HOW DO WAVES MOVE A HEAVY WOMENS RING AROUND?

[streetglide]

I met a lady at a local beach to locate her ring lost in 2 to 3 feet of water. I did a grid search of the area and beyond. I was using my Excal with the 10 inch coil in the water and my wot coil in the wet sand. This was a day after she lost it. The ring was a heavy white gold band with 5 diamonds. How does the waves and tides move the ring around. The sand is firm with gravel in the water.Thanks Joe

 

[TooManyHobbies]

If she was that heavy, she probably had fat fingers too, so the weight of the larger ring would probably keep it in that area. I think someone found it before you.

 

[ARC]

heh...
You do know that the "bottom" moves right ?
That ring could be way down the beach depending on the current and many other factors.

It could be out to chest deep now as well... or waist... or knee...
What tide was it when she lost it ?
What tide was it when you tried to find it ?
Did those 2 times match ?

Etc... etc.

 

[Native Floridian]

Most likely the ring is buried too deep to find. Even one day can make a big difference. Years ago a friend of mine accidentally ran his new 24 foot sailboat aground in a rough inlet. Waves were breaking everywhere. It was decided that it was wasn't safe to pull the boat off the sandbar as night was fast approaching. The next morning when my friend arrived with the tow boat the only part of his boat not buried in sand was the end of the 30 foot long mast. The boat had been capsized by the waves and then filled and finally covered in sand.

If the sea can do that to a boat in such a short time, a ring getting buried a foot or so deep isn't out of the question. Check the tidal currents in that area and search in that direction. Wave action could bring the ring back up as easily as it was buried.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

I recovered a lost ring for a couple 50 yards from where they lost it, I returned it because they told me what the inscription was inside before I spent hour looking for it 50 yards from where I found it where I originally looked when they asked my help. If there is surf action they move...

 

[Doubter in MD]

How heavy was she? She could have floated off course before she noticed the ring was missing.

 

[OBN]

heh...
You do know that the "bottom" moves right ?
That ring could be way down the beach depending on the current and many other factors.

It could be out to chest deep now as well... or waist... or knee...
What tide was it when she lost it ?
What tide was it when you tried to find it ?
Did those 2 times match ?

Etc... etc.

Very True....


Sand is Fluid like when mixed with water and can move and as it moves it pulls/pushes other things along with it... All based on what ACCR said...when I hunt a washed out hole at the beach, I check the hole and the sand that has been pushed out of it.. parallel... to which ever shape the hole is...

 

[ARC]

Lakes and still water... calm even...
Then the ring will be right there... where she dropped it...
But if the waves are churning and people kicking through the surf... and current is really pulling...
Man that ring could be far from where she dropped it.

Stay about same depth as she described she was in... but here is deal... you gotta know a rough estimate of when as well...
This will help...
Because if she lost it at low tide and she was knee deep... and you came back at high tide... knee deep for you is WAY in closer to beach than where the ring was lost...
It may be in chest high water now...
SO...
When backtracking... this must be considered if it is not the same day as loss...
Most times when looking for a recent drop ... it has been only a short while...
Other times someone looks the next day and happens to be at the same tidal time /area and it is found after little trouble or in some time.

Anyway... my 2 cents.

 

[cudamark]

I met a lady at a local beach to locate her ring lost in 2 to 3 feet of water. I did a grid search of the area and beyond. I was using my Excal with the 10 inch coil in the water and my wot coil in the wet sand. This was a day after she lost it. The ring was a heavy white gold band with 5 diamonds. How does the waves and tides move the ring around. The sand is firm with gravel in the water.Thanks Joe

As you have probably figured out by now, the answer is: It depends. If the area hasn't seen much high surf or heavy currents and the bottom is hard, it's likely close to where it was dropped.....just deeper. I've found rings lost over a month that I've found right where they said they should be. If the area is having lots of sand movement and there's a soft bottom, it's probably buried. Ask her if the stones stick up from the band. If not, smooth rings can roll amazing distances if they get on edge. Get the exact time of the loss so you can see what the tide height was a that time. Return at the lowest tide you can and figure the difference so you know how deep it should be. Still no luck? Expand the search area down current and/or in toward the beach if the surf has been light or out deeper if the surf has been heavy.

 

[CASPER-2]

