Richard Browne, Author at The Ring Finders | Page 3 of 21

West Dennis, MA Lost Ring – Like Father, Like Daughter – Found & Returned

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)
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July 7, 2024

Some losses are remarkable in one way or another. I thought a text from Pam that this call might be as much of a challenge as finding her husband’s ring almost 4 years ago. It took Leighton and myself several hours of detecting before it was recovered from the depths of sand that had covered it.

Well no such luck today. Kate the daughter of Pam and Keith had lost her Cape Cod Fish ring. The ring was the highlight of the return. Kate had been out where she could not touch the bottom. She was carefully making her way toward the shore, aware of the rings that were on her fingers and felt the Fish swim away with a smile on its face and a wink in its eye.

It was almost dark when I arrived at the beach and it was low tide, perfect. I went straight out keeping the telephone poles and a cottage in line of the search pattern. On the fifth pass knew I had found the ring that had given up swimming for a nap in the sand. Nothing exciting, no drama, no sharks, no football to blame for taking the ring off Kate’s finger. Just a quick loss of a ring, a call to TheRingFinders, a five minute search and before the sun set photos had been taken along with almost nothing except that Kate is keeping the family’s tradition of loosing a ring at the same beach every 4 years. Yes, sometimes the easy is a nice change compared to a search that drags on for days. At least this evening had plenty of smiles and laughs at days end.

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Wellfleet, MA Long Pond 2nd Ring Lost, Found and Returned

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)
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July 1, 2024

It has been one of those feast or famine years. Hardly any calls for lost items in the first 5 months and now it is almost non-stop. Two days ago a lost wedding band at Long Pond and today another at Long Pond. Jennifer lost her wedding band just feet away from my last call to the pond. Both days I was so fortunate to get to the beach only to find the area that a ring was lost at was just about void of beach-goers. I did not have to ask anyone to move before I found each ring. This hardly happens this time of the year.

Jennifer had texted me just before leaving for her home out of state. She sent me a photo of the area her ring was lost at. At the beach many well-wishers held off asking me questions until I found Jennifer’s ring. Then everyone was interested in my service and a few stories of other returns I had made.

Back at the car, texting with Jennifer, an arrangement was made for me to return the ring to Kate (right picture), a friend that was still in the area and she will return the ring to Jennifer.

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West Yarmouth, MA Beach Holds Wedding Band Overnight Before Found & Returned

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)
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July 3, 2024

With the upcoming 4th of July holiday and an opportunity to spend a few days in Vacation Land, Lou was not one to pass up such a combination. With great weather for enjoying one of the Capes many beaches it was a good time not to be passed up. In the pleasant water and with family and friends Lou was not paying any particular attention to the area he was in at the moment his wedding band slipped from his thinning finger. He searched looking at the shells and other creatures on the ocean’s floor, but did not find the ring.

Here is where friends and TheRingFinders work together. Pete was contacted, but could not help but did pass the info onto Leighton who also could not help due to his work schedule. So Leighton passed the info onto me. Hey, I am retired and live for the opportunity to help others. I contacted Lou and set up a sunrise meeting time. Three hours of searching and the tide was coming in and the wind getting stronger. I called it a morning. With all the good intentions of returning for the evening tide. That did not happen as the seas got rougher. So it was another early morning search on the calendar.

Friday morning came with water calm enough to search in. About 2 ½ hours later I was heading out to meet for another morning’s commitment. I was haphazardly searching closer to the shore line, on the way out for the morning, and about 5 feet beyond the area Lou had me searching in. A faint target I had just heard was one that I was not going to pass up on. It was a solid tone and a perfect dot on my detector’s ID screen. I am glad I did not pass it up as it was Lou’s ring.

I texted Lou and set up a 1pm meeting to return his ring. Another successful adventure and the pictures tell it all.

