Mel fisher Treasure hunters

[masonak1298]

I saw this tv show on the travel channel about the treasure hunter Mel fisher out of key west fla. It talked about people investing in the treasure hunts and doing dives in search of treasure. Has anyone heard of how to invest or even did some diving with them? If so let me know how.

 

[Jibeho]

I use to dive with a guy that worked the 1715 fleet off Sebastian. I can tell you there is little glory in this line of work. But what the heck sometimes you make some money.

Here is a link for you. Good luck.
http://www.melfisher.com/SalvageOperations/JoinTheCrew.asp

 

[Drewski]

I think a number of "treasure" hunters these days are investment companies that contract out services to salvors. Although guys like Mel are still around, they often don't have the resources it takes to deal with lawsuits, the government and "possessing" the wreck. Look at the histories of the Juno and the Central America searches to understand this. If you’re still interested about investing, click here.

Mel was a unique guy. I met him when I was 14 and living in Key West during the summer. I wandered into his "museum" one afternoon (before he found the mother load) and found him doing some paperwork. He stopped, took me on a short tour and then pulled out a small Spanish gold bar and let me hold it. Needless to say, I wanted to be a treasure hunter for the next year. Drove my mom crazy.

Many years later, when he finally struck it rich, I was working for the fire department in Norfolk, Virginia. It turned out that Mel had convinced 3 of our firefighters to invest several thousand bucks in his venture and when he found the "mother load" they finally got paid off. They didn't make millions, but they got a good payout.

I'd look at "treasure investing" as "throw away" money, however. For every one treasure hunter striking it rich, there are 50 who went bust trying.

Good Luck...

 

[Loneranger]

Whats left of Mel's operation still works the 1715 fleet every summer. I saw an add in the local paper this past May-June and responded. They were looking for 6 days a week,6am-6pm for around $330-350, and 3% of what the find is...Sucking sand off the bottom quits being fun pretty quick under those conditions IMO..but thats just me..

 

[Kevin K]

I saw that show as well. Check out the web site. They offer 400 bucks a week. Want you to sign up for a year. You get 5% of what they find for the year. That would be 50,000 bucks if they find a million dollars worth. You can see what they found last year on the website-it wasn't a million dollars worth. Then again, the guys say the motherload is still out there! Maybe a good way to get a lot of dive experience in as well. The living conditions are poor. I was a commercial fisherman offshore for 15 yrs and that is pretty much what they describe on the website as far as living conditions and working on the boat during shore leave. But if I was younger or didn't have any responsibilities... kk