abby_fisher•6d agoMost Upvoted

PSA: Using a magnet to find buried iron artifacts actually works

I was digging test pits at a site near St. Augustine, Florida last weekend and kept hitting nothing but sand. A buddy told me to drag a cheap magnet on a string across the surface first. Pulled up 3 old square nails and a horseshoe fragment within 20 minutes. Anybody else tried this trick for identifying activity areas before you start digging?

2 comments

2 Comments

blake_kelly195d ago

Been doing that for years in the Carolinas. Grab a 50lb rated neodymium magnet from a hardware store, tie it to some paracord, and let it swing like a pendulum while you walk. You'll pull up everything from old nails to musket balls. Just watch out for modern trash like bottle caps, theyll make you think you found something good.

kellyallen5d ago

And you'll notice the older spots are usually the best, places where folks had gatherings or old homesites that have been forgotten for fifty years or more. Just be careful not to tear up someone's private property or a historical site, the landowners and local historians don't take kindly to that.