7/26/15 Report - Unusual Find. October 29 Sedwick Coins Treasure Auction. Testing and Sampling. Spanish Galleon Book.

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

Unusual Tag Find
Photos by Warren D.

Warren D. found this tag.  Fortunately he has a relative that was able to translate it for him.  Here is what he said.

I found this on the beach this morning. The writing looked Russian to me. I sent pictures to my niece who studied Russian linquistics and history at Duke University. She said the tag looks like it is from a Warrior Dash/Cross Fit style outdoor obstacle-course race held in Russia that is sponsored by the Russian Ministry of Defense and veteran's support organizations. They are associated with the military (military-style obstacles in the race, a little similar to "Support Our Troops" events here) which is probably why it was designed to look like a dog tag. The first picture with the design at the top, lists 2 of the sponsors, Absolut Bank and the non-state pension fund "Blagasastayania".

The second picture, with the large bold face type, says the name of the race "Race of Heroes". It looks like whoever finishes a race gets one of these dog tags and this particular one is from spring-summer last year. The race if you're curious: http//www.gtorace.com/

I told her it's great to have a translator in the family.Found in Cocoa Beach.

Warren D.


Very interesting find Warren.  That is one thing that keeps it interesting.  You can find almost anything on a Florida beach, even things that come from half way around the world.  Congratulations!

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From Sedwick Coins:

Our third live floor auction (Treasure, World and U.S. Coin Auction #18) will take place on October 29, 2015 at the DoubleTree Suites Hotel at Lake Buena Vista, just minutes from Walt Disney World. We invite you to attend and take part in the outstanding opportunities this event offers, whether as a consignor or a bidder:

• Educational presentations the day before the auction by numismatic experts from around the world.• Networking with other collectors and dealers at our famous Argentine gaucho-style dinner the night before the auction.

• Lot viewing for all lots the day before and during the live auction right next to the auction room in the hotel.

• Live bidding in our state-of-the-art auction room with Shaunda Fry, our world-renowned auctioneer...

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People know a lot less than they think they know.  I'm not just talking about other people.  I'm including myself.

It is easy to think that you know something.  It is also very seductive.  And once you think you know something, the tendency is to support and defend it even if it takes all kinds of mental gymnastics.  And the more you do that, the more hardened and resistant the perceived knowledge becomes.

It occurs to me that ignorance makes "knowing" easy.  You don't have to deal with all the facts and contradictions that way.

I dare say some people are more prone to this than others.  The defense is skepticism, especially about what you think you know, is objectivity and a willingness to test  your knowledge and change your mind.

You probably won't learn much if you rigidly resist the possibility that you might be wrong and refuse to change your mind.

I know I've changed my mind about some pretty basic things concerning metal detecting.  There was a time when I thought treasure coins washed out of the beach but not up onto the beach.  I had a lot of experience that supported that belief, but that experience was limited, and I was completely wrong.  That is what more recent observations have proven.  Now it seems that I was stupid to have ever believed that they do not wash up.

Just because you are wrong about something doesn't mean that your mistaken beliefs are completely useless.  They can be correct for some situations, and can actually be quite useful in some situations, though not as useful as more complete knowledge.

What I'm getting around to today is the need to continue to test your thinking and continue to learn.  I test things that I think I know.  Sometimes it appears to be a waste of time.  That's OK.  I don't spend a lot of time on testing things I'm fairly confident about.  I spend more time testing things that I'm not so confident about.

What makes my method different from most that you read about is the amount of analysis.  In the field I do a good bit of sampling and analysis.  I'll quickly check here and there to see if my first thoughts are supported on not.  If one place looks like a good place to detect, I'll check it out.  I'll have certain ideas about what I expect, and I'll look for signs that prove my expectations either right or wrong.  Depending upon what I find, I might then quickly move to another beach or area to test or sample it.

Sampling is very important to me and I do a lot of it.  Sometimes it is just a quick sample and other times a more extensive sample, depending upon a variety of factors.

