Wedding Ring Recovery

A few days ago, after a long day of fall yard work. I found myself icing down the work with a few beers at the local water hole. A neighbor shouted from across the bar “hey you still have that detector right?” I sure do yelling back. What did you lose? He’s wife shouted before he could speak ” his wedding ring”. A few chuckles around us, he hangs and shakes his head. She also went on to say the yard was mowed the next day. I was familiar with his yard, having detected once before with my Garrett ace250. I hadn’t been there since purchasing the Garrett ATPro. So with confidence I said to him “no worries, I’m sure it didn’t go far”.

Yesterday I get to his yard and begin setting up. When I’m on a dig I set my ATPro this way “All the time”. Mode:Pro; Iron discrimination: 0; this let’s me hear everything in the ground. Never having done a recovery, I finally get to see how it fares under heavy discrimination. My last machine, the more you discriminate the more depth you loose. I wasn’t worried about depth, since it hadn’t been lost more than a few days. I was worried about the lawnmower. I still ran in “Pro” mode, but I put the iron discrimination as high as it could go. Knowing the ring is silver, I was able to discriminate even further. I eliminated everything from the penny down. This means I was only going to hear what I wanted, Dime, Quarter, and Half. To a Searcher that really High Tone screams dig me. Twenty minutes in with a slight drizzle and no ring. I started thinking maybe it’s not where he said heard it fall. Then I heard the buzzing of a mower in the distance as a reminder. But still, I was optimistic in thinking it wasn’t destroyed by a Toro. I began walk down his sidewalk, quick sweeps on both sides as I walked. Finally I a screaming sound, it sounded perfect loud and sharp. Brushed a leaf a way and there it was, unharmed like the day he bought.

We’ve all been there, one time or another. Lose your car keys, lost phone, or a ring. What a feeling of relief it’s is when you finally have what your looking for back into your possession. I got to admit, i was just as exciting finding and returning this ring, as I do when finding silver coins. My hand got the shake just the save.

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Nickels to Gold

Two years ago I purchased my first metal detector, the Garrett Ace250. Sure it’s a lower end machine priced around $200. I thought to myself, if I couldn’t get the hang of the machine, would be too far out of pocket. As soon as the detector arrived at the house I was filled with excitement and anticipation of what was to follow…

Like any outdoors adventure I’ve had, I couldn’t jump right in. First I gave a call to my best friend, whether its fishing, softball/baseball, and golf we did it all together since we were kids. Now FlyGuy has always been the “I can read you like book” kind of guy. FlyGuy was going to give me one of two different reactions…… First one: Bro, your crazy!! That thing is going to give you cancer, get rid of it!! To my surprise he was all for it. Almost immediately, he was spatting off “Digger” references from the History Channel’s “Diggers” tv series. It was like getting the sign from the Skipper to swing away.

So after a few days of digging up my frozen back yard, piles of pull tabs, broken toys, and lost hot wheels started filling my coffee table, lol. Thoughts of where to dig filled my head, I live in somewhat of an old town the next door neighbor house was built in the 1920-30’s , house behind me 1914, my odds of a good nectar sector are feet way. Still to this day I have yet to Knock on a door for a permission. I called my local Town Hall to ask the code on metal detecting, to my surprise My town allows detecting in their public parks, and I was on my way.

Still with no idea of what I was doing, I suited up: new batteries, check; hand garden shovel,check, and a drawstring bag for finds and trash. I was all in, the moment my coil touch the soil. Digging can slaw, bottle cap after bottle cap, then out of nowhere a scream out of the 250. My first solid tone, sure it was only a penny signal but hey it was my first. Thinking back it would have been a good picture, seeing a grown man with a smile from ear to ear and his head so close to the ground the grass concealed his face. After vigorous cleaning, The Digger had his first Wheat Cent!!!! How was I to stop? It had only been a few days since I bought the machine, and here I was holding a coin minted 10 years before my mother was born. The park also has a sledding hill that stands in the back also, I figured maybe I could find enough lose change to buy a round in celebration on my first old coin.

As I made my way up the hill, my ear and shovel had been attracted to those low tones. More than likely from the previous hour or two digging pull tabs. I’m digging nickels in what seems like every hole at every depth. I get about halfway up, and sure a god made green apples it was another nickel tone. I’m sure at this point I have enough for a pint, so I tell myself I’ll pack up after this last time. When I’m out fishing, it’s always we’ll go after the next fish. I put my shovel to the dirt an started excavation. The tone was deeper then all the targets I had dug for the day. Machine indicated it was about 4-6 inches, after removing the soil n gravel from the hole nothing !?! No objet, and no more signal, really, what did I do wrong? Feeling a little defeated I stood up about to push the plug into the ground an there it was, holding it’s own clump of dirt like a yellow rubber band. No way this is real, my hands n feet no longer cold. I grab my spray bottle an starting drenching the thing in water without a care of the frozen temperature. I had it, White and Yellow 14k gold band!!! The excitement and shakes immediately coursed through my hands making it a struggle to gather my things. Sprinting home seem like a few steps, as I made my way through the front door, my mother was the to greet me. The excitement I was feeling had soon jumped to her, with a huge smile on her face yelling “what did you find, what did you find”!!! I had her put out her hand but before I let go I told her only if it fits. She opened her hand an about fainted right in front of me. Tears began pouring from her face, see says “it fits, I can have “? I told her “it’s yours” I’ll get the next one.

Still to this day, I have not sold a piece of found jewelry, returned a few. A lot of the jewelry finds go through a intense filtering stage before I can call it mine. This my first an only gold ring to date, but it was an awesome feeling. Thanks for reading the success of a new digger.

Just Getting Started…

Metal detecting Indiana is exactly that, I’m starting this as site where I can share thoughts and successes in my addictive hobby. I figured a blog could help in identifying things I’ve found and seen, history behind a dug relic or old coin.

Time and Patience

Found in sub division in Portage, Indiana. A homestead from1853 is part of the neighborhood. 8 in total have been recovered