Maryland Free-State Treasure Club
Volume 3, Issue 10
October 2015

Maryland Free-State Treasure Club Meeting Minutes, October 29, 2015: The meeting was conducted at the Victory Villa Community Center, 404 Compass Rd., Baltimore, MD 21220, 410-887-0258. Minutes were submitted by Dave Miller.

REMINDER: NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER SCHEDULE CHANGES: Instead of our last Thursday of the month schedule, our holiday meeting dates are:
Thursday, NOVEMBER 19
Thursday DECEMBER 17.

Call to Order: At 7:15 p.m. the meeting was called to order by the President, Mr. Gary Pennington. Gary introduced the club officers; Howard Shettle, vice president, who was absent,  (who also oversees the Contest Board), Bill Hill filling in; Steve Cunningham, treasurer; and Dave Miller, secretary.

Monsters Among Us: As the proceedings began, two velociraptors handed out Halloween candy to the members.
Treasurers Report: Mr. Cunningham reported the M.F.S.T.C. has $4861.64 in the bank (mostly earmarked for our members-only hunt)) and $196.72 petty cash in coins and bills. Gary Pennington reports the M.F.S.T.C. currently has an account balance of $376.00 in the Recreation and Parks account.

Attendance: Gary Lawrence counted 38 People.

Welcome new members: We welcome Tim and Laura Lindsay to our family of detectorists.

Refreshments: Mike and Gina Stinemire provided another feast of fabulous fare for our members.

Mini Hunt Winners: John Manzari, Dave Franz and Dwayne Meanor found the tokens worth silver coins.

Door Prize Winners: Mike Stinemire, Gary Pennington, Jimmy Barton, Nick Franz and Wendy Huber won various items from silver coins to history books.

Raffles: Bill Kalwa won the 50-50 and Mike McFadden won the silver round.

Merchandise Table: Gina Stinemire oversaw sales of bumper stickers, t-shirts, patches and gloves.

Mini hunt continues: It's going to be dark, but our mini hunt will continue at our November 19 meeting. Bring a head lamp! Mini hunt starts at 6:30 p.m. Detectors and pinpointers only - no digging.

Club Library: Gary Pennington proposed the idea of using club money to buy artifact reference books for coins, relics, buttons, Civil War relics, etc., to help our members identify the keepers they find. These reference books will stay at Victory Villa locked up in our club locker.

Meet the Member: Mike McCullough started detecting in the '80s with a White's detector. He then bought a Fisher Aquanaught 1280x made for beach hunting and took to the sand. Mike joined the Maryland Free-State Treasure club in November 2013, soon after he got his Baltimore City metal detecting permit and started going out once or twice a week. A fisher F-75LTD became his next detector which, mixed with his experience, helped lead him to greater success. After buying a Nel Tornado coil he was finding deeper and more treasure-worthy keepers.­­
         Mike hosts popular annual Scottish games on his property drawing contenders from states around. Mike and his son, Dan, also compete. An elaborate array of food keeps the onlookers busy while competitors perform astonishing and sometimes dangerous feats of strength and accuracy.

Dealer's Report: Bob Taylor, who owns Taylor Metal Detectors and is a club member, introduced the pulse Deteknix pinpointer that claims not to "false" when pressure is applied to the tip. There are four settings. Competitively priced at $129.
         A new wireless and rechargeable headset is now available that promises to work with most detectors.
         Bob attended the XP Deus and metal detecting boot camp with author Andy Sabisch October 24-25 and came away with a wealth of knowledge. He briefly went over the XP Deus with greater depth than at previous meetings and announced the upcoming version 4.  

M.F.S.T.C. Open Hunt October 24: Our second open hunt at Sandy Point State Park was a huge success. A western theme gave enough flavor to showcase the hundreds of fake gold nuggets laying about on the tables. 71 registrants vied for nine metal detectors, lots of silver rounds, two gold coins, hundreds of silver coins, useful gear and plenty of food and treats. The raffles made a $725 profit for the club that will be used for our members-only hunt next year.

October 17 Outing: Another perfect day for playing in the dirt. Our members detected the grounds of a museum with some success. Typical of farm properties, chunks of iron fooled all of us into digging them up. As iron signals gave way to deeper targets, more and more keepers found their way into the hands of those who attended.

Awards: At meetings end Bud Lamb stepped forward and presented Gary Pennington and Steve Cunningham with metal license plate frames that read, "I'd rather be metal detecting" for their behind-the-scenes contributions to the club.

Contest Board Winners: Monthly contest-board winners receive silver coins as prizes.
Coins: 1st: Gary Pennington; 2nd: John Manzari; 3rd: Mike McCullough.
Relics: 1st: Andy Cooper; 2nd: Mike McCullough.
Club Favorite: Gary Lawrence - Megalodon shark tooth fossil.
Leg of Gold drawing - Tom Ferrell.

Adjournment: The October 29 meeting was adjourned at 8:40 p.m. when members helped stow the folding chairs and tables.

Next meeting: Thursday, November 19 at 7:00 p.m. (Mini hunt starts at 6:30 p.m. outside (weather permitting) November program: TBA

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