I  guess I've been surprised too many times in the past to take everything for granted.  And that isn't all bad.  When you are surprised, that means your expectations didn't match your observations, and that is a grand invitation to learn something new.

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Here is a non-fiction book that you can read parts of online.  It is Spanish Galleon 1530-1690 by Angus Konstam, 2004.  Take a look.

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Expect at least a few more days of very small surf on the Treasure Coast.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

7/25/15 Report - New Treasure Finds Made By The Capitana! Possibility of Tropical Activity Developing Near Florida Next Week. New Poll.

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

Cob Found By Crew of The Capitana.

Captain Jonah Martinez and his crew continue to make great finds.

Here is one of the latest, a nice OM and maybe J cob.

For those of you who don't know, the OM indicated the Mexico mint.  The J would be the assayer initial.

Nice find guys!

But that isn't all.

One of Captain Jonah's Top Notch Divers
Showing Off Some Great Finds.

In the plate is a buckle, a button and some more cobs.

A closer view of those finds is shown below.

The last picture shows a close-up of some very clean reales and the button.

They are nice and clean showing good detail.

You can tell they are also from the Mexico mint from the style of cross.

Thanks for letting us get a look at your finds Captain!

All of these photos were sent by Captain Jonah Martinez.

Plate Full or Finds.

Nice View of Button and Cobs.

Lots of Musket Balls.

With the picture of the musket balls, Captain Jonah sent the following  message.

A couple weeks ago we got in to some musket balls so we went back skipping ground by about two days south here's what we found about 850 musket balls grape and pistol shot hopefully more at the end of this new trail. These balls appear to be from the green cabin but we find 1715 mixed in this area.  

Here are the densities of some common metals given in grams per cubic centimeter.

Aluminum 2.7
Copper 8.96
Gold 19.3
Lead 11.3
Platinum 21.5
Silver 10.5

Silver is just a touch less dense than lead, with gold being quite a bit more dense than lead.

Here is the link.

https://sites.google.com/site/chempendix/densities-of-pure-metals

Besides being the same density another thing that would group the musket balls together is their round shape, which means they will move easily, but down more than up.

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The same stationary front that has been causing afternoon showers along the Treasure Coast also provides conditions that could produce tropical activity near Florida next week.

http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/atlantic-tropical-systems-southeast-us-coast-danny-erika/50652073

Thanks for your poll responses.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

7/24/15 Report - Magnet Fishing: A Tool For Detectorists. Beach Sifting Machines. Metals Used In Coins.

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

Good Magnet That I Use

A couple of days ago I mentioned alternate forms of treasure hunting that could be used instead of or in addition to metal detecting.  I talked about airlift dredging as one of those.  Today I'll mention another - magnet fishing.

Have you ever heard of magnet fishing?  It has become somewhat popular in Europe.  It involves using magnets to retrieve items from water.

Europe is the natural place for magnet fishing.  It has a long history and old ferrous relics can be found in rivers and canals.

Of course magnets won't pick up silver or gold coins, but if you are a relic hunter, you might want to give magnet fishing a try.

If you have a particularly junky location that is littered with a bunch of iron junk, you might use magnets to clean it up some to get the iron junk out of the way before detecting.  That can be done either on land or in the water.  For land use they actually make magnetic rakes for picking up iron trash.  They are used by roofers, for example, to pick up nails and debris after a job.  It would be good for site preparation.

Magnetic Rake.

But magnets will pick up some coins and medals.  Some foreign coins are ferrous, as is the steel U. S. cent.

The magnet shown at the top is one that I've used for magnet fishing.  A good rope was attached to the top.  Some flotation should be added to the top so that when you throw the magnet out in the water and drag it back, the bottom of the magnet stays on the bottom of the river or whatever.

Without some flotation device, this magnet would turn on its side as you drag it back.

Of course you'll pick up a bunch of junk, but it you are where there was once a historic battle or something like that you might get all kinds of interesting objects.

I've seen where people have found gun parts, knives, swords, and even a motorcycle.

