People Who Use Metal Detectors To Find Hidden Treasures Describe The Best Things They've Found

People Who Use Metal Detectors To Find Hidden Treasures Describe The Best Things They've Found
Roger Starnes Sr on Unsplash

Ever use a metal detector?

I always found the site of them rather funny. They were always used on the beach and the men who used them–yes, always men–were exclusively between 50 and 225 years old. I could probably write an award-winning academic thesis on it. Would be fun.

But as much as I kid, people have found stuff using these kooky contraptions.


We heard people tell their stories after Redditor TheRealJay asked the online community:

"People who metal detect on beaches, in parks, etc; what’s your best find?"

"Honestly..."

"Honestly the best thing i ever found was a metal mustard gas can, and now it is in a local museum."

MR_INFINITY_SPC8888

That’s pretty cool, is there anything in the museum about how you found it?

"I got a cheap metal detector..."

"I got a cheap metal detector for my birthday when I was a kid. To test it out, I took some of my grandpa's coins from his coin collection without him knowing and I tossed them in the yard. Never found any of them. Miss you grandpa."

humanstuff

Oh dear... Why not just use some coins from, you know, like, a wallet?

"Never found much..."

"Never found much with a hand-me-down detector as a kid, but I did end up with the strange habit of burying my toy cars with little notes, with the intention that someone like me excitedly finds them one day."

[deleted]

How much digging did you end up doing in your yard for that?!

"My dad once found..."

"My dad once found an old toy car he'd played with 40 years prior as a kid. The property's original house that he had grown up in had also been demolished and rebuilt once or twice along the way"

TheStickUp1

That's pretty cool! And still it lived on, as if waiting for him.

Or maybe he just got lucky.

I know, I'm such a spoilsport.

"I found someone’s old rusted Hot Wheels in the dirt when I was 5 years old…one of the greatest experiences of my life. It was an old redline from the mid-'70s too."

SHIPLUMBO

A true collector's item! I can see how that might thrill a kid!

"He had lost it..."

"Someone with a metal detector found my husband’s high school class ring on the banks of a local river. He had lost it during a rowing event about 15 years prior. The guy contacted my husband’s high school and they tracked him down. I have the ring in my dresser right now!"

"My husband didn’t care too much but I was amazed by the work the kind stranger put in. I mailed him a Buffalo Wild Wings gift card."

mshell734

Going to be honest – that's pretty awesome. And hey, that stranger got a meal out of the deal.

"I was searching a different area..."

"I was metal detecting a beach just outside of Tokyo and found a platinum wedding band. I was searching a different area when a local came and mimed that he lost a ring. Within about 5 minutes I got the clearest, loudest tone I have ever heard and it happened to be the one he lost."

"His (new) wife was so happy and kept nudging him to give me something, he kept miming for drinks or cash but I turned him down. It was amazing to be able to actually find the owner, and I had never found anything of real value up until that point. The look of relief on their faces will stay with me until the day I die."

inu_yasha

You're a good soul. This is a heartwarming story!

"I found an ox shoe..."

"I found an ox shoe on a road in the woods near my parents house that is documented as having been used prior to the Civil War. There are several home sites in the area as well."

mutherfuqq

Super cool! I love old historical finds like that.

"A custom..."

"A custom white gold tennis bracelet lined with diamonds and sapphires. Literally everyone tried to rip me off for it so eventually I removed all the stones and would sell 2-3 links at a time for cash like some peasant from the Bronze age."

NorthEasternDunes

How much were you expecting, and how much would they try to offer you for it? I'm curious.

"As a kid..."

"As a kid: a handful of loose change, which a rude park employee confiscated. Apparently the rules against looting historical sites applied to coins I found in the parking lot."

FutureBlackmail

That ranger probably wanted those coins for themselves and they trod all over you to do it.

Okay, it seems I might have misjudged all those old dudes with their metal detectors. They were clearly ahead of the curve making money, finding cool stuff, and reuniting people with their lost items while I sat there like a judgmental a-hole.

Too much? Yeah.

Have some stories of your own? Feel free to tell us more in the comments below!

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America the beautiful.

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In Awe

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The Road Ahead

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"We did a little unscheduled off-roading in that area when we came to a road closed barrier. A Navajo couple pulled up alongside us while we pondered the dirt road heading roughly in the direction we wanted to go and assured us it was passable. Really lonely place... but wonderful."

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On a Clear Day

Mountain GIF by Sunshine VillageGiphy

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WWDB

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See the Country

Happy Dance GIF by PLAYMOBILGiphy

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Smell the old growth

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Altril2010

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Utopia

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ThrustersToFull

Amazing

Episode 1 Boat GIF by The SimpsonsGiphy

"The Shenandoah Valley. Its an amazing place if you're an outdoorsman. Hiking, fishing, hunting, bird watching, camping."

homoco4396

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