F350Platinum

Some of you will remember my short tutorial on using Historic Aerials incredible website and the extremely powerful app, OnX Hunt. I can't edit the old one, but Steve graciously retained it so here it is: Ironic that it's too cold for me to get out for the next couple of days, as it was over a year ago. 😀 Great time to pass on some new technological tricks! What I want to add to it is the fabulous new website that one of our members brought to light since I wrote that post. USGS has created the National Map - a website that allows you to look at LiDar maps of the areas you have permission to, and find ground anomalies that indicate cellar holes, the existence of foundations, and other interesting topographical features. For those of you unfamiliar with LiDar, it's laser imaging of the ground from satellites, aircraft or drones that "sees through trees and buildings", which is about the simplest way I can think of to describe it. Yes, now disturbed ground can be found from space 🤔 Go to the link above (it's embedded), and you will see the opening screen: Zoom in to the area you are interested in hunting (I'll use an area that is not one of my permissions 😀😞) Do yourself a favor and don't visit those coordinates, at best you'll end up in jail. 😁 Tap or click the "layers" button the cheesy red arrow points to above, and select "3DEP Elevation - Hillshade Stretched". The map will fill in, showing you ground detail. Click or tap the menu box "x" to close the menu, and boom! You can see all the disturbed ground in the area up to the date the image was recorded. Zoom in and out as required, and again mark the points of interest in OnX Hunt as best you can match features. Really powerful tools! 🙂 You're still gonna have to get out there and get your coil over something 🤣

I do, had one since 2012. I was in the lucky 2% of people who ablations for SVT didn't work. 😡 I completely understand your concerns, and yes you should ask the electrocardiologist. I will tell you they don't generally know much about metal detectors except the machines at airports. You'll be learning the phrase "Tengo Marcapasos" for that. 🙂 I go detecting anywhere from 2-5 times a week for almost 3 years no problem. I wouldn't recommend detecting or pinpointing your pacemaker, but that's about it. 🙂 My doctor says detecting is doing me good. He couldn't be more thrilled that I get that much low impact exercise.

Learned this early from the Hoover Boys. You can see countless videos of them rubbing coppers, but they always "Whip the Foo" (a spray bottle of distilled water) on silver. I keep one of their $5 spray bottles in a 9mm magazine pouch on my belt. I'm sure you can get others but these work well. Edit: Gotta add that I also use a composite trowel on suspected silvers. That cheap $5 Fiskars. It's also great for tracking coins down with the pinpointer because it's non metal.

Try changing to square/full tones if you don't like the scratchy PWM. This was confusing to me for a bit. Square audio is the alternative to it in the option menu. Then go to discrimination/expert, and change tones to full tones. Some like pitch, some like full. Even though PWM/Pitch is the native "language" of the D2, full tones is quite expressive and indicates depth by amplitude, or how quiet or loud the tone is. I'm definitely not saying it's better, but if you're musically inclined like me it's preferable to scratchy dissonance, like a muted violin string.

That a heckuva find kac! 🏆 Always clean your stuff before forgetting about it. 😀 A few have gotten a shock like this recently 🤔 this is for them, not you 🫵🤣 Glad you got out before the cold snap. 👍

One additional thought might be to consider a battery pack that is power delivery (PD). That type of pack would be more than capable of providing a running charge. 👍

This was one of the videos that cemented my appreciation of full tones, but being forced to use them with the bone phones was first 😀 well the one he did a couple weeks ago 🤔 I've written it before and will write again that the D2 is a heavyweight contender despite its being the lightest of all - still. The more I use it in all its variations the more I like it. That sounded like PWM full tones if I'm not mistaken? Just thought of using the 9" coil on the lower alone for some places, like in heavy growth or cellar holes. Got a few spots where that will be handy. Of course a 10x5 would be nice 🙄 🤣

I'll go first, I'm getting about a 79 in my fields, and about 92 at one local beach that has imported sand, probably from Culpeper 🙄 I could probably leave the D2 at 87, but I like how quiet it gets after a grab GB. Local dirt shows no bars at all on the scale, that beach had as many as all of them. If I hit a clay spot in a field, I adjust and fire for effect. Can't stress more the need to ground balance. Took me a while to get that.

Congratulations on absolutely killing it, and for the kind words about me. 🙂 I have a lot to learn still, and am grateful to have a person/friend close enough with as much knowledge as you. Guess I'm lucky that way too! 😀 I'm out of likes, but will get back to some of the comments. As we've seen, the Deus is an incredible machine, and with skill, fiddling and patience you can really make it even more incredible. The only luck involved is getting both a place to use it, and getting your coil over the good stuff. It is not only the lightest detector to use making it a great machine for the retired 😉 but it is also the most configurable by far IMO. You can literally make it like any other SMF detector out there if you want, and if you're used to other XP models you can have that too. Updates will only make it phenomenal. It's both a blessing and a curse for some, but the more I use it, only a blessing for me. 'nuff said 😎 You really searched that place well, I could see the Culpeper and PA (and others) experience in how you handled it. 👍I got what I hit, and going over where you were showed me you did the same 😀 we were on equal ground and you showed your experience. I'm humbly aware I saw you at your best! It's gonna be even more of a challenge the next time, but there is a lot more there for sure. We'll have to wait for next year for the other half, but it will be worth it. That and actually going straight to the objective instead of circling it 🤣 I'm all about experience, emulation and assimilation. Lots more to come. 👍 Thanks for coming down!

