Came upon some Greenhorn devastation last night that made me sick..

[Anonymous]

Went to a park/school just up the street from my house that I had detected just two days before. As I walked along the edge of the basketball court I began to see signs of major excavation. I had detected along that court two night before and dug a few coins and left several targets that I deemed to be big junk. Some idiot had dug for the junk and left holes up to two feet in diameter.
He had cut the sod off of most holes, either in squares, circles, or just pieces, then when through he just throwed it all back in the hole.
As I drifted out into the soccer field I could see his rape jobs 50 feet away. I checked one of his holes ( about two feet in diameter ) and sized what was down there and it was about the size of a hubcap but this moron dug for it anyway ( did he think it was a giant coin? ). Following his same route I managed to pick up about $1.50 in coins that were apparently too small for him to pick up on.
Wish I had been there when he was as we would have had some serious conversation. Jerks like this should never be allowed to own a detector. It just kills it for the rest of us. Sorry to vent but it really pi$$es me off.
Bill

 

[Anonymous]

I know how you feel Bill. Last year we had about 5 old houses in a row that was donated to the fire department for training purposes. I decided to hunt them to see what i could find....Seems like someone already had the same idea. Now I dont know what he used to dig his targets, but it looked like he used a Back-Hoe!!!!!! Didnt even bother filling in his holes. Now Granted these houses and yards were to be all torn up after the fire department was done with them but come on give me a break. If he does this here I can only imagine that he does it in a park or ballfield somewhere!!!!! He also seemed to be going after just the silver....or his machine wasnt that good cause he walked right over all the pennies. I got prolly 15 wheaties outta just one yard. I think my total was around 4.50 total. Oh by the way...If that guy happens to read this...Double check your holes MORON!! ya left 2 quaters and a dime in holes ya dug stuff from and also FILL YOUR DAMN HOLES WHEN YOUR THROUGH!!!!!!
take care all
HH
Steve

 

[Anonymous]

I feel your pain, Bill!!I was out to the local park a few weeks back and across the field I see a man and boy with a detector, so I wander over to see how they are faring. When I get there, I see they have a regular garden shovel and a couple of flat pans and a salad sieve. They have a Wal-Mart detector, not that there's anything wrong with that, and are digging massive holes with this shovel and sifting the dirt thru the seive. I show them the digger I use and tell them that they can get something similar at HomeDepot and that's all you need as their machine won't pick up anthting all that deep. A couple of weeks later, I see them again at the high school and now they both have the Wal-Mart detectors and big old honking shovels and are still digging craters. I visited with them again and showed them my various diggers, probes, etc. I wanted to lay into the guy and tell him what a du***ss he was, but I didn't want to embarass him in front of his young son. Then last week, as Skillet and I are finishing up our hunt at the soccer fields, here comes Shovel Head, luckily not detecting, and asks if we are having any luck and that he was thinking of detecting out there, too!! Yikes!! How can I tell this moron, in a way that won't embarass him in front of his son, that he is an idiot, and that digging those moon craters is going to get us all run off? Hopefully he will become tired of digging for not much reward and quit, but maybe not. <STRONG></STRONG>

 

[Anonymous]

are beyond some people out there. Just think ,it keeps growin. A good example are the people living behind me. There yard is a mess ,the kids run around and tare things up ,the parents yell at the kids instead of talking to them ,the kids get stuff in our yard and leave it there and the parents don`t care ,there trash in there yard finds its way into our yard. I hope they never get the kids a detector because they would never be taught how to use it. I just don`t know.

 

[Anonymous]

Bill: Embarrass the moron, or call the police and have him arrested for damage to public property. If we don't we will soon have no where to hunt.First tell him about proper recovery, and why, if he ignores you call the police and explain the sitituation to them.

 

[Anonymous]

At a different beach than we usually go to. Don't expect it was the result of anyone with a detector - because there aren't many around. Probably kids. Naturally no good for our image though, so we filled it.

