Re: [meteorite-list] New Specimen

[Mark Miconi]

Joseph, Thanks for the advice...I have a limited budget at this time, and am working through a list I have created of meteorites that my son and I like and would like to own. To be truthful I never dreamed of collecting meteorites until he took an interest in them when we stumbled on Meteoritecentral on night while surfing the net.   I have found that the only way to be happy collecting anything is to collect what you like...not what your think would be good to collect. My wife and I sell collectibles and antiques on Ebay full time and deal with collectors who seem to drive themselves to distraction trying to complete a collection a certain way.   I am doing it because I have loved Space since the 60's during my childhood. I am fascinated by meteorites and share this fascination with my 8 year old son. I have been blessed with a child that is "gifted". He is 2 grades above his grade level in most of his classes, and challenging him is not easy. He loves everything about Space and our Universe.   We decided on the Allende together. We have 2 small Sikhotes, a nickel size slice of etched Gibeon that was donated to us, a couple of nice slices of Brahin, an unclassified Moroccan stone, a Slice of a Saharan and a big yellow Nantan.   We are awestruck with the incredible odds that they defy just getting here and surviving to be found. It is something we enjoy together, that neither of us needs any particular skills to enjoy. I think it is important to make an impact in a childs life. I have been to his school to share our little wonders with his classmates, it was really cool to see the looks on all their faces. I tried to answer their questions, which was fairly easy since they are second grade students and none of the questions were too technical, let each of them hold all of them...probably one of the highpoints of my life. They sent home 28 thank you cards that they made and it was a real thrill.   So you see we are hooked. Someday he will have something he can hold and remember growing up with his dad and spending time with me. Our collection will probably never be anything that great and hopefully one of the greatest treasures to him.   Bright Blessings,   Mark M.  ----- Original Message ----- From: Joseph Murakami To: Mark Miconi Sent: Saturday, February 16, 2002 12:51 AM Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] New Specimen Try Hartman's site http://www.meteorite1.com/ for the membrane boxes...the 1" size is reasonable, but the bigger ones get expensive real quickly.  I would like to just comment to you that if you're interested in expanding your collection a lot, a strategy for what you want to collect becomes very important real quickly....otherwise, you can easily spend 5-10 thousand dollars and end up with a not-too-impressive collection.  Do your research at the various sites 'n dealers from Meteorite Exchange  http://www.meteorite.com/ and compare the sizes and prices of the specimens.    You'll find that certain meteorites are relatively much cheaper than others...this also means that larger sizes are much more affordable...so for an impressive Carbonaceous chondrite of good size, there is no better specimen than an Allende.  You can often trade up by unloading a specimen (if you bought it at a decent price) on Ebay, but that's a hassle.  Therefore, I'd be careful about not picking up too many smallish specimens before deciding what you want to collect.    Might I suggest aspiring for a nice Sikhote Alin, a good slice of Gibeon, a whole Campo del Cielo, but only a few L's and H's and LL's, probably the Saharans/African specimens that are available are a wonderful deal at less than $1/gram...    Collectors begin to see that terrestrial weathering really takes away from the beauty of many specimens...so desert finds that are weathered, rusted are much less desirable...  Good luck on you collection.  Allende's are personally my favorite carbonaceous chondrite, CAI's and all...   Joseph Honolulu   From: Mark Miconi To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Friday, February 15, 2002 3:03 PM Subject: [meteorite-list] New Specimen I just purchased a 1.5g slice of Allende for my personal collection. I can not wait to have it arrive. It is not a big piece but it is another named and classified sample for my small collection. I know this has been asked before ...where can I get a membrane box for it? I think this would be the best way to display it due to its size...or lack there of.   Thanks in advance...Mark M.