I took a friend out to a beach when he bought his first water machine - he was gonna just hit in the surf
we get there - and walk to the waters edge - beach we are at only gets waves in rough weather - so all we are looking at is slow
rollers quietly coming in - he asks what exactly he is listening for - he had only been in the hobby a few yrs
but I told him he should be listening to same thing he would on his land machine - but of course a penny may go off different than a quarter
and bottle cap will be different than a pulltab -etc - in most cases - I never used his brand of machine (was an older company no longer made but a good one)
but that's neither here nor there - He's out there for the gold - so he says "Hey... Im gonna test on my wedding band"
The water is slowly coming in - slowly going out - we are standing in clear water just a few inches deep - he pulls his ring off (he's a good size guy with a big band) - he drops it between us and next thing you know it hits the bottom and the out going water sucks it right out in a second to about 15 feet out and then it sank a little - he almost shat - he had a panic attack - he had thigh wadders on - I was fully suited for deep waters and I quickly turned my machine on and went after it - I told him "go and try it on the wet sand" and then told him - why do you think so many people lose them and then cant find them
Same as many of you - Ive been asked to recover rings right after being lost - 1 out 10 times - they are around where they thought they lost them - usually they are 50 yrds plus from where they thought - I remember I was in about 5 feet of water at a spot where bottom was a harder packed sand - I get a nice reading - scoop and as I bring scoop up I see gold on lip of my scoop - I should have just let it drop in but greedily reached for it and it fell off the lip back to the bottom - and I could see it being pulled across the bottom into deeper water - I had to drop my scoop and dive under and swim for it cause it was now in about 6 1/2 feet of water - but I got it- luckily I was wearing a mask . I remember years ago a guy in Clearwater told me he was at his limits for depth and he had a gold necklace with a couple rings on it fall off the lip of his scoop and he said he never saw it again - he spent the rest of that day and the next week searching for it but never got it - wish I lived down there - would have went out with hookah or snuba for it - Im surprised he did not try and find a friend with tanks to go for it - had to be out in the deep water some where - probably still is

 

[ARC]

I forgot to add one more thing...
Where someone says "where" they lost it... is not always where they think it was...
I always back up a bit from where they say it was and work my way with the current toward the area that was pointed out as drop area...
This way if they were "off"... which mostly they are... I have covered the entire area.
And I cannot tell you how many times I have found their item "UP" from where they thought they were...

Most people that have said that they have lost something do not really know "exact" spot where it was dropped.

When they drop it... they look and look... and then look for a reference point like their towel or chair.
Whats worse is when they say...
I do not know where I was ... heh
Then def back up some from whatever point they said.

The response is always the same...
"it was somewhere over in here"... as they point wildly...
They could be convinced in was in an exact spot...
And when I find it... its 5 feet or more away UP from where they thought they were.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Had 2 guys walk up to me one day in late afternoon/early evening and tell me they lost their only car key and would I look for it.

I said yes, where did you lose it and they pointed at dry sand area above high tide line. I looked for 30 mins with excal and 15 inch coil griding the area, no keys. I walk back to the 2 guys and said tell me how you lost them, one guy tells me he put the key in his sandal so he wouldn't lose it, I ask "how long ago was that", he said about 4 hours ago, I said sorry but you better call a tow truck and walked off shaking my head. Car key in your sandal...[emoji15]


They called tow truck....

 

[Crispin]

True story. I was wading in waist deep water in St. Marten's when a wave knocked me over and I lost my glasses. First day of the trip. I was miserably depressed so I went to the bar and had a couple drinks. While sitting there I remembered my oceanography class about how waves move in patterns. So I ran up to my room, grabbed my snorkel, mask, and fins and went out to the beach. I picked up a handful of pebbles and walked out to the spot I had lost my glasses. I dropped the pebbles and followed them. I would "fluff" the pebbles to keep them moving faster. Forty-five minutes later the pebbles landed on my glasses, half buried in the sand! There is a fine line between genius and insanity.

In case anybody is wondering why I didn't get my detector...this was before I started metal detecting.

 

[Mike70]

I was asked to locate a ring for a woman while I was detecting in shallow water. She even drew an illustration of it, and showed me where she lost it. I searched all around the area and never got a signal, so I asked her how long ago did she loose it, she said 'about three weeks ago' !! Told her it was probably five miles up the coast by now.

 

[frogmaster-riviera]

What an interesting question !!!




Just preparing my stuff to experience on the field! I'm taking my gopro helmet so I will shot to let you know

Give me around 2h30 (my re-breather max time) and when I'll surface, hope I can tell ya.

Stand by...

 

[treasure diver ct]

Iv always wondered this, how would one see the direction of the current though?

 

[frogmaster-riviera]

After a "fabulous" 1.5H scuba hunt, I'm so happy to increase my collection of Sinkers and WWII bullets and a 1924 coin. Hopefully I found a ring (a junk ring probably..) but it is heavy and I was happy underwater to be able to answer your question: a heavy women ring won't move a lot, it will remains close to the place where it has been lost!

Please keep in mind that I am located on the Med sea..and we almost have no tides.... can't tell you on the Atlantic / pacific ocean cost.

 

[cudamark]

You're in a decent area if you're finding old sinkers like that. Work your way toward the swimming section instead of the fishing area.

 

[TheRingFinder]

90% of the time, people are Wayyyyyyy off the spot that they "think" they lost it. I have many experiences in this young paddaway.....

 

[frogmaster-riviera]

You're in a decent area if you're finding old sinkers like that. Work your way toward the swimming section instead of the fishing area.

I was prospecting next to very old beaches where they are ruins of a roman (antique) sea port. I've found fantastic stuff in the same area.... but you have a lot of sinkers! Sometimes you found a gold coin from before christ next to the sinkers :-)