Good strong magnets are made for industrial purposes such as recovering tools and things like that.

You want a good strong magnet, or perhaps better yet, and array of magnets, but you don't want the absolute strongest magnet you can get.  If you get a 300 pound pull, the magnet can attach to a sunken car or something and you'll have trouble getting it back.

Here is a video showing how one man made a magnet fishing rig and how he used it.

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-build-a-magnet-retrieval-tool-for-use-on-la/

It is also a good way to quickly test a site without diving.  If you are looking for an old crossing or battle site, you'll probably pick up a few things that will tell you if that is the site.  If you are looking for the location of an old bridge or dock, you'll probably find some nails in a hurry.  If you are looking for an old picnic grounds and swimming hole, you'll probably pick up some old rusted bottle caps in just a short time.

If you locate a nice old historic area, or want to recover some lost tools or something, magnet fishing can be worthwhile. In any case, it is fun even if you don't find anything valuable, and it does help clean up the place.

If you want to know what coins are ferrous or what other metals are used in coins or medals, here is a good listing.

http://www.coins-of-the-uk.co.uk/pics/metal.html

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Beach Cleaner

The most efficient and effective means for keeping beaches safe and healthy is “lift and sift” mobile screening. This is a mechanical process whereby the beach sand is screened. The entire top layer of beach sand and debris are lifted and carried up over an oscillating, sifting screen. Everything larger than the selected screen-hole size is loaded into the machine’s hopper for removal, while the sand is immediately returned, cleaned, aerated and fluffy, back to the beach. 


That paragraph comes from the following linked web site.

http://en.envirocitiesmag.com/articles/pdf/waste_management_eng_art7.pdf

They have all sizes of these things.  Some are remote controlled.  I bet the operators occasionally get a nice bonus.

http://www.cherrington.net/

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You will notice that I recently added a poll to the blog.  I am more interested in the level of detector that you purchased than the actual number of dollars.  That is why I asked for the new price of detectors even if you purchased them used.  Thanks for your participation.

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Well, well, well!  It looks like the Treasure Coast surf will be increasing.  Don't get excited though, it is only going to be something like two feet.  I never thought I'd see the day when that would be an increase.  We've had an unbelievable spell of smooth surf.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

7/23/14 Report - Sand Sucking Waves. Peopling the Americas. Silver Ups and Downs & Buried Coins. Clean Beaches.

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

Breaking Shore Wave Sucking Sand.
Photo by Clark Little.  Source: link below.

A couple of days ago I posted a photo a wave seemingly sucking up some sand.  Here is another even better photo showing that.

This view of sand getting sucked up certainly suggests that other things like coins could be sucked up into and thrown by a wave like this.

Also note the ridge of water to the right in the photo.  You can see the water rolling down from that ridge and then up into the wave, taking sand with it.

These photos, as I said the other day, are by Clark Little.  He does amazing photography that is not only beautiful, but as I'm finding out, informative as well.

If you are wondering how Clark gets these photos, here he is.

Clark Little About To Get Crashed.
Source: link below.

If you think you got crashed, think about how this is going to feel.

If you look behind his left foot, you can see the sand rising there.

I started wondering if the sand being sucked up in the picture that I showed a couple of days ago could have been a reflection or illusion of some sort so I looked for more evidence.  I wanted to make sure it was really sand being sucked up.  These additional pictures seem to verify that to me, but better yet, in a video that you will find by using the link below, Clark himself referred to sand getting sucked up
 into a wave.  With these additional pictures and Clark's own words, I'm now certain that sand, and undoubtedly other things, get sucked up into waves.

If you go to the following linked site, scroll down and play the video, beginning at 28 seconds you'll hear him say "with the sand sucking up."

Here is the link.

http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/clark-little-shorebreak-photography

That adds a new and important factor to the whole discussion about the movement of sand and coins as it relates to treasure hunting and metal detecting and advances the science of beach metal detecting.

