Larchmont with a friend, then FOOTBALL

To lead off, I would just like to mention that my grandparents just celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary last night... one reason why I was out until midnight and then up until about 4am...

That being said, I was up at 630am getting stuff ready to head out and meet a member of FMDF, "dfxing virginia" out in Larchmont for an early AM hunt. When I got in last night I noticed I had a message from him reminding me about it, and I'm glad he did because I totally forgot. So I was in the truck and at the park by 730am.

The target for the day was Larchmont Park at the corner of Hampton Blvd. and Bolling Ave. in Norfolk. The spot has some good history as you can by picture, but I was betting money it had already been pillaged years before. But we were hopeful there'd be something left.

Well... there wasn't. We hunted around for just less than three hours and didn't leave with much more than a few bucks in clad and a pouch full of trash. My total haul for the day was 34 coins @ $3.60, and a "looks like" silver dolphin earring. These 34 coins put me at the 1,000 coin mark for the year, yay!

I had to leave around 11am to head back home and get some snack ready for gameday. A friend of mine was coming over, so I spent the rest of the day in front of the TV. In the following pictures you can see the goodies. I made hot wings, fried pickles, and then a little something I like to call "Spicy Brown Sugar Bacon Wrapped Chicken Bites". Bet you wish you got to have some!

ERBC: Chesapeake

I headed back out to the church off Sparrow Rd. in Chesapeake where I found the '46-D wheat just recently. Sadly, there wasn't much else to find this evening. The church itself has to at least be as old as the community it sits in, which would date to sometime in the 1950's, so one might think that it could be a candidate for a bit of silver coinage, even if only Rosie's and silver Washingtons.

I started in the back, towards their picnic and tot lot area. All around the play area the dimes just kept hitting one after the other... but then it just dried up. Surely the area has been hit before, but we can always dream. I did happen to find a bullet under a tree root, gave a nice hit on the XLT.

I decided to head around up front and the signals started coming back, a quarter here and there, some memorials, but nothing special. Here's the take with 17 coins @ $1.52.

Alanton + CHX Hunt

Today was a day to be away from the apartment all day. Air filters where being changed, so me and kitty had to be elsewhere. Ash took Zoe to her parents house in the morning while I headed to the bank to deposit some money, the gas station to fill up, and the to Grandma's to visit.

I hung out for a few hours chatting with Grandma about any and everything new in life. My Aunt showed up as well so it was a good visit. After, I went out in the front yard of my Uncle's house to do what I really came over for... swing and dig. The neighborhood was built in the 60's sometime, so I knew it would be iffy to find any silver, but I gave it a shot. I stayed about an hour and was teased by a '66 Quarter... and then a '50 Wheat penny. I had a few hours til 3 when i needed to pick up kitty and head home, so I ran some other errands and then ended up at a church built in the 50's along Sparrow Rd. in Chesapeake. I dug there for 45 minutes or so, landing another wheatie, this time a '46-D... not much else.

A decent hunts worth, 26 coins @ $1.58.

CO Trip, Books + Tokens

I spent the past week in Colorado visiting a friend and experiencing some of the state. It has 10+ years since I remember traveling through and seeing my Great Aunt who lived in Colorado Springs, so it was nice to return. I wasn't prepared for the cold, and witnessed the first snow of the year in Golden.

I had high hopes of going to see the Rockies in the playoffs against the Phillies, or even the Broncos hosting the Patriots, but both fell through. But I had many other adventures on the trip so it was all good. Below are images of said adventures. As far as nature goes, I made it out to Red Rocks, and also Estes Park, which is an entrance to the Rocky Mountain National Park. Estes Park is also where the hotel from the movie, The Shining is located. I also HAD to visit Casa Bonita, a huge, themed Mexican restaurant that I first heard of from watching South Park, and couldn't believe it was real. I saved a token from here.

On my last full day there I made it out to Gold-N-Detectors, a sweet prospecting and MD shop in downtown Golden that is a must visit if you are ever in the area. It's run by a fun gentleman by the name of Bill. He has all sorts of cache finds displayed, and many machines to play around with in the store, or across the street at Cleer Creek History Park. Bill gave me a token on my way out after purchasing two books for my XLT.

Enjoy the pics!

Pocket Change Lincolns

So I got home yesterday and pretty much did nothing. So today after I picked up Taylor I was to make sure she had her homework done so she could go to the pumpkin patch. So part of the homework was "Penny Math." To do this, you start out with 10 or 15 pennies... then with each hand you grab what you can, count them, and add them together... simple.

