Extraction of coins/jewlery lying of hard coral bottom under wet and dry sand/

[Sir Gala Clad]

looking for tools and methods to effectively and rapidly extract coins and jewelery on top, in small holes, and in between cracks of dead corral under wet and dry sand.

As this is a prime tourist area, it is important that tools not look menacing and there be no damage or if this is not possible damage minimized.

 

[bigscoop]

A trained octopus! ......

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

How small a hole.... you can get the small flexible pick up tool for the jewelry. Just be sure to rinse real good after use and they are cheap....

http://m.harborfreight.com/24-inch-2-in-1-pickup-tool-94162.html?utm_referrer=direct/not provided

 

[GatorBoy]

You would be surprised how much fanning with your foot or hand can move material

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

You would be surprised how much fanning with your foot or hand can move material

Very true, I thought he wanted to reach into coral where his hand wouldn't fit..

 

[sponge]

You would be surprised how much fanning with your foot or hand can move material

With that being said sand must move tremendously under water with a storm. I was snorkel hunting and was impressed by what I could do with just fanning.

sponge using smoke signals.

 

[GatorBoy]

Yeah even a current created from a light wind in the same direction for several days can have a cumulative effect of moving a whole lot of material

 

[bigscoop]

With that being said sand must move tremendously under water with a storm. I was snorkel hunting and was impressed by what I could do with just fanning.

sponge using smoke signals.

Next time you're snorkeling in three or feet of water just watch the bottom every time a swells passes, a lot of times you can see the top layer of sand being easily moved. Just a steady push in the same direction for a few days can shove a lot of sand into the shallows and toward the beach, especially when it's really fine and soft.

 

[sponge]

Oh yea I used to watch that goin on since I was a kid. Just lookin at it now with diffrent mask. Treasure huntin mask.

sponge using smoke signals.

 

[lost items recovery]

Maybe try a screw driver

Sent from my iPhone using TreasureNet

 

[penzfan]

Try a gasket scraper. They're $4 at HF.

 

[Sir Gala Clad]

I would like to thank everyone, who replied.
I am primarily interested in developing safe techniques for removing treasure that is below wet sand on dead hard coral bottom, jewelry that is inside the small holes on top of the reef, or wedged in narrow cracks without causing damage to the reef.
The section of beach that I am working is not like anything I have seen In U Tube Videos. As Hawaii does not have a continental shelf there is nothing to slow the waves down as they approach shore or bleed of their power. At times the waves will come from different directions and jack up doubling their normal height. Situation awareness is everything as the ocean can be deceptively calm where time is not an issue, however conditions can change rapidly and tourists are often snatched off the beach above the high tide line, some when even standing on the crest above the beach, from wave surges when a tropical storm hits or a hurricane passes close, like the last two hurricanes we recently had.
I want to be able to use what I am carrying, and don’t want to risk lying my detector or other equipment down to use a pin pointer. Whatever I use, it has to be fast, almost seamless- the most likely tool I can think of is a modified crevice tool (safety one end for carrying) like one used by gold prospectors.

looking for tools and methods to effectively and rapidly extract coins and jewelery on top, in small holes, and in between cracks of dead corral under wet and dry sand.

As this is a prime tourist area, it is important that tools not look menacing and there be no damage or if this is not possible damage minimized.

 

[Sandman]

Treasure Hunter has the right idea with the grabbers. I use them to recover items from between slabs of concert at boat launches.

 

[RustyGold]

Maybe some type of type of underwater vacuum?

 

[FLauthor]

One inch to 1.5" suction dredge with a coin box made from half inch hardware cloth hung on the back of the sluice box. Salt water dredging no a problem. Freshwater use, check local laws. You really aren't dredging, actually aerating the water.

 

[GTzer]

If you're not bringing mechanical means- consider a kerosine pump (what they use to transfer kero from a can into a burner) Cheap-plastic-portable. -basically just a siphon.
I haven't tried one underwater but I don't see why the siphon wouldn't work as long as you keep one hose lower than the other. (small fishing wt maybe)

 

[Sir Gala Clad]

A trained octopus! ......

Thank you for your replies.
Strangely bigscoops answer of a “trained octopus”, comes closest to what I need.That would be my grandson; one of his nicknames is Taco – the Japanese term of Octopus, as he is into everything.
He especially enjoys detecting with me, but I would never take him in harm’s way.

The area that I am referring to is seldom productive as it is usually sanded in.
Targets can only be detected and retrieved for a short period of time, usually after storms have passed close by, or during storms. The optimum condition is when the wet sand is five to seven inches,
as You need the wet sand to protect you from this sharp and nasty bottom. This hard bottom has
the hard bottom edges and overlaps for targets to get under; pukas (holes) which targets fall into.

I should not have used the word extract, as the retrieval process is blind.
My best luck has been with a short handle swing scoop with a small 4.5 to 5” diameter stain stainless steel cage for more rapid draining. With the smaller basket and shaft, I can more effectively change the direction of scooping till it is in the basket or I have worked the target to the surface where I can see it. This works well for coins and grey matter, but have only been able to retrieve one ring to date.

I know that gold and silver is there, having been lost by tourist and local alike ( Argh)!

 

[Lady Pirate]

What about a metal dental pick that you can purchase at Flea markets? Small enough to fit in pouch, has a nice curve at the end to pull items from coral holes, and strong.

 

[Sir Gala Clad]

That should do it.
Even better would be a larger one for animals from a Vet.

What about a metal dental pick that you can purchase at Flea markets? Small enough to fit in pouch, has a nice curve at the end to pull items from coral holes, and strong.

 

[firstlight10]

That should do it.
Even better would be a larger one for animals from a Vet.

Check with your local reef aquarium store. Many reef tank owners including myself use a long pair of heavy duty tweezers to reach into deep tanks without sticking their arms in there.