Jump to content

Inland Jewelry Hunting Tips


Recommended Posts


Hmmm... 

It's well written. I enjoyed it and I agree with it. I've come to many of the same conclusions. If I might suggest also working a patch in layers of 2"-3", generally encompassing tip #3-5.

Thanks again! :smile:

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 year later...

I was directed back to this old post from another recent one of Mikes about gold patches, It is a great post and well written!

just from reading this i started thinking about the loss characteristics at sites in my area and will make a point to consider this more in my area.

Thanks Mike

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Mike,a terrific article and and very apt at the moment,i have a very shallow river very near me and this has been a magnet for travellers for well over a 1000 years,this has not only a ford crossing which for the most part was the main way of crossing the river but 300 years ago a humpback bridge was built so this allowed more modern forms of transport ie horse and carts etc.

What makes this specific site interesting is that because the water is shallow and has a sandy bank on both side of the river,its like a magnet for children with say fishing nets and building sand castles,of course when kids come down with mums too play in the river,the young mums usually have grannies old victorian gold rings on her finger which as a general rule have quality lumps of ice in the settings,and we are all aware what happens with fingers and rings when fingers get wet the rings fall off into the water and for the most part they will never find them again.

Over recent years i have offered my services in recovering these types of jewellery usually suggesting if i find them they make a small donation to a local cancer charity.Have never taken any reward money although it is offered i dont get a buzz out of that,but i do get a buzz out of hunting for this type of jewellery.Detectors that i use can be both VLF and Pulse,as the water is very shallow ie only about 6-8'' maximum a older Tesoro with a small 4'' coil works wonders on gold ring size items and has of course superb discrimination into the bargain,but if its a small item like a small chain with a clasp or a charm on it then i use a Pulse with a very small coil,of late this has been a TDI Pro with a small folded mono coil on.One secret weapon which is also one i use is possibly the least expensive detector going and that is the Tesoro Compadre mine has the little 4'' coil on it and is deadly on small fine gold jewellery.

Its a public holiday here in the UK on monday and as the weather is really good over the long weekend this inturn will bring the mums and kids again out playing in the river,so i am expecting a possible call mid week asking for some help recovering a ring or some other form of jewellery.

Mike a terrific article and only just seen it,this is how i locate potential high value rings and jewellery,it gives me a big buzz when i find it again and hand it back too the owner who will hand it down the family line again.

  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Fabulous article Mike and eexactly what I was looking for! I am new here and thanks to all who have been helpful and welcoming. I also feel like I'm new to detecting after taking a long break to pursue fly fishing. Here is a question that I  posted in another forum and I was going to post here as a topic, but will post either way to introduce myself and show what is on my mind now. 


Good day all, I am getting back into detecting after a hiatus pursuing Flyfishing. I grew up in an area with lots of colonial sites and loved detecting the woods, wood roads, and cellar holes for relics and coins. I hated hunting for new stuff, and it even took me a while to get used to city parks when I moved to the Upstate, NY/Albany area. I learned to like them for old coins and keepsakes but never found much jewelry but never really hit any newer playgrounds either. I wondered how many rings, and other jewelry is actually found at newer  playgrounds. Is it worth changing my mindset and digging alot of pulltabs for the gold?( I do dig my share of pull tabs but I mostly focus on coins) I know there are playgrounds are everywhere and they are probably being receded with jewelry and clad unlike parks and woods with old coins. I also wondered how often do you hit them and how much gold is actually found compared to pull tabs¿ Thanks!
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 5/3/2018 at 12:14 PM, RickUK said:

Mike,a terrific article and and very apt at the moment,i have a very shallow river very near me and this has been a magnet for travellers for well over a 1000 years,this has not only a ford crossing which for the most part was the main way of crossing the river but 300 years ago a humpback bridge was built so this allowed more modern forms of transport ie horse and carts etc.

