Have you ever helped out?

[urbss]

I was just wondering how many of you have ever used your detectors to help someone find something lost or stolen.

Was it a private party, the police, an insurance company, etc?

What was expected of you? Were you rewarded? How did they know to contact you for help?

I thought that there might be some great stories out there from some of you, not to mention I think it could be educational for many of us to hear what kinds of things you did to help out.

 

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[jeff of pa]

I'v been asked to Find Property Markers, by strangers, some while Detecting, would stop, or walk up and ask, Some would Recognize me from
Articles done in local Papers & A TV News Story on the Return of a Class Ring, and would ask when they see me at the store or Gas Station, etc. Some just through word of mouth. I Refused all compensation for these. 100% success on these.

I was asked to take My Finds From, and set up at, an Open house for a County Lake. and asked to do a Presentation.
During this I was asked to Search for a Well Cap. and given permission to park in his property, and search it and the surrounding property in return.
I was also able to Wrangle other sites that night.
again, NO $$ Compensation accepted.

I was asked to do a Presentation for the Local Scouts. this is still in the works. But of course Will be Free.

Friends have had me find rings, 100% Success on these, with no Compensation Accepted.

I was once asked by a friend to find a Small Gold charm in a Deer Pen.
I was almost ready to give up, when she said the one dear was chewing at her Neckless. so I concentrated on the Poop, and found it.
Again, was Offered Compensation, But I refused.

I have never been asked by the police to help, but they have givin me
leads by both Local & State Police.

I have been asked to find Base Markers at Ball fields, while detecting.
which makes detecting there feel better.

I have Helped the Catholic Church, Restore an Abandond Cemetery,
by Locating Graves, Markers, Boarders, fallen Fences, Lost items, Etc.
Only Compensation, A small selection of the Finds.

I have helped & Donated to the Local Historical Societies.
Compensation : My Name on the Donated Items.

I Have Found and Returned Many Rings, Dog Tags, Service I.D.
Bracelets, Etc.
I have NEVER Asked for Compensation.
I have Been given Rewards of which Sometimes I accepted.
Sometimes I Flat out Refused.
and Sometimes, I just ask to search their Property or Give me a Lead.

Due to Doing this, I had a Local Construction Company Owner,
search me out, and
Stop and Tell me I Can come Search any of his Construction sites.
I thanked him, But Have Been WAY TOO BUSY to ever look for him again.

I have also Contacted People in Lost & found ads to search for their lost Items. I have had 0% Luck on these finds, but have found many good finds while looking. it's a great way to get permission for off limit sites, walking in with a LOST RING ad, A Persons Name, and a request to search for it for them.


These are the ones I Remember off the top of my head.
and THIS Thread is Already TOO LONG .

 

[dandan]

Just the other day I got a call from someone who asked if I could find their gas line. (referred by a proprty owner whose site I hunt). While there I got permission to hunt their property,a kitchen cabinet contract and an offer to help put a research paper together. (he's a publisher.) I found the line in about 30 seconds and spent 2 hrs 'tecting. got a couple bucks in clad 2 mercs and some nice old tags and such! Pretty good morning!

 

[Sandman]

Well done, WTG..... I charge $50.00 an hour, paid in advance to find lost items. Survey duty of finding corner markers cost about the same plus driving time and this is the largest income. If I am detecting in the water and someones asks me to find something, I do it free since I am there already. But usually they only wanna see the Dork search for something that isn't there. I have searched for free too depending on how I am asked. Some think it's your duty to find their item and sometimes I don't even get a Thank You. Which is Rude. It's your time, equipement, knowledge that is to be used.

 

[catlord17]

I've had a lot of people tell me they lost things at the beach, but I've never been able to find what they said they lost. I was always in the surf, days or weeks later, and I havn't had my Minelab in eight years. The Spectrum XLT that I have now isn't good for that stuff.

I was asked by the police to help find a bullet once when I was working as a security officer a long time back, but they found it before I got there, and without the help of a metal detector.

I did recover a ring for a neighbor shortly after I started detecting. She'd had it fall off her fingers while she was hanging clothes to dry. Took me about 30 seconds to find. She thanked me with an invitation for me to come share dinner and conversation with her and her husband. Very nice evening.

I also had someone ask me to find the iron handle to the lid on their septic tank. Ten seconds. No compensation requested, none offered, but I was thanked.

Found someone's house key after being told they had locked themselves out of their house and they couldn't find the spare. Got thanked, but didn't ask and didn't get compensation otherwise.

 

[Glenns5900]

A few years ago I was helping my wife's cousin do the landscaping for the yard of his new house and he was unable to find the property boundary marker. It was a piece of rebar that had a number stamped on it driven into the ground. I found it with my Whites 5900 detector about 6 inches down about 6 feet back from the street. He was sure glad because he ended up gaining about 10 more feet on one side of his property than he thought he had.

