How do I share a dig on my land?

[teide2]

I am neither rich nor greedy...how do I share my bottle dump (my land)with a local digger? What is fair? this digger doesn't want duplicates for his collection, only the rare and priceless! Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[Matt in NH]

The first thing I would do (if you have not done so already) is get a good bottle price guide. I hunt bottles with my digging partner in Western Mass. At the end of a hunt we will go to his place or my place and look up all the bottles and artifacts recovered and get the values...then we will split the finds that way. It's fair for everyone and controls the possibility for an argument [] Hope I helped a little.


Matty

 

[amblypygi]

My digging buddy and I (erosion's little helpers) have the following rule in place, regardless of who discovers the site. We both get to pick one "keeper" from our own finds. The rest then all go in the middle, and we take turns choosing after tossing a coin to start. Since there are usually only a few things that are really desirable, this gets less painful as the process goes on. It can hurt at the beginning though, especially if you dug something golden and then lost the coin toss. It pays to be up on your book values in your head too []

Sean

 

[leebran20]

If it is your land -- and therefore your bottle dump -- my opinion is that you set the rules whichever way makes you feel comfortable. If you are a bottle digger yourself, which it seems you are just starting out if at all, this local digger can help you at least with techniques and indentification of types and such. I guess it would also depend on how well you know this person and if you feel you can trust him or her to impart true knowledge not tainted by his or her own desire to get the rare and priceless only for his or her own collection. Just some thoughts. If you really don't care much about it and are just in the giving mood, well that's fine too, I feel. But hard to do a you pick/I pick with this person in any really fair way -- no matter who starts -- if you don't know about bottles, unless you either completely trust this person or maybe can get a third party who's a knowledgeable collector but not a digger and perhaps would lend a hand for maybe a bottle or two at the end.

 

[CanadianBoy]

Its your dump,maybe if you find some really nice stuff and this digger wants a really rare or prime one,if you don't want it then you get to pick 3-4 that you like,
You should have first choice either way.Or you dig alone,and do lots of research,although its nice to have a digging buddy.

 

[teide2]

Hi, thanks for the suggestions...in the end, nothing felt right to me except- find it, it's yours! How can I rob the thrill of discovery. I either dig alone or share it. That is my only choice.

 

[Tandy]

[] Hi teide2, greetings from Downunder and welcome to the forum.

I have read what Matty, Sean and Brandon had to say, and I find a lot of merit in what they do say, albeit differing in content. For me, the most important thing is that as you own the land, you "call the shots". Research into the value of bottles is a must, and when you have done that, you have, in effect "two strings to your bow", you not only own the land (and the bottles) but you also know which ones are going to be scarce, rare, super rare, or common.

If it was my land/my bottles, I would seriously think about a simple but binding contract with the collector, lodged safely. Having agreed to this binding contract, I would insist on seeing all the bottles that came out, and then distribute them accordingly.

If you were unsure about their value, even after researching bottle values from suitable books, I would call in a third person, someone who was recommended as an honest person, and knowledgeable in bottle prices.

Whatever you finally decide, they are your bottles, and the best of luck with them!
[]

 

[kastoo]

There's got to be something you want you haven't found yet. Tell your friend if he finds one it's yours for sharing your dig. Then you can use the other share methods exampled here.

 

[David E]

And don't forget the "Hold Harmless Agreement" If he gets hurt on your land that you are not libel.
Dave

 

[Tandy]

[] Hi there teide2,
Dave's comments are spot on, an excellent suggestion.