MY
METAL
DETECTING
SOME PICTURE LINKS NOT ACTIVE
DUE TO LIMITED STORAGE SPACE
SEND E-MAIL to mking11@earthlink.net
These are the different metal
detectors I use.
I use a Garrett GTI-1500 for Parks,
Playgrounds and Demolition.
The Minelab Sovereign Elite/GT for the
Beach and Relic hunting.
I'm trying to come up to speed with the Garrett
Infinium.
My other half uses a Tesoro
Conquistador uMax or her older Silver Saber II
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I Have
been metal detecting on and off for almost 20 years. My first detector was a kit
from Radio Shack that I built when I was about 14 years old. It was $29.00!! It was just
a plain BFO type detector. No discrimination. It would find everything, foil, pull-tabs,
nails, iron, and just plain trash!
See
a 1972 RADIO SHACK Catalog page of it here
I used it
for a few summers but it finally went bad. I had tried to use it in a mud
puddle and water seeped into the coil because the connection was not very
well sealed. So I stopped detecting for about the next 10 years. At that time
in my life I had better things to chase (girls) than dirty old coins in the
ground. My next detector was one that I borrowed from a good friend. It was an
old T/R type. It had some discrimination but no depth. I had stopped again for
a few years. Then in 1989, I borrowed another detector while I lived down in
Hobe sound, Florida. This was a Brinkman Treasure Sensor 5000. Not a high end
machine by any means. But I was close to
the beach and this made it easy to go. One night I went down at low tide. This
is the first time I found something called "the coin line". All the
coins had shifted down into a single line parallel to the water line. I found
over $7.00 in 30 minutes! I was hooked again. I now knew I wanted a better
detector. I did a lot of research before I spent any money. I wanted something
primarily for land hunting, lightweight, but versatile, with target ID. I was
not yet interested in water hunting yet, just parks, schools and the sandy beach. So my next detector was bought in
1990, and this was my Garrett GTA-500. This machine paid for many
times over. I have been very hard at it since then. I would never leave the
house or go on a vacation with out it! In 1999 I happened upon a
good deal on a used Garrett GTA-1000. This was the next step in the Garrett
line above the GTA-500. I used that unit for about 2 years. Sold
it when I upgraded to the Garrett GTI-1500. I love the imaging option on
the GTI-1500. It's not a gimmick. It really does work. This helps a lot in
trashy areas or around demolished buildings. I don't do parks or school
grounds much anymore, the snowbirds keep those places pretty clean during the
wintertime. I only do those places when the beaches are not producing and I am bored
or there is no other place to go. I like doing research about old places. Like going to the library and looking at old
town photos and post cards. My favorite detecting is working demolition, old houses or even torn up sidewalks.
No telling what you might find or how old it will be. Finding
a single silver dime can make my day. Indian Head pennies and Barber type
coins are a rare find in this area. Not to many people living here when those
type coins circulated. It was all swamps and mosquitoes.
My first water machine
was a Tesoro stingray. I used it for years around Stuart, Florida and the
bathtub reef park. It was a great unit but it still falsed in the salt water
if you moved it around to quickly. It sure could find small knotted up chains
like no
other machine. I still have that detector. But in late 1999 I got my first Minelab Sovereign XS2. I also own an
original Minelab Excalibur for those days when the waves are really ruff. This is a
waterproof version of the Sovereign. And now also have a Sovereign GT that I
will use for relic hunting and in England.
For competition
hunting I use my other half's Tesoro Conquistador uMax. It's lightweight and
has a quick frequency change selector switch for those really crowded hunts.
This is the early version with the frequency selector switch on the bottom
like a trigger. I
still keep my old Garrett GTA-500 as a backup and Susan still has her trusty Tesoro
Silver Saber II.
Other detectors I have
owned, tested or used over the years. Garrett ADS, Garrett GTI 2500, Garrett CXII, Garrett Infinium, Garrett
Gold Stinger, Whites Coin-Master, Whites Surfmaster 2, Whites PI Pro, Whites 6000di, Whites
Classic II, Tesoro Eldorado uMax, Tesoro Silver Saber I & II, Tesoro
Cortez, Tesoro Cutlass uMax, Tesoro Sidewinder uMax, Tesoro Bandito II,
Compass XP-350, Compass XP-Pro, Compass Coin Scanner, Brinkman 5000, Fisher
1225, Garrett Ace 100, Garrett ACE 250. And there have been a few others.
Not much relic hunting
here in Florida. When at the beach I use a Minelab Sovereign Elite or GT.
