LawrencetheMDer
Hero Member
- Feb 22, 2014
- 986
- 2,406
- 🏆 Honorable Mentions:
- 2
- Detector(s) used
- Minelab Manticore, Minelab CTX3030 w 11" and 17" DD coils,
Minelab Excalibur II w 10" coil, Equinox 800 (4) w 11" and 15" coils,
Troy Shadow x2 w 7" coil, Pointers; Garrett Carrot, Pro Find 35,
- Primary Interest:
- Beach & Shallow Water Hunting
Went detecting to take advantage of the last remnants of the super moon low tide. Went to my usual low tide beach and again searched the area that yielded 4 gold rings the week before. Unlike past 2 trips, this one failed to uncover gold. Still had a wonderful 5 hr workout. In addition to the usual change, junk jewelry (ring, ear ring, pin) and fishing weights; found a Men's Tungsten wedding band (17g, 12:32 on CTX 3030) and Men's Stainless Steel band (6.58g, 12:06-07). [Another S Steel ring found earlier was 7.38g, 12:08.] Oh, and also found a 50 Cal. shell that is 4" long.
However, the day was about to get better, once I got home and cleaned everything. I was pleasantly surprised when a heavily encrusted junk ring turned-out to be .925 silver! The ring shows a grape and leaf pattern, that could not be identified before decrustation (new word I just made-up; you heard it...errr...you read it here first). The metal is heavily pitted - a sign of very long salt water immersion.
When heavily encrusted silver dries-out, the encrustation can sometimes simply fall off. Such was the case with the junk ring. It really looked like the usual junk ring made out of some degradable metal which disintegrates in salt water, much like zinc cents. None of the features were identifiable. Once the ring dried-out, however, the encrustation started to drop off when handled; a good sign of potential silver underneath. Light tapping with a hard object (50 cal shell) removed the remaining encrustation. Sure enough, once I removed the encrustation, it revealed "WA" initials and 3 small unrecognizable letters/numbers inside the band, I suspect 925. I confirmed the silver content in a novel way; by scanning the ring (3.67g) with my CTX 3030 and it came out as 13:45 - the same as a clearly marked sterling ring I found last year.
This isn't the first time I've been surprised by an MD find once I got home. Due to such experiences, I almost dissect every piece of jewelry I find MDing; soak it in clean water (x2), scrub lightly with a toothbrush and soap, and use a 10x loop to inspect for any markings. Sometimes, I'm pleasantly surprised and delighted. Well, gotta get back to the ring and continue the cleaning process. And with a smile on my face I say good hunting.
However, the day was about to get better, once I got home and cleaned everything. I was pleasantly surprised when a heavily encrusted junk ring turned-out to be .925 silver! The ring shows a grape and leaf pattern, that could not be identified before decrustation (new word I just made-up; you heard it...errr...you read it here first). The metal is heavily pitted - a sign of very long salt water immersion.
When heavily encrusted silver dries-out, the encrustation can sometimes simply fall off. Such was the case with the junk ring. It really looked like the usual junk ring made out of some degradable metal which disintegrates in salt water, much like zinc cents. None of the features were identifiable. Once the ring dried-out, however, the encrustation started to drop off when handled; a good sign of potential silver underneath. Light tapping with a hard object (50 cal shell) removed the remaining encrustation. Sure enough, once I removed the encrustation, it revealed "WA" initials and 3 small unrecognizable letters/numbers inside the band, I suspect 925. I confirmed the silver content in a novel way; by scanning the ring (3.67g) with my CTX 3030 and it came out as 13:45 - the same as a clearly marked sterling ring I found last year.
This isn't the first time I've been surprised by an MD find once I got home. Due to such experiences, I almost dissect every piece of jewelry I find MDing; soak it in clean water (x2), scrub lightly with a toothbrush and soap, and use a 10x loop to inspect for any markings. Sometimes, I'm pleasantly surprised and delighted. Well, gotta get back to the ring and continue the cleaning process. And with a smile on my face I say good hunting.
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