Missing Ring Recovered – Reposted from Facebook page.








Received a call from a lovely couple. They were spending a day at the lake in the water when the ring came off her finger. I met them for a quick boat trip out to the island where they were swimming. Thankfully she marked exactly where she lost it by remembering a tree on the bank in front of her.. The ring was in about four feet of water right where she said it would be. This was a quick search made possible by some quick thinking. So glad to help this family out.


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Oconomowoc, Wisconsin residents, Ben and Alyson Schmidt were enjoying a July 4th excursion at Silver Lake. That’s when Alyson felt her wedding rings leave her hand in the chest-deep water. Fortunately, she had the presence of mind not to move, to remain standing where she was. When a subsequent search by family members failed to locate the ring in the mud and sand, Ben retrieved a metal mooring fixture and screwed it into the lake bottom where Alyson stood, this to mark the location. In all my years of metal detecting, this was the first time a client had the presence of mind to mark the location with such precision.
After finding me on the Ring Finder’s directory of metal-detecting specialists, I received a text message from Alyson asking if I would assist. The next day I met up with the Schmidts at the boat dock where the loss occurred. The water was crystal clear, making it easy to spot the mooring fixture. I quickly assembled my detection equipment and waded out to the marker. A mixed signal near the marker invited further investigation.
Normally, a ring generates a consistent and repeatable signal. But this signal was not stable. It bounced back and forth between two conductivity numbers which initially made me question if the target was indeed Alyson’s wedding rings. As I drew it to the surface from the lake bottom using a specialized scoop, the sun refracted off many diamonds. Sure enough, it was Alyson’s lost-but- now-found, wedding rings!
Upon examining the rings more closely, I discovered the center ring was hallmarked 18 karat gold while the side rings were 14 karat. It was this tiny, but significant difference that explained the mixed conductivity signal.
The smiles on Ben and Alysa’s faces say it best, “It’s more than a ring!”
July 11, 2024
From my home town in Connecticut, Arman was enjoying the Cape Cod’s good beach going weather with a Frisbee in hand, the sandy beach, family and friends when he somehow came to be missing his wedding band. No one moved, all looked very intensely for the lost piece of metal that held 11 years of memories. Not wanting to give up, Arman’s wife Mina, “Googled” for someone to help find the wayward ring. As often happens my name came up in a link with TheRingFinders.com and a text was sent my way.
I was out and enjoying a dinner with my wife and a long time metal detecting friend Eleanor. I did not check my text messages until the next morning. I answered it and was on my to the the beach for another recovery attempt. I spent more time talking with Arman about our home town than it took me to locate his ring.
My first good signal was a coin that I had Arman’s son remove from my scoop and to keep as a treasure from Cape Cod. Later he also was very grateful when I gave him one of my TheRingFinders.com cards for him to keep.
Back to the search, my second good target, which I was sure, was Arman’s ring was about 5 minutes later, just beyond the original suggested area to search. I took a picture then had Arman remove the ring from my scoop which he did with no hesitation, brushed the sand off and replaced it on his finger. More picture, stories, and old and current information about our home town was a welcome change from metal detecting stories although a few bits were part of our conversation. It all ended with a great feeling for the Cape and desire to return next year with smiles that will last through the coming year.


