[sci.electronics] Metal locators/treasure hunting - information wanted

parnass@ihuxz.ATT.COM (Bob Parnass, AJ9S) (07/19/88)

x
   I'm in danger of being hooked into another all  consuming
   hobby - treasure hunting.

   After using our cheap Radio Shack metal locator to find a
   buried septic tank, I began to wonder if there were other
   companies making metal locators and  what  features  were
   important.

   A trip to the  bookstore  netted  two  magazines  devoted
   entirely  to  treasure  hunting,  and  from  the looks of
   things, this is  a  hobby  enjoyed  by  several  thousand
   enthusiasts.  The advertisements hawk metal locators cos-
   ting upwards of $800, complete with  microprocessor  con-
   trol, digital readout, and keypad.

   I'm interested in hearing from people experienced in this
   captivating hobby, who can tell me:

      - What metal locator features  are  important?   Is  a
        meter a necessity?

      - What make/model of locator have you used, and do you
        recommend it?

      - Does a $700 locator work that  much  better  than  a
        $200 model?

      - What items  of  interest  have  you  found?   Rings?
        Coins?  Pop tops and bottle caps?

      - In what kinds of places do you hunt?

      - What do you use to dig up your  "treasures"  without
        destroying the property?

   My wife found our present  metal  locator  for  $5  at  a
   garage  sale.  It's the Radio Shack model on sale curren-
   tly for $29.  The controls are touchy, and the  construc-
   tion is not very rugged, but it works!

   Tonight, I found a few nails in my yard, buried up  to  5
   inches  in  the damp soil.  Because I live in an agricul-
   tural area, I don't expect to find  many  gold  coins  or
   diamond  rings  on  my  property.   Local rental agencies
   charge $10/day for metal locators, and renting one sounds
   like a good way to sample some better equipment and a new
   hobby.
-- 
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Bob Parnass AJ9S,  AT&T Bell Laboratories  -  att!ihuxz!parnass - (312)979-5414

jack@cs.glasgow.ac.uk (Mr Jack Campin) (07/25/88)

parnass@ihuxz.ATT.COM (Bob Parnass, AJ9S) wrote:

>   I'm in danger of being hooked into another all  consuming
>   hobby - treasure hunting.

Think before getting into this. Treasure hunters can be appallingly
destructive to archaeological sites.

>      - What do you use to dig up your  "treasures"  without
>        destroying the property?

You will always destroy the contextual information provided by the location of
your "treasure" with respect to its surroundings (those boring bits of ash and
bone you stamp though while digging up the goodies). An archaeologist might,
for example, care whether the coins you find were in a dead man's pocket or on
his eyes.

Native Americans also may not appreciate you shovelling the remains of their
ancestors out of the way to get at their copper amulets.


Huge amounts of British history have been irretrievably lost due to treasure
hunters' activities. Some archaeologists have taken to scattering nails around
to make life difficult for them. I recommend anyone who knows of potential
targets for these vandals to do likewise.

-- 
ARPA: jack%cs.glasgow.ac.uk@nss.cs.ucl.ac.uk       USENET: jack@cs.glasgow.uucp
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Mail: Jack Campin, Computing Science Dept., Glasgow Univ., 17 Lilybank Gardens,
      Glasgow G12 8QQ, SCOTLAND     work 041 339 8855 x 6045; home 041 556 1878

dillon@jumbo.dec.com (John Dillon) (07/28/88)

In article <1507@crete.cs.glasgow.ac.uk>, jack@cs.glasgow.ac.uk (Mr Jack Campin) writes:
> 
> Huge amounts of British history have been irretrievably lost due to treasure
> hunters' activities. Some archaeologists have taken to scattering nails around
> to make life difficult for them. I recommend anyone who knows of potential
> targets for these vandals to do likewise.
> 

Yes, very laudable (perhaps arguable, but don't flame me :-).  HOWEVER,
if you do this please do not use nails!  Nails cause very painful
injuries to dogs, horses, people, and so forth.  Puncture wounds,
especially on bare feet in contact with soil, are the worst wounds
to suffer.  Instead of nails, use bits of sheet metal (pennies don't
cost much ;-).