How Deep Do We Have To Really Go

[Paja.w]

Evening ladies and gents

I've been a lurker around these parts for quite sometime now so I thought I'd sign up, I've come back into the fold after a huge hiatus, life got in the way of detecting, I'm harking back to the times when my Fisher 1265x metal detector was cutting edge technology. Obviously a lot has changed and I didn't keep up with anything, the range of detectors on the market now are pretty impressive and I see that 'SMF' has changed the game a little. I've made the mistake of falling down the Youtube rabbit hole watching detector videos, comparisons, depth test, air tests etc. One thing that has struck me is this obsession with depth, people really seem to be stuck on this, my question is - how deep do we actually have to go?

When I first got my 1265x none of the above tests crossed my mind I went out hunting confident in the fact that when I walked over a good target the machine would notify me, I've recently found a hammered silver from the 16 century at 4 inches and an old Roman barbarous radiate at about the same depth, most of my finds have always been 4 to 6 inches down, I've obviously missed deeper targets along the way but it never really crossed my mind to much. What do you guys think, are we getting a little to obsessed with depth nowadays?

Thanks

Paul

 

[still looking 52]

Paul, welcome back to the forum.
I think the main reason we are so obsessed with depth now is all the low hanging fruit is pretty much gone unless you can get a new permission site which for most of us is far and few between.
Those four to six inch silver coins are gone for the most part, that's why we are so obsessed with depth.

 

[Paja.w]

Paul, welcome back to the forum.
I think the main reason we are so obsessed with depth now is all the low hanging fruit is pretty much gone unless you can get a new permission site which for most of us is far and few between.
Those four to six inch silver coins are gone for the most part, that's why we are so obsessed with depth.

Now that's an interesting point, I haven't thought about it that way, how deep do you think coins can sink? do you think there's a whole new set of targets laying around 15' - 16' inches, taking into consideration the history of our world it wouldn't be out the question

 

[gunwolf]

It depends where you live and your soil... up in WNY (Niagara county) on the shores of lake Ontario the soil was a sandy loom, I hit several parks and houses where the coins were as deep as 12-14".... 6 years ago I moved to upstate SC and the soil is mostly red clay... I pull most silvers and older coins between 4" and 8" but have pulled a few deep model T hubcaps at 14"...

ETA: I was a carpenter most of my life so while some people guess on measurements, I am pretty accurate. I know by sight how deep a plug is cut...

 

[still looking 52]

Now that's an interesting point, I haven't thought about it that way, how deep do you think coins can sink? do you think there's a whole new set of targets laying around 15' - 16' inches, taking into consideration the history of our world it wouldn't be out the question

I don't think there that deep for the most part, probably around here in WV there is a layer of silver coins just beyond the 9" range, say 10" to 12".
Another factor is coin masking, I'd say there is just as many nice silver coins laying in the 6" range right next to a old rusty nail that we can't detect.
A few years ago I noticed they had bull dozed a small area in our local park to make a play ground, my brother and myself got in there before they started laying the foundation down, we found like 10 silver coins in a 100' square area. That proved to me the silver is there but a lot of it is just out of reach.

 

[Highlifter1000]

This reminds me of something I read just last night. It was said that with all the gold that's been found (raw form) estimated only 5% has been mined

 

[gunwolf]

I don't think there that deep for the most part, probably around here in WV there is a layer of silver coins just beyond the 9" range, say 10" to 12".
Another factor is coin masking, I'd say there is just as many nice silver coins laying in the 6" range right next to a old rusty nail that we can't detect.
A few years ago I noticed they had bull dozed a small area in our local park to make a play ground, my brother and myself got in there before they started laying the foundation down, we found like 10 silver coins in a 100' square area. That proved to me the silver is there but a lot of it is just out of reach.

yes...coin masking is a big deal... they say only 20% of coins are recovered due to this... patience, smaller coils, slower wing speed, and different directions all play a part in recovery.

 

[bootyhoundpa]

I’ve found many large cents in the 8” -12” range..I’ve also found a few that were all the way down to the clay layer..I do farm field hunting and once the coin sinks below the depth that the plow can reach there isn’t much chance that the coin will ever get back to the 4”-6” range in my lifetime without some major intervention.. depth isn’t everything but it certainly has its place in certain scenarios…

 

[HanoverDigger]

In my area, depth is everything! Not too many shallow targets for civil war relics, although there is an exception to that in not so heavily hunted spots. In most of my spots, targets are well below the 8-10" range and some have been found deeper that 15". Deepest I've ever dug was about 4' retrieving a ground burst Parrot shell. Good luck hunting.

 

[Draco]

yes...coin masking is a big deal... they say only 20% of coins are recovered due to this... patience, smaller coils, slower wing speed, and different directions all play a part in recovery.

and having a clean coil is good too

 

[Draco]

It's a prank

 

[PDH]

I grew up working on a dairy farm. In the spring we would pull a wagon around the fields and load up all of the new rocks that had surfaced. I wonder if freezing and thawing cycles help push coins and relics back towards the surface also. They still find old Roman coins a couple inches deep in Europe.

