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Competition from other Metal Detector people?

R

reltolbert

New member
I've counted 6 people using metal detectors at one time on our Lake Beaches in my area even at 5:00am
and especially on weekends. They detect the prime areas and leave little or no finds behind.
It's getting tougher and tougher to find silver coins and jewelry in these areas.
Is anybody else having competition from other metal detector people in your area.
 
reltolbert------Short answer--"yes"!-----Also, it's not only just where we live.--My wife & I are retired and for several years have done considerable travelling & m.d.ing.-----There are just more people swinging these things in MANY places than there was even a few years ago.-----That's (one) of the reasons we are having some of the problems in this great hobby that we are having.-----An influx of new people that aren't practicing proper recovery techniques & in some cases failing to use just "plain common sense".----I'm in no way saying all new people coming into this hobby are that way but a fair amount are.----This may be more answer than you were wanting but this is the way we have seen it over & over again.-----This problem (poor target recovery, etc.) has been discussed on this forum several times and unfortunately, the people that need to see it the most never read these posts.----I'm sure that (most) of the new people here are good people that are really serious about the longevity of this great hobby.----Competition I don't mind---damaged hunt sites "gripe my b---"!------We ALL need to be concerned about this.------------Del
 
heck yeah, competition is intense. not just at the present time but people have been detecting for over 40 years. once a silver coin is dug, it isnt going to grow back. one way to get ahead and find some sweet spots is with research.
 
not so much here in NorCal every once in a while i'll see someone else tecting... hey is that an HDR photo of your lake????
 
Most public parks I hunt have been hammered for 40 years but only a few were hit with Minelabs till I started with the Explorer II less than 4 years ago.Since then I have done very well but have about E-Trac'ed them all out . I have been my greatest competition for the most part except when a few of the forum members go with me :twodetecting:

I now have to drive well over 50 miles to find public sites we have not almost "cleaned out".Just love it when the local hunters at a new to me area tell me they cleaned out a nice site with there Garretts and Whites:rofl:

If it has been hit hard by Minelabs I can usually tell within a half hour. If I go farther south the soil is very rocky and not much left by any decent detector that is less than 20 years old except a few masked targets.
 
jeepcj5,

Yes, that's Coeur d' Alene, Idaho Lake and beach where I use to find jewelry and rings, etc. before
we got an influx of metal detector people. There's a 6 member metal detector club that patrols this beach
and nearby playground and park.
I now have to find a remote park or beach to find anything worthwhile.
 
Hi reltolbert, I have extreme competition in my area as well (Minneapolis). Every morning that I go out hunting, I usually go at 5am. Last weekend, I went to the local beach to find 3 guys working a 50 yard piece of beach, 5 guys working the opposite side of the beach, and 3 guys working the water. This is getting ridiculous. I def need to expand my search areas and go outside of the cities to find some fresh ground. Good luck with finding a new spot yourself, I'm sorry your old stomping grounds have been taken over too. HH -Marc
 
Last year was pretty good for finding coins, jewelry, etc., but this year the metal detector enthusiasts have come
out of the woodwork so to speak. They are everywhere around here and, as one forum member mentioned today, some of the holes
these people are digging are a disgrace which is causing restrictions in various parks for the good detectorists to put up with.
My last resort, as with others, is to get permission to detect on private property.
 
Ray-Mo. said:
Most public parks I hunt have been hammered for 40 years but only a few were hit with Minelabs till I started with the Explorer II less than 4 years ago.Since then I have done very well but have about E-Trac'ed them all out . I have been my greatest competition for the most part except when a few of the forum members go with me :twodetecting:

I now have to drive well over 50 miles to find public sites we have not almost "cleaned out".Just love it when the local hunters at a new to me area tell me they cleaned out a nice site with there Garretts and Whites:rofl:

If it has been hit hard by Minelabs I can usually tell within a half hour. If I go farther south the soil is very rocky and not much left by any decent detector that is less than 20 years old except a few masked targets.
Click to expand...

You said it I agree with every word. It's slim pickins the places we have E-Trac'ed to death. Gotta think outside the box and dig a little more trash to get the few goodies that are within reach at parks and schools. Even 50 miles isn't enough... too many people with detectors out there!
 
Yes it seems to be true that there are more. There were not too many E-Tracs in my area just a year ago, then I got one and started doing good, and everyone saw what I was finding and said "If that guy can find that I know I can do better!" And many of them have! So I know of 7 or 8 people that have just recently got E-Tracs and the competion for finds got tougher. So we have a choice, find more places to hunt (research) expand our field of operations (traveling more) or just learn our machines better (knowledge) I think the optimum solution is made up of all three. Competion breeds success!