 

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Dennis Port, Cape Cod, MA Lost Engagement/Wedding Found & Returned

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)
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July 4, 2024

Finding a beach with a parking space is a difficult thing to do on the 4th of July. Shannon and the group she was with finally found an opening in Dennis Port. The beach had a great new set of stairs that replace the set that was torn off the cliff in a winter storm. The group found an open area at the far end of the beach which had a very narrow dry sand area to sit on. Settling down, it was time for a bit of sun protection to be applied to her daughter. Off came the engagement/wedding ring that was given to Alanna for safe keeping. It was sitting safely on Alanna’s leg until a quick movement sent the ring into the sand.

Several minutes of frantic searching failed to give up the rings location. One in the group did a Google search for “Ring Finder Cape Cod” and was rewarded with a link to my listing. A short conversation and fifteen minutes later I was at the beach where there were no parking spaces except for one Reserved slot. I explained the situation to the parking attendant and was granted permission to park in the open space as I said I should be 15 minutes at the max.

I grabbed my gear and headed to the new stairway that I had never used. All metal and long steps – perfect for the beach-goers. Within 3 minutes I was searching and within 45 seconds I had a large signal. I commented “It sounds like a tin can in size but has the correct tone”. Sure enough it was the ring glistening in the bottom of the scoop. In the next 5 seconds it left the scoop and was back on Shannon’s finger. Boy, that is how I would love to have all my searches progress. Hugs, hand shakes, thank yous, went on for several minutes. Especially from Alanna who was more distraught and upset for letting the entrusted ring slip into the sand. I think it will take awhile for her to overcome the incident but, I know she will with the support from the fabulous group that was celebrating the 4th.

Yes, I do love my hobby when they end like this one did.

 

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Chatham, Ma Hearing Aid Lost in the Sand – Found and Returned

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)
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July 3, 2024

Elaine would very seldom wear her hearing aids, especially to the beach. But on the beautiful July day she did. By what ever force happened, it pull the hearing aid off her ear before falling into the sand. Several family members looked for all they were worth with no success.

A search for help ended with the call to my phone. Within the hour I was all set up ready for the search. Yes, July 3rd and a packed beach conjured up a nightmare of how I was going to search the beach. Too my surprise family relative were “holding” the area open with a game of beach paddle pong. The area was all mine.

Well, an hearing aid is about the hardest item to find with a metal detector. Thinking ahead I had a bag to put one of my own hearing aids into so I could “tune” my detector for the best possible search mode for a hearing aid on a sandy beach. Still, with all the very small bits of metal on a public beach it was a challenge. About 15 minutes and at the very end of the “possible” area it was lost in a very faint, repeatable signal. One scoop and there it was, even to my amazement.

The family ensured me it would be returned to Elaine when they left the beach. She called me later on to personally Thank me.

 

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South Yarmouth, MA Gold Charm Went Down the Drain

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)
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July 2, 2024

While Brenda was untangling her grandson’s necklace her star fish charm slipped off and right down into the sink’s drain. What was she to do? Brenda knew enough not to run any water. Hey, if water went down, maybe she could suck it up with a vacuum cleaner. Good try, but all she got was a bit of water. Next, call a plumber, but she was not absolutely positive that the charm she referred to as “Henry” was indeed in the P-trap. Maybe a magnet, help from the hardware store…yes. On her way to the hardware store she passed by J&E Metal Detectors. She stopped in and found out gold is non-magnetic and a detector could not be swung in the area. Eleanor’s suggestion was to call me. She did and within a hour we had a plan.

First I had to ensure “Henry” was in the P-trap, that was stainless steel and had no drain plug. My answer was to use a stroboscope. I remembered another member of TheRingFinders had used one in search of a ring lost in a car. IT WORKED in this situation also, Henry was indeed in the P-trap. I loosened one pipe nut by hand but the second one required much finesse with a 16 inch channel lock wrench.