Glenn

 

[stoney56]

I've done so numerous times with pretty good success. A few weeks ago, was approached to find an engagement ring that a lady lost. Her husband said it was worth a $500 reward for finding it. They said it was a platinum setting with a 2 carat Marquise. But she had traveled all over town and then back home before she noticed it missing. Gave her yard a thorough going over, nada.

 

[bk]

Our detecting club and about six other clubs were contacted by General Electric a number of years ago to search for parts of the jet engine that severed the hydraulic lines that control the planes steering resulting in a plane crash in Sioux City Iowa a number of years ago. As I recall there were about 175 detectorists involved in a two weekend search of the engine pieces. There were clubs from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Michigan and Nebraska.
GE was offering up to a $300,000 reward for pieces of that engine.
We covered about 6 square miles of cornfields.
The story made headlines in USA Today.
Was anyone on Tnet involved in that search?

 

[beachgirl]

now that is a cool story, did GE cover the expenses also or only if you found engine parts?

 

[bk]

GE paid so much per mile to drive there. (Don't remember exactly what it was) They also paid for lodging at several hotels in and around Storm Lake, IA. They bussed us to the sites, provided a bag lunch each day, and paid for breakfast and dinner.
I think the total reward money amounted to about $15.00 per person. One of the detectorists found a key piece of the engine which I think was what they were looking for. They treated us very well and appreciated very much what we had done for them.

 

[frogsmile]

I was asked to find a wedding band on labor day out in the water at one of my favorite beaches, I was out there hunting anyway so I said I would try. This man was so certain that I would find it that he went to the trouble of giving me his cell phone number and his work number and putting them in a ziplock bag to keep them dry. Will I hunted all day and no luck but the very next friday I went back and it was the very first thing I dug, will it was only one of the gold rings I found that day. I called him as soon as I got out of the water and he was so happy he said he just knew I would find it he had not even told the wife yet. I got a fifty dollar reward for that one. I tried not to take it but the wife insisted. Then I was contacted by someone who knew I did this hobby and wanted me to find a wedding ring that was lost on a volleyball court in the town I live in. That one only took me 5 min. to find and I got flowers sent to me as a reward. I love to help people out any time I can. Another time a little girl ask me to find her silver ring that she had buried playing buried treasure. That one took all of two min. to find and because I was not finding anything out where I had been I decided to hunt where the girls were playing at and I found two gold rings not two feet away. I felt like I was being rewarded for doing a good deed.

 

[maugin]

i was asked by a friend to help find the metal studs in his double wide ceiling so he could cut the roof for sky lights....does that count. hehehe we found them & now he has 2 sky lights in his house

 

[caratjuice]

A park worker asked me to find the sprinkler heads once. I had no problem finding them. I must have found a couple hundred of the darn things in the past, so I was pretty proficient at it.

 

[Mighty AP]

Hey Jeff, you've done some great things for many people over the years & I can only hope I will have the opportunity to help others as you have in the years to come. I had a older woman aproach me at the park & ask me if I had found her wedding ring she had lost 2 weeks before, I told her I hadnt but would post signs around the park if I do find one. I realy want to find that ring for her, realy make her day! Hell, her year, eh? Been back several times with no luck yet. I beleive in karma & think everyone who has posted here has a nice big helping coming to them, you are making someones day & making all of us "diggers" look real good! Keep it up guys, make us all proud!

By the way, great post subject Urbss!!!

 

[bomber]

going out this monday 2 look 4 a neighbor of desplaines bob grandmothers ring that her son possibly lost in there front yard(if the grass gets mowed)

 

[Mighty AP]

Best of luck Bomber! Hope you find it & get a lil return karma, maybe find some silver while looking fer the ring! Let us know if you find it!

 

[bomber]

let u know tuesdy hopefully,don't believe in luck or karma but MAN,sure could use some sometimes and you bet alittle silver wouldn't hurt

 

[diggit 65]

I have been asked to find septic tank lids with my detector for a house inspector .they would give me a map of where it was suposed to be and at $20.00 a pop it would take me about 10 to 15 min.to find them .and he would do the diggin .plus I got to detect the yards while he would check the houses for inspection.

Diggit 8)

 

[grizzly bare]

a year or so ago I went to the town police station to ask about metal detecting in the park and on town property. When I asked the lady at the desk said,"You're kidding, right?"
The cops had been tyring to find a knife a suspect ditched just before he was arrested. As soon as they found out I had a detector, I was treated like family. I got the Explorer out of the car and they drove me to a fairly new housing division. The suspect had been caught in a yard of a building under construction. I wasn't very comfortable with the EX but I said I would give it a try. Took about an hour to cover the yard but I found the knife stuck in the ground with just a tip of the hilt showing.
Had to go to court to testify about that one. Now I get to detect all over town and all the cops wave as they go by. A couple of them even stop and ask how I am doing.
Treat people nice, they treat you nice. I don't know if it's karma or not but it is nice.

grizzly bare

 

[jasonbo]

Well wasnt asked to hunt

But i put together all the satelite overlays during katrina an it was used by red cross the army an major tv's

my compensation was alot of letters red cross hero award and google earth pro account for life.