most give up too quickly... advice, especially for our newbies

[GRAY GHOST]

hello all, i can't count the number of times ive actually seen people pull their machine out of the car, all hopped up, and ready to start hunting, hunt for 15 minutes, make a couple of digs, shake their heads, and load the machine back into the car - AND LEAVE. thats the way it goes too, in that order. i can't teach you patience, but i can show you how to be more disciplined and improve your techniques. i've always set time limits for myself. no matter how well or bad the day goes, i have a time limit. and i'm bound to it. that piece of ground will be there tommorow. i have to be true to my hobby, as i am in the other major areas of my life. no sense being frustrated over a bad day when i know full well two minutes into the next hunt could change my life into one of relative ease. frustration is pointless. to me, metal detecting is like mopping the kitchen floor; start at one corner and work your way around in tight, long lines. don't forget where you've been, mentally note where the find was made in your sweep, and don't mop yourself into a corner! make mental landmarks and develop your mind's eye. the mind's eye is when you've got the beep, in motion to set your machine down so you can dig, your eyes transfixed on that irregular piece of dirt you would otherwise have had no idea that something was there. the not - so- hard - to - learn mind's eye i've developed over the years has denied the pinpointer makers another sale. keep the coil low and slow; no need to hurry a sure thing. it makes absolutely no sense to fumble and fidget for tools that i don't need. it takes time and finds away from the hunt, which suffers as a result. and it's distracting. i feel that too many of us are impatient with our machines, and don't give ourselves the time and lessons necessary to learn the machine and consequently, what we interpret those beeps to be. so the next thing i hear is, inevitably, "i need a new machine!" give your expensive new machine a chance, and go with the learning curve, not against it. after a while, you will come to a "place" with your detector, a place where man and machine are one and operating on even terms. it's a great feeling. and you'll know when it happens. almost like an extension of your arm. you just have to be smarter than the machine and single - minded in your purpose. that's part of the discipline. and the great finds will come, you may have no doubt about that. thousands of hunts later, initially i never expect to find anything. i go hunting with a clean slate every time. everytime. i learned long ago to expect the unexpected. it's become a self fulfilling prophecy: because everything that i've ever found WAS unexpected. long post, i know, thanks 4 reading, and hope you can benefit somehow. my special thanks to elton, a.k.a. the mayor... good conversation this eve. hh,


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[ROGERTN]

VERY WELL SAID GG....THERE HAVE BEEN MANY TIMES I HAVE STARTED A HUNT AT 8AM FINDING NOTHING ALL DAY THEN THE LAST HOUR OR SO BEFORE DARK HIT THE JACK POT. COVERING MANY SQUARE FEET OF GROUND WITH OUT A BEEP. PATIENTS PAYS OFF. I HAVE A BUDDY WHO IS VERY IMPATATIENT AND THE LAST COUPLE OF TIMES WE HAVE WENT HE HAS FOUND NOTHING.. HE ALWAYS SAYS WELL THIS PLACE IS JUST ABOUT HUNTED OUT. I TELL HIM NOWAY, NO HOW, YOU CAN NEVER GET IT ALL. THEN AGAIN WE WILL HIT THE RIGHT SPOT ON THE RIGHT DAY AND BINGO. SO THE KEY WORD IS PATIENTS LEARN WHAT YOUR MACHINE IS TELLING YOU AND LISTEN CLOSELY. IT WILL HAPPEN AND PAY OFF WILL BE GREAT. HH TO ALL....................PATIENTS......................

 

[JMorgan]

It took me like 4 months before I found my first civil war bullet. I blamed my machine, I vowed to sell it and quit and never go again. I was tired of digging up $HIT all the time and wearing myself out every day for nothing. But I kept getting lured back. And then I found my first bullet, and button. And after that I found more bullets, and more buttons, then some coins, and finally a cartridge box plate. It takes much time and even more patience. You will always dig more junk than not I don't care what machine you have. Learn your signals. Learn what is junk and what is possibly worth digging. Ghost hit the nail when he said LEARN YOUR MACHINE!! Drop different targets around and see how they react. And every day you will learn more about your machine but not overnight. If you don't have patience than this is not for you because you won't go out and pull treasures all the time every time. Just take your time, get out when you can, try new spots and you will find stuff

 

[GRAY GHOST]

n/t

 

[jbeverts]

Patience and a love of the hobby keep me going back. I just love to be outdoors. You are correct when you say, you won't find everything. It just leaves more for the next time you are out hunting.