Once the nuts were undone, the P-trap slid out and so did the star fish which was then slid onto its chain. Two things remained: first putting the sink back into working order. Second: pictures and a Thank You. My reward and best part of the day was seeing the smile on Brenda’s face while holding “Henry” against her chest. Just another reason for me to keep on offering my talents to those in need.

 

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Wellfleet, MA Long Pond Ring Lost, Found and Returned

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)
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June 27, 2024

It has been one of those months for me. And I just had to add these few words to a successful search and return of Mike’s wedding band. His story will follow.

Not all of a RingFinders’ search ends in a story for the Book of Smiles. Some have a reason why. Here are a few recent reasons why I have been unsuccessful in my searches. Lost ring was found elsewhere. I.e. under the man’s bed, in the trash can by the sink, on the fireplace mantle or another places a metal detector just could not have been used to locate the ring. Someone else has found the ring by “eyeballing” it before I began a search. In three cases the rings have been returned. One last possibility is that I just was not given the correct area to search or just did not cover the one square inch that the lost ring was in. One endeavor that has helped me in the past is the reviewing of photos to see if the ring or other object was indeed in the area I was to search, or narrow down the area. In one call the ring had not been on the person’s hand for two days. End of search. The hardest part of being a RingFinder is having to tell a person that I did not find the ring, but I can tell them were the ring is not located.

Now, I had been out on two such searches were I did not find either of the lost item and when I got home, Mike’s message was on my answering machine. Ah, another lost ring in the sand, or maybe in the water upto knee deep. OK, I was on my way and would get to the beach after the parking fee was required. There was a parking space right in front of the area to be searched and it was my luck that the beach goers were packing up which meant I would not have to ask anyone to move for a few minutes while I detected over the area. It took me about ten minutes to cover the area, retrieve a nickle, a pull tab and then the ring.

Now…That is how all of a RingFinder’s searches should be!

I called Mike, sent a picture for confirmation that I had indeed found his ring. It was, a return date was set and I promised I would keep his ring safe until I would personally return it to him. Mike also mentioned he had made a report at the local police station. So on my way out of town, I stopped at the police station and added the found and reuturn information to the report Mike had made. I also thanked the dispatcher for passing on the information about TheRingFinders, something some town officials can not do for legal reasons.

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Priscilla Beach Plymouth MA Engagement/Wedding Band Ring Found & Returned

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)
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June 13, 2024

An enjoyable day on the soft sand, in bright sunlight shining down turned into a day of despair and anguish over a missing ring. Victoria’s sister bought a detector to help locate the missing ring. A day of searching yielded nothing but a bit of trash. Victoria (Vicky) had a great bit more luck – she found a link to TheRingFinders.com which led to a call for help that I received. An enlightening and enjoyable conversation and a meeting for the next day was set-up.

I arrived about 5 minutes early and was greeted by the property owner. All was all set and I now had the area to search. From the rear porch steps, across some lawn, down a short set of steps and more lawn nothing alerted my detector. Next was a long set of stairs which had thickly covered land on either side. The blooming vegetation would be impossible to detect in, I said a quick prayer that the ring was not lost while Vicky was ascending the stairs, but rather it was indeed on the sandy beach.

At the bottom of the stairs and now on soft white sand I began to search again. At the end of my first pass next to the vegetation I turned to start a second pass. Two swings later and there it was, the sound from my headphones, that said “Here it is, dig!” One shallow scoop into the sand a quick shake and three small rock obscured my view of the ring. I pull the rocks out and was amazed at the beautiful ring that I had just found. OH NO…Vicky and Ginna were about half way down the stairs. The ring went into my pocket, we greeted each other and then I reached out to shake Vicky’s hand again. This time I had her ring in my hand, a surprised look and then the swelling of eyes and emotional disbelief over came the calmness that she had just a few seconds before.

As usual, pictures and stories about the ring and previous day’s search with Ginna’s new metal detector.

