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Harvesting The Wheat After The Cherries Were Picked


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Stuck inside today because of the massive low that tore up Tennessee yesterday, I feel for ya, hope everyone on the forum in TN got through it ok. We're supposed to get a lot of rain, and high winds  😵

Got out twice this week, once with Chase and once by myself, got 3 new fields to check after talking to one of the farmers. He asked us to find a piece of survey rebar for him that his kids whacked the marker stake for. Once we figured out where it was Chase found it within 5 minutes.image000000(11).thumb.jpg.aa0965da5a58ead735c126db129048c0.jpg

We hunted an area we found some pretty good stuff a while ago, Chase did a little better than me, but it was a fairly decent day and I got to talk to the owner of that place who confirmed the spot we were hunting was the right one. That was a long hunt, I recorded about 6 miles of walking.

The next day I went to one of the new places to scout it, old topos and aerials showed a farmhouse that was long gone. It was a big hill, a beautiful place, and it was going to be warm.20231208_101514.thumb.jpg.5946a6389e02c7dcf37f4dfcb838e06c.jpg

I only hunted this farm for about 4 hours, mostly the farmhouse area. There was a lot of trash, and after my first wheat penny find I got 5 more and one memorial. On the side of the rise for the house I managed to get an IHP, a couple of clad quarters in the driveway, a thimble, a dog tag from the 80s and one very old small brass button.

I walked the road to the huge field out back and got absolutely nothing. 😀 I did dig a bullet shell or two but that's it.20231208_134343.thumb.jpg.eb843ce127c7615b5d59231e773f0ddb.jpg

Ended up leaving early, I'll probably go back for a more determined search with the 9" at the farmhouse, the 13" was probably not the best choice for such a trashy spot but it did  pull some small stuff. For the long haul I was glad I chose it.20231208_173552.thumb.jpg.a04f8e0c70e93bdcd48dd28dbaa5ff9a.jpg

Here's everything I got over the two hunts. On top are the things I got at the farmhouse, the middle are the first day, and the bottom the coins. The oldest is the IHP that I think is 1888 but I'm not positive, sidelighting and other tricks haven't helped. It's very thin and domed for some reason. I love finding spectacle buckles, got that the first day walking around looking for the rebar. I'll have to go back to that spot. The large brass circle looks like a boss of some sort, it's curled on the back and if it was covering something. Buckle bits and a broken Tombac put most of those finds in the 1600s.

The thimble is an advertisement for Bonnie Laddie Shoes from the 40s, here is a much cleaner one:s-l400(29).jpg.3e9d2abdf1588759604fb72876ae6f39.jpg

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Looks like 40's and 50's, the research varies. 😀 It was fun having something to look up tho.

Trash the first day wasn't big, but I did get some interesting large bits of heavy brass:20231207_175029.thumb.jpg.4e65d2079bcdc8d2f269330fc5d74aa8.jpg

Second day was stuff you would expect from a house site, one of the buildings had burned so there was molten metal. Just about everything was in the 80s or 90s on the Deus:20231208_160139.thumb.jpg.bd0000baa27696fa1e13dbf41d9a2a91.jpg

I talked to the gentleman at the bottom of the hill in the photo, he said he has a cheap metal detector and that the place has been hunted before. 🫤 I knew that, but it was nice to have it confirmed. I'll have to dig a lot of junk there to get myself some cherries... 🤔

 

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Congrats on the IHP, wheaties, buttons, and other older bits, F350, and I love the thimble! Well done!

I feel like the large brass pieces are from an oil lamp or possibly an old potbelly stove. Good hunts! 😎

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22 minutes ago, CPT_GhostLight said:

Congrats on the IHP, wheaties, buttons, and other older bits, F350, and I love the thimble! Well done!

I feel like the large brass pieces are from an oil lamp or possibly an old potbelly stove. Good hunts! 😎

Thanks, I was hoping for better but I take what I get. 😀 It's sad that these places have been hit so hard, there's no one stopping anyone from looking, but in that case you have to scout until you find a hotspot that was missed. In a small subsistence farm there aren't many hotspots. Evidence of horses is much better.

I imagine I'll find random objects here and there and some may be surprising. That's what the 13" excels at. It's a lot of walking and quiet, then you get shocked. 😁 I was surprised to find the old brass button at the second place, and the IHP tells me there is potential for older finds. I'll have to hit the house site with a dig it all frame of mind and the 9". Nothing is going to be too deep.

This was just a scouting run, next I'll apply Farm Hunting 101. 🤣

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Congrats on the old buckle pieces. I love looking at the 17th century stuff. Hope you can find and focus in on a hotspot. I never pay much attention to someone else hitting the spot before me. Unless he shows you coppers and Spanish by the boatload 😲😲😲, then and only then would I worry 😄. It actually makes me focus and want to find something he missed. 🧐

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Thanks, I love the really old stuff too, even if it's bits. 😀

I did find that one small brass button so there's hope, going back to hit the turn zones, and look at the field below the house where I got the button. Had to make sure the guy at the bottom of the hill knew who I was and doesn't release his dogs on me 😅

The place I got the spectacle buckle also deserves another look, it'll be later next week after 5 inches of rain soaks in. Supposed to get high winds when the front comes through, that will start the surface drying anyway. 🤔 Going from the 60s to the 40s. 😵

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Congrats on such a good hunt again, and I hope you keep getting permissions like those that you have already.

Good luck and good hunting on your next outing.

I finally made it back to Illinois on Saturday and am hoping that I can get in a couple of hunts before the end of the year. I have a beach that people want me to hit to find some items that was lost from several people.

Stay warm and stay safe.

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Another nice spot 350 !

I thought oil lamp parts too  !  An IHP is an automatic go back in my book. My total IHP count is zero though so I might be a bit anxious....

6 miles ! wow 😩 Last hunt I traveled about 50 yards , but got a lot more distance getting up and down to dig. 😉Took me almost 3 hours... and the finds pouch was full.  Here's a pic of the really good stuff.   Just kiddin' , there wasn't any.

Well the white is gone so no digging issues today , as long as I don't mind the mud.🥸And have really good rain gear..👍

The storm is visiting here since last night. 3+" rain so far.No spinny winds max 33kt S. Seas 5-8'   Further north (Down East) just multiply all by 2 , up to 50+kt so the northern fleet is on shore hoping winds turn to offshore and they will in pm. Lots of snow in the mtns.,,,,just not here on the coast.🤗 All the wet should be ice by tomorrow morning though.. which means one thing.....ROOT SLAYER !

It ain't over till it's over.

 

 

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10 hours ago, ColonelDan said:

I salute your tenacity and dedication….those were long days!  
Good job soldier.  👍🏻

Thanks Colonel, I like the long walks on nice days. Gotta keep doing it to keep my health. Sometimes if I've stopped for a few days I get wicked leg cramps, but two capfuls of cider vinegar in 4oz of water stops them in seconds. 😀 I bring lots of water and take magnesium too.

Second day was only about 4 miles. It's all shuffling and swinging the detector.

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