Written by the treasureguide for the exclusive use of treasurebeachesreport.blogspot.com.
I watched football this weekend. Maybe you've noticed that when I miss a day it is usually a football day. I love the strategy part of football. I enjoy figuring out how to get things done, whether it is win a football game, develop computer software or find things.
Saturday I started a discussion of the factors that lead to successful metal detecting. Today I'll address a few factors,but leave discussion of some of the more complex and interesting ones such as skill for later.
Before I really get started on that I wanted to briefly talk about something else. I don't often watch YouTube videos, but I was looking for something specific and watched a few metal detecting videos a couple days ago. The first thing that struck me was something that I commented on before. It drives me crazy when they take several minutes to retrieve a target. They pass the coil over the target I don't know how many times to pinpoint and get a good reading on the meter or whatever, and then they spend a lot of time on top of that probing around with a pinpointer. If I took me that long to dig a target, I'd have time for about two targets per hunt. If my wife did that I'd be screaming at her to dig the thing and get on with it.
In one video a fellow was comparing a CTX 3030 with an Ex Deus. He detected an area first with the Ex Deus and found some things. Then he took the CTX and found some more things "that the Ex Deus missed." Then he detected the area with the Ex Deus again and found some more things that the CTX "missed." In my opinion that was no comparison of the two detectors, as the detectorist suggested. It was more a test of the detectorist.
I'm not exactly sure of the order. Maybe he used the Ex Deus first or maybe it was the CTX first. I'm not sure now, but it doesn't matter. That was not a very good comparison of the two detectors. I've posted some notes on how to really compare two detectors, but even then it would be a comparison of two detectors using a specific set of settings under a specific set of circumstances.
The detector that was used the third time, obviously found items previously missed by the other detector, but also items missed by itself.
Now I'll continue with my discussion of the factors that result in successful detecting.
Using my old rough formula as a starting point, one of the most important factors that determines metal detecting success is location. That one is obvious enough. You can only find things where they are. If you want to find Spanish shipwreck treasures, you are better off on the Treasure Coast than in Arizona. You'll find a lot more gold jewelry in South Florida than the West Virginia hills. That might be obvious, but that isn't all that needs to be considered.
Site selection is not what I'm talking about when I talk about location. I'm talking about where you live and where you can hunt on a regular basis without lengthy or expensive travel. Site selection is a different matter and is a component of the factor I call skill (S).
One option is to travel, but another option would be to take advantage of what the local area has to offer. SuperRick, for example, does both. He lives in Arizona and hunts meteorites and gold nuggets there and also travels to Florida and the Treasure Coast to detect. If you are trying to maximize success defined in economic terms, then take into account the time and expense lost in travel.
I show a variety of types of treasure, including things such as sea glass, shells, fossils and bottles. Besides the fact that I like all of those things, it is easier to be successful if you are aware of a wide variety of types of treasure.. If you can't find one type of treasure on a beach, you can usually find another. That expands the range of opportunities.
The other important factor I'm going to talk about today is time (T). It is actually the amount of time spent detecting and does not include things such as research, which is also valuable, cleaning finds etc.
You will find more if you hunt more. I'm sure of that. But it is not only because you cover more ground. When you are out in the field detecting areas, both good and bad, you learn a lot. You learn more about the beach or area that you are detecting. You learn more about your detector. And perhaps most importantly, you are there to see what is going on so you'll be Johnny on the spot when the widow of opportunity opens. There are many ways that spending more time detecting will help you. I've only mentioned a few.
When I originally posted the first draft of my crude formula for success, some people said perseverance should be included. I think it is included to some extent in the time factor. It certainly helps.
I'll get into the skill factor soon. It is a very complex factor, because there are so many different skill areas.
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Tomorrow the surf is supposed to be up to five to seven feet. I might not get out to take a look, so would appreciate any reports.
Happy hunting,
TreasureGuide@comcast.net