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Here is a good article on the peopling of the Americas.  I might call it, Native Americans Are Immigrants Too. 

http://news.ku.dk/all_news/2015/07/the-population-history-of-native-americans/

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When the market turned around it fell like a rock dropped into a canyon. You couldn’t sell at some slightly lower price. There were no buyers! As I watched bullion prices fall, I felt sick to my stomach. A few months later we moved to Virginia. As soon as we bought a house I buried all the bullion coins I still had in PVC pipe in my backyard. They lay there for 19 years. Recently a friend dug them up and I sold them for about four times face value.

That is the last paragraph in a story about the silver coin and bullion business back in the days when the Hunt brothers drove the price of silver up to $50 per ounce.

Here is the link.

http://www.coinweek.com/education/numismatic-history/tales-from-the-bourse-crazy-times-the-hunt-brothers-stir%E2%80%88things-up/

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Despite the very sandy conditions we've been dealing with for many months now, there has been a surprising lack of junk targets relative to coins and better targets.  Considering the poor conditions, I'd expect to see more aluminum.  Not that I'm complaining.  I'm glad that people have removed a lot of the old trash.  Most of the heavily detected beaches are now pretty clean.  The predominate type of trash that I've seen lately consists of beer bottle caps, which at some spots are very plentiful, but at the most heavily detected areas, have been pretty much removed.

There is one spot with a lot of bottle caps that might be worth taking a look with a discriminating machine, but the areas where I've detected lately haven't had enough trash to bother using any discrimination.

No increase in surf is predicted for the Treasure Coast for the next few days.  And there is not tropical activity developing.

Happy hunting,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net

7/22/15 Report - WWII Bomb Found On Beach. Atocha Finds. Mitch King Video. Smooth Surf.

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

100-Pound WW II Photoflash Bomb 
Found On St. Pete Beach.

A 100-pound WW II photoflash bomb was found by a beach-goer on Sunday.  It was detonated by the bomb squad.

I think I see the Don Cesar Hotel in the background of the video linked below.  It has a long history.  It was opened in 1928 and members of high society played there including guests such as F. Scott Fitzgerald.  It was purchased by the U. S. Army in 1942.

Below is the link to the video about the bomb.

http://www.9news.com/video/4363574513001/1/World-War-II-Bomb-Washes-Up-On-Florida-Beach

Thanks to Doug for sending me that link.

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The crew of the JB Magruder uncovered a silver coin, musket ball, gunners dice, encrusted objects, a large barrel hoop fragment, two iron spikes and pottery. The Fisher organization believes that there is still at least $260 million dollars worth of treasure to be found on the Atocha site. 

The Dare searched over Lost Merchant 100 linear miles with side scan sonar and magnetometers in the search for the Lost Merchant.

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Here is a very nice video of Mitch King talking about metal detecting.

http://www.tcpalm.com/franchise/tcpalm-social/treasure-coast-metal-detectorists-looking-for-more-than-just-treasures_62822210

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The price of gold has been dropping.  Now it is down around $1100 an ounce.

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Treasure Coast Beach This Morning Near Low Tide.

Notice the same old flat beach created by the smooth surf we've been having for months.  That sand is very fine grain.

Sparkling Ocean.

I just happened to catch the sun reflecting off the water and thought it was neat.

There were good numbers of coins and junk jewelry this morning and a few better pieces.  Maybe with the price of gold going down more people will be buying gold again, but I doubt it.  I don't think the middle class feels good about the economy.

One thing about the smooth surf is that although nothing old is being uncovered, and that is more what this blog focuses on, recent items that are being lost in the water are not disappearing.  There are a lot of shallow coins that look like they haven't been out there very long.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

7/21/15 Report - Something You Need To Know For Water Hunting. Treasure Coast Waterways Cleanup. Junkyard Car Museum.

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

See link below for details.

I have been looking at lot of very extensive studies concerning the movement of beach sand.  Some involve institutions such as Woods Hole and the Department of Defense.  Some involve laying fields of state of the art sensors, both in the beach and out into the water.  Some of the studies cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and the reports are full of technical jargon and mathematical formulas.  Those studies are only concerned with the movement of sand.  While I am interested in the flow of sand, I am also interested in how other objects such as coins move, and those studies to not address that, although I can draw some conclusions about that from what they do find.  A lot of the studies found nothing much beyond what I've learned through personal observation, which pretty much amazes me.

