3 US coins = 14 cents?????

[Digger]

Took the X-70 back to an old fairground today. It dates from the early 1870's to the late 1880's. When the fair grounds were moved, this place became just another corn field. I've pulled quite a few nice coins from there, over the past 20 years. With only two exceptions, all the silver I've pulled from there have been Seated Liberties. The two exceptions were a 1942 quarter and a 1920 Mercury dime. I can't explain how they got there, except maybe fallen from a farmers pocket as he worked the fields. I learned a valuble lesson the day I dug the Mercury. My brother and I hunt a lot together. That day, when the TID said "dime", I started doing the happy dance and asking him why I always had to find the first seated dime of the day. When the dirt came off, and I saw it was a Merc, I said I didn't want it and tossed it down the field about 30 feet. Well, I don't toss away silver coins. So I ate some crow, and retrieved it. I will say it was much easier to find the second time!

Today was one of those "few and far between" days for me. I spent about 6 hours wandering around this field, with only 3 coins to show for it. Oh, and a small gold pin with an amethyst stone. Funny thing about that darn pin.... I got a solid TID of 6 and looked down where the target should be. I saw what I thought was a couple small pieces of broken glass. Not wanting to cut my hand, I used my Lesche digger to flip them out of the way. Should have been wearing my glasses, I suppose. Because those small pieces of broken glass turned out to be amethyst stones in the pin. I could of swore I saw two of them before I "moved" the target. But when I retrieved it, there was only one remaining. Once I figured out what had done, I tried to find the other stone(s). Didn't happen!

Back to the coins..... 3 US coins that = 14 cents. I've found a couple old two-cent pieces here before. So I suppose 3 coins at 14 cents could have been a dime and 2 two-cent pieces. But it wasn't. The coin I found today is the first one of it's type that I've found in my 35+ years of detecting. An old Nickel 3-cent piece. (1865 - 1889) It, like the gold pin, read a consistent 6 on the TID. I don't know what the date is because I haven't cleaned it yet. But based on the size and what I can see with a magnifying glass, it is a Nickel 3-cent piece. Old nickels really take a beating in my soil. I have never found a way to clean them up, having tried just about every method. Usually I just put them away, crud and all. I'll soak this one in Olive oil over night, and see if the features stay intact. By the way, the other two coins were an IH cent and an 1877 Seated dime. And I haven't cleaned them either. This 1877 makes the 21st Seated dime I've found with my X-Terra.

X-70 with the 6-inch DD at 18.75 khz. NC=2. GB=54. Sensitivity 28. All metal mode. Multi-tone.

HH

Randy

 

[XLT-user]

n/t

 

[Grant]

That 3 cent has to be a great collection addition congrats Randy you deseverve it!

 

[I a thr]

not mentioning that your brother didn't find a coin today! Come to think of it you didn't find any after I got there either. Good thing I gave you a 3 hour head start. Maybe I am a jinx!!! Oh well was a good day after all to get out. I would be willing to say you got one today I'll probably never find. Had fun
Wow, 21 seated dimes with the X70, must be a record of some kind.
Bill

 

[jspeedy]

Good Job
Didn't even know they existed!

 

[BarnacleBill]

Congrats on a nice find, I hope the Nickel turns out to be in better shape than first appears.

HH
BarnacleBill

 

[Beale]

Congrats on the 3 cent piece! That is a great find for sure! I would love to get a vhance to hunt a spot like that, Beale.

 

[kansas]

Nice finds randy next time get bill to dig for you sorry bill just had to say it lol.

 

[Digger]

chosing the right tool for the job. This old fairground is scattered over about 40 acres. 100 years of tilling the soil has spread targets over much of it. However, there are still a few areas that have a huge concentration of broken glass, nails, bricks and what I hoped would be more coins than we found. I still prefer the 3 kHz for those areas in this field that are more "out in the open". But yesterday, I was concentrating my efforts on some of the trashy spots. In a perfect world, I would have been using a 6-inch DD at 3 khz. I am confident that the lower frequency would have still picked up the small gold pin, as well as the 3-cent nickel. And I am also confident I wouldn't have dug up near as many scrap pieces of aluminum beverage can, or shotgun shell casins as I did. But it ain't a perfect world. And until they make a lower frequency in the 6-inch DD , I'll keep using the 18.75 in congested areas.

I've been trying to clean up that 3-center. However, it isn't in any better shape than first speculated. Don't think I'll be having it slabbed! HH Randy

 

[Digger]

I'll take the opportunity to show these fine folks the 3-cent piece you found awhile back. Your silver 3-center certainly puts my 3-cent nickel to shame!

 

[Digger]

The reason sites like this one still exist is because they are long forgotten and seldom mentioned in modern text. Bill and I spend hundreds of hours each year, going through old newspapers and local history books. We cross reference the "leads" to modern maps and narrow them down. There are times when we walk for hours and never find a thing. But when we do find a few old coins, it makes it all worth the effort. Places like this one are still out there. And there are likely some in your neck of the woods. You just have to use your imagination, do the research and hunt them down. HH Randy

 

[Digger]

Thanks Grant. As with any old coin we find, we always wish it were in better condition. The 3-cent nickel is made of the same composition as the older 5-cent nickels. 75% copper and 25% nickel. And of the hundreds of Shield and Liberty V nickels I've recovered over the years, 99% of them are red and corroded. I imagine that is due to a combination of the soil around here, and the generations of farm chemicals used on these fields. I'd like to think this one will at least clean up enough to decipher the exact date. But frankly, I don't have high hopes. HH Randy

 

[BarnacleBill]

Randy,

Do you have tree lines along the fields? If yes, are the coins that come out of these areas less corroded than from the fields?

HH
BarnacleBill

 

[Digger]

This specific site is farmed from one roadside ditch, to the other. No fences on 3 sides. Just ROW. One of the other sites we frequent is the site of an old racetrack and picnic grounds. The track was along the creek, at the bottom of the hill. And the picnics were held in a grove on the hillslope. The area along the creek alternates between corn and soy beans. The hillside has never been tilled, and still has several trees standing. Both have similar soil, separated by a mere 100 feet. The coppers and nickels dug from the field are somewhat corroded. The coppers and nickels from the grove are discolored, but no corrosion. (Silver looks good no matter where it is dug, around here.) Based simply on my observations, I have to think the chemicals induced to the cropland has the corrosive effect on the copper and nickels. The primary chemical incorporated into the soil is anhydrous ammonia. Nickels are 75% copper, and anhydrous (meaning without water) ammonia is highly corrosive to copper, brass, zinc and galvanized steel. Yep, that's what I think! HH Randy

 

[HighPlainsHunter]

Way to go Randy. I've only found one nickel 3 cent piece in my 35+ years too. It was an 1868 found in Greeley, Colorado with a Sovereign XS.

HighPlainsHunter

 

[ThirdDay_2]

Were you able to clean up your 3 cent nickel? I have an 1868 one that I can scan in if you dont have one to compare how it looks...but then we are on the internet, aren't we I guess in this day and age a person can find a pic of anything they want......and a WHOLE LOT they DONT but I thought I'd offer anyway . Good luck with your cleaning.....and please post how if you are successful!!!