I am an I.B.E.W. Journey Lineman, working a 220kv Transmission line in the hills above Fillmore, Ca. On 4-2-2020 we were in the process of Dead-Ending the new conductors we had recently strung in by pressing the Dead-End bodies with a 60T hydraulic press when the top die slid out of the press and fell 100’ to the ground. Despite watching it fall all the way, and knowing where it hit, the ground help was unable to locate the die. We resumed work with another set and 10 minutes later, another die slides out of the press. I didn’t see it fall, but it bounced 3 times off the tower before hitting the ground and no one saw where it went. It’s not so much the cost of replacing the dies, but the fact that they are 6-8 weeks out (or longer because we are in the middle of the COVID-19 Pandemic) for replacement, and we now only have 2 sets of dies for the entire job. After pondering buying a Metal Detector myself, I decided to find a professional. After about 30 minutes of internet searching, I came across The Ring Finders and David Mac Donald. It was 9:40 pm on a Sat. night and I pondered texting him so late, but I only had about a 4hr. window on Sun. mornig to search before a weeks worth of rain set in and makes access to the structure impossible for next 7-10 days, so i texted him. He immediately texted me back, and was more than happy to help out, and full of questions. What are we looking for?, How big of a search area?, What are they made of?, Can I supply another one to ping his detector with?, and How early do you want to meet? We met at 7am, and by 7:45 we were at the search area. It only took about 3-4 minutes to find the 1st die. Even though my guys had dug and pulled up weeds and bushes, it was still burried another 3-4” just from the shear impact from that height. The seach area for the other die, I figured could be about a 50-100’ dia. area around the tower as I had no idea what direction it went when it bounced off the tower. So we said a little prayer, and with his good nature and positive attitude, It took David about another hour of searching in a grid pattern,( working his way out on a pretty steep, overgrown hillside, most of the time holding onto the brush with one hand to maintain balance), when he hit pay dirt. He found it about 6’ from the opposite tower leg and still about 3” deep. I can’t say Thank You enough, But I will spread the word nation wide in our industry of how useful your services are. John Probst

I can’t say Thank You enough, But I will spread the word nation wide in our industry of how useful your services are.