 

[Anonymous]

I have run into the same type of guys armed with a big shovel. Tell this idiot and it's time his son knows he is an idiot and you don't go around digging up public property. He is setting a bad example for the boy. Tell him if he gets caught he will be banned from the area. You might also demonstrate the proper way to retrieve a coin. I have sen some real looneys in my 40 yearsin this hobby. I could write a book about it. <img src="/metal/html/smile.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt="">
Bill

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah I to have found coins in holes left by these guys. How they do it I don't know.
Bill

 

[Anonymous]

If I ever run into him we will have a serious discussion but by the evidence he left behind he will probably be to danged dumb to understand. <img src="/metal/html/smile.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt="">
Bill

 

[Anonymous]

Looks like some of the detector holes I've seen. Some people just don't care.
Bill

 

[Anonymous]

Like many of you I started out detecting in my own yard. But I was 17 and still lived with my parents. 38 years later I can still hear my dad standing behind me saying "You had better not mess up my lawn." Talk about incentive to learn proper recovery methods!!! Many years later my dad became head of maintenance at a local high school and I can still remember him coming home on occasion mad that some knucklehead had dug up the school grounds.
Bill

 

[Anonymous]

At the risk of inducing a guilt trip (not the intent) you owe it to yourself and the detecting community at large (or at least the good guys!) to let this guy know the evil he is doing for the hobby.
Again, as Bill said, show him proper location of a target, (if his dectector has no pinpoint show him the X method) then show him how to dig a correctly sized hole. If it's a creeping grass, explain why a flap cut is preferred, if "normal" grass show him how a small plug can be taken. If a target is off to the side of the plug show him how to "jug" the hole without having to take another plug section from the surface.
You might even want to carry a plastic sheet like many of us do, and show him how a properly reconstructed fill-in is almost invisible, and will be certainly so after the next rain.
Not only is there a danger to the hobby, but a danger to other people. Personally, I'd be more concerned about a person twisting their ankle than I would about losing detecting rights in the area, and I let that be my guide when I go digging.
I have over 100 pieces of interest from my own yard (coins, bullets, toys, trinkets and all manner of junk (screw caps, pull tabs, etc) in a box. A neighbor stopped by and I showed him all the stuff after he noticed the detector. He asked where "all that came from!", and I said mostly the side and front yard.
We went to look, and he asked how long ago I dug it all. I said 2 months, and he simply couldn't believe it. Well, the reason I bothered with that little story is I treat my own yard FAR worse than someone elses!
I'll try to find a copy of the "Detectorist Code Of Ethics", perhaps you can print him out a copy.
It's all about respect. Very little of that going around these days.
DAS

 

[Anonymous]

u guys are right it is too bad, but u have to remember that sometimes it could have been a newbie, i remember when i first started, i had absolutely no one to learn from except these forums. i did my best and with practice i got better. Hopefully thats all it was was a NEWBIE learning the game.

 

[Anonymous]

When I started out I didn't dig manhole-size holes. I read up on the hobby and how to retrieve targets and the whole nine yards and that was 40 years ago before internet or before anything. Info was mighty scarce back then but even then I had sense enough not to dig up public property as if I was excavating for a new highway. There is no excuse for wanton destruction of property.
Bill

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah since this is an elementary school I was more worried about kids tripping, twisting an ankle, or breaking a leg, in some of these huge holes. I don't understand people's insensitivity to the safety of others, especially children.
Bill

 

[Anonymous]

Hi,
I read with intrest all of your comments. and agree with you.
However think yourselves lucky as in the UK you simply CANNOT dig anyehere without permission! (other than a beach)
We alway's have to Have the landowners permission and if it's public land then the council or governing body decision on whether we can detect.
If anyone left holes after digging then that would cause a major problem over here.
Leaving a hole on land you have permission to dig and you are finished.
So....what's my point?
You guys can detect in many public places so you are bound to get someone who has just bought a detector and has a go, and does not no the code.
Answer... HELP them.... aproach them and help,
Maybee the shop who sells the detector should explain what to do , or perhaps a code of ethics should be with each detector.
Wish we could just goto a public place and search ...WOW sounds great!
Come on Guys you all started yourselves somewhere so help the guy who starts, and show him/her the ropes
just my thoughts
all the best
Mike

 

[Anonymous]

probes to bring up the shallow targets. I use one and it will make you better at pinpointing. I hardly ever dig targets up. Just probe until you feek the target, slide back and under and pop er up. A whole lot less work and damage.

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah that's my standard mode of retrieval. You can't tell I was even there.
Bill