Anyway, for pennies, I reach into our community change jar in the living room. I dumped it all out and was quite surprised to see some pretty shiny, new looking pennies in there. Now I haven't received any of the 4 styles of 2009 Lincoln cents in change anywhere in VA, so I was curious. I did get 3 of the 2nd design released at the Charlotte, NC airport a few months back though.

So anyway, I check them, and most of them are the 3rd design, known as the "Professional Life in Illinois" strike. So now I have 50% of the 2009 designs... I hope I can complete the set.

New England Artist Makes New Coins to Find

I read a few blogs and articles today that all pointed me in the direction of one Matthew Hincman of Massachusetts. Matt has been busy distributing his newest art project in various, random places across the Northeast, but mainly in the greater Boston area. Get updates on drop sites by following Matt on Twitter, HERE.

In lieu of the recent economic duress in the nation, he has taken it upon himself to mint a variety of copper and silver coins (roughly 1250 in total) that he says are loosely based on the Hard Times Tokens that were abundant pre-Civil War in the US.

In the image above you can see an example of the coins. One depicts a potato entwined with a ribbon that reads, "Pomme de Terre", which is French for well... you guessed it, potato. I think literally it means "Apple of the Ground." The other, similarly designed coin is of an apple entwined with a ribbon that reads, "Pomme en l'Air", or "Apple in The Air."

If you're up in the Northeast and come across one of these, if not more, please drop me a note, I'd love to own one!

NPR Article on the subject: HERE.
Matt's Blog: HERE.

White's Battery Pack Mods

I've never been much of a tinkerer with electronics, but maybe for some of you out there who are, these two modifications I'm going to show you might be up your alley. Both of these should work on any of the White's models that use these style battery packs... so the DFX, XLT, MXT. Keep in mind, if your machine is under warranty, any possible damage cause by these modifications will not be covered.

8 to 9 Battery Modification

A member of FMDF, Rob Olszta has posted a great way to turn your 8 battery unit into a 9 battery unit. He's not the first to do this, and there are many mentions of it all over the net, but at least he has a half decent write-up. It basically involves relocating the contacts and cutting out the plastic ribs near the top of the pack... thus making room for a 9th battery. You can see the finished product in the image above. For the full writeup, visit Rob's website, HERE.

Rechargeable AA Modification

Another great modification, that I know a few folks who have done successfully, is to turn your battery pack, into a rechargeable AA pack. With this mod you just attach the contacts to a plug in coaxial port and you can use the Quick/Overnight charger that comes with the White's optional battery pack. Again, there are a few half-assed write-ups on this across the net, but THIS ONE at Have Detector, Will Travel seems to be the best. You can see the completed project in the above image.

Another decent write-up with pics and even a parts list can be found at John Burrows website, HERE.

IN THE NEWS: MDs to Find UXO in Capitol

I read a great story today about a pair of geophysicists who are using metal detectors to help snoop out unexploded WWI ordinance in the Spring Valley area of Washington DC. Apparently during the first World War, there was a chemical weapon test firing range at and around the American University.

On the streets neighboring the school (like the above scene just off of Rockwood Pkwy), apparently you can still find buried, or perhaps partially buried Livens Projectors in the brush. These very basic tubes where designed by William Howard Livens, and made for launching a 8" projectile that could carry things like napalm or in many cases, a chemical agent like nerve gas or tear gas. In the following image is a vial of mustard gas agent that was found in the area in August.

Since the early 1990's, military officials have been searching for and cleaning up all of the UXO in the area ranging from the University, all the way to the Dalecarlia Reservoir as concerns about the chemicals leaking into the public water supply have been raised.

In the image above I made a color chart showing the range of common projectiles fired from this area. In the green area were just your common short range ammunition, the yellow was about where you could expect to find 4" Mortars... and in the orange is the range of the Livens projectiles.

To check out the article from the Washington Post, click HERE.
For a related story from the Post from 2 years back, click HERE.
For more info on Bill Livens, click HERE.
For more info on the Livens Projectile, click HERE.

Weekly World Coin Post: EUROPEAN UNION

This week I'm tackling a whole host of countries. At the beginning of 1999 the Euro was rolled out in 11 of the then 15 member states. Ever since, it has been one of the dominant world currencies. At the current rate, 1 EUR is worth almost $1.50 USD, a sweet conversion rate for all the Europeans who travel and work in the US and purchase things much cheaper.

