Strange find by magnet fisherman
A local magnet fisherman unearthed a strange object in the Kennet and Avon Canal at Bathampton.
Magnet fishers search outdoor waters for ferromagnetic objects, using a strong neodymium magnet.
The hobby has gained popularity in recent years as enthusiasts unearth grenades, bombs, safes, bicycles and old coins.
Ben Smith, from Frome, got into the pastime three months ago after watching some magnet fishing videos on Youtube.
The 39-year-old, who recently travelled to the canal in Bath with friends, said: “We were near the toll bridge and I was pulling things out left, right and centre. The magnet I have is so powerful, it will lift just about anything off the canal or riverbed.
“I pulled out this strange, triangular object and decided to take it home with me because I didn’t know what it was. So, I sent a few pictures of it to some people and a couple of them said it could be a bomb from the Second World War and that I should phone it in.”
The next day, Ben took the object down to his usual fishing spot at Oldford in Frome and rang the police. When an officer arrived, he explained where he had found the “device” and they contacted the bomb squad.
Avon and Somerset Police have since confirmed that the object was not a bomb, but actually a piece of scrap metal.
However, dad-of-two Ben believes he may have some more specific information: “One of my friends who lives nearby said she heard an explosion soon after they took it away, so presumably that was them making it safe.
“Then I spoke to another friend who is ex-navy, and he spoke to a guy who is a bomb expert, and he said it looked like a projectile fuse from the top of a shell.”
Unfortunately, the police took the object away so Ben was not able to study his find any further. However, he has made several other discoveries while magnet fishing that he has been allowed to keep.
The first was a Smith and Wesson .38/44 revolver that he pulled out of the river at Woolverton. “It was in such a bad state that they said I could keep it,” Ben said.
He has also found a small pistol at Oldford, which he believes would have been used by a lady in the late 1800s or early 1900s. “It was a pinfire pistol, so it would have been used by a woman as a sort of defensive weapon.
“I had someone from the States look at it and they told me what it was. They were made by Webley in Birmingham from the late 19th century to early 20th century.
“I’ve also found a lot of horseshoes and a safe, at Woolverton, that had some costume jewellery in it. We think it must have been stolen in a burglary or something and dumped in the river afterwards,” Ben said.
The Frome man has really caught the bug for magnet fishing since he took it up three months ago.
He said: “I go out maybe two or three times a week. I’m just interested in stuff and I bought magnets for my son, Liam, who’s 10 and my daughter Lily, who’s seven, so we can all go together.
“However, my wife wants me to put a stop to it after this near-miss with the ‘bomb.’ She wasn’t happy to hear I’d been driving around with it in the boot of my car.”
With regards to the strange object Ben found in the canal, an Avon and Somerset Police spokesman said: “We were called to the river by Staplemead Creamery, in Oldford near Frome, on Sunday 28 August following reports of a suspected bomb being pulled from the river.
“An officer initially attended the scene and put a cordon in place. The bomb squad later arrived and established it was not a bomb.”