Last day of 2019 was an excellent hunt - Revolutionary British Button

[catskillcomics]

Went back to the colonial farm that I found a month or so ago, started going over areas I've had already hunted and WHAM, I started finding all sorts of buttons and broken buckles pieces all in small approx 15ft x 15ft area. I think it was because the clay ground was super saturated, but regardless I was very happy. Found a few pewter buttons, The 3 Tombacks were only a foot or so away from each other. Once I got home and started cleaning my finds I was floored to find from what I believe is to be a Revolutionary War British Button from the 62nd Regiment. It is pewter, very frail. There are a few variations of the Regiment button, the one on top is the closest example I was able to find. There is also this approx 2 inch rectangle lead blob with pin sticking out the back, the only thing I can think of is that it belongs to horse tack of some sort.

 

[Lodge Scent]

Great find! Heck of a way to end the year!

 

[Bucknut]

Well done with the Rev War button! Lots of other cool relics too. Hope 2020 will be good for you.

 

[OxShoeDrew]

WOWEEE! Those Rev War buttons are scarce!!! Nice ending to a great year!!

 

[del]

Great button !erfect10: I hope you preserve it from deteriorating further . Sounds like you may have located a small homesite with in that field . Congrats !!

Dan

 

[Tony Two-Cent]

That button is an incredible piece of history, Scott! :wow:

You definitely have an old site to detect there. It's hard telling what else you might find.

:congrats:

 

[catskillcomics]

Dan, I certainly want to preserve it, I am certainly open to any suggestions you have to do this on the pewter button. PM me if you can, or is there already a previous conversation on here about that?
QUOTE=del;230035]Great button !erfect10: I hope you preserve it from deteriorating further . Sounds like you may have located a small homesite with in that field . Congrats !!

Dan[/QUOTE]

 

[OxShoeDrew]

Dan has told me to mix some water with clear Elmer's glue then paint it on the old pewter buttons. It seems to work well. It could be easily reversed when needed.

 

[del]

Scott , pewter can really dry out , crack and then crumble apart very quickly , I always keep a small Ziploc baggy to put the pewter in with the moist dirt from the hole it came from . this will keep it moist until you get home , then carefully and quickly clean the dirt from the item or button and place it in a small bowl of Elmer's glue and water solution (mix together until it actually looks like milk) . soak it for a good hour , gently pat dry and lay out on a hard surface ,make sure it doesn't stick to what ever you lay it on . After a half hour or dry soak it again for another hour , repeat the drying process . the glue will get into the hairline cracks and porous interior and keep it together.

Dan

 

[Noah]

That’s a great tip Del. Wish I’d found something like that when we were there! :notworthy:

 

[catskillcomics]

Thanks for the info Dan! I'll be doing this today. I have a few other pewter buttons I've found in the same location that I'm cleaning, I'm starting to see some details on them, just got to figure out if its just common designs or something significant.

 

[Donnie B]

Awesome Rev War button! Congrats!erfect10:

 

[The Rebel]

That's an awesome button! I've heard that spraying hair spray is another option on pewter buttons.

 

[calabash digger]

Very impressive! congrats

 

[del]

That's an awesome button! I've heard that spraying hair spray is another option on pewter buttons.

While the "hairspray" method isn't a bad one it does fall a bit short of actually getting deep into the cracks of the item and bonding there from the inside like the solution soak .

Dan

 

[Seabornescout]

British 62nd Foot. Quebec, Trois-Rivieres, Saratoga. A tough veteran regiment to be sure. Nice find. :thumbsup01:

 

[wisconsin digger]

Amazing history your able to find. Some day I need to do a little traveling. WD