Steve Thomas
Dunedin Ring Finder lostringdunedin.com
“It’s only lost until I find it!”
Lost a ring or other metal valuable at the beach or in a grassy or sandy area? Jewelry slip off of you while working outside, playing with the dog or swimming? Please contact me ASAP at (843) 995-4719 or @dunedinringfinder. I offer a FREE metal detecting service, reward optional but appreciated upon recovery!
While I was in Texas with my wife Jan for the birth of our second grandson Anson and visiting with his brother Tillman and parents Joe and Madison (our daughter), I was contacted by Michelle from the Weeki Wachee/Spring Hill Florida area in early May who told me that she lost her wedding ring while doing yard work. Even though the ring had been lost in a location that could not be searched by anyone without Michelle’s permission, I asked Michelle if she would like to wait until I returned to Florida to search for her or if she prefer that I try to contact another trusted detectorist to search as soon as possible. Michelle told me that she could wait until my return and because we would be driving back from Texas in three weeks and passing within five minutes of her home, I could search for her then.
At the end of May, we headed back to Florida, stopping several places along the way. The day before we were to pass by Michelle’s home, I contacted her and set up a time to meet her. As we got close to the loss location the next day, Michelle texted to say that something had come up and that she would not be able to meet me for the search. I told her that we would set up another time after I returned home.
Michelle and I were able to set up another search time several weeks later and that day I made the hour long drive with my detecting buddy Jim Facinelli who was going to assist in this search as well as another search for a ring in the cool spring water at Crystal River.
We arrived at Michelle’s home and shortly after, we received some more details about the loss and we began our search. Michelle and her husband had been working on their irrigation system in the left side front yard which involved a lot of digging when she realized that her ring was missing from her finger. She had thoroughly searched the area which was more dirt than grass but had been unable to find it. Michelle’s daughter Christalynn had earlier searched with her own beginners metal detector but had been unable to find her mother’s ring. Jim and I scanned the area for about 45 minutes and dug several coins along with various pieces of scrap metal. There was very little grass for a ring to hide in but that area had seen some vehicle traffic in addition to the irrigation work so the ring could have been pushed further under the ground surface. The loss area was not large and Michelle was certain that she had lost her ring in this area so we gridded it several times and dug every target. I dug a possible gold target near a utility pole and out popped Michelle’s wedding ring from about a two inch depth! I held up the ring to show Jim and we both celebrated. As Michelle and her daughter had gone inside the house to take a quick break from the heat, Jim suggested that we have Christalynn come outside with her metal detector and “find” the ring. We reburied the ring and had Michelle and Christalynn come outside to the spot and Christalynn got a signal on her detector and began digging. She dug up a penny near the ring before she found the ring and proudly handed it to her mother! Thanks to Jim for that great idea and his assistance with the search.
Michelle, thank you for trusting the Dunedin Ring Finder to find and return your ring almost two months after you lost it!
In April 2024, Kaylynn reached out to me for help locating her husband Jake’s missing ring. He had been fishing in a stream and, upon catching a fish and attempting to take a picture, realized his ring was gone. Jake wasn’t sure where exactly he lost it, but he did recall falling into the deeper part of the creek.
When I first met Jake at the stream, the water was high and bitterly cold, making the search incredibly challenging. After two hours of searching in the freezing water with no success, I advised Jake to contact me once the water level dropped in the summer, promising to return for another attempt.
Fast forward to July 10th, and Kaylynn reached out again, reporting that the water was lower. She asked if I could come back to search for the ring. I told her that I would handle the search and notify her if I found it. This time, the conditions were much more favorable, with the water being lower and warmer.
I immediately headed to the deeper part of the creek and began searching. Within about ten minutes, my metal detector picked up a promising signal. I reached into the water and pulled out the ring! I quickly texted a picture of the ring to Kaylynn, who responded with an ecstatic « NO WAY! ».
She soon arrived at the creek with her children. Jake’s wife and daughter were overjoyed to have the ring back. His daughter even joked about throwing the ring back into the creek just to see her dad fall in again. Moments like these, helping kind people, make this hobby truly rewarding.
Another successful ring find, and another happy family!



