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Saturday, June 11, 2022

Back to my favorite school playground

I haven't been out metal detecting this year, too distracted by other projects.  It was a pleasant summer evening and I thought I would do some detecting at my favorite high school playground which never disappoints.  I dug up $0.88 in change, a couple of interesting rings and a strange item that looks like it has a function of some kind.


The ring on the left looks like it has an ankh symbol, while the one on the right has fake diamonds but the ring itself is copper which is an unusual combination

I have no idea what this bizarre object is.  It looks vaguely like an eccentric ship steering wheel but perhaps it has some other significance symbolically.


Sunday, August 29, 2021

Getting rich slow and a neat token

I have always referred to my metal detecting hobby as "my get rich slow scheme".  Today I went detecting in the city park where I dug up $1.20 in change:

Aside from removing junk, and hazardous items like nails and rusty bolts from the bark chips, I also turned up this marvelous mother son token.  Charming!


There were a couple of young families using the playground while I was there and it was fun to occasionally show them the coins that I dug up.


Sunday, June 6, 2021

Medal of Honor and the Key to Happiness!

 

My new friend Diane just bought a house in Brunswick (Maine) and it has a charming yard shaded by sugar maples and oak trees.  The day after she took  possession I went over with her to help her trim some low tree branches and then set to work detecting the backyard.

We had met the previous owner and she had said that the back yard had originally been a bit of a junkyard with all kinds of scrap metal strewn around.  It had been covered over with soil more recently.  So there were a lot of signals for me to detect in the rich loamy soil, but a lot of them were junk - scraps of iron, steel, bits of pipe etc. nothing too exciting.

What was interesting was this large "MEDAL of HONOR Primary Judges Award" that I found right next to the rear deck.  Looks like the kind of thing you would give kids as a second prize for a sporting event or something.


 I also found some toys and a padlock key (to happiness!?).  A few coins included a nickel that had clearly been hit by a lawnmower.  I've never seen a coin damaged in that particular way before.  It's certainly not currency, and I'm certainly not rich.  But this hobby is a get rich slow scheme isn't it? 😉


Sunday, April 11, 2021

Disappointment at a local farm

 

It was a pleasant spring day in the mid 50's today and I worked a permission on a farm that has been owned by the same family for at least 3 generations.  I went around the outside of the barns and found very little of interest.  In the vehicle (not farm equipment) parking area I found lots of modern coins, many were "stinkin' Lincolns" that were rotted out.  The metal plate is from a "submersible sewage pump" - typical for a farm I guess.  Some .22 shells, a broken spoon and brass hose sprayer.

It was a pleasant hour and a half despite lackluster finds.  It's just nice to get out in the sun and get into the zone.  Metal detecting is a lot like fishing - you don't necessarily expect to catch fish.  It's just a relaxing way to be outdoors.

Wednesday, April 7, 2021

First dig of 2021, more coins at the playground

 

Today is the first time I got out and did some serious metal detecting since last October.  I ended the season last year by finding 59 dimes spilled in the playground, so I thought I would go back.  The kids in this neighborhood clearly have money to spill!  This time I found half dollar, a US quarter and a Canadian quarter and other coins.  Not shown are the assorted nails, bottle caps and other garbage that I removed to protect the kids.

I'm looking forward to finding more cool stuff this year!

Friday, October 23, 2020

Massive coin spill in the playground!

Today I decided to go back to the small city children's playground that had yielded a lot of coins earlier this year.  I started by finding a number of quarters and several large pieces of stiff wire that seemed to be left over from chain-link fence assembly.  I was pleased to remove those as they were obvious sharp hazards for children.

Then I worked my way into the corner near the blue spinner and my metal detector went nuts.  I thought it was malfunctioning because it was beeping constantly.  But when I got down with my pin pointer, there were signals everywhere!

I would locate a strong signal and move a few bark chips aside and there would be clusters of dimes.  Talk about a coin spill!  Ultimately I found a total of $5.90 in dimes in an area covering only a few square feet.  Also 10 quarters and 3 pennies for a total of $11.40!  Wow, that's a pretty good haul for about an hour's work.  I also found a perfectly good set of earbuds.


It looks like I am going to have to go back to this park more often.  It's a real moneymaker!  The coins were all fresh shiny new, so I didn't need to clean any of them.  Last time I had been there was early July, so clearly kids drop coins here a lot.


Thursday, October 22, 2020

Working the hay field across from my house

I have not been out metal detecting since July.  The summer was brutally hot, and then I just got distracted with other things.  But today was a beautiful fall day to get out in the hay field right across from my house.  I honestly didn't expect to find much, it was just nice to be outdoors.  

 
I was pleasantly surprised to dig up three large rifle cartridges and a .22 shell, three pennies, a dime, and a very mangled spoon.

As I was headed back I found a big signal which was just hidden in the grass.  It's a piece of farm equipment used in the haying process.  I will call the farmer and see if he wants it back. 

- he said it was a tine that came off his tedder and they fall off all the time, so he doesn't need it.

I'm hoping to get out more often over the next month or so before it gets too cold to detect.