Anyone tried magnet fishing?
Discussion
I had seen a few You Tube videos of people using magnets to 'fish' for military relics in eastern Europe but it looks as though there is a growing number of people in the UK taking it up (more old bikes and safes than machine guns...).
Looks like a fun thing to do, just wondered if anyone else on here had given it a go and had any advice before I buy the 'wrong' type of magnet and rope from Amazon!
Looks like a fun thing to do, just wondered if anyone else on here had given it a go and had any advice before I buy the 'wrong' type of magnet and rope from Amazon!
We used to have a big magnet in our stores. Every so often we'd send someone down to the canal to "fish" under our training bridge for tools and demolitions accessories that had been lost "over the side" on night demolitions exercises. Mostly we'd just find stuff the recruits had lost, like adjustable spanners and pliers, along with demolition charge clamps and 6 inch nails, and offcuts of 14 gauge wire. Sometimes we'd haul up personal kit like Leathermann tools that hadn't been secured with lanyards, and occasionally a bike or shopping trolley. Once we managed to haul a moped to the side of the canal, but couldn't get it out of the water so we called the canal authority to recover that. It was interesting, but because we regularly "fished" under the same bridge for years, and because the canal is dredged to maintain navigability every few years, there was never anything particularly old or that had been in the water for many years.
I often thought about signing out the magnet to "fish" elsewhere on the canal, but I could honestly never be bothered to go to the effort. The magnet was massive, though, about the size of a typical household steam iron but solid and a really heavy item by itself, and it came with a plate to cover it during transport to reduce the likelihood of it unintentionally getting 'stuck' to the transport vehicle.
I know elsewhere that a team "fishing" with a magnet pulled up some old Lee-Enfield rifles from a lake. They were thought to have been lost on a training exercise during WW2, and I've seen Youtube videos from the UK showing weapons being dragged out of urban canals, so be prepared to either throw stuff back or report finds to police if needs be...
I often thought about signing out the magnet to "fish" elsewhere on the canal, but I could honestly never be bothered to go to the effort. The magnet was massive, though, about the size of a typical household steam iron but solid and a really heavy item by itself, and it came with a plate to cover it during transport to reduce the likelihood of it unintentionally getting 'stuck' to the transport vehicle.
I know elsewhere that a team "fishing" with a magnet pulled up some old Lee-Enfield rifles from a lake. They were thought to have been lost on a training exercise during WW2, and I've seen Youtube videos from the UK showing weapons being dragged out of urban canals, so be prepared to either throw stuff back or report finds to police if needs be...
Robbo 27 said:
Locally, a father and son lost their lives magnet fishing in the canal, they fell in and couldnt get out.
They didn’t lose their lives magnet fishing in the canal.They lost their lives when they fell in. The magnet fishing bit it simply why they were there in the first place.
I do it with my kids. Great way to pass a few hours. Always have the magnet and rope in the back of the car for a bit of impromptu "fishing". Never found anything terribly exciting, but the thrill of hauling something massive in never diminishes.
Never found anything too exciting, lots of scrap metal.
We also have a decent metal detector, which is always in the back of the car. That is also a great time waster with the kids. Found some good stuff with that. In particular, we seem to have a skill for finding old pen knives!
Never found anything too exciting, lots of scrap metal.
We also have a decent metal detector, which is always in the back of the car. That is also a great time waster with the kids. Found some good stuff with that. In particular, we seem to have a skill for finding old pen knives!
It all got very exciting in the local news here when someone pulled an old grenade out of the river Witham the other week.
https://thelincolnite.co.uk/2020/02/watch-as-horri...
https://thelincolnite.co.uk/2020/02/watch-as-horri...
Is this becoming more popular, or has it always been a 'thing'?
Just wondering as I recently saw a group of lads doing it along the canal...
...there was a very sorry looking mo-ped propped up against the bridge when I went passed the next day, so I guess its also a good service for norrowboat owners too.
Just wondering as I recently saw a group of lads doing it along the canal...
...there was a very sorry looking mo-ped propped up against the bridge when I went passed the next day, so I guess its also a good service for norrowboat owners too.
Richard-390a0 said:
"loveable rogue" - The friendly new term for 'gobsh*te'.Magnet fishing was a thing on the canal from at least 40 years ago but has become a towpath thing more recently.
A magnet on a rope (make sure you tie the end to a piece of wood so that you don't lose it!) is standard equipment on canal boats so that when you lose a windlass or mooring stake in the water you can get it back.
I've fished out a few windlasses that other people have lost and a Snap-On 10mm spanner that I still use regularly.
I used to borrow my B-I-Ls magnet but now I have my own ....which I caught it in a lock using the borrowed one - hence the comment above!
I also saved a neighbour who'd dropped her keys down a drain that was right next to her car door, she came round in a panic, locked out of house and car, and I (remarkably!) caught them at the first try.
A magnet on a rope (make sure you tie the end to a piece of wood so that you don't lose it!) is standard equipment on canal boats so that when you lose a windlass or mooring stake in the water you can get it back.
I've fished out a few windlasses that other people have lost and a Snap-On 10mm spanner that I still use regularly.
I used to borrow my B-I-Ls magnet but now I have my own ....which I caught it in a lock using the borrowed one - hence the comment above!
I also saved a neighbour who'd dropped her keys down a drain that was right next to her car door, she came round in a panic, locked out of house and car, and I (remarkably!) caught them at the first try.
Crossflow Kid said:
They didn’t lose their lives magnet fishing in the canal.
They lost their lives when they fell in. The magnet fishing bit it simply why they were there in the first place.
Were you there at the time?They lost their lives when they fell in. The magnet fishing bit it simply why they were there in the first place.
For the sake of The Pedant.
A father and son went magnet fishing in a local canal. Their bodies were found floating in the canal
Rawwr said:
Richard-390a0 said:
"loveable rogue" - The friendly new term for 'gobsh*te'.The lad was running away from cops, lots of outcry about the police being bad etc, sad for his family I guess
Not tried it myself, but there's a pile of rusty old bikes and metal poles and stuff down by the Thames in Oxford where I walk...so it's obviously gaining popularity.
They seem to recover a lot of ofo bikeshare bikes!
Either way, it looks like it's a lot more fun than fishing for fish.
You could recover the Neodymium magnet from an old hard drive, and use a piece of string for a free taster session I guess.
They seem to recover a lot of ofo bikeshare bikes!
Either way, it looks like it's a lot more fun than fishing for fish.
You could recover the Neodymium magnet from an old hard drive, and use a piece of string for a free taster session I guess.
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