Gettysburg was memorable for me, went there in the 60s with my parents. Even then it had a somber aura, almost like there were ghosts. Never forgot it. It was when we moved to Virginia (the first time). For a long time I had my great grandfather's 1863 Springfield, he got a lot of citations for using it. None after him did military service until I did. Sadly my dad needed money so he sold it to the historical society. 😭

Ha, I'd have to put up cameras for all the mangy bushwhackers and nighthawks! 😀 Thanks Cap'n, I still have some possibilities and certainties in my back pocket, have to get to the landowners before they pass on or sell it. 😉 Only been turned down once and he was nice about it, family place and all. 🙂 Once you're in, you're in here, a spotless reputation is gospel. 👍

Thanks RVP, the ground was so soft you could just push your shovel in. 👍 Yeah that's pretty much how it goes. I'm an official "Good Ol' Boy" now. 🇺🇲 Little hint here, if Chase graces this post some of the above is quite factual... 😉

Thanks! Funny you should mention that. The first field I hunted alone I found a really trashy "hotspot" that was loaded with all of the above 🤣 didn't have time to search it thoroughly. Noticed it was conveniently out of sight of the house, I will bet that it was a recreation area for the "staff"... This was after all a plantation. Whiskey bottle tops that came in at 91. 🤔 It's going to be a challenge, we got most of the easy finds under bushes and tree roots. 😀

And thanks yet again for some background, JCR! Haven't had time to look it up, busy day today. 👍 So pleased I can entertain the "heavy hitters" now and again. 🙂 This area is loaded with cool stuff, just gotta get permission to get your coil over it. 😀

Thanks Joe, high fiving trees hurts a bit 🤣 both Chase and I dug in there a bit, it's mostly nails. New definition of nail salon. 😏

Thanks, yeah it was a fun day. Now that we're familiar with it, there should be more great finds ahead. Gotta say Chase really got some great stuff! He showed his skill yesterday 👍

Been thinking about that, and the good ol' 10x5 might just be the ticket. Duly Noted VL. 😀

It'll keep me busy trying to get past the iron. 😀 Nails everywhere. Might be a job for "Tesoro Man". 🦸 🤣

This isn't a beach, but a perfect example, just happened to think of it while standing at the top yesterday. 😀 It's a lot steeper than it looks. If it ever snows here I might regress! Great place to find stuff if it snows, golf courses and parks with hills are good places to hunt in the snow 😳 I think CPT Ghostlight had a good run at one when he got sick of being inside. Look for the bloody snow where people crash. 🤣

Not too long ago I added a 550 acre permission to my "portfolio", one of the people I meet knew the owner and asked him if I could hunt his huge old farm, he doesn't visit it often. The person told me that the owner said it was fine, that the place had been detected but we were welcome to go there. Yeah, that's it in the distance, about a half mile away from where I had to park. Walking across bean stubble swinging a detector isn't the easiest thing to do, those stalks can actually hold your weight sometimes! There was a lot of walking to do. I invited Chase to hit this place for the first time with me, I wanted him to get a chance to hunt a permission I hadn't been to 😀 I got there early, he was running pretty late so I checked out one portion of this place that was off to the right, supposedly there was a house there long ago. I found some evidence of it but nothing of real interest was there. Ended up going to the top of this hill, and found a few things going up and coming back. Even though this farm has been hunted, the mass expanse of field leaves plenty of promise for cool random finds. By the time I got back to the other end of this field, Chase arrived and immediately got something great. We went for the prize, when we got to where the farmhouse and barns are, I called the owner directly and asked him if there was anything off limits. He said no, and we could keep everything we find! Man, the people here are so generous. 👍 Hunting around the farm was a chore, there was stuff everywhere. The fact that others had been there (the owner said about 25 years ago) didn't much deter us. The coolest place was around this cellar hole and foundation. This was just the Kitchen, the main house stood next to it but is long gone. We hunted all around it, and it into the field around it. Chase did quite a bit better than me, but I had a great time. Here's my stuff: A bit boss, a small piece of flatware handle stamped "ENT.", probably patent. An interesting button that says "Towers Wire Fastened" on it. A completely unmarked aluminum token about the size of a quarter, 3 wheats, 1909, 1912, and 1941, an IHP from 1890. I have no idea that the brass cap with the holes is, next to it is a stamped metal flower that decorated something with a clip on the back. Part of it is missing. Last but certainly not least is a huge dandy button! No fancy decoration. I hope Chase will drop in with his finds at some point, they were pretty awesome. Heck he can do a thread of his own with those! 👍 we didn't even explore half of this place. More like a fifth.

For sure, always follow them. 👍 One led me to a Spanish cob, another to a half Reale. The only time I shouldn't follow them is going into the treeline, that drop can be really painful 🤣 Ravines everywhere.

Got my one and only Barber quarter last year, that was as good a find as this, maybe even better because I could read the date 🤣 there are blanks still to fill in like dimes and such, but I hope I have enough time to do most of it!

Thanks, believe me I get plenty of walking in, in the winter the cart is a refuge of sorts from the wind too. Walking with a detector I'd get too distracted getting there, probably never would. 😀 This field is about 200 acres, so just walking across it is at least a half mile, maybe a mile. It's great to zip to the spot and get busy!

Thanks NC, it was great to finally find one. I walked a very long way hearing absolutely nothing, and had this premonition that if I went "over there", I'd find something unique. Sure enough. 🥳 A hard won goal. I always follow these thoughts.

Thanks! Hope you're not getting sick of me, Cap'n 🤣 for 3 hours that was awesome! Didn't care if it rained.