Metal Detecting Misadventures


Mount Manaia, Whangarei Heads.
Out for a quick hunt.

Good news, and bad news.

90% of the interference was from my dodgy earphones. There is still some beeping if I turn the coil to the left and up. But otherwise it is mostly silent and no long screaming every minute as if there are electric fences nearby.
I have cancel mode on - that means I get No interference at all, it’s amazing.

I think the water (salty) may have affected the interference shielding.
And I feel I’ve lost some sensitivity.

Ocean Beach Whanagarei Heads - Dud.

Urquharts Bay
Nothing except a few fishing stuff from around a Jetty. Coin is old 20 cent, the lure was just spotted on the rocks - wish I was into fishing.
Kind of gave up after that.

2 Likes

Great place. I was there a while ago and just love it. The photos bring back happy memories…and a desire to go back there asap

Just found this:

1 Like

Got into river at low tide, Rayban spot.
Detected until dark. Two junker rings, fairly happy :grinning:


I spoke too soon, Spice is brass, has Girls on inside. The other very light for the size, has two hall marks STG - Stirling, and very cubic ru? Weighs in at 7g. My first ever silver, its about time.
NOW I’m real keen to hit that area hard!

Can you read that hallmark?

5 Likes

No-one can say you haven’t worked hard for that ring. :+1:

1 Like

It wasn’t too difficult on the day. Guess research is everything, and bit of perseverence. I have been detecting whole days, nearly everyday and twice a day.

Here is one of the few photo’s of the place I’m at. Wonder if the ring belonged to one of these guys.

1 Like

good on yer gp next one is gold i can sense it…

:clap:Good job GP, and some real nice posts to boot!
Keep at it.
I must get my a into g been a long while since I’ve been out looking :eyes:

1 Like

Only 50 to 100 people lived at this location, I know of a local historian. See if I can do some research on some of the people that lived here.

This could be the maker.
Reuben Usher trading as Charles Usher,
gold and silversmith, 2 Humberstone Gate, Leicester and High Street, Keettering and 21 Bedford Street, Plymouth

Reuben Percival Usher trading as The Usher Manufacturing Co,
manufacturing jewellers and silversmiths, Vittoria Works, 32/34 Vittoria Street, Birmingham
Birmingham 1925 hallmark

An unadorned hallmark stamp from the same maker:

2 Likes

Did you manage to get that Spice Girls ring off? Your finger in the photo suggests it may be permanent LOL

3 Likes

Yeah, it was cutting the circulation off!
Spice girls ring is a copy of one on their album cover - can’t find any others on ebay, so quite unique.
I thought the silver was a mans ring, base is bent a little. But it can only fit on my little finger, and I don’t have massive workmans hands.
I’d a feeling there was an inscription on the top of the silver ring, but perhaps I’m applying too much imagination to scratches.

Went out today, hit two spots.
Had gold fever. There is gold in Northland (and I don’t mean Puhipuhi).

Came to the conclusion that I need a pointer to deal with rocky ground.
Going to take a break from detecting for a bit.

Good stuff GP! Bout time you were rewarded…I swear you put in twice as much effort than most of us

1 Like

Sometimes. I’ve learned how to give up if the goings not good. :grin:

Right I’m certain now that there is a zigzag engraving on the top of the ring.
I’ve gone all out to remove the tarnish. It’s difficult there is a 100 year thick brown layer, then under that is a very light oxidisation. It’s a long task, so I can’t show you a photo yet.
The engraving is faint, and I feel I may have removed some detail already, but more is being revealed.
Here is a drawing of what I can see.

It beats having a plain ring, and I may even reengrave it.

At first I thought it might be native american style.
However it could be a copy of a Roman or Greek design from the 5th centuary BC.

Here is a modern replica of my ring.

2 Likes

Wow! that ring looks old. I’d be really gentle with it - looks very brittle. Is that a name or a date written on it?

Those are just some similar picture examples I found - I don’t possess those rings.

On Tuesday I managed to organise myself for a kayak expedition (the main purpose was not to detect).
Paddled out with the tide and a breeze at my back. Detected a dud spot, signs of swimming - but couldn’t get too deep into water, loads of knee deep mangroove mud.
Came prepared with gumboots this time. Bit of extra weight, but worth it, wash off easily between detect locations.
Recovered a 10kg bag of something - more details on that in the future (when there is a fine day)
And this very nice dark streaked quartz specimen. Gives some diamagnetic eddies, not sure if that means anything.


Found a few chunks of cast iron, wasn’t expecting much.
Stopped to detect a river bank where a river boat skeleton once lay - zilch.
Except for this one faint signal rock. Perculiar - looks like magnetite, probably thrown from the other side of the river - the side I previously found a load of sinkers.
Got it home, hammered it open to see if any iron turds within. Nothing, very hard, kind of brown, bit crumbly.

Has orange and yellow inclusions, look crystaly. Not disimilar to this meteorite.

Could have been in the river for eons - and degraded it somewhat. Very blocky, like a meteorite, dense too, not overly heavy.
Slightly magnetic - varies where you place the magnet.
There are some dark crystals - probably some type of volcanic sandstone. Orange and yellow could just be the local clays - they do a similar speckly thing around here.



I filed a side.

The day turned nasty, and I decided to bail.
Really wanted to head further up river where I found the ring and there’s more quartz ore, darkness was on the way - it’ll have to wait for an earlier low tide.

Well I think it looks like Maghemite:

2 Likes

Nice one Pandemic. Tell us what’s in the bag. Choice.

:beers:

.

like that rock,gold is just around the corner