Lost Keys in a Snowstorm, A Bad Tuesday in Gladwyne PA. Keys Found by Dave Milsted




I got a call today to search for a single lost car key. It was lost several days ago in a snowy yard. The lady had rented a detector but couldn’t find it. So she found my number today and gave me a call.
Luckily I wasn’t busy so I got my equipment together and drove over. I can see why she had trouble with a rental, there were all kinds of junk targets and interference even after turning my sensitivity down. After awhile I did come across a nice shallow target that was her key. She was very happy to have it back.


So apparently Pine straw is out there trying to steal some rings so be careful. 😃. A few days ago I received a call from Bill. Actually backing up, Shelly, Bill’s wife had heard about me from a friend and messaged me through Facebook. After a quick reply, she had Bill call me. Bill described that he had been working in the yard putting out some pine straw when he looked down and saw that his ring was missing. Bill had been wearing that ring for the last 38 years so I was willing to bet that he noticed it was gone quicker than most people would have. When I told him how I could help he decided he wanted me to come try even though he wasn’t 100% sure that it was in the yard. I was pretty sure that I could find it and I was determined to try. What Bill didn’t realize is that when I saw the address I noticed that he lived in the neighborhood next to mine. If there is one thing I like even more than helping people find a ring, it’s helping a neighbor find their ring. When I got there, I switched to the pinpointer coil so that I could get down between the bushes and Bill went back inside to let me concentrate. He didn’t have to wait long and was beside himself when I knocked on his door and told him his ring was perched on my detector by the tree (Covid safe 😷👍). He was even more surprised when he went to talk about a reward and I explained that I literally could have cut through the neighborhood and walked there. I wouldn’t take anything from my neighbor and new friend. I’m so happy that I could help! Merry Christmas to you both Bill and Shelly! God bless!

One night last week I got a call from a very nice gentleman that needed some help. He had been out putting in pine straw and when he got done he noticed that his class ring wasn’t on his hand. This was really bad because he’d had this ring on his finger since 1968 when he graduated from the University of Alabama. He immediately told his wife and she put out the call for help. Someone eventually told her about what I do and gave her my phone number. When Mr. Spivey called he asked if I was the Ringmaster, I was tempted to say yes but I didn’t want to jinx myself. 😃 He was very nice and explained what happened and I told him how I thought I could help. We agreed that I would come early the next morning and I asked him to text me the address. He explained that he didn’t have all of that techy stuff and offered to give me the address and directions. I told him the address would be great but he very thoroughly proceeded to give me the directions. I was thrilled to hear someone describe exactly how to get to their home and go over each part of the route that they felt was important to describe the way to their home. I thought about how technology had changed a lot of that but I thoroughly enjoyed hearing him describe that route he had been so many times. 👍 When I got to the house in the morning I was met in the driveway by a pretty Lab. I was pretty sure that she was friendly but I gave a quick call to the number I had. Mrs. Spivey assured me that “Penny” was a sweetheart and I opened my door to lots of tail wagging and some curious sniffs. By that time, Mrs Spivey had come out and walked me out to the back so I could see all of the fresh pine straw. They weren’t 100% sure that it was in the yard but it seemed like the most logical place so I started my search. Mrs Spivey went back inside and instructed me to knock if I needed anything. I was using a small sharpshooter coil so I was able to go through everything and stick it down between all of the shrubs as well. As Murphy’s law would state, I was at the very last bush when I got a beautiful, very obvious gold tone. I pulled back the leaves and parted the fresh pine straw to see a gorgeous, well loved, solid gold ring with a Crimson stone on top. I thought for just a second about how much it had been a part of Mr. and Mrs Spivey’s lives and then I went to knock on the door. She came out and asked if I needed anything and finally noticed the ring when I pointed to it on my detector. As you can imagine, she was thrilled and even got a bit choked up when she talked about getting it back to her husband. I am so glad I got to make sure that it wasn’t the end of the journey for your family heirloom. Merry Christmas to you both.
Dan found me via The Ring Finders directory. He was deeply worried about losing his very sentimental platinum wedding band. He said he just celebrated his 1 year wedding anniversary and the ring was so important to him. He told me the previous Saturday he was at his niece’s wedding reception in the backyard of his brother’s house in Berwyn , PA. The reception was a big affair with a DJ and a dance floor set up in the middle of the grassy backyard. He was partying and dancing up a storm when he decided to head in the house to use the bathroom….that’s when he noticed his ring was missing. He was 100% sure it was on his finger before the party started. He and family started searching immediately both at party and next day. He finally contacted me on a Tuesday and and I agreed to start to search on Wednesday. Dan lives in NJ so he put me in touch with his brother since it was his yard I would be searching. I met his brother that afternoon in the backyard of his house…it was a 50 x 5o foot grassy yard with much of the grass compressed and still littered from the big party. In the middle of grass you could clearly see the 20×20 foot square where a wood dance floor was installed and then removed. As you become more experienced as a Ring Finder you start to get more intuitive on where the lost ring might be when starting a search. You prioritize the most likely areas…not only based off details and circumstances of how it was actually lost but also considering the fact that many people have been looking for it for many days with just their eyes(not a metal detector). Most of the grass in backyard was very short or non-existent…if the ring was there they would have found it themselves. However, there was one area off near the dance floor where the grass was higher…if it fell there it would be difficult to find without a metal detector. Soooooo…..I started there. Bingo…I immediately got a perfect ring signal. I bent down…pushed aside the high grass to reveal Dan’s ring! I immediately texted Dan’s brother who came out and was just amazed how quickly I found it after so many people searched for hours. He, in turn, immediately called Dan to share the good news! It brings me great joy to be able to come through for people with a successful recovery!

