in that 3-inch zone I mentioned above. I was using a decent White's detector. To name just a few places that I've detected in--Alaska, California, Arizona, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Mississippi; in all seasons. I stand by the guidelines I gave you in my first paragraph.

 

[strike it rich]

Thats how i started with a cheap metal detector then i realised the limitations of cheap machines and took to searching easy targets tot lot etc check around sings slides spend the day just getting to know your detector.

 

[skydiv]

my play grounds are the same. I have about 25 play grounds and schools in about 6 mile radius. I can't run around all of the at 3.00 a gallon of gas to find a quarter at a tot lot. I have never found a coin deeper than 3-4 inches with my ace 250. Yesterday I went to a state park thats been around probably a 100 years. I checked 1 big picnic area and all I found was 3 lm. I keep thinking, maybe a buffalo or a rosie today but , it doesn't happen. so I hoping today will be the day.

 

[Ricardo_NY1]

Depth of old coins can vary. I agree that many are deep, but there are just as many in the 4-6 inch range and even shallower. I've found them at less than 3 inches and a merc once at less than an inch tangled in grass roots. With that said, you might want to consider upgrading to another machine. You can get more performance out of a $50 Ebay Discovery 1100. With a few more dollars, a 2200 or similar would do you better. Take $50 and try to get the most affordable Bounty Hunter machine you can get that has a target ID display. It'll get you going along.