California Dog Tag
1900s-present
About California Dog Tag
The California Dog Tag is a military find from the 1900s-present era, commonly discovered by metal detectorists across the California Coast regions. Dog Tag is a realistic California detector target tied to surf beaches, mission-era picnic grounds, and old resort sites. Rather than pretending every state has the same history, this profile frames the signal around the kinds of sites that actually produce it in California: beaches, town greens, camps, farmsteads, transport corridors, or old recreation grounds.
“According to TroveRadar, the California Dog Tag (1900s-present) is valued at $5-75+ depending on era and branch and typically found at 2-5 inches depth. TroveRadar catalogs 1,016+ metal detecting finds across North America.”
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Route stack
Turn California Dog Tag into a month, law, metro, and ground plan.
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Timing layer
Monthly state routes
Law layer
California state guide
Metal detecting in California is usually governed by who manages the ground rather than by one blanket statute. Municipal beaches and local parks may allow it, while archaeological sites, battlefields, historic structures, and many state park units are restricted or off limits. That matters in surf beaches, mission-adjacent parks, and gold-rush camps.
Open the law layer →Metro layer
City hubs in California
Place layer
Trail and ground routes
Location: Six Rivers National Forest
National Forest • Seasonal edible mushrooms, Common invertebrate fossils in float
Location: Mendocino National Forest
National Forest • Seasonal edible mushrooms, Common invertebrate fossils in float
Location: Shasta-Trinity National Forest
National Forest • Seasonal edible mushrooms, Common invertebrate fossils in float
Location: Tahoe National Forest
National Forest • Seasonal edible mushrooms, Common invertebrate fossils in float
Signal Pattern
small aluminum or monel tone with stable shallow ID
Typical Depth
2-5 inches
Estimated Value
$5-75+ depending on era and branch
Common Regions
Cleaning & Preservation Tips
- ●light rinse only and consider privacy before sharing details
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