Ruth MoratzMetal Detecting, Australian Gold Prospecting, And Freedom Of Information
October 30th 2006 15:15
Agatized Coral Pendants by Bill Gallagher
One of my first treasure hunting exploits involved the recovery of a rare gemstone fossil coral in Tampa Florida. That episode also accounts for my first magazine article sale too. I found several hundred pounds of Ballast Point Agatized Coral (red) during some new construction out by the bay, and then wrote about it. Ray Krupa at Western and Eastern Treasures Magazine bought the article, called Coral Fever, and from there I went on to find a lot more treasure, and also write many more articles. I sold around 35 articles to Western and Eastern Treasures from 1980 to 1995, and I also wrote for several other publications including Lapidary Journal.
Unfortuntely, when one posesses a natural talent for writing, there are many who wish to control that writing, EMPLOY that writing, and if this was just profit oriented, this need to control writers, well, I might be more amenable to it, because that is at least understandable. 10 times out of 10 though, the people wanting to control/employ my writing on a regular basis had an agenda of misinformation. They Lie. By avoiding the newspaper people, I caused myself a lot of trouble, because those types are powerful, wealthy, vindictive, and they actually like to engage in underhanded tactics and illegalities.
Then, thankfully, came the net. There is better writing for free here than in any of the wood pulp papers of the world, and this makes me very glad. The variety of information is nearly infinite on this internet, with freedom unequaled, and the searching capabilities of this internet can only be compared to having a city library in your own home, at your fingertips. With new ad schemes, some writers are even making money again, as the deforesters crash and burn. Happy day. Long Live The Tree.
Here are a couple more tips for Metal Detectorists, with a link below them for a Western Australia Gold Hunting Site done by a friend of mine.
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Practice Metal Detecting with a Home Made Target Area
It is very easy to build your own test area for metal detecting. Somewhere in your yard bury the various types of things you wish to get good at hearing, at various depths, and make a map of it as you go. Include deeply buried coffee cans at 36 and even 48 inches, and even a baby jar full of brass washers at about 24" or so. Do individual quarters, nickels, and dimes, at various depths. Do not get the items too close together though, or your signals will not be true. Practice often, in all the modes your detector has to offer. You will be amazed at what you learn, and quickly too.
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A Good Metal Detecting Trick
One of the best metal detecting tricks that I know of, is to use a regular shovel when metal detecting. This statement usually horrifies the inexperienced, and some people actually go running around in circles waving their hands above their heads!
Oh well.
I guess thats better than having their eyes spin round and round, and smoke come out of their ears. Hmmmm?
The reason I use a shovel is many-fold. It saves your back and knees, it is a tool SPECIALLY made for digging, it is durable and will go the distance, and comes in handy for things like probing the brush ahead of you for snakes, or as a walking staff for support in rough terrain. It is more efficient all the way around.
Some people are worried about tearing up a lawn. If I cannot use a shovel in a place I will not detect there. Also, I have not only seen, but actively participated, in the mangling of lawns with such idiotic tools as large screwdrivers or knives (Dangerous!), and special 30 dollar METAL DETECTING SPADES, so I know from whence I speak. I have also mangled some targets that way too. Unpretty to the max.
If you are concerned about preserving lawns, use the tool made just for that. The Shovel. On a lawn the accepted method for target retrieval is to slice the sod in a TRAPDOOR kind of effect, so that a piece of the sod can be peeled back easily, and intact. The digging or the coin or button or ring then takes place in the opening created when the trapdoor is removed. When its all said and done, the sod door goes back over the hole and voila, no one the wiser.
The creation of a trapdoor on a lawn is much easier and better accomplished by using a shovel. And you can give yourself plenty of room so you do not have to worry about hitting your target and scratching it, or worse. It only makes sense.
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Gold Prospecting in Western Australia
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