Jay found me via The Ring Finders Directory. He told me he was in the front yard of his beautiful Chadds Ford, PA home putting up Christmas lights when he took a break to throw a football with his son. His son threw him a deep high pass and while reaching to catch it he felt(but didn’t see!) his large platinum wedding band fly off his finger. He actually borrowed a metal detector from a neighbor and spent several hours looking for the ring himself prior to contacting me. When talking to him I told him that I have had many people contact me after renting or buying a metal detector themselves…I feel the experience of the operator of these machines is as important as the machine itself when searching for something as important and valuable as a ring. Anyway, I met Jay on a Saturday afternoon and we reenacted the incident. Jay was convinced the ring must have flung off his finger straight back and far toward the side yard. After 20-30 minutes and not finding…we reenacted the incident again and considered other angles and expanded our search. Still nothing! We decided to reenact the incident one more time but this time Jay was going to actually fling a ring sized object to see how far and what direction it might go. He just returned from his garage with the ring sized object in his hand and was preparing to fling it…I was standing next to him in an area he never thought possible his ring could be…but sure enough I got the perfect signal on my detector. I bent down with my pin pointer and sure enough…there was his massive platinum band! The funny thing was Jay had his back to me still about to fling his mock ring….when I tapped him on shoulder and told him to stop! I held up his ring and we both started laughing…he couldn’t believe where I found it. We had the angles all wrong! All’s well that ends well! Jay was very happy to get get his ring back!


Lost Ring Recovery in Santa Barbara: Dave MacDonald Ringfinder at Your Service
Losing a sentimental treasure like a wedding ring can feel heartbreaking, but with Dave MacDonald Ringfinder, every lost ring has a chance to be found. Take Heather’s story—she was devastated when her wedding ring slipped off her finger while tending to her 5-month-old daughter on Carpinteria State Beach in Santa Barbara. Determined to help, I, Dave MacDonald, set out to reunite her with her cherished possession, bringing my expertise to the sandy shores of Santa Barbara.
When I arrived at Carpinteria State Beach, I started my search in the area Heather marked. Despite carefully combing the sand, the ring didn’t turn up right away. I didn’t give up—lost ring recovery in Santa Barbara is my specialty. After chatting with Heather for more details, her description sparked a hunch. Scanning the wet sand, I spotted a faint glimmer. With a rush of excitement, I dug in and retrieved Heather’s wedding ring, safely nestled where it had fallen.
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Got an email from Dan in Wilmington, DE. Apparently his wife was making snow angels in a huge leaf pile in her parent’s backyard when her ring of important keys came up missing. They had been raking leaves and had created a massive pile on top of a tarp…after playing in the leaf pile they dragged the leaves to a secluded part of the backyard. Not a 100% certain the keys were lost among the leaves they spent several hours over several days searching for the keys inside and outside of house. Dan came to the realization that his only hope might be a metal detector to search the huge pile of leaves. He said he briefly considered buying a metal detector but after a quick google search came across the Ringfinder directory. I got his email around 1 pm on a Wednesday and arrived at the house by 330 that same day. I met Dan and his mother-in-law in the backyard and was shown three possible areas where they thought the keys might have been mixed in with all the leaves. Like I always do, I took a minute and demonstrated how my equipment works so they can have confidence that if the keys are there…I’ll find them. I had a few options as far as where to start the search…I decided to start in the very middle of the largest pile. Within 30 seconds I had a very strong signal deep in the pile…I broke out my pinpointer which immediately confirmed a good target. After a quick pushing aside of leaves…there they were! Its always fun to see the amazement on peoples faces when you are able to find something so quickly that they thought was gone forever. Dan was extremely happy and immediately called his wife to share the news of her recovered keys!



