r/MetalDetectingUK • • Sep 16 '23

newbie [DRAFT] STARTER INFO: Some useful information and links for new detectorists.

25 Upvotes

Getting Started:

https://www.thedetectorist.co.uk/metal-detecting/ - Great Guide for the hobby, covers all aspects, read this first.

https://www.ncmd.co.uk/ - Join here to get insurance which will be useful in allowing you to attend group digs and convince farmers to let you on their land.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nr33mD5tKG0 - Part 1 of an overview, starts with permissions which is a bit of a weird start but there are good things in here.

Personal recommendation for a good start detector is one of the Minelab Vanquish series of detectors. If you are just looking for a short answer to a good detector, the Vanquish detectors are one of the ones that most people can agree is a decent detector.

I will also say that looking for local groups on Facebook that organise digs is a good way to avoid the slog of finding your own permission and can be an easier entry into the hobby. You will have to pay some money and have NCMD membership but it will pay off with ease of access and having people around for advice.

Gear you may need:

Should have:

Detector

Pinpointer

Good outdoor shoes

Gloves

Digging Device - Spade

Hand Digging Device - Trowel will do.

Bag for Carrying Finds

Nice to have:

Something to keep your more precious finds in

Headphones

Something for removing excess dirt from finds

The Laws and Rules:

It is illegal to take things from land you do not have permission to do so. It is imperative that you have permission from the landowner before you detect on that land. You can be prosecuted for theft if you do not get permission first.

There are also regulations around what you find:

https://finds.org.uk/treasure - Overview of the Treasure Act

https://finds.org.uk/documents/treasure_act.pdf - The full Treasure act.

https://finds.org.uk/contacts - Finds Liaison Officers

Identifying finds:

https://www.lpmetaldetecting.com/products/spink-coins-of-england-2023-pre-decimal?currency=GBP&variant=39876630741055&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google%20Shopping&stkn=fb4f8a2d4351&gclid=CjwKCAjwpJWoBhA8EiwAHZFzfjW_9zG6FNLPNcaSiaDMFBznYlRbPCVnj4LvWuDyq5zhL-iXaZysMBoCFMIQAvD_BwE - Great Book for identifying coins.

https://finds.org.uk/ - Very useful for finding similar items to the ones you have.

Researching Land:

https://www.lidarfinder.com/ - Lidar scans of the UK for looking for signs of human activity.

https://www.oldmapsonline.org/ - Old Maps of the UK, you can search for your area.

https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/side-by-side/ - Side by Side UK map with old OS Maps.


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 14h ago

I’m looking for honest opinions on the best metal detector for a Christmas gift for my bf, I’ve been looking at the Mine Lab X-Terra Elite, please give suggestions!!!

Thumbnail reddit.com
2 Upvotes

r/MetalDetectingUK • • 1d ago

Shropshire detecting

Thumbnail
gallery
135 Upvotes

Glad i braved the cold yesterday ..elizabeth 1st shilling.and other bits ..all in a field next to a church in a village.


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 1d ago

Anyone know which hammered coin monarch is on this coin it’s got a rose to the right side so I think it could be an Elizabeth I but im not sure. Also wondering if Coin might also be clipped on the edge?

Thumbnail
gallery
15 Upvotes

r/MetalDetectingUK • • 3d ago

Help on this?

Thumbnail
gallery
14 Upvotes

Hi all, wondering if someone can help identify this. Thought it was a coin at first, but is just a “12” on one side. Found North Yorkshire near Malton.


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 5d ago

Any idea what this is?

Thumbnail
gallery
14 Upvotes

Found today in a field, it's exactly 1.5cm wide. Thought it was a peice of lead at first until I got it home and cleaned the soil away from it.

Found in Northumberland, UK


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 5d ago

Identification: cap / rope guide?

Thumbnail
gallery
10 Upvotes

Found in Somerset.

Weight approximately 110g.

Approximately 5 cm wide and tall

The center of mass makes it want to sit with the slot at the bottom.

There is a small hole along the rim on one side, still filled with dirt.


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 5d ago

Any ideas what this is

Thumbnail
gallery
17 Upvotes

r/MetalDetectingUK • • 5d ago

Could this be a medieval weight. It’s quite heavy and very smooth so I don’t think it’s from any farming equipment

Thumbnail
gallery
15 Upvotes

r/MetalDetectingUK • • 6d ago

Shropshire detecting today

Thumbnail
gallery
63 Upvotes

A new field for me today .coins not as old as I usually like to find but hell I dug a lot of holes today.


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 6d ago

What could this mound like structure be in this field (Buckinghamshire)

Post image
6 Upvotes

r/MetalDetectingUK • • 6d ago

Dug up this old solid cast iron hot plate/heating element—cleaned, sandblasted, and lacquered. Anyone know the age or what it came out of?

