At Pro first gold

[firstring]

Went detecting Saturday. First stopped at a little park with a tot lot. I stayed longer than I planned. It just wasn't from the retrievals, it was a very entertaining morning. It appears that 6 different parties were happening. I should say six different groups of people were running for the tables under the trees. I didn't think grandma could run so fast.I missed my opportunity to get to the river beach before the crowds arrived. I was going to call it a day. On my home, I passed a junior high school two blocks from where I live. Been there, done that many times over the years. The athletic field is used for soccer, football, lacrosse and rugby. I decided to stop and use my AT Pro. After about thirty minutes in to it, I got a strange signal showing at 6. Much to my surprise out came #25 for the year. There was no guessing about this one.
One (maybe two or three) happy dance later, I headed for home. This is the first gold ring with the AT Pro. With the 750 marking, it appears to be of European origin. 750 translates to 18kt, which is another first for me, and the 18kt acid test passed. The stone appears to be black onyx. The neatest thing is I don't have to give over to my wife. It fits me. That's a first. I went back to the same field for an evening hunt yesterday. Although no gold showed, I was able to hit on this silver ring, #26. It appears the lawnmower jockey got a hold of it. Even with the shape it's in, it fits my thumb. I reckon the wine country lads have grown in size. You got to love the AT Pro. Thanks for looking.

[jkress]

Oh my goodness firstring... what a nice find.
Awesome gold!! Congratulations.

[Thiltzy]

super find on the 18kt! I bet it looks great on you.

[396nova]

Nice find. I pays to be in the right place with a great detector.

[Sal66]

Nice one !!! 18K too. Isn't Black Onyx a precious stone ? The owner must be so upset . I mostly hunt old coins and have only found a few older cheaper rings (silver/copper) mostly.
I have a strange question for people who find Rings, especially expensive ones like this one. Do you ever feel guilty and think what it would be if it was you that lost a ring ?Probably recently by the way it looks . I think I would unless it was really old knowing the owner probably is long gone by now. I'm not trying to Rain on your parade but It's just a question I always wondered about .

[firstring]

Do I feel guilty about recovering a ring? Absolutely not, especially one that was buried as deep as this one. I've often wondered why someone would be wearing an expensive piece of jewelry to places where common sense dictates no jewelry should be worn and i also wonder why there are no engraved identification on the inside. I still have two gold rings I found three years ago I'm holding on to with the hopes of returning to the owner. I'm patient. I do realize the attitude of some is finders keepers. Some even sell the gold jewelry ASAP. I'm not here to judge any detectorist. Let your conscious be your guide. Hopefully the moral compass will be pointed to the correct true direction. But let me tell you a story that happened to me within the last several months.

I decided to back to this park for a morning hunt yesterday. Why there? my wife asked. Just 'cause. I really intended to go somewhere else. While I was hunting a man came up to me and of course the first question was, &quotid you find anything good? I showed him a ring I found and told him it was costume type jewelry, too bad it wasn't gold. He then told me he had purchased a metal detector, his son-in-law helped him set it up. He had searched the area where I was for three hours with the hope of finding a gold ring his son-in-law lost while playing ball with his son. I asked him if the ring had a green rock in it. Jade, he said. Well, we had one great conversation. He told me he lived across the street, was ready to get in his car to go to work when he saw me. He was reluctant to come over, almost didn't. He gave me his son-in-law's phone number and phoned his daughter to let them know I'd be calling. I called right away and set up a time to meet with them today.
It was a happy reunion with the return of his ring. His wife brought their wedding pictures and sure enough there it was on his finger. She had it custom made in San Francisco and was certain they would never see it again. When FJ was playing catch with son, he too off his baseball glove which was on his left hand and the ring came off and went flying. He was amazed how quickly it disappeared in the grass.
I met AJ the 5th at the town park for the team's Little League picture day. He's the one who told me &quotad had lost a big gold ring with a green rock in the grass at Furber Park. I wanted to get more information from him, but off he went for picture taking. In a matter minutes he was no where to be seen. Mom told me he got the date wrong, so there was no picture taking. Artie decided to come over to talk to me. I had one of those Just 'cause moments.

A little league coach was going to email all the parents from three different Giants teams - no response. I posted on Craigs List lost and found - no response. My brother-in-law who lives in Cloverdale and knows everybody, spread the word - no response. Go figure.

I had a great couple of days. Found the owner of a ring on the 4th of July. Returned it to him on the 5th. Met some new friends, what more could a detectorist ask for?

firdtring

[Sal66]

| Thanks for the story. It makes me feel better now. It's great they were so happy you helped them out and you made new friends at the same time.
I've also read stories where some guys just don't care because of a bad experience. A guy found a girl's H.S ring and spent time tracking her down and to make a long story short, the Mother who contacted the girl who was in College already wasn't even appreciative nor the girl . He got maybe a thanks and that was all.
So, I guess it just comes down to is it worth all the time and trouble tracking down someone who lost a ring and possibly not receiving much in return . Then there's the matter of them proving its theirs also. I guess it depends where you find the ring also. If it's at a Beach then it might have been lost years ago. So, in that case don't let your guilt get to you is what your saying. I can live with that but it's also nice to see at least a story like yours. Thanks !
I realize you can't track down everyone who lost a ring so I would feel better with the 10 for me, one found for some poor soul approach .
I warn my relatives all the time when they go to the beach to keep their jewelry at home or in the room they are staying at. Living in CT, the water is cold on the northeastern coast especially where I go in Maine. People, especially guys should realize the shrinkage factor . :hysterical:

Great find, Happy hunting

[firstring]

Thanks so much for the kind words, it is greatly appreciated. To be honest with you, I did get a thrill when I recovered that ring. When I returned it and saw alligator tears, what can I say? The recovery was nothing compared to the return. I hope everyone gets to experience those feelings. Happy hunting.

firstring

[roamingusa]

Ī nice find!! Do you know what the i.d. was for it?

[firstring]

Ī nice find!! Do you know what the i.d. was for it?

The 18kt ring VDI was a not so steady 60 to 66, kind of choppy actually. I really thought it was one of those zinc pennies. Like the ones that tend to break down badly and really leave a nasty halo around them. When is a zinc penny not a zinc penny? You don't know what you got until you dig it out. Settings used: Pro zero mode, iron discriminate 36, iron audio off, sensitivity set 2 down with the 8.5 X 11 coil used. Dig 'em all. Happy hunting

[roamingusa]

Cool thanx, i pass the ones that skip around thinkn its junk and miss good stuff