I've traveled to only four of the EU member states, England, Germany, Netherlands, and Spain... however England does not use the Euro, as they were awarded an opt-out. Their British Pound is stronger anyway.

I think it's really cool how you can travel nearly over all of Europe and only use one currency. But don't let that fool you into thinking countries who retired their native currency had to settle and lose their identity on the new Euro. Those the side with the value on all Euros, EU wide is the same, member states has individualized engravings on the other side to distinguish their national identity. For example on an Irish Euro you might see an image of a Lire, but on the same coin from Malta, there would be a Maltese Cross. It makes them extremely fun to see and collect. In the US as we would call it obverse and reverse, for the Euros, these would be Common and National... should be obvious why.

One last neat fact about the Euro... though each coin size is different, the edges are also different. Some are reeded, some are smooth, some are a mix of both. These were put there to aid sight impaired individuals distinguish each value from the other. Also the same reason the paper money is different sizes.

For more info on the EU Euro, click HERE.

TOP PIC, LEFT TO RIGHT:

These coins are all the "Common Side", so no matter which country the Euro is from, this side they all look the same. Each has 12 stars signifying the original 12 members states and then a geographic map showing the region.

2 Euro
1 Euro
20 Cents
10 Cents
5 Cents

BOTTOM PIC, TOP ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT:

GREECE
2002 2 Euros Cupronickel Center w/ Nickel Ring 25.75mm
2004 2 Euros Cupronickel Center w/ Nickel Ring 25.75mm | Athens Olympics Commemorative
2002 20 Cents Nordic Gold 22.5mm | Ioannis Kapodistrias
2002 10 Cents Nordic Gold 19.75mm | Rigas Feraios

BOTTOM PIC, 2ND ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT:

IRELAND
2002 5 Cents Copper Plated Steel 21.25mm
2002 2 Cents Copper Plated Steel 18.75mm

BOTTOM PIC, 3rd ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT:

FRANCE
2001 2 Euros Cupronickel Center w/ Nickel Ring 25.75mm | Liberte Egalite Fraternite
2000 5 Cents Copper Plated Steel 21.25mm | Marianne

BOTTOM PIC, 4TH ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT:

SPAIN
2001 1 Euro Nickel-Brass Ring w/ Nickel Center 23.25mm | Juan Carlos I
1999 20 Cents Nordic Gold 22.25mm | Miguel de Cervantes
1999 10 Cents Nordic Gold 19.75mm
1999 5 Cents Copper Plated Steel 21.25mm | Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela

BOTTOM PIC, 5TH ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT:

ITALY
2002 1 Euro Nickel-Brass Ring w/ Nickel Center 23.25mm | Vitruvian Man
2002 20 Cents Cents Nordic Gold 22.25mm | Unique Forms of Continuity in Space
2002 10 Cents Nordic Gold 19.75mm | Birth of Venus

BOTTOM PIC, 6TH ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT:

CYPRUS
2008 1 Euro Nickel-Brass Ring w/ Nickel Center 23.25mm | The Idol of Pomos

BOTTOM PIC, 7th ROW, LEFT TO RIGHT:

BELGIUM
1999 5 Cents Copper Plated Steel 21.25mm | Albert II

IN THE NEWS: Chauncey Wolcott Treasure

In the image above lies the now vacant lot at 1028 N. 5th St. in Springfield, IL where efforts are underway to unearth an alleged buried chest holding at least 24 gold US coins.

According to reports that are gaining attention all over the net, a postal worker in St. Louis, MO came across a hidden letter when taking a part an antique chair she wanted to refinish. In the letter, labeled "Finders Keepers", was a key, and directions that the key would open a chest located at the above lot, 12 feet in the ground.

Those involved in the undertaking are well aware it may be a hoax, and many of our metal detector/treasure hunting peers are right on board with the theory. To them, too many things just don't add up.

All I know, is that with the gold coins that are said to be buried here (8 x Double eagles, 6 x Eagles, 5 x Half Eagles, 3 x Quarter Eagles, and 2 x Gold Dollars), the melt value alone, which at current rates is roughly $12,355 (426.4 g @ 90% = 383.76g = 12.338 Troy Oz.), is more than worth the effort. At auction those coins would pull many times more.

You be the judge, read the story HERE.

Above photo credits to Shannon Kirshner/The State Journal-Register.