Proverbs 27:17
 
A little bit. BUT, no one else has a MineLab. I'm finding stuff in "hunted out" places.
 
Bell-Two said:
Yes it seems to be true that there are more. There were not too many E-Tracs in my area just a year ago, then I got one and started doing good, and everyone saw what I was finding and said "If that guy can find that I know I can do better!" And many of them have! So I know of 7 or 8 people that have just recently got E-Tracs and the competion for finds got tougher. So we have a choice, find more places to hunt (research) expand our field of operations (traveling more) or just learn our machines better (knowledge) I think the optimum solution is made up of all three. Competion breeds success!

Proverbs 27:17
Click to expand...
 
Yes,
I sometimes detect beaches after busy days, after concerts events and functions
Competition can be fierce and competitors are always trying to 1st on the scene
Some people think they own that patch too and can be quite aggressive to try and chase you away / intimidate you
Better technique and digging low tones has been productive for me in these situations if not one of the first in

T59
 
The scenic photo I took shows a pretty area here in North Idaho which is next door to where you
might find some Gold nuggets with a metal detector or panning for it. Anyway I tried that and found
that Gold detecting is not easy so I would rather go after silver coins, jewelry, etc. even though
it's getting harder to find those items.
 
"How many of you E-Trac users average over 15 silver coins and at least 1 good ring EVERY hunt?"

I haven't found that many silver coins since I started 5 months ago. :lol:

But I have found 1 1946 Rosie, 1 1869 Shield Nickel, and 1 1779 1/2 Reale. So all-in-all it keeps me going.
 
joedirt said:
"How many of you E-Trac users average over 15 silver coins and at least 1 good ring EVERY hunt?"

I haven't found that many silver coins since I started 5 months ago. :lol:

But I have found 1 1946 Rosie, 1 1869 Shield Nickel, and 1 1779 1/2 Reale. So all-in-all it keeps me going.
Click to expand...
Good for you Joe, you're doing just fine.-----You've already found an older coin than most of us old timers just dream of finding.-----There's a lot more old coins out there "with your name on 'em"! :thumbup:----------Del
 
You all need to head over here to Washington state. Yes it was only established in 1889 but most of the parks I hit around the Seattle area are fresh as a daisy. Most people around here look at me like I'm an alien freak when I detect....they just stare.
 
I have noticed signs of someone else hunting at a park that I go to close to home. Thing is I always walk away with plenty of finds. Not always silver but finds none the less. It actually amazes me how these people are detecting these areas and yet leaving so much stuff behind. This one park has given up 1 rosie, 1 walker half, 1 barber half and 1 washington. Not to mention tons of clad. Just yesterday I got almost $3.00 in clad, a 43 washington quarter and some sort of gold jewelry. This was while following the path of where another detectorist had gone recently (I could tell by the remains of his plugs dug). If I found all that, then what exactly did he find? Most of this was found between 1-6 inches deep and in only a little over an hour.

So my conclusion is kinda like what Ray-Mo said. If they aren't using Minelabs then I am not overly worried. Sure I would much rather have it all to myself but they obviously aren't getting all the good stuff and aren't even getting much of the shallow stuff either. My moto is "If it ain't been E-Trac'd, then it ain't been hunted!"
 
reltolbert said:
Is anybody else having competition from other metal detector people in your area.
Click to expand...

Yes and no. I live in an area that has miles and miles of saltwater beaches. Plenty of people are hunting the beaches but I don't go there. I just don't like being around a lot of people when I go detecting. Sure come this fall when the tourist thin out I'll hit some of the smaller overlooked beaches because they are convenient and within minutes of me. So for the most part I like to go well off the beaten path. Ponds, lakes and rivers. Look for old camps. Hunting, fishing,duck blinds or just plain old abandoned camping, picnicking, swimming areas. Spots like these are not easily accessible. It usually involves a walk or drive down some unimproved dirt roads or path and sometimes a canoe ride. But if you want to find what might be some virgin ground with absolutely no one around you have to work for it. The only other competition I see is my hunting partner and we usually split up and I might not see him for hours.
 
We have four metal detecting clubs in our area. At least 500 members combined. Not counting the ones not in clubs. Go to any local park or other hunting site, Not much left to be found. I wish there were only six other detectors in my area. DFW area......Jack
 
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