What Inspired you to Metal Detect?

[Gene Mean]

Lost my wedding band. Found it with a rented detector and got hooked.

 

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[pulltabfelix]

I dunno, probably finding stuff as a kid digging underground forts and watching too many cartoons about finding buried treasure. I like slot machines which are similar, pull the handle and you never know where the wheels will stop but once in a while you hit a jackpot.

I like your analogy about the slot machine. They beep and boom and make good noises when you win. Pretty much the same with a detector. You never know on which swing you will be over a treasure until you here a good sound and dig.

 

[pulltabfelix]

I liked digging for old bottles and always got annoyed at all the rusty cans mixed in with them. But then I realized they were a blessing in disguise. I could locate bottle dump sites that were hidden from view with a metal detector.

Most dump sites are obvious because no one bothers to completely cover the trash up. But I have found many bottle dumps with my detector that were carefully covered up, so I never would have found them without one. I still use it to look for bottle dumps to this day, but my main interests now are pre-1900 coins and colonial relics.

I have found 3 or 4 bottle dumps when metal detecting. One I found a match set of mid - 1950's atomic glasses in very good condition. Hard to imagine they hadn't gotten broken in all those years.

 

[JVA5th]

I guess for me my interest in history I've always had and just liking to collect stuff. I find it very exciting to just never know what will come out of the ground sure a lot of trash and junk comes up but the thrill of when something unexpected is like nothing else. Or when you dig something 100 plus years old and you feel that history flow through you knowing that item passed through the hands of someone long gone and was part of their story a link to the past. I also like being outside and something to keep my anxiety brain occupied so was just something that really clicked with me.

 

[Myth legend]

Well, my intro was from a couple directions, a buddy here in town, who was the Chairman of a Detecting club, AND at work....! Yeah, at work.
In 2007, The Heritage Resources Dept of the USFS.here, were shepherding a group of Passport In Time folks, who were working on a few segments of a wagon road nearby, and I caught the last two days of their week on the project, thanks to their last minute suggestion..
I used a borrowed analog machine first day, didn't find much, being a newbie.
Next day, the volunteer-type Ramrod lent me his Tesoro Cibola. The first target was a perfect 1.5" Cut Nail - I was hooked....!
After attending several club meetings, and no help in choosing a machine - they all had Whites or Garrett units. I got my first machine, the Tesoro, as it was so light weight and tough ...and one 9v battery.
I found my first coin in my yard, a clad cent - boy, was I proud of that coin....!

Always will be proud of that first coin. Even if its a penny.

 

[BennyV]

Digging up history. I’m a big Revolutionary War buff.

 

[Clad2Silver]

I've been collecting coins since the 1950's. Back in the 1970's I had a subscription to a coin magazine and White's had started advertising metal detectors in the magazine. I thought that having a detector would be a fun way to look for old coins. At that time, I wondered if the things even worked but after a couple of years I finally broke open the piggy bank and bought a Garrett American Series 2. Though I found very little with that detector I was hooked and after talking to a coin dealer I knew who sold detectors, I bought a White's 6000di. I've now been detecting for 39 years and next year will make my 40th year detecting.

 

[NolanTheExplorer]

I was an army engineer. I was a platoon leader in Iraq for 15 months hunting IEDs. Although I haven't had any "banner" finds from the USA, I had plenty over there in Iraq. Anyways, I liked to detect a bit as a kid but only had an old radio shack detector. After my tour I bought a few different Garrett cols and really stepped it up. Never looked back.

 

[PhotoScout]

As a 13 yr old in 1971, I got a Jetco Mustang detector for Christmas (seen in my profile pic). Within minutes I found a buffalo nickel in my front yard. Then I ran to the local school yard and found a clad quarter. Being a BFO detector I had to dig up everything to see what it was. Lots of trash but lots of good stuff too. As I got older I got other detectors (with discrimination!). Been hooked ever since.

 

[mikeinfla]

I've been loving this community, especially getting to see stuff out of the ground that's older than me. And sometimes older than most of yall XD. However, I have to wonder, what inspired any of you, ladies and gentlemen to metal detect? I know when I got into metal detecting, I always wanted to do it when I was a young lad, and actually brought my first metal detector at 19 the (Bounty tracker IV) I think that's what you call it. I never used it as much, i then brought the at pro, and still haven't used that one as much, mainly because college has been keeping me distracted.

Hope to hear your comments, have a safe day, and happy holidays.

I saw a news report about an older lady that lived in a motorhome and traveled the coastline stopping and detecting. She had so much treasure that when she needed anything she would sell some of her finds. The next year i bought a machine and never looked back.

