Metal Detecting full time in the United Kingdom?

[able_walker]

If someone (let's say a friend of mine....lol)wanted to quit their unfulfilling job and go to the UK (lots of history,chance to make a really astounding find)and metal detect full time could this work? Sell the good stuff to keep the endeavor going,visit some fabulous places.It's been a bit of a pipe dream of mine for awhile,no kids,no relationship.Nothing to keep me where I'm at.Wandering the fields with my detector.Am I nuts?.........

 

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[Gribnitz]

Yes, your nuts....unless you have a big bankroll to keep you going. The average person is NEVER going to find enough to live off of, much less eat detecting. If you have can afford to bank roll an old spanish wreck and actually find it, that is another story. It's a hobby, keep it as such.

 

[BioProfessor]

The kind of finds that would keep you going would be the ones that the Government would take. The laws are pretty strict on significant finds. Sure you would either get it back or get paid for it at some time in the future but it might be awhile. Take a look at the prices of some of the common finds. Not so good. There are also many MD clubs in England and they have a some of the land tied up. It is also difficult to hunt during the growing season as nobody wants you in their fields when the crops are in.

My 2cents worth is that you could make more money here from MD, bottle collecting from old dumps you could find, selling undervalued items from yard sales and flea markets, buying, cleaning, and reselling other peoples finds, etc. From what I've seen of coin values, there is more valuable stuff in other places. You just have to really know your stuff and cherry pick yard sales and flea markets.

Have you had the food in England? The weather? The cost of living (gas $7-$8 a gallon)?

Might want to rethink this a little.

You're not nuts for wanting to do this. You are nuts for wanting to do it in England.

Daryl

 

[davesx]

Hi able_walker
Don't give up your day job.

Hey Bioprofessor gas more like $10 a gallon.

Dave.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

I've heard of hunters who .... over time.... did well enough that they thought they could do it for a living. Nugget hunters for instance, back in the early '80s when gold prices were still high. But the minute they quit their jobs and took up full time hunting, it ceased to be fun. Like, when you know you have a "quota", to fill each day, then you'll be dissapointed if you didn't meet it.

Sure, sometimes an England (or USA or anywhere) hunter strikes it big, and pays for his machine, his gas, and maybe even works out better than a job would have been. But you'd be paying Russian roullete, since... if you did NOT get lucky with those bigger finds, you'd be out meals and a roof over your head. Better to do it for fun, and then.... if you got lucky, so be it! :P

 

[able_walker]

You guys are right,but it would make for an interesting exercise.If you could somehow get a sponsor to help with expenses,metal detect everyday for a year and then have an expert go over the finds at the end of the year and see how it all came out.Make for a good webcast...probably boring tv.

 

[EDDE]

UK Brian will chime in here soon.....

 

[bakergeol]

UK Brian will chime in here soon.....

Well maybe Brian will not respond with the list of incredible goodies he found in the past in the U.K. He probably thinking- "The last thing I need is another competitor".


George

 

[EDDE]

good point

 

[BioProfessor]

Here's a thought. You said if you could get a sponsor it might work. The Discovery Network is always looking for ideas for new shows. They've got Myth Busters, Dirty Jobs, Crab Fishing in Alaska, etc. I think there is enough interest in "treasure" hunting that if you could convince them that you could find enough interesting stuff to fill say 20 1-hour episodes, they may be willing to give it a try. For them, it is real cheap way to do programming. There's just the hunter (or hunters maybe), the sound man, camera man, and a couple of other people to keep things in order. With Antiques Road show being as popular as it is, I think they would see a show about actually finding things and then identifying them just as interesting. Hey I watch bass fishing, how sad is that. Two guys in a boat.

Just an idea. Free too.

Daryl

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

It occurs to me that an imigration Visa might be tough. Sitting in front of the embassy interigator asking for your work papers:

Nature of your visit?

I wish to become a professional beach bum.

Duration of stay?

Months. Maybe years.

And you intend on living on your finds alone?

You betcha!

And you know valuable or historic finds are held for one year before being purchased. auctioned or returned?

Ummmmm.

And you have enough with you to live on for that first year?

Ummmmm.

Thank you. We'll let you know.

 

[stefen]

It occurs to me that an imigration Visa might be tough. Sitting in front of the embassy interigator asking for your work papers:

Nature of your visit?

I wish to become a professional beach bum.

Duration of stay?

Months. Maybe years.

And you intend on living on your finds alone?

You betcha!

And you know valuable or historic finds are held for one year before being purchased. auctioned or returned?

Ummmmm.

And you have enough with you to live on for that first year?

Ummmmm.

Thank you. We'll let you know.

Go ahead, break the man's bubble.

Drown his dreams.









Blunt and to the point...

Great explanation.

 

[able_walker]

BioProfessor has the right idea,TREASURE HUNTING IN AMERICA sponsored by the discovery channel.Civil War sites,Old Exhibition grounds etc,etc, maybe even have an episode on nugget hunting.I'd watch! All I have to do now is convince them I'm an expert that the camera loves......

 

[BioProfessor]

Where's that "salt" shaker?

MAKEUP!!

Daryl

 

[outraged]

BioProfessor has the right idea,TREASURE HUNTING IN AMERICA sponsored by the discovery channel.Civil War sites,Old Exhibition grounds etc,etc, maybe even have an episode on nugget hunting.I'd watch! All I have to do now is convince them I'm an expert that the camera loves......

I hate to burst your bubble twice in one thread but they all ready have a series... Treasure Hunting America.....
http://whiteselectronics.com/whitestv.php

And here is a link to watch the shows...
http://www.compelmedia.com/THA.htm


A local guy in my area is a full time MDist...He also sells MD's.

 

[BioProfessor]

Well son of a gun. That's one good thing to come out of this thread. Now if I only got the Outdoor Channel 2.

Maybe they sell a DVD set or will soon.

The shows sound pretty interesting. I hope they are more about the finding than the people. I want to see people actually find interesting things. Brush the dirt off and reveal what it is. If they do that, that'll be great.

I just have to remember I watch bass fishing so it may not appeal to all.

Thanks for the links.

Daryl