I like these detectors because they do not false in or around the saltwater or
when swinging from wet to dry sand. It also has fantastic depth! Most of the
time I have a Sunray S-12 intruder coil attached when beach hunting. I have
found many nice rings and jewelry items from 1989 to 2008. I live only a
5-minute drive to most of the 1715 Spanish treasure fleet wreck sites. I have
found numerous bronze spikes from the ships. And I have seen a few silver
reales and gold doubloons that have been found in the area. Susan goes
with me when she can. In 2000 using her Tesoro Silver Saber II, she found a
1/2 reale from one of the 1715 Spanish wrecks. Right on Wabasso beach! Ask me
about that story sometime.
If you have any questions about
anything posted here or just have general questions about the hobby, please
email me and I will try to help.
SEND E-MAIL to mking11@earthlink.net
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Here
are stories and pictures of some of my finds thru the years.
The Old Fort Pierce High
School
In
1998 I found the old high school in Ft. Pierce, Florida was being remodeled.
Built in 1914 it became one of the best places I had ever detected. I worked that
place for over a year. What a bonanza of silver and old coins came from the
ground there. The first weekend produced over 100 wheat back
pennies, and 20 pieces of silver, including 2 walking liberty halves! Later on
I got my first standing liberty quarter and Barber half-dollar there too!
Every weekend was different. All they had to do was dig a pipe trench and
there would be more coins to find. I worked it right up to the day they put
down the sod. Sometimes I think I could have worked it even harder. I would
never go there without finding an old coin. The last target I recovered was an
Indian head penny in early 1999. I made 100% of the recoveries using my
Garrett GTA-500. Here are some pictures using my first low-resolution digital
camera.
* WORKING THE "BIG FIND" IN FT PIERCE, FL. 1998
*
* ANOTHER PICTURE
*
* Click here for a partial list of items found there.*
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I caught the tide and conditions
just right in February 2005. Click here to read about a great day at the beach
finding lots of older silver coins and a unexpected coin find.
Big silver hit at
Daytona Beach in Feb 05
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Another Daytona
Beach trip August 2006, Gold & Diamonds!!
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Daytona Beach
trip #3 ... More GOLD !!
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Big Silver in
the Surf !
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Hurricane Nole finds
2007
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Yes,
over the years I have found some Spanish treasure coins.
My
1st
EVER RECOVERED Spanish Treasure coin, a 2 REALE
OTHER
RECOVERED 1/2 REALES
HOW ABOUT SOME 8 REALES
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GRAND NATIONAL RELIC SHOOTOUT
(GNRS)
For
more information on these hunts, CLICK HERE
In
October of 2002 I was fortunate enough to be on team Minelab for the 2002
Grand National Relic Shootout (GNRS), which was held near Vicksburg,
Mississippi. Actually on the Louisiana side of the Mississippi river near a
place called "hard times landing". This was my 1st time
"relic" hunting. Down in Florida there are not too many places for
that. I had a great time and met a lot of neat and interesting people. Team
Minelab took 2nd place that year. My other half Susan, was on Team Bounty
Hunter as a last minute fill in because of a no-show. We both found many
interesting artifacts. I found my 1st mini ball and civil war uniform eagle
button. Susan found a gold ring and a trigger guard from an Enfield
musket! This site was used by General Grant during his march to and siege of
Vicksburg during the civil war.
MITCH AT 2002 GNRS
SUE AT 2002 GNRS
1st Eagle Button 1st
Mini Balls
For
more information on these hunts, CLICK HERE
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Both
Susan and I returned for the 2003 GNRS in October at Fredericksburg, Virginia.
We were both as part of Team Compass. This was the same site as the
2003 North/South hunt. (Waugh Point) the site was used as a staging area by
union forces that hade crossed the Potomac River. The area was in use as a
camp for most of the civil war.
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In
November 2004, I also attended the 2004 GNRS at Fort Powhatan in Virginia. I
found lots of cool relics and my 1st Civil War period dated coin.
My 1864 Indian Head Penny
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In
November 2005 and 2006, I also attended the GNRS hunts as part of team
Garrett. I found more cool relics and had a great time. Garrett metal
detectors gave us great support. Thanks Garrett!!!
I returned for the 2007
GNRS in New England, and found Spanish Silver! This was also filmed for
and episode of Best Places to Find Cash
and Treasure
Pictures
from the 2007 GNRS
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THE NORTH/SOUTH HUNTS
(THESE HUNTS ALSO SPONSORED BY THE TREASURE
DEPOT)
In March 2003 I was at
the north/south hunt near Fredericksburg, Virginia (Waugh Point). This was the
same site used for the 2003 GNRS. The site was used as a staging area by union
forces for most of the civil war.
