In order to help fund my shipwreck salvage addiction which is better?

[Au_Dreamers]

I posted on the general forums but thought I'd ask the specialists here

In order to help fund my shipwreck salvage as a sub-contractor I'm looking at the possibility of a new occupation.

I'm looking for a priority of marine related but not restricted to it. That one could train for, work at and also treasure hunt.

As a small business, free lancing, what would you say would be "better money"? In that it would be a more steady income rather than a higher hourly rate.

Thoughts are diesel mechanic or gas engine/auto or outboard/small engine.

What would be your thoughts?

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Diving for Pleasure and Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[Salvor6]

I would say an archaeological research expert could make the most money. Look at Pawel Nowak.

 

[capt dom]

I would say an archaeological research expert could make the most money. Look at Pawel Nowak.

shame on you, poking fun at the esteemed Mr. Pawel Nowak!

They should extradite him to Florida - put him in the shower at Raiford
with a slippery bar of soap....

now there is a proper POKE for Mr. Nowak....

 

[Jason in Enid]

I would recommend manufacturing and and selling meth to pay for your hunting. You could probably get a couple meth heads to do the cooking in exchange for product, leaving you more money AND time to keep your day job so people dont suspect your funding source.

 

[Au_Dreamers]

I would say an archaeological research expert could make the most money. Look at Pawel Nowak.

shame on you, poking fun at the esteemed Mr. Pawel Nowak!

They should extradite him to Florida - put him in the shower at Raiford
with a slippery bar of soap....

now there is a proper POKE for Mr. Nowak....

being new here I didn't want to say anything negative, but I'd rather keep the admiration of my salvage peers than get the scorn from them and not be invited out to drink rum and swap tales!

 

[Attila]

Au_Dreamers,

I work rotations on oil rigs. You can find different types, 7-7, (7 days on, 7 days off), 14-14, 21-21, 28-28.
The 28-28 are usually over seas. If you don't mind living on a rig, or oil production platform, it's good money.
12 hr days, overtime after 40 hrs.

I'm starting a new contract next month that will be a 14-14 in the gulf.

If interested check out a website called Rigzone.
Hint: Apply anyway regardless of what they are asking for.
at $90/barrel they need bodies.

 

[Au_Dreamers]

wow well this turned out to be long winded......

Atilla, good idea for a job but that wouldn’t allow me to do what I’m looking to accomplish, being able to run a full time operation on the 1715 fleet.

To have the best probability of finding treasure you have to work it full time. The more ocean bottom uncovered the odds increase exponentially to find treasure.

From my experiences there’s people with money and people with time. Few are the people with money and time to take on such an endeavor.

When I was heading to Florida to fulfill a life’s long dream of hunting for treasure a great friend who worked as a State Trooper poised this question, “If there’s all this treasure down there and they’ve been finding it for 30 some odd years , how come everybody doesn’t go down there and find it?”

My answer was in two parts. “I said that not everybody knows about this. You wouldn’t know about this if it wasn’t for me. I’ve been a treasure wreck enthusiast since I read a story in elementary school about the Hussar plus others like Treasure Island and Oak Island.

Also it takes money to do it. Not everybody has the expendable money to do it. Then there’s people like you that could do it money wise, but is the State going to give you 5 months off to go salvage treasure? Are you willing to risk that occupation for the chance of finding treasure? There’s no guarantee that it will be profitable. There’s no guarantee you won’t “lose” money. For me I look at it this way. I am in the position of having the money and time. When I go on a dive charter I’m paying $45-$75 dollars for a day’s dive. With the operation I’m going to have I can spend that kind of money and have the possibility of finding sunken Spanish galleon treasure!

(As a side note, when I did move to Ft Pierce I ended up next door to a born and raised Ft Pierce native who was in his mid-60’s. He grew up working in the commercial fishing family business. He told me that they heard all the stories then saw the guys working the wrecks in the years when salvage started. “We used to drive right over the wrecks” , but they never salvaged. They just more or less chuckled about those guys. Heck, he was a childhood friend of Tommy Gore!! But he never salvaged… He moved away and became an engineer, then retired back to Ft Pierce and still never salvaged.)

