Exciting Find With X-Terra 705

[mapper65]

Hello everyone, last evening I had the opportunity to hunt on a family member's property for the first time. Their property is adjacent to the first house built in their community which dates back to sometime in the 1700s. I started out by finding 2 wheats along with a few other pennies from the early 70s. I eventually pulled up my first Mercury dime, a 1941. I couldn't have been more excited because I've only been detecting for just over a month and this was the oldest silver that I had found. About 10 minutes later I got a fairly weak signal but strong enough that I felt I should dig it. As I was going through the plug I saw what I first thought was another dime but then realized that it was smaller than a dime. Not wanted to scratch it up, I put it in with my other coins and decided I would wash it off when I got home.

I was expecting that it was probably a 3 Cent piece like I had just seen in my brother's book of coins that he has found detecting over the last 35 years. Much to my surprise after washing it off and spending a few minutes with a coin book, it ended up being an 1834 Capped Half Dime. It may be that you guys find stuff like this all of the time but for me being a newbie, I'm very excited about this find.

I would have liked to have stayed longer but I was relying on the light from my Pro Pointer during my last couple of digs. I plan on going back in the next week or so. What makes this even more exciting is that the gentleman that owns the house next door which is the oldest house in the community came out shortly after I found the Merc and asked how I was doing. I expect that he's probably pushing 80 years old and was very personable. I told him about finding the Merc and he proceeded to spend about 5 minutes or so telling me the history of his house and the surrounding area. Near the end of our conversation he said "feel free to look around over on my property". I told him that I was chasing daylight but would definitely love to come back sometime. He said "come back anytime". Needless to say I can't wait to see what else I may find.

 

[Crocket]

Wow what a great find! And in great shape. Can't wait to see what you find there on you next trip....

 

[Beale]

Congrats on an awesome find! I would be happy as heck. Good hunting, Beale.

 

[GunnarMN]

That is a great find WOW and in very good condition

 

[Digger]

Now that is one outstanding find. Ya know, I've hunted for over 38 years and found lots of Seated silver. But I've never found a half dime or a Bust coin. Granted, this part of the Country wasn't settled until the mid 1850's. But my brother found one just like yours a couple years ago. So I still have hope. Congratulations on a spectacular find. Just don't become discouraged if you don't find another one for a week or two! HH Randy

 

[7centsworth]

All I can say is wow. That is a find of a life time.

 

[weston]

trust me, whether your a newbie or a seasoned hunter that is a GREAT find! i use a Minelab Explorer SE and i haven't even broke into seated! you got a bust half dime!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i have been detecting for 4 years now i would LOVE to pull out just one of those!!!! even if its cut in half lol

Weston

 

[At a Siding]

n/t

 

[Terra1959]

Mapper,

Thats an awesome very old coin.
As you demonstrated sometimes the weaker signals turn out to be special.
Please post another pic when you clean it up
Have fun when u go back.
Congratulations

T59

 

[Mick in Dubbo]

Well done Mapper.
I'd love to find a coin that old! I've been detecting for close to 8 years now and still haven't cracked one that is pre 1900 yet. To find an oldie like that would be fantastic!
Good luck with your next hunt there. I'm sure it'll be a beauty.
Mick Evans.

 

[utmike]

VERY nice coin. Congratulations!!!

mike

 

[jjaddict]

Wow!! That's awesome, congrats! Very jealous!

adam

 

[TURNMASTER]

Yeah that is a Great find. Hope that place gives many more. My oldest coin to date is 1898, a penny and a dime.

Jeff

 

[At a Siding]

That is so cool... Thanks for showing the find. Inspiration! I guess a lot of this is about location.

 

[TomB]

I would say one of the "best finds of the year" on this forum,as far as coins goes. What coil were you using on on the 705. Very, very nice. TomB

 

[mapper65]

That was with the stock 9" 7.5kHz coil. I was running with the sensitivity around 28 to 30 and it was about 5" deep.

I've never been a really big history buff but finding this coin has caused me to put a small timeline together based on the year of the coin. I think that I did all of the math correctly.


1. Andrew Jackson was president. He was elected for his 2nd term just two years earlier.
2. Iowa, Florida, Texas, Wisconsin, Arkansas, Michigan, California, Minnesota, Utah, Nevada, Colorado, Oklahoma and Minnesota were not states yet.
3. The battle of the Alamo happened 2 years later.
4. The Pony Express did not exist until 26 years later.
5. Abraham Lincoln was 23 years old and would become president 27 years later.
6. The Civil war started 27 years later.
7. World War I started 80 years later.
8. The Great Depression was 95 years later.

 

[Boydman]

n/t

 

[reltolbert]

Mapper65,
Why do you like the Xterra 705 metal detector over some other detectors?
Is there a high learning curve to it or is it easy to learn to use it?

 

[mapper65]

Originally it came highly recommended by my uncle who already owns one. I probably should say that I come from a family of Tesoro users and I really only looked at the Tesoro Cortes and the X-Terra 705 because they were in the ballpark of how much I planned on spending. In general, I felt that the 705 was the best choice for the money. I think what eventually sold me on the 705 was the reputation and the larger display. I really don't have a good excuse for not but buying the Tesoro Cortes. This actual site was one of my key points of research on the 705.

I have an electronics background by trade so I may not be the best person to ask about the learning curve. The first week or so I was fumbling a little through the settings but now most of it seems second nature. I'm sure that I have a little more to learn. About the only setting that I haven't messed with is the Ground Balance Offset. I may or may not have missed some things because of the GBO but I've found 185 coins since 5/14/10 so I feel like it's been a success so far. I think it's like anything else, you have to use it to get comfortable with it. Read about how detecting actually works and that will help you understand why it has the different settings and how you should use them. The FAQFAQ at the top of the main page is filled with excellent information. The people that took the time to put that together are probably giving you more information that you may get anywhere else and should be commended for the time that they spent assembling all of those details.

 

[reltolbert]

mapper65,

You must know what you are doing if one can find that many coins since 5/14/10.
I appreciate your advice and I think for the money that the Xterra 705 is an excellent all-around Detector.
I'm sure it is easier to learn compared to the White's Spectra V3i which is a heavier machine.