 

[laplander]

Nice to have you back I too took a long break but have been back a while. I feel your in a different boat so to speak when you mentioned hammered, probably in Europe? Plowing is quite common so targets are constantly being replenished although at a diminishing rate relative to detecting pressure. Personally the new technology can be categorized in 2 ways. One raw depth, I think we have been there for some for some time with VLF detectors.
Two separation. Has been quoted as the new depth by some and couldn't be more accurate in my opinion. The ability of the latest technology to find targets amongst iron and in highly mineralized soil conditions has advanced dramatically and that's a fact.
As you you mentioned you have have confidence in your kit and that's what it boils down to. If your up to the challenge of new technology {I think you are based on your mention of YouTube } go for it.
HH Jeff

 

[Paja.w]

I grew up working on a dairy farm. In the spring we would pull a wagon around the fields and load up all of the new rocks that had surfaced. I wonder if freezing and thawing cycles help push coins and relics back towards the surface also. They still find old Roman coins a couple inches deep in Europe.

Thats interesting to hear

 

[fwcrawford]

That is a question I always get asked by someone looking to get a detector or has a passing interest in the hobby… “how deep does it go?”
In my area i have found most of my coins at about 6” and a few deeper like 8 or 9”.
Many I have found have been partially masked by other denomination coins like nickels and junk.
I agree with Gunwolf, masking is more of an issue with me than depth and I believe many coins are still well within range of detection, but being masked.
I experienced this some years ago while detecting an old park that is very small… very few deeper that 6”, but a lot of the coins were partially masked.
Up until then I did not realize how many coins could be masked in an area, but not deep.

 

[Paja.w]

That is a question I always get asked by someone looking to get a detector or has a passing interest in the hobby… “how deep does it go?”
In my area i have found most of my coins at about 6” and a few deeper like 8 or 9”.
Many I have found have been partially masked by other denomination coins like nickels and junk.
I agree with Gunwolf, masking is more of an issue with me than depth and I believe many coins are still well within range of detection, but being masked.
I experienced this some years ago while detecting an old park that is very small… very few deeper that 6”, but a lot of the coins were partially masked.
Up until then I did not realize how many coins could be masked in an area, but not deep.

That's interesting to hear

 

[nwdetectorist]

Nice to have you back I too took a long break but have been back a while. I feel your in a different boat so to speak when you mentioned hammered, probably in Europe? Plowing is quite common so targets are constantly being replenished although at a diminishing rate relative to detecting pressure. Personally the new technology can be categorized in 2 ways. One raw depth, I think we have been there for some for some time with VLF detectors.
Two separation. Has been quoted as the new depth by some and couldn't be more accurate in my opinion. The ability of the latest technology to find targets amongst iron and in highly mineralized soil conditions has advanced dramatically and that's a fact.
As you you mentioned you have have confidence in your kit and that's what it boils down to. If your up to the challenge of new technology {I think you are based on your mention of YouTube } go for it.
HH Jeff

I too am back to detecting after a few years hiatus (broken back issues and heart attack --- all for fun, of course). So... I started with the Simplex and a 5" by 9" coil, but not enough separation in heavily trashed parks where I hunt in between old parking strips. So...
...bought an Equinox 800, had the heart attack and still learning the advanced settings for tone pitch, tone break, etc. The technology of the Equinox paired with the 6" coil is finding me lots of coins and some jewelry too. Many, many, many coins on edge that would not sound off well with older single frequency tech. is sounding off plenty loud enough for me. Just one little issue --- how to pinpoint those pesky on edge coins, etc.

 

[Paja.w]

Nice to have you back I too took a long break but have been back a while. I feel your in a different boat so to speak when you mentioned hammered, probably in Europe? Plowing is quite common so targets are constantly being replenished although at a diminishing rate relative to detecting pressure. Personally the new technology can be categorized in 2 ways. One raw depth, I think we have been there for some for some time with VLF detectors.
Two separation. Has been quoted as the new depth by some and couldn't be more accurate in my opinion. The ability of the latest technology to find targets amongst iron and in highly mineralized soil conditions has advanced dramatically and that's a fact.
As you you mentioned you have have confidence in your kit and that's what it boils down to. If your up to the challenge of new technology {I think you are based on your mention of YouTube } go for it.
HH Jeff

Hi Jeff

I'm lucky enough to have a number of large permissions here in the UK and none of the ground has been detected before so obviously there's lots of shallow targets, I've found lots of deep stuff as well. I've found many targets among the trash and I agree with you, separation is key. I live near the river Thames in London so I use my Fisher F19, that machines ability to separate is very impressive and it has a really fast recovery speed. For everything else I use the Equinox 800, coming back into the hobby after so long I wasn't aware of Minelab, I'd never heard of them and I wasn't aware of the hype around the Equinox when it first came out. I'm getting on well with both machines, had them both for quite a while now, I'm impressed with the 800, love the 50 tones and I feel comfortable with it. I Try to steer clear of YouTube

 

[relicmeister]

Usually ability to reach 12” max will uncover the majority of finds in any location. There certainly are , however, places where more soil either deposited naturally or was deposited intentionally where artifacts might be found , assuming we can detect them. If suspected, you can do a soil removal test in a small area to find out.

 

[relicmeister]

I’m sure along riverbanks there could be multiple artifact layers ( or strata as the Archies would say) going down 3-4 feet due to silt deposited during floods. For that matter , riverbanks and stream banks can alter over time. There’s a creek I hunt where theres a ridge 20 feet from existing creek edge. Along this ridge I found early 1700’s artifacts so during that period the creek edge was there where now it’s 20 feet away.