About a year ago, Steve was brushing his hands on his porch one morning in Margate, NJ. Then suddenly, his lost wedding band rolled off the deck into the bushes and garden below. He and the landscaping crew searched with no avail. Steve saw that I help find lost rings and gave me a call. We met, and he demonstrated what had happened a year ago, and I got in there with the metal detector. I got a signal about four inches down, and it was the ring!
I received a text message from Liz about 10 am on Saturday, Sep 5th, saying, “Hi my name is Liz and I’m at OIB. My husband lost his wedding band in the surf yesterday afternoon. We have a metal detector but haven’t had any luck. Wondering if you might be able to help?” I replied asking her to call me. When she called, I asked her where he lost it. She explained that when he lost it he was about waist deep at high tide. I asked her the time and she said around 3 p.m. I looked at the tide table and saw high tide was around 6 p.m. yesterday, so if he lost it around 3 p.m. then he was about mid tide. I told her I’d be there between 11 and 11:15, which I had to adjust to 11:25 once I got my gear and hit the road. On my way, I thought that if he lost it at waist deep about mid tide, then the ring should be at the low tide line.
When I got to their house, I met Liz and a few family members. Liz walked me out to the beach and said her husband, Bobby, had told her that he was west of their house on the beach. Liz set me up behind the neighbor’s house and said Bobby was from this point – that way, as she’s pointing down the beach. “That way” was a long stretch of beach, so it was time to get started. I grabbed my PI and backed up from her starting point and started a perpendicular grid above the mid tide line seaward to about waist deep. I did that grid search from my starting point to the 4th house west. I wasn’t finding anything, and reached the point of wondering if I was in the right spot, and/or going deep enough to search. I took a quick break and reassessed my thoughts about where it should be. With the information I was given, I was positive his wedding band should be around the low tide line. Did I just miss it, swing left instead of right? I grabbed my Equinox 800 and started a cross grid search starting about shin deep at the low tide line. As I’m working up the slope of the beach I got a solid 15 on the VDI (visual display indicator). This was in the range of numbers for a man’s gold wedding band. I dug a scoop of sand, had the target, and rinsed the sand out of the scoop in the surf. When I checked the scoop, I could see Bobby’s gold wedding band peeking through the shells from the bottom of the scoop. I had definitely missed it on my first pass. Liz wasn’t out on the beach when I found it, but one of her family members called her, telling her I was done. When Liz came back on the beach, another family member was able to get a video of Liz’s response. Liz was trying so hard to hold back the tears, but she was so excited. Unfortunately, Bobby was playing golf so he wasn’t there to share the excitement, but I’m sure he was happy to get his wedding band back where it belongs.
Liz – Thank you for trusting me to help you find Bobby’s ring. Enjoy the rest of your vacation with your family and have a safe trip home.
I got a text message a little after 11 a.m. on Friday, July 16th, from Mike saying “Hi Jim, Mike here. I just lost my wedding band at Myrtle Beach near 26th Ave North, by the Anderson Oceans Club and Spa. It’s a size 11 palladium band. I lost it in the water about 30 minutes ago. Any chance you can help?” I called him to get some more details, like how deep he was in the water, and whether he could meet me to show me the area. We agreed to meet on the beach at 3 p.m. He and his wife were in town from Maryland on a short trip, so he was limited on time. He lost his ring about an hour before high tide and low tide wasn’t going to be until a little after 7 p.m. I had a second lost ring at the same location, about 100 yards apart that I had gotten the day before. I was hoping I could find this ring and then re-search the other area for the second ring. Then I got to thinking, maybe Jim Brouwer would like to help. That way I could search for this ring and have Jim cover the area for the second one. When I talked to Jim, he jumped at the chance but couldn’t be there until a little later.