In 2004 I again
attended the north/south hunt near Vicksburg, Mississippi. This site was used
by a Texas raiding party and then later occupied union forces. We once again
traveled to the Louisiana side of the Mississippi river for this hunt.
Me
at the 2004 N/S Hunt
In March of 2005 I attended
the North/South hunt at Fort Powhatan in Virginia. There I found my 1st Civil
War plate. A Union soldiers Eagle breast plate.
Picture of my 1st
Civil War plate Me
at the 2005 N/S Hunt
I also found an 1837
Large cent and 1856 Half Dime. Plus lots of Mini balls, dropped and fired
Coin finds from the
N/S hunt
I have gone back for the 2006, 2007 and
2008 NORTH/SOUTH
hunts and had more great finds.
Some 2007
N/S finds
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GREAT SOUTHERN BEACH SHOOTOUTS
In May
2003 I went to the great southern beach shootout in Daytona. I did not win the
grand prize (2003 pickup truck) but found lots of silver, also a few gold
coins. I did not find a numbered token for a Top 50 prize. Met lots of friends and had a great time. This is a great and
well-organized hunt. If you never been to one, this is a great place to start!
My
Silver Finds from the 2003 GSBS at Daytona Beach
I attended once again
in 2004, but was just getting over a bad case of food poisoning. I could
barley make it down to the beach from the hotel room. So I did not do very
well. But my friend and fellow club member Ed, took home the $5000 grand prize.
I went again in 2005
and was disappointed at the hunt field sizes. They where so crowed all the
hunts that were supposed to last 1 hour were over in 7 minutes!! Again I did
not find a Top 50 numbered token.
I missed out in 2006. I
heard it went very well. I was set to go when my company called on a Thursday
night and said some equipment was down and someone had to go to Texas to fix
it. Guess who got the job?
Well I had a great time at the
2007 Great Southern Beach Shootout ! I found a key that opened a lock to a box
filled with 50 new Washington Dollars. Found lots of silver and finally found a
Top 50 numbered token that got me a brand new Garrett ACE 250!
Me at
the 2007 GSBS in Daytona
The 2008 hunt went very well. The only disappointment
was they did not plant any silver coins. Due to the price of silver, I understand.
Instead they planted lots of new dollar coins, about 2500 per hunt. I found 65
dollar coins in all 4 hunts. I found a numbered token on the 1st day that was good
for a leather-man type tool. I found a top 50 token the next day. This netted
me a Fisher ID Excel. Had lots of fun, and it always a pleasure to meet so
many other fellow hunters. A lady from the Florida Gold Coast Club won the $5000 grand
prize.
Me at
the 2008 GSBS in Daytona
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Treasure Coast
Archeology Society
I am
currently vice president of our local metal detecting club. The Treasure Coast
Archeology Society. And have been the
clubs master hunter of the year 8 times in 11 years.
Be sure to visit the clubs
website here.......TCAS
We hold an
annual hunt here in Florida every year. I showed up for this hunt for the
first time 1994. I was not a member of the club, nor did I know anyone there.
But I took first place in the competition hunt and second in the depth
contest. In the competition hunt, the field was seeded with 2000 tokens.
You have 1 hour to find as many tokens as you can. There were over 60 hunters
that year. 3rd place had found 90 tokens, 2nd place had found 122 tokens. I
took 1st place with 298 tokens!!! I have since
won that contest 4 more times. I no longer compete and now run the hunt, since
I am the clubs vice president. Someday I will return, to see if I still have
it in me. I'm a little older now and there is always someone younger and a
little faster coming along. I plan on trying to make more hunts around the
country. If you are interested in our hunt, please see our clubs web
page. The hunt is usually held in mid March.
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I hope to display some of my many
finds from 20+ years of metal detecting here. I gave away a lot of
my early finds, So I don't
have very many pictures of the stuff from before 1990.
My Better Finds of
1990-2001 Pictures uploaded !
My Better Finds of
2002 Pictures uploaded !
My Better Finds of
2003 Pictures uploaded !
My Better Finds of
2004 Pictures uploaded !
My Better Finds of
2005 Pictures uploaded !
My Better Finds of
2006 Pictures uploaded !
My Better Finds of
2007 Pictures uploaded !
My Better Finds of
2008 (not active yet)
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MY METAL DETECTING TRIPS TO
ENGLAND
Posted here are some pictures of the fantastic finds I made in October of 2006 while Metal Detecting in
England.
A 2000 year old Roman Cloak Broach!!
Coins from the 1200's and
1400's
2006
England
Pictures Page
Went back September 2007.
2007
England
Pictures Page
My 3rd trip is now planned for October
2008 and possibly a 2009 trip too.