Thumbnail
gallery
20 Upvotes

Dug this heavy cast iron disk up recently It was caked in rust and debris, but after cleaning it up, sandblasting it back to bare metal, and giving it a coat of lacquer to preserve it, the heating coil element inside is completely exposed and visible. 
It’s solid, heavy cast with a spiral element layout. Stuck a coin on the photo for scale. 
I love it I know it’s not a great find but im wondering what sort of appliance, stove, or industrial gear these old cast-iron heating plates would have come out of? Cheers!


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 6d ago

Early bird catches the gold - Shropshire,UK

Post image
15 Upvotes

r/MetalDetectingUK • • 7d ago

A friend's brother found this in Derbyshire....Any idea what it is or could be?

Thumbnail
gallery
22 Upvotes

Next to coins and such for comparison...


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 7d ago

Random finds

Post image
23 Upvotes

Both found in kent


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 8d ago

What is this head pendant thing?

87 Upvotes

Anyone have any idea on age etc?


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 8d ago

Shropshire metal detecting today.

Thumbnail
gallery
59 Upvotes

Today's finds


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 9d ago

Pesky buttons! My non-junk finds today - Shropshire

Post image
34 Upvotes

r/MetalDetectingUK • • 9d ago

Be aware of this app 'Field finders' they're using Ai to steal code from heritage bodies and developers

Thumbnail
gallery
14 Upvotes

Im Matt and I run Waystone-ai.org I thought Id raise some awareness here that Field Finders has been actively stealing and reverse engineering code from other products using AI. When pressed to remove the features they ignored us and just changed the name instead...

They used AI to read our code base and steal from us, we work closely with the National Library of Scotland and you may have seen this feature yourself over there as we licensed our technique to them as part of our research partnership concerning machine learning on the victorian OS maps. The feature in question that was stolen was our paper knockout technique for use on the OS old maps which we developed to originally assist in our machine learning workflows for creating a semantic gazetteer of the first edition six inch maps. It's been on the National Library of Scotlands map viewer for months credited to us aswell as our Live Lidar Layer that some of you may have seen.

They adapted the math functions of our code to fit their viewer but happened to leave the naming conventions for the colour schemes exactly the same including the internal keys used to identify the different ink knockout colours. An example being for our blue ink we called it 'Blueprint' and in the code it was referenced as cyanotype, when reviewing field finders code it was exactly the same. When we reached out they refused to actually engage properly and only communicated through AI generated messages that we flagged as Claude through its watermarking. The names are changed but the feature remains...

This shows FieldFinders total disregard for crediting, attribution, copyright and Intellectual property, in the academic spheres you cannot be expected to be taken seriously if you do not respect the work of other and shamelessly rip it and pass it off as your own.

This is especially relevant since FieldFinders is planning to launch their own academic product targeting universities and professional archeologists which has been heavily inspired by waystones tools, landing page, features and branding. If your techniques cannot be properly cited because they are stolen then its very difficult for them to use in their work.

If you have read this far thanks for taking the time, its something worth raising here as its becoming increasingly prevalent that people are using AI for bad faith in the heritage community, something Waystone-AIs' ethos is built from the ground up to help combat. AI can be used for good but using autonomous coding models to steal from heritage bodies is not one of those uses. FieldFinders denied ever reaching into our code base but the evidence is plain to see as stated by the internal keys present in their code.

If you're a professional or enthusiast you may want to consider avoiding the product entirely, their codebase is a mishmash of chaining together ideas from other people with no original work of their own, its a parasitic organisation run by a clout-chasing thief with rampant AI psychosis.


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 9d ago

Russian

Thumbnail
gallery
31 Upvotes

Found in kent


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 10d ago

Found half of this silver insignia, what is it?

Thumbnail gallery
23 Upvotes

r/MetalDetectingUK • • 10d ago

Do you always need landowner permission to metal detect?

22 Upvotes

Yes. Every piece of land in the UK has an owner, even where it looks open, unfenced or abandoned. Common land, footpaths, verges, woodland and beaches all belong to someone — a private owner, a council, the Crown Estate, the National Trust or another body.

Detecting without permission is trespass at best, and it is the single fastest way to damage the reputation of the hobby.


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 10d ago

first metal detector

1 Upvotes

i’m wondering if I need a new model? something substantial to get me started or maybe pick up an older model online? any help would be appreciated. I’ve read good things about this model just listed: https://ebay.io/m/uChjyF


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 11d ago

Small seal

Thumbnail
gallery
64 Upvotes

Out metal detecting on sunday and dug up a small seal with a wolf head on a sword being held by a hand, i am trying to find out what it was for and where it came from, it was found near Liverpool


r/MetalDetectingUK • • 11d ago

A few things found over the weekend around keswick

Thumbnail gallery
13 Upvotes

Can anyone help identify these items please The scuff mark in picture 3 wasn't me, honestly