DIY Projects & Field Gear

PVC frame, three bilge-pump motors, a waterproof camera, and LED dive lights. See what’s on the bottom of your favorite lake for $150–$400.

The simplest excavation tool a diver can build. PVC pipe, a brass valve, and a scuba tank — move sand, silt, and sediment from a riverbed or seafloor without breaking a sweat.

Detect buried cannons, anchors, and wrecks from a slow-moving boat. A $20 MLX90393 sensor chip and an Arduino Nano get you surprisingly close to commercial performance.

Cover ten times the ground on a single tank. Three build levels, from a simple pool toy to a full blue-water thruster torpedo — choose your ambition.

Pull a century of rust off an iron relic without grinding away the metal underneath. A plastic bucket, a battery charger, and washing soda — the standard first step for relic hunters everywhere.

The oldest gravity separation device still in use. A channel, some riffles, flowing water, and gold stays behind. The ideal first build — simple, forgiving, and reliable in any stream the same day.

A highbanker moves water to the gold — even when there’s no stream to work from. A pump, a sluice box, and a spray bar let you process gravel from a bucket or tank anywhere you find color.

The desert prospector’s tool of choice for a hundred years. No stream required — just air, vibration, and the same physics that moves gold in water. Build one this weekend for under $100.