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I just found out that I am Coin
Hunter of the year in England for 2007-2008!!
WOW, what an
honor. I will receive my award on my next trip in the fall of 2008.
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Visiting France 2007
(coming soon) 2007
France Pictures Page (not
active)
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I have been in a few newspapers and TV programs about Metal Detecting.
I Was working the Hillcrest area in West Palm Beach. These house were being torn down or relocated because of a change in the flight paths around the
Palm Beach International Airport. Most of the houses were built from 1920's to 1950's. The area has since been fenced
off by the city and is posted. There are planes for redevelopment into a park. I was able to hunt
there on and off
for over 2 years. In this area I found my 1st Silver half dollar! A 1918 Walking Liberty. I went on the find two more in the next few months. I found many silver coins and a few pieces of
jewelry around the 300 homes that were torn down or relocated. This area became
the second best place I ever detected. While I was detecting, a local newspaper reporter
was taking pictures of some of the old houses in the area. he came up and asked
if I had found anything. I showed him a few coins. He then took a few pictures
and left. I did not think much about it till I went to work the next day.
Suddenly ever one at work knew I detected and were making jokes. I did not know
why. Then someone shows me the local newspaper. There I am on the front of the
locals section!! Here is a scan of a newspaper clipping from the
Palm beach Post......................................
PALM BEACH POST PICTURE
Of course the flip side of this "fame" was the next weekend, everyone with a metal detector showed up! Must have been over
25 people there the next weekend. Up till then, only a few of us had been working the site. Our secret was out. I never went back
without seeing someone else there with a detector. The area is now owned by
Florida Atlantic University. It is posted and fenced off from the public.
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I have appeared in three different episodes of
Best
Places to Find Cash & Treasure
This program is part on the Discovery Channel and airs
mostly on the Travel Channel. In the first episode I gave a nice interview about
some of the finds I have made around The Spanish Wreck sites. But it ended up on
the editing room floor. I am only seen using my Minelab Excalibur near the surf line.
CLICK
HERE TO SEE A CLIP OF THE COMMERCIAL
The second episode is during a Civil War dig in Virginia. I
can be seen wearing a black jacket and leaning over the table of finds discussing
an object with another hunter. This hunt was a lot of fun. Filmed in 2006, it is
another part of The Treasure Depot called the Get-R-Done hunt. This hunt is by
private invitation only. Maybe I'll get a clip someday and post it here.
In 2007 I was on location for another filming of
Best Places to Find Cash and Treasure. This time it was in Connecticut at a
colonial ghost town. Lots of great finds were made. They actually filmed me recovering
a 1775 Spanish silver 2 Reale coin. Once again I ended up on the
cutting room floor. But you do see my hand holding my 1775 2 reale coin.
See my posting above about the 2007 GNRS for pictures of my finds.
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Another great place I got to
detect in the late 90's was the old barracks for the Palm Beach navel air
station. This is now known as Palm Beach International Airport. We found lots of
old silver and military insignias. I found my 1st Franklin half dollar there.
Another nice find was some coins from Australia. They were dated around the
early 40's. I guess a soldier had brought them back after being stationed over
seas awhile. Or an Australian pilot may have trained at the base during WW2. A
strange little note..... My father was stationed here for a short time while he
was in the Air Force. He might have even stayed in some of the buildings that
were torn down.
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I was also featured on the front page of the local Sebastian news paper in January of 2003.
The story was about our local club (TCAS). But somehow my pictures and story became the
highlight of the article. I will try to post a copy here.
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You know in all the years
I have been metal detecting, there are still some things I have yet to find.
These are on what you might call my "Most Wanted List".
#1 Gold
Coin. I have seen them found near me, I just did not put my coil over
the right spot!
#2 Silver
Dollar. Same as the gold coin. I don't count the one I have found in
seeded hunts.
#3 Intact
Pocket Watch. Man do I have lots of pocket watch parts.
# 4 A
Gun. Yes a gun. Rifle or Pistol. Civil War or otherwise. Would make a
nice display item.
I have
many more stories to tell. I will post them and more pictures when I have the
time. So check back for updates.
I try to return as many
items as possible.
HERE ARE SOME OF MY RECOVERIES and RETURNS
Story #1
Story #2
Story #3
Story #4
Others
(I lost a few stories during a file upgrade.
I hope to recover them someday and re-post them)
Pictures of the
damage to our beaches from the 2004 hurricanes
Click here for
information on water
hunting the TREASURE COAST 
Precious Metal Info
and Trivia
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mking11@earthlink.net
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LAST UPDATE:
July 2008
Click the above picture for GTI 2500 Hip Mount Conversion
information.