2/17/17 Report - History of a Few Changing Treasure Beach Names. More On Identifying Targets From Metal Detector Signals.

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com.

You've heard all of the names:  Anchor Wreck, Cannon Wreck, Unknown Wreck, Cabin Wreck, etc.  It can be confusing.  It can be just as bad with beaches.

Some beaches have multiple names.  Some names are left over from days gone by.  Some were informally named by locals before they had an official name.

You might have heard of Colored Beach.  That is a name that was used for many different beaches in many different communities in the days of segregation.  There were beaches that were used by Blacks when they were not welcome at the best beaches in the community.  Those beaches were often called "Colored Beach."

There was one such beach near Miami on Virginia Key.  I used to detect it often and found good numbers of silver U. S. coins there.  That part of Virginia Key, which borders Bear Cut, was nearly abandoned at one time, but the entire island got a makeover in more recent years.  Before it got renovated it was the site of a few movies and TV shows that required a tropical setting.

The beach south of Fort Pierce that is named Frederick Douglass Memorial Beach was once a "colored beach." It is named after Frederick Douglass, the famous African American abolitionist.

Maybe you've heard of the Christmas Tree that was north of John Brooks Beach.  It is gone now and has been gone since 2004.  It was nothing more than the remains of an old trunk or stump that stood north of the John Brooks beach access.  People used to decorate it with junk they found on the beach, such as ropes, buoys, or anything that happened to be nearby.  It was a landmark referred to in books and used by detectorists as a landmark.

One treasure beach that has a lot of different names is Bonsteel Beach.  Before it was known as Bonsteel Beach, it was referred to as Chuck's Steakhouse.  Chuck's Steakhouse was torn down, It  was north of the Bonsteel Beach Access. 

The same beach is sometimes called Half Reale Beach.  That is because of the predominance of half reales found there.

The same beach is also called "Money Walk."  You can imagine how it got that name.

Since no shipwreck has been found off shore at that location, there are several theories about how the cobs got there.  I might discuss those some other day, including theories about why so many half reales are found there.

The Brevard County boundary was south of today's Sebastian Inlet until 1959 when the land south of the inlet was given to Indian River County as a result of the bridge being built.

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Yesterday at first I had the wrong link posted for the video about how a signal can change if the position of a target is changed.  After someone kindly informed me of the mistake, I corrected the link, so if you looked earlier and got the wrong link, which happened to be in Italian, here is the corrected link.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1L96xy9nRZo

The primary purpose of the link is to show how the signal will change if a coin or ring shaped object is on edge rather than laying flat.

Concerning that, Bill P. sent me the following email message.

Regarding your post from today (2-16-17), one of the most distinct sounds I hear on my Minelab is when I'm over a gold earring. 2 totally different sounds when the clasp is open and closed (specifically hoop style earrings). When open it can sound just like a bottle cap. I don't pass those up often unless I'm in an area where folks have had a beer bash. Watches also give funky junk sounds sometimes. Years ago I found a nice gold ladies ring next to a chunk of rusty iron. Talk about a funky sound. I'm glad I dug it anyway. Bill P...

Thanks much Bill.

I can always identify long thin targets such as nails from the signal even with detectors such as the ATX.

Bent thin targets such as fish hooks have a very distinctive signal.  A broken finger ring and unclasped hoop ear ring would be similar.

The signal from a broken gold ring will not be as strong as an unbroken ring.

I used a bent brass tag in my video.  Being bent, it will present a variety of surfaces to the detector coil depending on the various angles and the signal will change accordingly.

Those are general observations.  Different detectors and different settings can cause different signals.

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The weather is beautiful.  There is a touch of coolness in the morning air.

The surf is still small, but unfortunately we are no longer getting much of a tidal change, and no negative tides.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comast.net

2/16/17 Report - How The Position of Targets Can Affect Metal Detector Signals. Mexican Tomb Figurines. Golf Eggs. Unwanted Meeting With Solenopsis.

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com

Source: Live Science link below.

1,700-year-old untouched tomb bearing the bones of a dozen male adults, as well as pre-Columbian figurines and statues, has been unearthed in Mexico.

Here is the link.

http://www.livescience.com/57844-mexican-tomb-uncovered.html

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Here are a couple of finds: two golf balls covered with barnacles and shells. People hit golf balls into the water.  

Couple Barnacle and Shell Encrusted Golf Balls

On the lighter side, that reminds me of two TV shows.  Jethro from the Beverly Hillbillies called them golf eggs, and Cramer, on Seinfeld, once hit a golf ball that got stuck in a whales blow hole.

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One thing I don't think a lot of people do enough is experiment with their detector on known targets. I once did a quick little video showing how a detector responds to a screw, copper tag, and small gold ring, when the tag and ring were flat on the ground and when they were standing on edge.

Do you know how the signal will change when thin gold ring is on edge?   If not, you might want to take a look at the video.  The same thing can happen when a coin is on edge rather than laying flat.

Here is the link.

[  I had the wrong link here earlier and replaced it.  I hope the one below is the right one. ]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1L96xy9nRZo

Of course not all detectors will respond exactly the same but most will respond similarly.  You'll get about the same result from an Excalibur if it is in pinpoint mode, for example.

Long thin targets such as nails produce a double beep when you sweep the coil over the target from end to end, but a single beep when you move the coil at a ninety degree angle to that.  You can get the same kind of thing when a coin or ring is standing on edge.  One direction will produce a double beep.

Of course different settings can change how the detector responds.

Coins and rings and similar things usually lay flat, but not always.  If there are rocks, shells, roots, the targets can be on edge.  Also sometimes they'll slide down and rest stuck to the side of a hole.
That, along with the decreased depth, can make the signal disappear.

I always recommend a experimenting a lot with different types of targets in order to really get to know your detector and how it responds to different targets.

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I received more emails concerning Dr. Gunnar Thompson and his article about Pre-Columbian maps.  It seems there are people with very strong opinions on both sides.  From the emails I've received, it looks like the controversy has a life of its own and could continue indefinitely.  I personally have not looked into the controversy that deeply, so I'll leave it up to you to decide for yourself.   I very much appreciate the comments but won't be continuing the topic in this blog. There are other forums that do that. Thanks again for all the informative emails and comments.  I learned from them, and they are appreciated.


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I first met Solenopsis two or three decades ago in Davie Florida.  It was a hot day and I was metal detecting an old home site near a canal and orange groves.  I was on my hands and knees digging a target and realized I was in an ant hill and being stung by ants.

Solenopsis is a genus of stinging ant.  You might know them as fire ants.  Snow birds might not be familiar with the little devils.  I wasn't when I first got stung.

They hit me again yesterday.  This time I wasn't detecting.  I was cutting some weeds, and as I often am, I was bare foot.  You'd think I'd know better.  Anyhow, I got a lots of bites and a swollen foot, but it wasn't as bad as it could have been.  Since I don't wear shoes most of the time, I think I've built up some immunity to their poison.  Still, they are a pain, and if you are from up north and don't know about them, be careful.

There are some suggested treatments.  Applying meat tenderizer is one.  That treatment is also recommended for stings from Portuguese Man-O-War.  Life guards at swimming beaches used to use alcohol.  I know first hand about those too.

Other treatments include applying ice to prevent swelling, application of ammonia, Clorox or alcohol.  I don't know how much those work, but I used ice and Clorox and came through pretty well.

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Evidently a cool front moved through.  The surf is still small and will remain small for at least a few more days.  The tides are moderating.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net