This lead to a few minute of instructions on how to use the detector and how to understand what the display could tell the operator. A couple of rings, a coin and a piece of iron were “detected”. Now I assured them had they waved the coil over the ring and understood the tone and display, she would have found the ring. And in the future she will be able to locate more desirable objects with less or no time “wasted” digging parts of lobster traps 10 inches down in the sand.

This return was another wonderful experience for me, not only because of the find and return, but that I think I have peaked the interest in metal detecting and what it has to offer for two wonderful sisters. I also learned just how much the ring meant to Vicky and her husband as he had designed the ring as an engagement ring and then had two more rings added to the engagement ring to transform it into the one beautiful wedding ring.

I just love my hobby, especially with times like I had today. Thanks for letting me help.

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Sandwich, MA – Lost Wedding Band Found and Returned

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)
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June 11, 2024

It is the time of the year that lawns need attention, thatching, weeding, seeding, edging etc. As in the case of Ted he had to repair some thin spots in his yard that winter had taken its toll on. Ted had all the right tools and products to bring his yard back to its summer time beauty. The day’s chore was just about complete except for the clean up. The last item to be put away was Ted’s gloves. Off they came and as well, his wedding band.

Hours of searching, retracing his steps, nothing Ted did could find his ring. That was until he reached out for help from TheRingFinders. A few texts and a date and time were exchanged for a search. As the plans were set I reached out to my detecting partner Leighton and all was set. We met at Ted’s home and got the low down on specifics of were he had been working on his yard. The main areas were in the rear and one side of the house.

I chose to start on the rear grassy area and Leighton went to the area around the tool shed. Forty-five minutes had passed and I had only one possible signal, but my detector told me it was too deep to be the ring. Right on, but I just had to see what the target was. As it turned out it was an electrical connector of some type that even Google View has not been able to identify correctly.

I had covered the the rear grassy area twice and then headed to the side yard, mainly a mulch covered area. On my third pass the sweet sound of gold rang in my ears. Looking down I saw the ring, sitting on top of the mulch, no digging needed.

I called Ted over and asked him to pick up the, now located, ring. Joy and happiness was evident. It is such a rewarding feeling to help someone out of a nerve racking time. A bit of talk and and many thanks made for another entry to TheRingFinders’ Book of Smiles.

 

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Lost Ring, Found in Back Yard and Returned – Rochester, MA

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)
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October 20, 2023: While I was out doing yard work Leighton called with information on a ring search he was not able to help with. My wife was on her way to a luncheon, but took time to stop bye and tell me of the call. I finished up what I was doing, went home, and called Leighton. Information in hand I returned Mary’s call to get the specific information on the ring’s loss. It was the previous day that Reed’s wedding band was lost while playing football with his sons. I took down the pertinent information and I was on my way.

Reed had purchased a detector to search for the ring. His son had set up a well laid out grid over the possible area the ring had been lost in. But they were unsuccessful in locating the ring because of lack of familiarity with the detector and amount of non-precious metal in the yard. I was impressed when I saw what they had done, very professional. A point of last known and first realizing the loss were marked. Making my task of keeping a well defined grid search very easy.

Within several minutes I had verified several target signals as invalid. I made a few adjustments to my detector’s setting and bingo…a perfect signal. It was hard to see the ring as it had been stepped upon which embedded it into the soft soil. All that could be seen was one side of the ring.

I gave the ring to Mary and I listened to the problems encountered with the new metal detector while hunting for the ring. Well, I gave a few minutes of instructions on the detector’s use and I am sure there is a new young detectorist in the family. I could not have wished for a better hobby to pursue. I have met so many wonderful people and been there when they have needed a bit of help.

As this return was preceded with two members passing along information I just wanted to add my Thank You to both Leighton Harrington for passing the info to me and to Brian Rudolph in Maryland for helping Mary find the right “RingFinder” closer to her home and who would help her and her husband in the search for a lost Tantalum wedding band. This was my first Tantalum ring that I have found in my 41 years of detecting. Thanks to all, it has been my pleasure.

 

 

 

 

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