What makes this specific site interesting is that because the water is shallow and has a sandy bank on both side of the river,its like a magnet for children with say fishing nets and building sand castles,of course when kids come down with mums too play in the river,the young mums usually have grannies old victorian gold rings on her finger which as a general rule have quality lumps of ice in the settings,and we are all aware what happens with fingers and rings when fingers get wet the rings fall off into the water and for the most part they will never find them again.

Over recent years i have offered my services in recovering these types of jewellery usually suggesting if i find them they make a small donation to a local cancer charity.Have never taken any reward money although it is offered i dont get a buzz out of that,but i do get a buzz out of hunting for this type of jewellery.Detectors that i use can be both VLF and Pulse,as the water is very shallow ie only about 6-8'' maximum a older Tesoro with a small 4'' coil works wonders on gold ring size items and has of course superb discrimination into the bargain,but if its a small item like a small chain with a clasp or a charm on it then i use a Pulse with a very small coil,of late this has been a TDI Pro with a small folded mono coil on.One secret weapon which is also one i use is possibly the least expensive detector going and that is the Tesoro Compadre mine has the little 4'' coil on it and is deadly on small fine gold jewellery.

Its a public holiday here in the UK on monday and as the weather is really good over the long weekend this inturn will bring the mums and kids again out playing in the river,so i am expecting a possible call mid week asking for some help recovering a ring or some other form of jewellery.

Mike a terrific article and only just seen it,this is how i locate potential high value rings and jewellery,it gives me a big buzz when i find it again and hand it back too the owner who will hand it down the family line again.

Great post as well Rick! Thanks !

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Foreverteachable,

I'm trying to figure out how best to answer the pull tab vs gold question.   I don't dig many pull tabs myself so its a tough question.  Not much gold in the pull tab range until you get up into square tabs.  

Maybe someone who digs a lot of pull tabs can answer the question.

HH
Mike

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 5/22/2018 at 1:30 PM, foreverteachable said:

Is it worth changing my mindset and digging alot of pulltabs for the gold?( I do dig my share of pull tabs but I mostly focus on coins) I know there are playgrounds are everywhere and they are probably being receded with jewelry and clad unlike parks and woods with old coins. I also wondered how often do you hit them and how much gold is actually found compared to pull tabs¿ Thanks!

Well, I will take a stab at it. I surmise Mike has to deal more with foil than tabs? Basically when talking gold and aluminum it is all about size. The larger the aluminum and gold, the higher the target id. Yes, I am simplifying.

Smaller jewelry including womens rings tend to fall in the foil range below a U.S. nickel.

Larger jewelry like men’s rings tend to fall in the tab area above U.S. nickel.

Other than that however in my opinion it’s just something you go try and see what happens. You have to target areas where hands are in motion. You can’t find jewelry unless it’s being lost. Beyond that however there are a host of unpredictable factors, number one these days being the competition. A theoretically great spot may get hunted a lot and so is not good. Some poor locations are actually good because nobody hunts them! The local demographic matters to a huge extent. Probably lots more gold chains lost in Miami than Kansas City for instance. Some places are super trashy. Some places people use trash cans! 

Put it all together and it is pretty much impossible to put numbers or odds to any of it. I have gone cold to a park and put a ring in my pocket in minutes. Or I can go for long spells digging just aluminum and junk jewelry.

Honestly all you can do is give it a good go and see how it works out for you. I find a couple hours of digging aluminum relaxing so no worries. The same couple hours digging aluminum might irritate somebody else. Personality type plays into it a lot, as does a little luck. I hope yours is good luck! :smile:

Target ID / VDI Numbers For Gold Nuggets And Gold Jewelry

Great books to help you out from Clive Clynick at http://www.clivesgoldpage.com/

DFX Gold Methods in particular is a classic. Don’t let the DFX part throw you. The methods described apply to most any detector.

Slide2.JPGSlide1.JPGSlide2.JPG

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...