Metal Detecting Online

After watching my new friends in New Orleans use a dredge to locate gold rings...I just had to get one on the way.

I looked at all the dredges offered in the gold magazines and saw several that looked like they would do the job. I chose a 3 inch dredge from Keene in California because they had a lot more information and were much more helpful when I called. I can't remember now how long it took to come in but I am sure that gold rings and old coins were dancing through my head every night.

I do remember the first day I ever took it out. We took it down to Navy Cove (for Tuckers benefit) and set it up. This spot is a salt sand beach with lot's of iron and history.
I had several people along. The dredge had about a 3 hp Briggs and Stratton engine on it and I fired that thing up right up. We figured out how the water flowed and watched it run for a minute just checking things out. Finally I stuck the intake nozzle down into the sand and started the dredging process. Before I had dredged not more than a minute a beautiful coat size 1812 Corps button with the eagle standing on the cannon was trying to roll out of the sluice box. I saw it and jumped to catch it just as it was rolling off the edge of the box.

Buddy....I thought we had found the secret to incredible relic finds. Everyone was astounded. I went back to dredging and it was a very long time before I hit another target. I did also find an early hat letter M or W that day but besides that the pickings were slim. After that I decided that in order to be productive with a three inch dredge you have to narrow down the search area. Either find a spot that is loaded with targets in a small area or use a detector to locate the targets and use the dredge as a digging tool. I used that dredge for about a year finding enough targets to keep me going back but never the gold mine I imagined after finding that button in the first minute of operation.

Of course you have heard about the guys who bought watermelons in Georgia for $2.00 and brought them back to Alabama and sold them for $2.00. They never could figure out why they were not making any money. Finally one of them looks at the other and says" I know what the problem is...we just gotta get a bigger truck..!!!"

Well....if the small dredge wasn't working as well as I thought it should...what do you think my idea was...????

See ya in here soon...
Ronnie