Why it’s all Dick Stouts fault:

My first machine was a Whites Prizm IV, bought at a local hobby shop.  I had always wanted to detect, but as a beginner, had no clue how to use the machine, or where to hunt. Luckily for me, there on the shelf was a book about metal detecting, written by the man, Dick Stout himself.  I quickly grabbed it and added it to my purchase.

I’m a fairly determined individual, and for the first few weeks, I fumbled around in the woods and local playgrounds, trying to find ANYTHING.  I was totally intimidated by the machine, and was ready to smash it against a tree. The constant beeping was annoying, and my lack of finds and patience were growing thin. Then I had an epiphany…

Why not read that book you bought?  Okay, so I’m a little slow.

I perused the book cover to cover, and was like, um…I’m an idiot.  I was so focused on finding ANYTHING at all, that I neglected the basics of location, settings, signals, research, etc… So, with new knowledge in hand, I went out and found my first Indian Head Penny, and that was the beginning of my obsession.

Through my persistence, and dedication to the hobby, via the Task Force I became acquainted with Dick, his website, Stoutstandards.com, and his blog www.stoutstandards.wordpress.com. I think Dicks site is one of the most informative out there. Dick is passionate about the hobby and never afraid to be controversial, which I love. He’s also got an awesome sense of humor.

I moved on from my Prizm to a Minelab SE, and finally to my E-trac; and each time I invest in a new machine, I just blame Dick.

Happy Hunting!