Florida man, grandson on magnet fishing trip pull sniper rifles from water

[Elderberry]

American Military News by Jessica Schladebeck - New York Daily News  February 05, 2022

A Florida man and his grandson have a different type of fish tale to tell.

Duane Smith and his 11-year-old grandson, Allen Cadwalader, went out on a magnet fishing trip in the Miami suburb of Homestead on Jan. 30. Just minutes into their expedition, the duo pulled up not scrap nor tossed cans, but sniper rifle receivers and bolt carrier groups wrapped in shrink wrap.

“With magnet fishing every time I cast out or every other time I’m coming up with something,” Duane told CNN on Wednesday. “There’s a bottle cap or you know, $7,000 sniper rifle.”

Smith, a retired infantry soldier who specializes in deploying sniper weapons, immediately knew the 20-pound firearms were military grade. He said it took him nearly a half hour to clean them off, but when he finally finished, he found the serial numbers had been scratched off.

More: https://americanmilitarynews.com/2022/02/pic-florida-man-grandson-on-magnet-fishing-trip-pull-sniper-rifles-from-water/

[Free Vulcan]

Reverse boating accident?

[Smokin Joe]

Shrink wrapped? Likely hot (serial numbers defaced), but,if serviceable, quite a find.

It would be tempting to oil them up and relocate them..discreetly, with gloves on...

[sneakypete]

Am I the only one that never even heard of "magnet fishing" before this?

[Elderberry]

Am I the only one that never even heard of "magnet fishing" before this?

I've never done "magnet fishing", but I have done "grappling hook fishing". It is very effective in pulling up tackle from some popular fishing spots.

[Kamaji]

Am I the only one that never even heard of "magnet fishing" before this?

Nope.  Never heard of it, either.  I wonder what I'd pull up if I tried that in the East River.

[sneakypete]

Nope.  Never heard of it, either.  I wonder what I'd pull up if I tried that in the East River.

@Kamaji

Belt buckles attached to bones.

[Kamaji]

@Kamaji

Belt buckles attached to bones.

I doubt if there'd be that much of that.  That's what the Jersey swamps are for.

[Smokin Joe]

Am I the only one that never even heard of "magnet fishing" before this?

Maybe...

One of the kids pulled a really nice BMX bike out of the river while he and a buddy were 'fishing' off a bridge in town. He cleaned it up,  ran the numbers, and found out it was stolen. The police came to get it, and let slip that the previous owner had been compensated for the bike by insurance, and did not want it returned.

He'd come to collect it as abandoned for the police annual auction.
But I stepped in with the mention that he had salvaged the bike from a navigable waterway, and was entitled to marine salvage rights.
The policeman had no counter to that, and, for a day, I got to be a hero in my kid's eyes.

My boy got to keep the bike.

[Kamaji]

Maybe...

One of the kids pulled a really nice BMX bike out of the river while he and a buddy were 'fishing' off a bridge in town. He cleaned it up,  ran the numbers, and found out it was stolen. The police came to get it, and let slip that the previous owner had been compensated for the bike by insurance, and did not want it returned.

He'd come to collect it as abandoned for the police annual auction.
But I stepped in with the mention that he had salvaged the bike from a navigable waterway, and was entitled to marine salvage rights.
The policeman had no counter to that, and, for a day, I got to be a hero in my kid's eyes.

My boy got to keep the bike.

[Elderberry]

Man finds 6 WWII submachine guns in canal while magnet fishing in UK

American Military News  February 13, 2022 Liz George

https://americanmilitarynews.com/2022/02/man-finds-6-wwii-submachine-guns-in-canal-while-magnet-fishing-in-uk/

A magnet fisherman in the UK pulled six WWII submachine guns from a canal in what he described as “the best find ever.”

Nigel Lamford, 50, used his specialty magnet capable of lifting over a ton of metal to haul six “Sten” MK II firearms from the water on Jan. 9, Yahoo News UK first reported last week.

Lamford said he found the weapons in “good condition” after tossing his magnet into a swampy canal in Weedon Bec, Northamptonshire.

“A find like that was just the best find ever in my opinion,” said Lamford, who is from Kettering, Northamptonshire. He said he pulled in the magazine, gun and stock separately and reassembled the firearm on the bank.

“You can find some amazing stuff, but I’ve never found so many guns in such good condition together,” Lamford said.