If you use the following link and browse around that site, you'll be able to find some of those studies.

Here is a link to a nice animation of that site.   When you get to the site, click on the multimedia section to view the animation showing the moving sandbar.  You might want to repeat it a several times.

http://www.whoi.edu/main/topic/changing-shorelines-erosion

 (Animation by Jack Cook, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

The location of sandbars can protect or endanger the face of the beach. As undertow drives sandbars away from the shoreline and further out to sea, waves break further from the shore. When sandbars are pushed closer to shore, waves break closer and run further up the beach. (From the Woods Hole site.)

I took some clips from the animation and added some things.  I added the two vertical lines so you could better estimate the position of the moving sand.  Orange dots illustrate coins.

In the first clip shown below, the sand bar is out and the currents are moving the sand in, but not the coins.  The arrows indicate the direction the sand is moving.

When the sand bar moves in, but the water velocity is not sufficient to move objects such as coins, the coins that were originally lost on the bar when it was out end up in deeper water (see below).  Objects lost in the dip in front of the sand bar (above) get buried, as shown below.

Compare the second picture to the first and note the relative position of the coins.  There are also times when the coins will move as well as the sand, but that isn't the situation illustrated here.  It is about trigger and drop points again.  Water force can be sufficient to move just sand or strong enough to move both sand and other objects.  Sand and coins can move at different times, and at the same time but at different speeds.

Sand bars are generally moving, sometimes very slowly.  As I've said before, items lost on the eroding side will be uncovered if they were previously covered, while items recently lost on the other side of the bar will get buried when the sand is moving in that direction.

Here are a couple more clips from the animation.  These show situations where the undertow moves the sand out.

When there is sufficient undertow, items as well as sand can be dragged out.  The clip below shows the bar moved out.  The bar has flattened some (below).  It could continue to move out until it looks very much like that shown in the first clip. When the velocity of the water drops the sand drops out of transport and piles up.

If you are aware of the sands position and how it is moving, that is a big step towards knowing where you'll find objects when you are metal detecting in shallow water.  Sometimes objects get uncovered and sometimes buried, and sometimes the objects are moved too.

Whichever way the sand is moving, objects are moving in some relation to that, again depending upon the trigger points and drop points of the sand and objects.

I hope the illustrations are clear and helpful.  I had a hard time getting them fixed the way I wanted, and still didn't get it exactly like I wanted.

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The Treasure Coast waterway cleanup will take place July 25.  I hope you will support this.  Anyone can volunteer.  It would be a great thing for clubs.

Here is the link for all the information.

http://www.tcwaterwaycleanup.com/

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 Nestled in a north Georgia forest, over 4,000 classic cars decorate 32 acres that have been turned into a junkyard museum. Owner Walter Dean Lewis' parents started the business in 1931 as a general store that also sold auto parts. Lewis grew the collection, which had just 40 cars in the '70s, over time...

Lewis stopped selling parts about six years ago, soon after realizing he could sustain the business more as a museum, charging $15 for visitors just looking, and $25 for photographers. He estimates that 95 percent of the people who come through the six miles of trails are photographers...

Here is the link for the rest of the story.  Sorta neat.

http://www.aol.com/article/2015/07/20/ap-photos-in-rural-georgia-a-junkyard-of-classic-cars/21211215/

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I can't believe it.  That little two foot bump in the Treasure Coast surf predictions for next week has disappeared.  We're back to one foot for who knows how long.

Happy hunting.
TreasureGuide@comcast.net

7/20/15 Report - Alternate Methods To Metal Detecting. Air Lift Dredge. Silver Rosie dimes. History of Shipwrecks Book.