I got to the beach on time and met Mike. He showed me the area, confirming that his wife had marked the area when he lost his ring. Unfortunately, the wind had picked up which caused large waves coming straight into the beach. There was no way I could walk into the surf let alone try and detect. I sat there for at least an hour watching the waves crash onto the beach while waiting for Jim. After a while the conditions calmed down enough that I could detect. I gave Jim a description of the other ring and showed him the area. We both went to work trying to find these rings. With the information I got from Mike, I really expected to find his ring on the slope. After 2 hours of searching the slope and going out knee deep in the ocean, I hit a good target. I was using my White’s PI detector, so every signal sounds really good. I was expecting to dig up another bottle cap, which is about the only thing I was finding. I had the target in my scoop and shook the sand and shells out of my scoop and saw his palladium ring. I took a picture and sent it saying Bingo! He showed up about 45 minutes later with a big smile on his face knowing his ring was going back on his finger where it belonged.
Mike – Thanks for trusting me to help find your lost treasure.
Monday afternoon started with a message from Taylor saying in part “Hello Ring Finders I’m so so hoping you can help!!! I have lost my wedding ring!!!! We are staying at the sea mist oceanfront resort in Myrtle Beach. I’m hoping you can help.” This ring call is in Matt Fry’s area, so I’m in the process of calling Matt when Taylor calls me. I ask Taylor a few questions that I could relay to Matt. She explained that her and her family had been there since around 8 a.m. She said she had taken her ring off to apply sun screen to the family and couldn’t remember if she put it back on or not. She also mentioned that she had gone in the ocean at some point but no deeper than knee deep. I explained to her that I’m trying to get a hold of Matt, who covers Myrtle Beach, for her ring search and that one of us would call her back shortly. When I got a hold of Matt, I started giving him the information. I then asked him if he wanted to take it, I must have sounded pretty pathetic because he said “if you want to take it, go ahead. I’ve got work in the shop to do.” I thanked him and called Taylor back saying I was on my way.
When I got to the beach, there was no place to park. I called Taylor and she met me in the resort’s parking lot and was able to get me a temporary parking pass. As we walked out to the beach, I learned they were on vacation from Virginia. She also mentioned that they had seen another detectionist earlier on the beach and had asked him if he could try and find her ring. He checked the area where they were sitting and then recommended they contact The Ring Finders, that’s how she found me. I know a lot of the guys detecting in Myrtle Beach and I know they’re good and thorough in their searches. But from the description that Taylor gave me, I couldn’t picture who it was. For my own piece of mind and to say I checked, I did a quick search around their umbrella and out in front a few feet. I then started a grid search from where they were sitting out to the low tide line. Probably 8 to 10 grid lines, I got a solid 13. On the equinox 800, a 13 VDI could be a pull tab, a man’s thin gold ring, a nickel, or a woman’s big white gold wedding band. After digging a scoop of sand and spreading it out on the beach, I didn’t see anything. I ran my coil over the area and got the 13 again. I didn’t see a thing so I’m thinking a pull tab. I’m moving the sand with my foot and saw a very small silver looking “thing.” I reached down and plucked Taylor’s beautiful white and rose gold wedding ring out of the wet sand. I walked down to the water and washed the sand off the ring. I then made my way back up to where Taylor and Brandon were sitting, making it look like I was done. I stood in front of Taylor and ask her what her ring looks like. As she’s explaining her ring, I slowly hold it up next to my face so she can see it. She screamed “you found my ring” and exploded out of her chair. Big, Big Hug and some tears. This is why I love doing what I do!
Big shout out and thank you to Bill Judy, who was the detectionist that referred Taylor and Brandon to The Ring Finders and Matt Fry, who let me take this ring call.
Taylor and Brandon – Thank you for trusting me and The Ring Finders to help find your lost treasure. Have a great rest of your vacation and a safe trip back home!