 

[Dign-nbama]

I would have to say my metal detecting evolved as a kid looking for arrowheads, in old plowed fields after a big rain, and as I grew older and the introduction of the internet starting watching Guys and Gals swinging metal dectectors and thought wow now that's something that looks like fun and it's outdoors and a since of adventure. Bought an old bounty hunter ( Land star still have in a closet somewhere ) and a few park hunts and away I went, graduated up the scale of better detectors and have enjoyed every time I go even if I don't find anything just the sure excitement of just looking for the what might be in the ground someone dropped keeps me going back for more.

 

[Diamondplate Dave]

When I was about 10, in the early '70s, the steps to my family's 1920's-era house began sagging. When we pulled them away and looked under the porch, there was a bunch of stuff under there. Upon examination, it turned out to be a bunch of crocks, jugs, and bushel baskets full of old glass bottles. There was also some other stuff. Apparently, the residents back during the Prohibition era were making their own refreshments.
We visited the library and got several books on old bottles to try and find out the value, if any, they had as collectibles. One of the books was 'Bottles and Relics' by
Marvin and Helen Davis. They had a lot of information not only on bottles but also on metal detecting. So not only did I develop a passion for collecting bottles (and other antiques) but we bought a cheap metal detector (Relco TX-60). Unfortunately, I never found much with it, mostly pop tops and aluminum foil, change, etc. The most interesting thing was a .50 cal machine gun bullet, which I found on a playground for some reason.
I had always wanted to get a better detector and get more serious. I finally did buy a Garrett AT-Pro a few years ago, but haven't had much chance to use it. Maybe that will change!

 

[Okierick]

I took up metal detecting, 50 years ago, as an offshoot of coin collecting. Through the years, I have found coins my dad lost, as a kid, as well as a coin from the remains of a log cabin, that my grandfather was born in, in the Indian Territory. Finding civil war relics and jewelry, is an added bonus. I got out of metal detecting for a while, but 9 years ago, started up again, for exercise, after a medical issue.

 

[marjam]

I've been loving this community, especially getting to see stuff out of the ground that's older than me. And sometimes older than most of yall XD. However, I have to wonder, what inspired any of you, ladies and gentlemen to metal detect? I know when I got into metal detecting, I always wanted to do it when I was a young lad, and actually brought my first metal detector at 19 the (Bounty tracker IV) I think that's what you call it. I never used it as much, i then brought the at pro, and still haven't used that one as much, mainly because college has been keeping me distracted.

Hope to hear your comments, have a safe day, and happy holidays.

 

[diggerdeeper]

As a kid back in the late 60's, I lived in northern GA and loved to walk the fields around Cartersville looking for Indian artifacts.
One day a neighbor kid showed me some Civil War bullets he found with a White's Coin Master and I was awestruck.
I bugged my pop to buy one, but he refused on the grounds that "those things don't work".
I insisted they did, but when he saw they cost about $125.... that stopped it right there, work or not !
We moved back up north and I kinda forgot about it until I graduated High School and my parents surprised me with a new White's Goldmaster as a graduation present. This was in 1974, so there were still some untouched places to hunt.
I learned how to use topographic maps to locate parks, schools, and churches and drove every place I could go and still get home by dark. Man those were the days ! It was nothing to find a few dollars in silver every time I went out. Old picnic groves were full of Indian head pennies and barber silver.
I got a part time job and earned money to upgrade my detector to a new technology CoinMaster 5, which I believe was the first VLF machine on the market.
What a beast that was ! Heavy as H, went through batteries like no tomorrow and had NO discrimination as I recall.
But it went deep and I found more silver dimes with that machine than any other at the time.
Since then, I've been married, started a business, and just don't have time to get out like I'd like to
And I often wonder what I'd have found back when I lived near Atlanta...if only pop would have believed that detectors worked !
The funny thing about my pop- years later after I was married, he showed up at my door wanting to borrow my detector. I asked why and he said they drained an old lake that was a popular swimming area for over 100 years and he wanted to check it out. I showed him how to use the machine and off he went. about 3 hours later, he comes back to show me an 1890 Morgan Dollar he pulled out of the mud . Talk about beginner's luck ! I have yet to find a sliver dollar ! Pop's been gone about 25 years now, but I still have that silver dollar and the memories.

