Short hunt only gave up one..... *Appraisal Done*

[Silver Surfer]

I had a Doctor appointment today in Weston, so figured I'd hit Miami while I was there.... Man is it sanded in there.. I dug a few test holes and most places couldnt hit shell or a firm bottom even with a two foot deep hole... Hmmmm... The surf was big and crashing, and really ripping currents, even at the surf line, so my back and I decided the water wasnt really the best idea... Well, after about the 10th bottle cap, I compromised with my back and decided to hit knee deep and shallower.. I began looking for any sign of a cut, and about 200 yds down the beach I came on an area where current was coming in one side and running parallel with the beach... Sure enough, I could hit hard bottom about 10" down, shell and coral.. About 15 feet after I started, I hit a small sinker at about 12".. "Thats good" I told myself.. Then, a very sand worn quarter about 5 feet past the sinker.. Then, as I was sweeping right up to the "ledges" edge, I heard a really faint tone.. I found today that coins and rings do not make the sharp, loud tone that bottle caps do, thats for sure..
Anyway, I dug a scoop.. Sound gets louder, but still not harsh like a bottle cap.. "Another quarter"... Dug another scoop.. Still louder, but yet faint.. Of course, with each scoop taken out, about half of it would wash back in with the crazy surf... Scoop 4, not yet... Scoop 5.... By this time, I am a good 16" deep.. Okay, hole clear... I started sifting my scoop in the water and when it cleared, I look in and WOOOOOOOOOWSIE!!!

I have this CHUNK of a ring staring back at me... Very gawky, with a large blue stone... Heavy as all get out, so I am thinking "Is this Platinum?".... I french fellow happened to stop right then and ask me "did you find something"... I held out the ring and asked him "Can you see well, I cant without my reading glasses"... He took the ring and said "it has 750 and 18k on it"... I almost did a happy dance right there!!!
Put it in my bag and continued hunting... I hunted the rest of that strip, found a few coins and a lot of OLD bottle caps.. A stainless padlock, and a cheap pair of sunglasses.. When the cut ended, I walked around for about an hour testing the sand depth along the way, and never could find any more spots that werent very deep sand.. SO, after a total of 3 hrs, I decided to head home 2 1/2 hrs away.. Only found one ring, but man, it is my nicest one yet.... I need to get it appraised, it is far more valuable than melt... My daughter asked me if it could be a "blue diamond"... I didnt know there was such a critter, but I figure something that rare would probably be set in Platinum rather than white gold.. Maybe a Blue Topaz or Sapphire she then said.. I have no idea, but I will surely find out and post my findings...

HH to you all!!

 

[47thelement]

Re: Short hunt only gave up one..... But man is she a nice one!

Do you have a Harbor Frieght Store around? ifso you can pick up a $2-$3 set of calipers and get a measurement. Then goto www.tripps.com

They have several gems wholesale by size. My wife buys 5mmx5mm swiss blue topaz from them all the time. You may also try www.gemselect.com to get a idea of the price of the gem if you have the size.

WARNING - GUYS DON'T LET YOU'RE LADIES GO TO GEM SELECT ALONE!!!!

 

[Silver Surfer]

Re: Short hunt only gave up one..... But man is she a nice one!

Do you have a Harbor Frieght Store around? ifso you can pick up a $2-$3 set of calipers and get a measurement. Then goto www.tripps.com

They have several gems wholesale by size. My wife buys 5mmx5mm swiss blue topaz from them all the time. You may also try www.gemselect.com to get a idea of the price of the gem if you have the size.

WARNING - GUYS DON'T LET YOU'RE LADIES GO TO GEM SELECT ALONE!!!!

Thanks, I'll look into that.... I do have a pair of calipers and it is 8 X 8 mm and 6 mm from top to bottom..

 

[47thelement]

Re: Short hunt only gave up one..... But man is she a nice one!

if it's a blue topaz this might give you an idea

http://www.gemselect.com/topaz/topaz-263584.php

remember this is a wholesale price

 

[Silver Surfer]

Re: Short hunt only gave up one..... But man is she a nice one!

Yeah, it sure suprises me what loose stones go for, compared to what they cost when bought at Zales, Kay, etc.... Mine is deeper than that one though... Sure cant wait to find out for sure what it is.. Going to set an appt with the Gemologist in Bradenton for next week.... My sister already said she wants the ring, and awaiting appraisal, said she would pay at least $300 for the ring... If Topaz, it is her birthstone..

 

[47thelement]

Re: Short hunt only gave up one..... But man is she a nice one!

That's why my wife makes all her own stuff

 

[steelheadwill]

Re: Short hunt only gave up one..... But man is she a nice one!

Truly Awesome Ring & Story !!

 

[Bobbie]

Re: Short hunt only gave up one..... But man is she a nice one!

Truly beautiful ring. It looks like a Blue Topaz but don't get your hopes up to high because selling stones is very difficult. There are all kinds of prices out there and jewelers being the cheapo thieves that they are, won't give you anything for it. They won't even buy a diamond if it is less than a carat.
You made one almost fatal mistake.........NEVER, NEVER show your jewelery finds to anyone on the beach, unless it is another detectorist. How easy would it be for that guy to go up to the police and say he lost his ring, then describe it and say that you had it! Keep a straight face and hide your finds!

 

[willie d]

Re: Short hunt only gave up one..... But man is she a nice one!

Awesome find

 

[Frank1960]

Re: Short hunt only gave up one..... But man is she a nice one!

Yeah, it sure suprises me what loose stones go for, compared to what they cost when bought at Zales, Kay, etc.... Mine is deeper than that one though... Sure cant wait to find out for sure what it is.. Going to set an appt with the Gemologist in Bradenton for next week.... My sister already said she wants the ring, and awaiting appraisal, said she would pay at least $300 for the ring... If Topaz, it is her birthstone..

Now be nice to your sister if the gemologist says less that the $300 sell it to her for what he says after all she might have a say in what nursing home you could go to lol

 

[Silver Surfer]

Finally got the appraisal done today.... $1175.00 Not bad for 3 hours work... Of course, I wont get that for it. He said wholesale for this ring would be $900, but the market is so saturated with used jewelry that prices are very low... But he did say that I should easily be able to get half of wholesale for it, so even at that, $450 is not shabby at all.... My sister wants to think it over, but she said she was ready to pay at least $400 for it.. I would like her to have it, since it is her birthstone... Probably cut her a good deal since her birthday is almost here also..

So there you have it.. Could have been better, but could have been a LOT worse.. I aint complaining one bit!!

As a side note, he said if it HAD been a blue diamond, it would be around $2,000,000.00 in value... Can you imagine??

 

[Tuberale]

Yes, actually, for that dark coloration of blue. That figure might actually be pretty conservative.