Yo, Well, I don't fully agree that Al's suggestion is the reason why West was so expensive, but it may well have been a factor. Greg, you said:
> Look at it this way (its how I do anyway) > Compare Carancas... It sold for $100 per gram and they had to travel from the > USA to Peru. > West... it also sold for $100 per gram and they had to travel to Texas from > the USA (many only one or two states away) > What costs more? The travel to Texas or Peru? Well, it costs more when thirty people travel to Texas, stay there for several weeks, (and pay a base price for much of their material) than when five go to Peru, stay for a few days, and buy their rocks for pennies on the dollar. That was his point - which is similar to, but different from what I said earlier - "So the finders were looking to make the most of their sales with very limited material: hence, even higher prices." Al goes farther, suggesting that the price of the fall actually has/d a direct correlation with the overall expenses of the hunters. To which I say...no. I mean, maybe to some small extent, but, generally speaking, this principle doesn't apply to meteorites *at all.* Look at the $2-4/g price tag on Thuathe, $20/g price tag on Buzzard Coulee, or the $10/g price tag on Ben Sour. Maybe the prices are lower because the dealers brought back a large amount and are trying to move all of their material, but if I were looking to sell any of my Ash Creek stones, I wouldn't pul out a calculator and plug away at our expenses before giving out a price. I'd look at the material from a tkw, aesthetic, and rarity standpoint, and then judge. And this is where Ash Creek becomes more of an enigma. It seems to me that whenever there's a fall in a nearby place and a larger number of listmembers and personal friends make the trip, prices just...go up. It's not a factor of the cost of the trip - it's a hype factor that surrounds the fall itself. It's there, it's now, they're there, they're finding them *right now.* The market doesn't usually have such a sense of immediacy... Regards, Jason On Tue, Nov 3, 2009 at 8:18 PM, Greg Catterton <star_wars_collec...@yahoo.com> wrote: > Hi to all, I thought I would add my 2 pennies... > > I would have to disagree, I think the more hunters, the cheaper the material > due to more people having material for sale and less chance for a select few > "friends" to set what they all will charge. > > Look at it this way (its how I do anyway) > Compare Carancas... It sold for $100 per gram and they had to travel from the > USA to Peru. > > West... it also sold for $100 per gram and they had to travel to Texas from > the USA (many only one or two states away) > > What costs more? The travel to Texas or Peru? > > Carancas had a much lower TKW then West (west TKW is more then double), made > a crater and had a ton on media not to mention was of much more scientific > importance then west due to the circumstances of the fall, crater and events > that surrounded it. > > Thanks to Mike Farmer, the media attention around Carancas doubled. (not > really a bad thing, but more a fact - his "escape" made for great reading and > a neat story.) > > Its my opinion, however unpopular, that new falls are about getting as much > profit as possible as fast as possible... I also think inaccurate reports of > TW lead to the higher price of West - I still see people clearly stating that > only about 3 kilos were recovered when I know of many who walked away with > several kilos themselves! > > Another example of West and meteorite politics (which leads to these high > prices)... The same people who were ready to exclude and not "allow" people > to the AZ fall location (and used the excuse "we dont want others running in > our backyard like they did in west") were actually the same ones doing just > that to others backyards at West. > > I really think that the price is more about who gets there first and who is > "allowed" to hunt the field. > Meteorites are competitive and my eyes were opened to just how much so due to > recent falls. > > When I first got into meteorites, I thought it was a pretty open group that > welcomed newer members/collectors and future hunters. I quickly found out > that not many are willing to "help the competition" and its basicly dog eat > dog. > > Sure, many are willing to help you build your collection by selling you > meteorites, but very few are actually willing to lend/offer first hand > teaching and "in field" experience to those that want to learn from the > people that are supposed to be "the best". > > I know my thoughts on this topic are not too popular with some, but I am > honestly speaking from what I have seen looking in from the sidelines. > > Greg C. > > > > --- On Tue, 11/3/09, al mitt <alm...@kconline.com> wrote: > >> From: al mitt <alm...@kconline.com> >> Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Ash Creek the most expensive ordinary >> chondrite? >> To: Meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com >> Date: Tuesday, November 3, 2009, 9:22 PM >> Hi Greg and all, >> >> While I think there are a lot of good points on why this >> meteorite was expensive, I think there is another factor in >> all this as well. >> The more people, meteorite hunters, collectors and so on >> that descend on a fall, the more expenses that have to be >> added into the cost. If you only have 50lbs (22.7 kilos) of >> material (for example) and fifty hunters, the cost for >> travel, motel, time and effort and payment to land owners >> will make that fall higher in price. If only a half dozen >> hunters search the area then the price would be >> substantially less. This assumes that they all find an >> average amount of material. >> >> I realize there is no way of knowing for certain how much >> material survived passage or can be found but seems if every >> meteorite hunter in a two thousand mile radius heads out and >> there are more hunters than material we're in for an >> expensive fall. >> >> I've heard some comments about fewer searchers then better >> chance of hunters price fixing but I don't think this would >> happen in most cases. I believe in the credibility of most >> hunters and collectors. As I have said many times before, >> ultimately it is what someone is willing to pay for an item >> that will dictate the price of material. Usually about a >> year after the fall is the best priced material. Well my two >> grams worth. >> >> All my best! >> >> --AL Mitterling >> >> >> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Greg Stanley" <stanleygr...@hotmail.com> >> To: <oxytropidoce...@cox.net>; >> <meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com> >> Sent: Tuesday, November 03, 2009 12:18 PM >> Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Ash Creek the most expensive >> ordinary chondrite? >> >> >> >> > All: >> > >> > I think the reason Ash Creek has a higher value is >> because of the publicity. It was major news among the >> meteorite community; even outside the meteorite community. >> Also, it was the first fall/find that occurred in the US for >> a number of years, and was captued on video. This all >> created the increased interest and demand, and thus >> increased the price. The Buzzard Coulee meteorite was also >> much larger (TKW) and did not receive the same marketing as >> Ash Creek. >> > >> > One thing that I do find odd is that there are NWA's >> and even OC's that demand high dollars compared to others >> that are the same classification. It just boils down to >> supply/demand and some good marketing and publicity. I may >> pay hundreds of dollars for a meteorite and be satisfied, >> while someone else may think it has little value. That's one >> of the things that makes it such an interesting hobby. >> > >> > Greg S. >> >> >> ______________________________________________ >> http://www.meteoritecentral.com >> Meteorite-list mailing list >> Meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com >> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list >> > > > > ______________________________________________ > http://www.meteoritecentral.com > Meteorite-list mailing list > Meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com > http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list > ______________________________________________ http://www.meteoritecentral.com Meteorite-list mailing list Meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
