I never thought in my wildest dreams I would EVER find a bust quarter...but it finally happened...and then the final 3 legs of the slam found their way into my pouch.
I have to thank my dear friend Deeponedge (Darrel) for locating the site and getting us permission. I don't have to thank him for pounding the snot out of it a time or two before I got there
and also pulling a bust half out of there
....but I would have done the same thing if I could.
He has been a Godsend to me and my family and is always willing to help out my pops when he can. I have been trying to hunt this place with him for almost 6 months now but have just had too much on my plate...so he was kind enough to hammer it without me a couple of times and did well.
The site is littered with newer iron (if I might call it that)... molten slag type which is scattered everywhere over an area the was very active back in the 1840's. The activity changed in the 1850's but still continued until 1910. He has pounded the snot out of it with his pro coil and E-trac so I chose to leave my E-Trac at home and opted for the SE equipped with the 10 x 12 SEF coil...because the SEF handles iron much better for me.
That's all the info I'm gonna' provide and share as the last time he found us a good spot... I made the mistake of showing too much background in one of my pics. The next thing we knew some idiot or idiots pillaged the site without permission and ruined it for us. Pretty sad... because as you all know I'm very willing to share info, tips, stories, pointers, pics, etc. This time however I have decided to not even show the actual in field pics of the digs as they came out of the ground in fear of some moron or group of morons might recognize something to use and steal this site as well.
IF I ever catch any of these freakin' jackwagons hunting on one of our private sites without permission...I'm sure my bouncer days will take over. I will forget how to be a nice guy long enough to persuade them to EVER consider doing so again....and that's all that needs to be said.
I had the whole day to hunt and we did so for nearly 11 hours. I brought a nice cooler full of stuff including turkey, chips, gatorade, little doughnuts, fresh fruit, etc.
I'm assuming "Heavy D's" mitts found their way into the cooler because when it became snack time at mid day...my fruit was still intact but the doughnuts and chips were no longer there.
It was pretty tough contending with the iron but I feel I'm at home there and in fact most of my better finds come from these types of spots.
My first find was a 2 Injun' pocket spill from about 10" so I was hoping for a good day to continue.
Within 3 hours or so I got a warble but it sounded as though it was engulfed in iron. Most of the iron here seemed to be at the 4" to 6" level; while there were signals a little deeper if I paid super close attention.
This one could just have easily been iron but something in the way the warble sounded as it broke through the null on the 10 x 12 SEF and did not break up with a faster sweep told me to give it a shot. I'm glad I did because there was a chunk of iron there but from only 8" down came my first ever Bust quarter...and it didn't stop there.
After running the probe over the dirt I removed...it sang again...and I was rewarded with a seated quarter as well. A Bust/seated quarter pocket spill is abviously a first for me because I hadn't dug a bust quarter until now.
I'm still a little confused as to why someone would have been carrying an 1830's bust quarter in their pocket with a seated quarter from the 1870's...but I'm sure as heck not gonna' complain to the detecting Gods. All I know is I'm glad the person lost them both in the 1800's....and I thank them for the hole they obviously had in their pocket.
That's exactly what I love about this hobby....the unexpected can and will happen.
Over the next few hours I dug nothing but Injuns'..and I'm not complaining because at this point I considered it a dream day. It is a lot tougher for me to pick injuns' out of iron than it is silver because they obviously don't give off as high of a warble coming through the nulls...which is what I listen for.
Towards the late afternoon I finally got another high warble and I was honestly thinking seated dime because it was pretty faint. I dug down about 7" and encountered an old rusty bolt and when I ran the probe it now sang. I dug down only 1" more and there was another big rim looking at me...tipped about halfway on edge which is probably why it sounded faint like a dime. Out popped the tarnish streaked Barber quarter and it was then that I realized I had hit the quarter trifecta...and they had all three been at only 8" deep. Thje injuns had all come from 9" to as deep as right at 10" on the first spill..
I was honestly ready to call it a day at this point because I was getting tired but Heavy D wanted to head in town and hunt the old high school from the 1920's on the way home.This was a site I have hunted often before and was pretty familiar with. In fact I had pulled some silver from the concession stand area because it stood right where the old softball field was from 1920 to 1937. I hadn't ever pulled any seated from here and only 1 barber dime that I know of but again I had pulled silver from here before.