 

[THing4CSA]

As I was in Second grade in 1962 we all watched the news about Mel Fisher and all the Spanish Treasure he had recovered from the Ocean off Florida. That is what got me to thinking about trying my luck at treasure hunting. Well, it was not until 1976 that I got around to buying my first metal detector. I was in Montgomery Wards in Springfield, Missouri and found myself looking at a store display for the Jetco Mustang. This had a price tag of $29.95 so I bought it. I gave it a good workout for the following year and only found a lot of iron and aluminum but no coins. June 1977 I reenlisted in the US Army and found myself back in Germany. My first tour had been in Ludwigsburg so now that I was in Augsburg with my metal detector it was a totally new world! I found so many coins that I had to take a lot of them to the German bank to exchange them for good coins as most had the iron cores rot out. It was amazing that quantity and variety of coins and relics that I was able to find! WWI helmet, WWII coins, buttons, medals, belt buckle. So many live bullets and even a 40 pound bomb! The Explosive Ordnance Disposal office was not real happy with me as I carried boxes of found live rounds to them every Monday morning! I was sad to leave in July 1979 but duty then called me to Fort Ord, California! Life has been very good to me! After 45 years I still have my passion for the search! It is all good! ;-)

 

[marjam]

I've been loving this community, especially getting to see stuff out of the ground that's older than me. And sometimes older than most of yall XD. However, I have to wonder, what inspired any of you, ladies and gentlemen to metal detect? I know when I got into metal detecting, I always wanted to do it when I was a young lad, and actually brought my first metal detector at 19 the (Bounty tracker IV) I think that's what you call it. I never used it as much, i then brought the at pro, and still haven't used that one as much, mainly because college has been keeping me distracted.

Hope to hear your comments, have a safe day, and happy holidays.

Sorry I hit post reply too soon so I might have a blank post. I have always wanted to find lost treasure. Metal detectors were always a thing I would flip to in a magazine and read about. I didn't buy my first one until the mid 90s, and I didn't take to it immediately. I had an old Garrett treasure ace I think it was a 250, can't remember for sure. It had the solid white coil with no hole in the middle. Couldn't pinpoint anything with that thing. I bought 2 bounty hunters after that and started finding things, but since then I have had a slew of detectors, each one more expensive and more feature rich. I take breaks from the hobby, but I always pull my detector out after a break and go at it again. Nothing more thrilling IMHO than pulling some treasure that has been lost from the ground. I will be a hunter as long as I'm able though and there are places to hunt. Best hobby in the world, and I have a lot of them.

 

[Snorlax]

At the age of 7 I found an ammonite walking a favorite creek of mine here in central Texas followed by countless great finds to come from there on.. all these consistent finds had built up my fascination of history/prehistory as at the age of 10 I came across an Indian head cent dated 1897 in a gravel parking lot of all things just by eyeing the ground. Followed by a trip to BC and picking up 2 random oysters and actually managed to find a natural pearl! All these finds have made me in to what I am today, an obsessed treasure hunter 😁

 

[RobNC]

I was into electronics at an early age. Radio Shack was simply a place I enjoyed going to. The first time I seen a metal detector there I immediately wanted one and to find what was under the ground!
To the best of my recollection I had to be in the 3rd or 4th grade when I started because in the 3rd grade I was already taking broken calculators that kids had and repairing them.

My grandmother bought me a Radio Shack detector. It was one of the types that did NOT have the little red button on the handle. Took 6 or 8 AA Batteries. Had 1 knob for "ferrous/non-ferrous" on the top right corner. It was a real bugger to get that tuned right and it would often change according tot he ground conditions.
There was a VFW building right beside our house and other events were done there too. That was my first metal detecting grounds beyond our yard.
That was also my first introduction to can slaw and other various pieces of garbage. I did find some coins, but they were usually mangled up from the gravel parking lot. I spent a lot of summer days at that place.

 

[Dusty Concho]

I've always had the desire to go detectin' but never really had the time in the first half of my life. Now that we've got a few sections of ranch land to take care of I've been intrigued by the amount of history beneath my feet all the time. Even at that I've only had time to put in a few hours every now and then at the spots where a campground on the wagon trails were said to have been. A war nickle turned up in the gate to a chute going to the corrales but without the aid of a detector. The whole area there is littered with nails of all types, broken horse shoes and old hardware. I'd need a very good detector that could discriminate to the Nth degree to find any other coins there.

Haven't found much to speak of yet with my old "el cheepo" detector - and it's been over 15 years since the ranch came to us - but I do have a .45-90 and .45-70 case plus a lead bullet that turned up next to a carved rock a couple of cowboys spent some time leaving their mark on just about two months after the OK Corral incident. Doubt if they'd heard about it here in Texas at the time but the rock is something I need to figure out how to preserve before the carvings have been erased by the weather. The rock would take a small crane to lift and it's half way down a dry river bank with trees grown up all around it. People have done their best to ascribe it to Black Jack Ketchum but the initials on the rock don't match (WSK and WHC) and the graphics have yet to be deciphered. The best I can come up with is one of these old cowboys was either a preacher of sorts or had been inspired by one.

The carvings can only be seen when it's dry and I can rub some powder-dry dirt into them with the exception of the cross at the bottom which is the deepest of all the inscriptions.

I know there has got to be more out there but I just haven't had time to find it yet. May just leave it for the kids.