Steve’s Emergency Metal Detecting Service For You if you lost a ring or something precious to you. Please don’t wait until tomorrow, time will work against you, please CALL AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, CALL NOW! 310-953-5268
Adam contacted me about a ring his wife had lost the day before at local park. She had taken her child to the park to play, and fearing the loss of her ring, she took it off, and put it « safely » in her pocket. She also had her phone in that pocket, and her glasses too, both of which she removed in and out multiple times while her child was playing. Knowing that time is the enemy of a successful recovery, and that a day had already passed, I encouraged a search the same day. He agreed, and said his wife would meet me at the park to show me where to look.
When I arrived Stephani was waiting for me, and after some arrangements with the staff at the park, took me to the first of two areas she believed the loss occurred. I had my 11 inch coil on the detector, but brought my 6 inch coil just to be sure I could search everything. I went over the first area with some difficulty because of some of the metal around the benches and boundaries of the sand pit, and didn’t find the ring. we then went over to the other area which turned out to be a little more difficult, so I changed to the 6 inch coil, and was able to search the spot extensively. Stephani asked what I was wanting to hear, that we could search the first area again. I wanted to go over with the 6 inch coil to be sure I could get in close to the spots that had built in metal. I was working in close to one of the benches, when I received a nice solid tone, put in my pin pointer, and found her ring. When I showed her, there an outpouring of emotion, and she ran off to show her husband, and tell him the good news. It is so fun to be able to turn someone’s broken heart into a joyful one, and in that, this day was a success.
Don’t let the County beach cleaning machines take your lost valuable, call as soon as possible! I will work hard, using the most up to date metal detectors, to help you find what you thought might never be found again. I search, Beverly Hills, Hermosa Beach, Huntington Beach, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Malibu, Manhattan Beach, Newport Beach, Northridge, Pasadena, Redondo Beach, Santa Monica, Seal Beach, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, Torrance, Venice Beach, Zuma Beach, and all parks, yards, gardens, and ponds (to 5 foot depths) in all of Orange County, all of Los Angeles County, Southern California, and Ventura County.
CALL AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, CALL NOW! 310-953-5268


It was a beautiful afternoon when I took a glance at my phone. I noticed I was tagged many times on a local Facebook page, where Jim had posted about his lost wedding ring on a local beach on LBI. His post was worded as a last chance effort to locate his wedding ring he lost the prior day in the sand in Beach Haven. Not long after Jim called me, and he basically wrote this off as a LONG shot of ever seeing his cherished wedding ring again. After getting all the details I explained I was at a family party and would be able to go later on around dinner time, and requested for him to leave some chairs set up to secure the location he believed the ring to be hiding. He agreed, but really didn’t seem to have much hope, as he had stated “its a long shot”. I got to the beach and with the beautiful warm temperatures inland, and the cold ocean water, the beach was socked in with heavy fog. When I got to the dune walkover I didn’t see any signs of the location he marked, but once I walked about half way to the ocean, I could vaguely see a lonely folded chair, on a damp and dreary beach. I turned on my machine, and walked in the direction of the chair. about 20 feet from the chair, in a direct path to the dune walkover opening, my metal detector let off a tone which I call BINGO !!!! And sure enough, Jims ring was in my sand scoop. I snapped a few pictures as usual, and sent them to Jim in a text. He responded in total amazement, as I just performed what he had considered impossible. Jim was just down the road having dinner at one of best locations in Beach Haven NJ, and agreed to meet next door in the Wawa parking lot. Another fantastic recovery in the books, doing what many write off as an impossible task. Its the heart felt expressions, and the challenge of the hunt that drive me.
Amal was out playing basketball with some friends. While taking a shot, her ring flew off her finger. She knew it was in the grassy area next to the court. The group searched for hours until it was too dark. She started the search again the next morning with a rented metal detector, still nothing. Amal decided to check online for any help and her internet search landed on theringfinders.com – She called, and I told her I could do a search the next day. She lives approx. an hour and half away, so I let her know I was heading out. Just before I arrived, she called me with great news. When she went back to the basketball court to meet up with me, and just happened to see the ring in the grass. So, I can’t count this as a « ringfinders find », though I thought it was a great story and to make sure other people know – Never give up!! Nice to meet you Amal and congrats on the find.
Darrin –