I was happy to see they had moved some dirt around...actually scraped an area clean where a small utility shed once stood...and it looked like they were going to put up a new one. I figured I might as well give it a shot hoping for a merc or wheatie to add the the pouch.
Before long I got a textbook screamer and the depth meter showed only about 6"...but this ground had about 2" of topsoil scraped away...and the crosshairs were pegged...so no way I pass it up thinking it could be a memorial cent. I let Darrel dig me a nice plug and peel it back...and when he did I saw the glimmer of silver break off the clump and drop in the hole. As I looked down... my mouth dropped open and just stayed there because at the bottom of the hole was another quarter. I honestly don't believe in my nearly 40 years of hunting that I have ever found 4 quarters in one hunt. I guess I might have back in the 70's when silver was more plentiful and coming home with 10 silver was not all that uncommon...but I honestly don't remember.
I snatched it out of the hole and was shocked to see a Standing Liberty quarter. Of course it had NO date just like 99% of the other ones I have found...but I couldn't have cared less because it then hit me what I had accomplished. I had found 4 different quarters to complete the quarter grand slam...and what was really special was that I did it with a bust....seated...barber...and a standing liberty. Heavy D was stoked as much as I was because he was there to see 'em all come out of the ground.
I've found a few dime grand slams in the past years...but never even dreamed of hitting a quarter slam. It just wouldn't have been possible without Heavy D's research...persistence...permission...and friendship. Thank you bro.
At this point we only had about 1 1/2 hours of daylight left so I thought I might as well try to find quarter #5...but it wasn't to be. I searched until dark and could not find the simplest of all the quarters...the Washington. Trust me though...I'm more than happy with the four I did find...and my first ever quarter slam.
My buddy Hercules even approved by putting both paws on my leg as I typed the post
I'm not cleaning these critters in any way whatsoever. All I did is give them a quick warm water rinse...and here is my slam of slams.
Thank you all for viewing and sharing this with me.
I have to thank my dear friend Deeponedge (Darrel) for locating the site and getting us permission. I don't have to thank him for pounding the snot out of it a time or two before I got there
and also pulling a bust half out of there....but I would have done the same thing if I could.He has been a Godsend to me and my family and is always willing to help out my pops when he can. I have been trying to hunt this place with him for almost 6 months now but have just had too much on my plate...so he was kind enough to hammer it without me a couple of times and did well.
The site is littered with newer iron (if I might call it that)... molten slag type which is scattered everywhere over an area the was very active back in the 1840's. The activity changed in the 1850's but still continued until 1910. He has pounded the snot out of it with his pro coil and E-trac so I chose to leave my E-Trac at home and opted for the SE equipped with the 10 x 12 SEF coil...because the SEF handles iron much better for me.
That's all the info I'm gonna' provide and share as the last time he found us a good spot... I made the mistake of showing too much background in one of my pics. The next thing we knew some idiot or idiots pillaged the site without permission and ruined it for us. Pretty sad... because as you all know I'm very willing to share info, tips, stories, pointers, pics, etc. This time however I have decided to not even show the actual in field pics of the digs as they came out of the ground in fear of some moron or group of morons might recognize something to use and steal this site as well.
IF I ever catch any of these freakin' jackwagons hunting on one of our private sites without permission...I'm sure my bouncer days will take over. I will forget how to be a nice guy long enough to persuade them to EVER consider doing so again....and that's all that needs to be said.
I had the whole day to hunt and we did so for nearly 11 hours. I brought a nice cooler full of stuff including turkey, chips, gatorade, little doughnuts, fresh fruit, etc.
I'm assuming "Heavy D's" mitts found their way into the cooler because when it became snack time at mid day...my fruit was still intact but the doughnuts and chips were no longer there.
It was pretty tough contending with the iron but I feel I'm at home there and in fact most of my better finds come from these types of spots.
My first find was a 2 Injun' pocket spill from about 10" so I was hoping for a good day to continue.