Mike McInroe…Ring Recovery Specialist…Call, text or email ASAP…321-363-6029
Brian had decided to take his dog out for a short walk behind his house and as he walked around the small lake he noticed how loose his ring was on his finger. He and his fiancee had bought promise rings for each other and they each wore their ring faithfully for two years. Brian had recently bought her an engagement ring therefore she no longer wore her promise ring and Brian sort of took up the habit of wearing her ring on his index finger on his left hand and just a few days earlier he jammed his finger so the ring was getting to tight and uncomfortable. So he tried wearing it on his ring finger and it sort of fit but was just a little loose. Add a little loose fit and some cool weather and Brian was setting himself up for his ring to fall off and that is exactly what happened. Somehow while Brian was playing with his dog he swung his arm to the side and he actually felt his fiancees promise ring go flying. Even though it was daylight Brian had no idea where the ring went and he searched for quite a while before finally giving up. The worse part was that he felt really bad about loosing his fiancees promise ring and he wanted to get it back ASAP because of the huge sentimental value it held.
His next thoughts were along the line of using a metal detector so he decided to try a search for « Metal Detector Rental » on his phone and up came theringfinders.com and one of my stories. Brian gave me a call and then sent me his address and a few hours later I was grid searching the exact area where he lost his ring. This area is a new construction area and the ground was signal free…with not a grunt or beep to be heard anywhere. Iron sounds as a grunt and non-ferros signals give a beep on my Garrett ATMax metal detector. As I was finishing up the 20 foot square area I got a great signal, crisp and clean, and there hiding in the grass was Brian’s promise ring! The relief was obvious on Brian’s face as he scooped up the ring and put it back on his finger! I thanked God for allowing me to find Brian’s special ring and for the privilege of being a member of theringfinders.com!
Lost something recently or years ago in your yard or at the park? Call ASAP, text or email me anytime!
Mike McInroe… Blessed to be a member of theringfinders.com
Newlyweds Tyler and Chelsea enjoyed a day at Pinewood Lake in Trumbull, Connecticut, when disaster struck. Tyler’s wedding band slipped off his finger, and three weeks of sporting his bling were undone in three seconds. Tyler dove underwater and searched the muddy bottom with a mask, snorkel, and even some neighborhood recruits. Hours later, he realized the ring was lost to the lake.
Tyler found me online, and we set up a phone call to discuss the chances of finding his lost ring. Our biggest hurdle was the depth of the water where he was swimming. Tyler described his ability to touch the bottom with his toes, but his head was not sticking out of the water by much. I knew Tyler was taller than me, so this search would be on the edge of recoverability without using SCUBA gear. Tyler was confident of his location, and we had some dry weather, so it was worth a shot. I arrived and searched as deep as I could in the calm waters, but I never came across the gold ring. As we sat on the edge of the lake discussing the next step, some of the local property owners began talking about the lake being drained every four years. This meant there could be a chance of recovering the ring from the deeper waters, but we would potentially have to wait years for the lake drain to occur. Only a couple of days later, Tyler called me with good news. Draining was planned from the end of September through early November! We made a second appointment during late October to make sure the lake level would be low enough to make a difference in how far out I would be able to search. The conditions were perfect. The only water remaining in the whole section was a single channel running through the area’s center. I arrived and began my second search. I heard a faint squeak about fifty feet away from the area I was searching during the summer. The signal came from the channel, but I immediately thought there is no way this ring fell in the worst possible place. The chances were much better of the ring settling on a nice flat, shallow surface, but I was wrong! I smeared a scoop of channel mud across the ground and saw the outline of a gold ring. I tried to surprise Tyler with the ring, but I think he was on to my shenanigans. Or he is good at containing his emotional reactions because when I showed the ring, he calmly said, “that is it.” I didn’t give up on the surprise. I convinced him to surprise Chelsea. This time the surprise was a success – check out Chelsea’s reaction in the YouTube video below!
How to Find a Lost Ring
Lost your ring? Contact a professional to discuss the next steps of finding your lost ring. I serve Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and short distances into other surrounding states. If you have a lost ring or something of value, contact Keith Wille now uncoverthings@yahoo.com | Call or text 860-917-8947 | www.metaldetectionkeithwille.com
