1) Intermediate Gratification
I have been a little anxious about the horde of new people who have started metal detecting in Wichita in recent months. I, like so many new hunters, believe there is already a dearth of silver coins to be found and well, I don’t want other people finding them. But something my sister-in-law said to me has eased that anxiety a little. She said that what drives me to detect morning, noon, and night is something Social Workers like her call Intermediate Gratification (IG). Basically, IG is that little demon that keeps a gambler pulling the slot machine’s arm and keeps me saying “just one more signal”.
So all these people getting metal detectors because the price of gold is almost $1900 per oz, may or may not operate under IG and thus, they may be casual hunters who are not very likely to exhaust the silver coins and gold rings around here.
2) More Anxiety
Another thing that adds anxiety to my life is the thought that this will be my best metal detecting year in terms of finds. I am already hunting unusual places to get stuff. I found two Mercury dimes in a curb strip that won’t be there to find next year. I mean, there is a finite number of silver coins and a finite number of old coins and once I extract them from the soil, well then, I am done. So I am not only anxious about the new hunters digging up all the good stuff, I am also anxious about me digging up all the good stuff! Go figure!
3) Undisclosed Location
Every time I find a silver coin or a piece of jewelry, my first thought is that there is more stuff there and I need to protect the location so that no one else will take the loot. I know I am not the only one who does this. Heck, I think is a requisite trait of a metal detectorist. However, when someone else discovers my honey spot all on their own, this need for secrecy completely goes away. At that point, I feel giddy by the prospect of sharing experiences with someone else and I gladly and freely talk about where I found stuff, how deep, what it sounded like in my machine, etc, etc. It’s almost as if that person and I become members of an exclusive and secret club: The Brotherhood of the Secret Honey Hole. (gosh! now that I write it out, it sounds a little obscene), but you know what I mean. We detectorists are funny animals.
Thank you looking.
The Dirt Is Good To Me 
Interesting post. But I LOVE hunting with other people. I don’t mind them finding things that could have been “mine” because my reward is seeing those cool things unearthed, and seeing their excitement in finding it. The reward is having someone there to share in your successes, too. The reward is learning from others and sharing some knowledge, too. And the reward is having someone to commiserate with when the pickins are slim.
That said, I am selective of who I hunt with and where we go. There are rules in that regard. Always fill your holes, learn to dig neatly, take your trash (obvious basics). But if I find a spot and I ask permission, it’s my reputation on the line if something goes wrong. So don’t go there without me (or without my knowledge at least), and respect my rules at my locations. I’ll extend the same respect to you. And if I’m sharing sites with you, I expect you to share with me too.
Follow those guidlelines, and I’m happy to share my sites with you, because metal detecting doesn’t have to be a solitary pursuit. It’s much better with a partner or small group (or BIG group in the right site HAHA). Don’t be anxious, just have fun!!
The only exception I have is my own farm – it’s very personal to me, so I am EXTRA picky who I invite here.
I agree. In spite of my more basic, greedy ways, I do love hunting with people. Our little group here in Wichita grew from 2 of us to now 7.
The need to share the excitement of a find is great. The first old coin I ever found was my 1900 Indian Head penny. After I dug it up, I drove to a different old park and I saw a guy metal detecting there, I immediately grabbed my IH and went to talk to him about it! I was lucky in that A) The guy was friendly and listened and B) He was an experienced hunter from which I’ve learned lots.
There’s 5 or 6 of us that are really hardcore diggers around here in this area, and a few more out in Raleigh that sometimes come out this way. I’m going to have a couple of folks out from Raleigh soon to hunt some of the neighboring land, there’s not a ton of targets out in those big fields, so it helps to have 4 detectors going to help find them. They can turn out to be pretty good finds though!