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Zot
Posts: 825 ✭✭✭
Keen to get some gold (it's been a while!), I headed out to my usual beach last night:
-The positive: I had plenty of time - all night if I wanted to
-The negative: It was raining every single second I was out, and I mean absolutely pouring
I didn’t bring any extra electronic gadgets (phone/camera) due to the lousy weather. I suppose a picture could have been interesting. It would certainly have confirmed how crazy I am.
You’ll have to imagine rain pouring down and one soaking wet squirrel digging holes.
I lasted about 4 hours digging, 10 PM – 2 AM. Didn’t see another soul. I doubt even dogs were too keen for a walk that night.
...But did I find anything?...
Yup.
I'll start with the bad stuff:
Lots of big crusty stuff, screws, other bits and pieces...
Also note the annoying ring-like targets at the front.
After about 2 hours my machine suddenly died. Out of battery. The White’s PI can surprise you this way; everything is working perfectly, and suddenly there’s nothing. Not even the faintest beep. It literally stopped right in the middle of recovering a target.
I always carry extra batteries (in a watertight bag), but how would I do a battery swap in this weather?
I took off my jacket, covered the control box with it, and managed to swap the batteries by fumbling blind with my hands under the jacket. Fiddly stuff. I really must be crazy.
The crucial part was keeping track of which way each battery was supposed to go in, and which ones I’d already swapped (old and new batteries were identical). Got it done without getting the inside of the machine too wet (I think).
The machine roared back to life. Sweet!
Some better stuff:
Hmmm… OK, there are some coins here, but nothing great. Is this really all I would get?
But wait, there’s more!...........
The 2nd target right after swapping my batteries was this one:
18k
It’s a skinny one though. Quite big in diameter, but weighs only 2.83 grams. When comparing it to other rings, it’s obvious how thin and narrow it is. It’s like the ring-equivalent of pcgs69’s pike in the corn field the other day (which looked quite skinny to me)
Here's a side-by-side with another 18k ring of similar size, but that's much thicker and heavier (7.6g)
The markings show exceptionally poor workmanship. They've been stamped twice, which makes everything a bit mushy. They didn’t get them straight the first time, and the second attempt conceals it, sort of.. as long as you don't look too closely..
The “doubling” clearly shows at the end:
The date stamp is T6, which is 1948. The year fits the low weight: postwar 1940s were lean years indeed. I also wouldn’t be surprised if a discount was given due to the messed up markings. Still, no self-respecting goldsmith should have let this leave his shop!
Now that I got some gold…….. I need more!
-Z
-The positive: I had plenty of time - all night if I wanted to
-The negative: It was raining every single second I was out, and I mean absolutely pouring
I didn’t bring any extra electronic gadgets (phone/camera) due to the lousy weather. I suppose a picture could have been interesting. It would certainly have confirmed how crazy I am.
You’ll have to imagine rain pouring down and one soaking wet squirrel digging holes.
I lasted about 4 hours digging, 10 PM – 2 AM. Didn’t see another soul. I doubt even dogs were too keen for a walk that night.
...But did I find anything?...
Yup.
I'll start with the bad stuff:
Lots of big crusty stuff, screws, other bits and pieces...
Also note the annoying ring-like targets at the front.
After about 2 hours my machine suddenly died. Out of battery. The White’s PI can surprise you this way; everything is working perfectly, and suddenly there’s nothing. Not even the faintest beep. It literally stopped right in the middle of recovering a target.
I always carry extra batteries (in a watertight bag), but how would I do a battery swap in this weather?
I took off my jacket, covered the control box with it, and managed to swap the batteries by fumbling blind with my hands under the jacket. Fiddly stuff. I really must be crazy.
The crucial part was keeping track of which way each battery was supposed to go in, and which ones I’d already swapped (old and new batteries were identical). Got it done without getting the inside of the machine too wet (I think).
The machine roared back to life. Sweet!
Some better stuff:
Hmmm… OK, there are some coins here, but nothing great. Is this really all I would get?
But wait, there’s more!...........
The 2nd target right after swapping my batteries was this one:
18k
It’s a skinny one though. Quite big in diameter, but weighs only 2.83 grams. When comparing it to other rings, it’s obvious how thin and narrow it is. It’s like the ring-equivalent of pcgs69’s pike in the corn field the other day (which looked quite skinny to me)
Here's a side-by-side with another 18k ring of similar size, but that's much thicker and heavier (7.6g)
The markings show exceptionally poor workmanship. They've been stamped twice, which makes everything a bit mushy. They didn’t get them straight the first time, and the second attempt conceals it, sort of.. as long as you don't look too closely..
The “doubling” clearly shows at the end:
The date stamp is T6, which is 1948. The year fits the low weight: postwar 1940s were lean years indeed. I also wouldn’t be surprised if a discount was given due to the messed up markings. Still, no self-respecting goldsmith should have let this leave his shop!
Now that I got some gold…….. I need more!
-Z
Minelab: GPX 5000, Excalibur II, Explorer SE. White's: MXT, PI Pro
0
Comments
Neat gold ring for sure.
bob
Congrats on your older gold. Makes me want to get back out to the beach. Yours may not have the weight as the second ring, but it sure beats another bottle cap
Have I missed pics of this beach???
Nope. At least no good pics.
I think I've posted a few pics with the camera pointing almost straight into the ground, but that's it. It's a world wide web, and you never know who lurketh in the shadows..
It still owes me a gold or two. Many more are probably out there, but the challenge is to find areas where the clay isn't too deep.
Frustratingly often the bottom is just sand where everything (especially gold) plummets to the center of the earth in no time.
I spend a fair bit of time just poking at the bottom with a thin rod to find spots worth detecting. Often they're quite small, e.g. 5 feet by 15 feet.
When I find one, I dig absolutely every single thing that beeps, including quite a few "imaginary beeps"
Lafayette Grading Set
Yeti
I'm glad you found a good keeper for your efforts.
Yeti
You're not kidding!
Wow! If yetis can be lured out with rings, here are some gold ones:
..and silver!
Seriously though, great to hear from you! Hope all is well!
I'll send a PM!
Are those Elvish runes inside the bottom right ring in your first picture? Do they occasionally glow red? Do people walk right past you and not seem to notice you when you put it on?
Just wondering.
All gold is lovely, but some of those OLD gold rings really impress Gollum- uh- me.