My old partner runs a boat for two guys because they have the money but not all the time. It’s a continual pattern.
So back to the present time, for me it’s a paradox. An illness has resulted in my not having the funds but at the same time it provides me with the time since I lost my business that took all my time . So I’m one of the “I have time but not all the money persons.” So even though I’ve found treasure and know there’s plenty more left I can’t just go do it. But that can work out for people that have the money but not all the time.
I was 30 yards or so away when Greg Bounds found his first gold coin while working for John Brandon on the Endeavor.
Funny true story…
It was about the end of the day. We just happen to look over at the Endeavor (I guess to see if they were pulling up too.) We saw Greg on the ladder and John was heading to the helm. John came back to Greg and we saw a camera flash! So of course we went to the radio and hailed them. “Endeavor, Endeavor, Au Dreamers… How big is Greg’s Escudo? John; Greg’s escudo? Me; Yeah, the escudo Greg just found, what size is it? John; What makes you think Greg found an escudo? Me; Cause you just took his picture on the ladder and we know you’re not taking his picture for a piece of eight! It has to be his first escudo!

I say all that because, we all know what Greg has accomplished since then. He’s living proof that by utilizing the latest technology, doing your homework and doggedly working a full time operation with persistence what can be accomplished.

So I’ve wanted to get back to salvage since I left it. Now it’s just a matter of time to put together the right people with the combination of money and time to GET ER DONE!
Like others are doing out there it is win win for those that couldn’t otherwise put together an entire operation themselves.

 

[FISHEYE]

By the end of next summer oil will be well above $100 a barrel.Im sure glad im not a slave to any oil company.For the past 4 years i have been running used cooking oil in my diesel truck.Im in the middle of building a 2 condenser pressure cooker/still to cook used tires and plastic to make oil and gasoline.And theres plenty of that around.

 

[Au_Dreamers]

By the end of next summer oil will be well above $100 a barrel.Im sure glad im not a slave to any oil company.For the past 4 years i have been running used cooking oil in my diesel truck.Im in the middle of building a 2 condenser pressure cooker/still to cook used tires and plastic to make oil and gasoline.And theres plenty of that around.

Good thinking.
Having spent most of my entire life in the restaurant business I've thought about the cooking oil fuel industry for a while. Also growing up near Buffalo NY I know what home heating bills run. Family still back there cries about the oil prices. There's plenty of supply all over. I've wondered if any salvors used it for their boats. As a matter of fact I've often thought of buying an old tanker truck and getting into it just for the boating industry.
I was in Las Vegas for about 10 years and there's enough oil there to fuel the world!!

It's funny too because I remember when we used to get paid for our oil on the east coast but in Las Vegas we had to pay to get it removed. I'm sure there's plenty who would give it away in a heartbeat.

 

[FISHEYE]

I tried out a blend of veggie oil and diesel in my boat.It ran great as my engines are from 1969.But due to the high cost of my injection pumps and at the time i was experimenting with the oil i decided to just stick with the red diesel as i can go 150 miles and only burn 25 gallons of fuel.The diesel generator im putting on my boat will run any type of oil or blend.This may change with this new process of cooking old tires and plastic as the oil from this new process is just as thin as diesel and it doesnt need to be heated to run it.The oil from plastic is somewhat clear and the oil from tires is black.I prefer the oil from the plastic.I have all me neighbors giving me plastic instead of giving it to the trash guy to make money off of it.The tire oil smells like burning tires tooPlus i get gasoline out of it too.An it doesnt have any alcohol in it to mess things up!The only engines i have left thats not diesel is my 10hp honda 4 stroke and my 35hp OMC navy seal jet drive outboard.

 

[Attila]

Au_dreamers,

I know how you feel, I read this when I was a kid.

“Then in the secrecy of night they buried his body in the earth. They bound his coffins, the first with gold, the second with silver and the third with the strength of iron, showing by such means that these three things suited the mightiest of kings; iron because he subdued the nations, gold and silver because he received the honors of both empires. They also added the arms of foemen won in the fight, trappings of rare worth, sparkling with various gems, and ornaments of all sorts whereby princely state is maintained. And that so great riches might be kept from human curiosity, they slew those appointed to the work--a dreadful pay for their labor; and thus sudden death was the lot of those who buried him as well as of him who was buried.”

For the last 11 years, I have been heavily investigated this treasure. I have a location, ready to dig.

I'm just trying to figure out how to navigate the bureaucracy of a former communist country.
It's like watching paint dry, under water, in the dark.

So I understand your zeal and frustration.