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

90% Silver Rosie
Source: http://cointrackers.com/coins/839/2004-s-roosevelt-dime/

Metal detecting isn't the goal for most of us.  The goal for most people is finding things.  Metal detecting is just the method.

Sometimes people act as if metal detecting is the goal, but we shouldn't forget that there are other methods for finding things.  Sifting, dredging and eye-balling are a few examples.

There are times when other methods will pay off, and there are times when metal detecting just won't work.

Other methods might actually be the best choice in some situations.  One would be when metal detecting isn't allowed.  Another would be when valuable objects are not made of metal.  Another might be when there is too much overburden or junk.

There are times when you can eye-ball coins and things somewhat effectively.  For example, when a strong wind has scoured a busy dry beach.  I've done that.  You can find a good number of coins by eye-balling.  Or when there has been erosion at a good spot where coins and things are being uncovered in front of your eyes.  Or along streets or curbs.

There have been places like that where I have found a good numbers of coins.  While you obviously won't find buried coins by eye-balling, you can find uncovered coins, and in some cases you can follow up with a detector.

Eye-balling can be the first step in narrowing down where you want to spend your time detecting.  If you find a coin or two that has been just uncovered along the surf line that is a place to check with a detector.

A good thing about eye-balling is the ease of quickly scanning large areas.  It works best in busy areas where there might be high concentrations of targets.

You might eye-ball for bills along a fence line after a carnival, for example.  Or along a sea weed line.

I know of one dip in the water off of a busy resort where bills tend to collect.  Snorkeling for bills often produces a few ones, fives or twenties.

In my 6/15 report I posted about how Russ P. does some sifting sometimes when he doesn't have a promising detecting spot.  It is a lot of work, but can be effective in the right place and has the advantage of being able to uncover non-metallic targets as well as metallic.

One thing you might consider is an air lift dredge.  It is only for those who dive though.

Here is an illustration.  It isn't too hard to construct an air lift dredge and it can be used to lift metallic as well as non-metallic items.  Of course it is easier to buy than make if you have the money.

I believe the Fisher organization used an air lift dredge in areas known for emeralds.

The illustration shown here and the excerpt below is from Wikipedia.

Typically, the airlift is constructed from a 3 metre to 10 metre long, 10 cm diameter pipe. A controllable compressed air supply vents into the inside, lower end of the pipe (The input end always being the lower end). Compressed air is injected into the pipe in one to three second bursts with an interval long enough to let the resulting bubble to rise to the higher, output end of the pipe. The bubble moves water through the pipe sucking debris from the lower end and depositing it from the upper end of the pipe. Ejected debris can be either cast off (as in simply removing oveburden) or collected.

Here is a YouTube demonstration..  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LuHgxoFrz6s

Two problems with air lift dredges is that they are most effective in deeper water and are not easily moved.  A small gas powered dredge would work in shallow water.  Keene is one well known manufacturer of portable gold dredges.

There are other methods that I haven't yet discussed.  Some much less expensive and easy to construct.  I just wanted to make the point that metal detecting is not the goal, and that there are plenty of other techniques.  Also that there are situations when other techniques might even work better.

Of course, you can use different methods in combination too.  The bigger point is to keep thinking.

What inspired me to write this today is that I've been using some alternative methods lately but want to get some good pictures and record results before I post about them.  Just like with metal detecting, sometimes they don't work out real well, but sometimes they do.

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I ran across a book you might want to take a look at.  It is History of Shipwrecks by Angus Konstam.
You can preview it free online.  Click on the underlined title above to go there.

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Here is something to watch for even though it would be rare to find in circulation.  Starting in 1992 the San Francisco Mint  produced some 90% silver Roosevelt dimes, though all such silver dimes have been struck in Proof format.  A 2004 S dime would have a melt of around $1.00 and in mint state sell for around $6.00.

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The Treasure Coast predictions are for a two-foot surf next Monday.  Normally I wouldn't pay any attention to that, but we haven't had anything that big for weeks, if you can believe that.  I never thought I'd see the day when a two-foot surf looked like a bump up.  It might not even happen.

Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net