Within 3 hours or so I got a warble but it sounded as though it was engulfed in iron. Most of the iron here seemed to be at the 4" to 6" level; while there were signals a little deeper if I paid super close attention.
This one could just have easily been iron but something in the way the warble sounded as it broke through the null on the 10 x 12 SEF and did not break up with a faster sweep told me to give it a shot. I'm glad I did because there was a chunk of iron there but from only 8" down came my first ever Bust quarter...and it didn't stop there.
After running the probe over the dirt I removed...it sang again...and I was rewarded with a seated quarter as well. A Bust/seated quarter pocket spill is abviously a first for me because I hadn't dug a bust quarter until now.I'm still a little confused as to why someone would have been carrying an 1830's bust quarter in their pocket with a seated quarter from the 1870's...but I'm sure as heck not gonna' complain to the detecting Gods. All I know is I'm glad the person lost them both in the 1800's....and I thank them for the hole they obviously had in their pocket.
That's exactly what I love about this hobby....the unexpected can and will happen.
Over the next few hours I dug nothing but Injuns'..and I'm not complaining because at this point I considered it a dream day. It is a lot tougher for me to pick injuns' out of iron than it is silver because they obviously don't give off as high of a warble coming through the nulls...which is what I listen for.
Towards the late afternoon I finally got another high warble and I was honestly thinking seated dime because it was pretty faint. I dug down about 7" and encountered an old rusty bolt and when I ran the probe it now sang. I dug down only 1" more and there was another big rim looking at me...tipped about halfway on edge which is probably why it sounded faint like a dime. Out popped the tarnish streaked Barber quarter and it was then that I realized I had hit the quarter trifecta...and they had all three been at only 8" deep. Thje injuns had all come from 9" to as deep as right at 10" on the first spill..
I was honestly ready to call it a day at this point because I was getting tired but Heavy D wanted to head in town and hunt the old high school from the 1920's on the way home.This was a site I have hunted often before and was pretty familiar with. In fact I had pulled some silver from the concession stand area because it stood right where the old softball field was from 1920 to 1937. I hadn't ever pulled any seated from here and only 1 barber dime that I know of but again I had pulled silver from here before.
I was happy to see they had moved some dirt around...actually scraped an area clean where a small utility shed once stood...and it looked like they were going to put up a new one. I figured I might as well give it a shot hoping for a merc or wheatie to add the the pouch.
Before long I got a textbook screamer and the depth meter showed only about 6"...but this ground had about 2" of topsoil scraped away...and the crosshairs were pegged...so no way I pass it up thinking it could be a memorial cent. I let Darrel dig me a nice plug and peel it back...and when he did I saw the glimmer of silver break off the clump and drop in the hole. As I looked down... my mouth dropped open and just stayed there because at the bottom of the hole was another quarter. I honestly don't believe in my nearly 40 years of hunting that I have ever found 4 quarters in one hunt. I guess I might have back in the 70's when silver was more plentiful and coming home with 10 silver was not all that uncommon...but I honestly don't remember.
I snatched it out of the hole and was shocked to see a Standing Liberty quarter.
Of course it had NO date just like 99% of the other ones I have found...but I couldn't have cared less because it then hit me what I had accomplished. I had found 4 different quarters to complete the quarter grand slam...and what was really special was that I did it with a bust....seated...barber...and a standing liberty. Heavy D was stoked as much as I was because he was there to see 'em all come out of the ground.I've found a few dime grand slams in the past years...but never even dreamed of hitting a quarter slam. It just wouldn't have been possible without Heavy D's research...persistence...permission...and friendship. Thank you bro.
At this point we only had about 1 1/2 hours of daylight left so I thought I might as well try to find quarter #5...but it wasn't to be. I searched until dark and could not find the simplest of all the quarters...the Washington. Trust me though...I'm more than happy with the four I did find...and my first ever quarter slam.
My buddy Hercules even approved by putting both paws on my leg as I typed the post
I'm not cleaning these critters in any way whatsoever. All I did is give them a quick warm water rinse...and here is my slam of slams.
Thank you all for viewing and sharing this with me.
finds. Congrats.
HUGE congratulations!!
