[meteorite-list] Market prices - was: Thauthe comments that were made earlier

From: Bernhard <rendelius_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:32:44 2004
Message-ID: <000001c3ffdf$fd19c420$0100a8c0_at_rpgdothome>

Adam, Mike, list,

Correct me if I am wrong, but wasn't being able to buy and sell at a
price you feel appropriate one of the benefits of the free market? And
isn't "making" prices one of the no-no's?

Bernhard

-----Original Message-----
From: meteorite-list-admin_at_meteoritecentral.com
[mailto:meteorite-list-admin_at_meteoritecentral.com] On Behalf Of Adam
Hupe
Sent: Monday, March 01, 2004 11:25 PM
To: star-bits_at_comcast.net
Cc: meteorite-list_at_meteoritecentral.com
Subject: [meteorite-list] Thauthe comments that were made earlier


Hello Eric and List,

I will not bring Thuathe up again as I was told a completely different
field price was being paid by our supplier. I have no reason to doubt
your word, Eric so I will leave this one alone. I was only responding
to an email I thought was posted to the List earlier mentioning Thuathe.

No hard feelings, just expressing what I believed to be true,

Adam


----- Original Message -----
From: <star-bits_at_comcast.net>
To: "Adam Hupe" <adamhupe_at_comcast.net>
Cc: <meteorite-list_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Sent: Monday, March 01, 2004 1:43 PM
Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] An insight to Amgala and other recent
falls


> <The 23 kilograms was stuck in
> customs for months while you proceeded to destroy the market with the
couple
> of kilos you purchased from natives in the field paying way too much.
This
> caused our supplier to raise his prices to the point it was no longer
> attractive and we sent most of the material back.>
>
> These statements have been made a couple times in the past and I
> have
kept my mouth shut knowing Mike would respond. But as the other member
of thuathe trip this time I decided to post the facts.
> Mike and I paid between $0.50 and $0.90 per gram to the villagers
> for
their thuathe. We also bought several kilograms from Tony Ambrose for
$2.00 per gram. We were told on numerous occasions by many unrelated
sources that
Tony was paying $0.10 per gram or less. Yes, we paid 5-10 times what
Tony
was paying. Yes, Tony was probably pissed he had to pay a fair price
afterwards, but we left him a pile of money so he could afford to.
There wasn't a single piece Mike and I bought from the villagers that we
felt we paid too much for. I'd be happy to pay less, but I'd still pay
the same prices again for those pieces.
> After expenses we felt $6-$8 per gram was a fair price and we have
pretty much maintained those prices since. The only way we "proceeded
to
destroy the market" was to quench some of the demand. If your supplier
shafted you by raising his prices then I suggest it was his greed not
the fact Mike and I paid $0.50 more per gram in the field. Hopefully
this will be the last we have to hear about our outrageous overpayment
in the field and how we destroyed the market.
>
> --
> Eric Olson
> ELKK Meteorites
> http://www.star-bits.com
> > Dear Mike and List Members,
> >
> > This post is not intended to be argumentative but could be perceived

> > by
some
> > as being so. We just want to make our position known in regards to
> > the
new
> > fall and other issues that were brought up by Mike Farmer on his
> > latest posts. Do not worry, our intentions are not to get involved
> > in
perpetual
> > arguements on the List as this has proven to be most unproductive in

> > the past.
> >
> > First of all Mike, you were not the first to report this new fall.
Check
> > with the University of Washington and NAU. A few List members have
> > been aware that we were working on this fall for some time and can
> > vouch for
us,
> > not that this is needed. I will not respond to your ridiculous
accusations
> > that we have a few samples and made all this up to scoop you. Time
> > will show who is telling the truth and in very short order. We
> > forgive you
for
> > accidentally stumbling onto this fall months after the fact. We are

> > not
too
> > worried about you damaging the market this time with your share that
only
>
> > amounts to a few hundred grams after you divide it up with your
investors.
> >
> > Secondly Mike, you were never the first to report any new fall that
> > we
are
> > aware of. If your memory serves you correctly, and let the record
> > show, that we were the first to submit samples of Bensour to the
> > scientific community within 5 days of the fall. A month had elapsed

> > before you recovered any Bensour, long after Dean Bessey, Rob Elliot

> > and ourselves
made
> > it available to market. As a matter of fact, we even announced the
> > name
and
> > classification before you made your supposed trip to Bensour. We
> > never claimed we went to the Bensour region but you did. We told
> > the NomCom
to
> > get the coordinates from you since you claimed to have been to this
> > dangerous area but, of course, no coordinates were provided. This
> > is
the
> > last piece of data needed to make Bensour an official fall. Step up

> > to
the
> > plate and provide this most crucial data and impress us all.
> >
>
> > Another note, You destroyed the price of Bensour by selling it for
> > less
than
> > your cost at $2.80 a gram just to get even with Bessey. When a well
known
> > collector asked for several kilograms at this price you reneged.
> > When
you
> > pull stunts like this it affects the market as a whole not just your

> > intended victim. It is no wonder collectors, dealers and one
> > scientist
are
> > saying you have done more damage to the market than any single
> > source.
> >
> > Third, we produced everything we said we were going to in the past
including
> > Thuathe. We introduced Thuathe at the Tucson show over a year ago
before
> > you were aware it existed. We sold out within two weeks and had
> > another
23
> > kilograms on its way when you made a trip out there yourself with
> > the coordinates we "supposedly" gave to you. The 23 kilograms was
> > stuck in customs for months while you proceeded to destroy the
> > market with the
couple
> > of kilos you purchased from natives in the field paying way too
> > much.
This
>
> > caused our supplier to raise his prices to the point it was no
> > longer attractive and we sent most of the material back.
> >
> > As we said before, we will release several beautiful specimens of
> > the
Amgala
> > fall later this week if it has not become tainted with all this
negativity.
> > Why is it that with every new fall it brings the worst out in some
people?
> > Anyway this is some gorgeous looking material with a lots of stories

> > yet
to
> > be translated still coming in. Stay tuned.
> >
> > Wishing everybody the best,
> >
> > Adam and Greg Hupe
> > The Hupe Collection
> > IMCA 2185
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > ______________________________________________
> > Meteorite-list mailing list Meteorite-list_at_meteoritecentral.com
> > http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
>


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Received on Mon 01 Mar 2004 05:53:07 PM PST