[meteorite-list] NWA 869 (still) WANTED

From: dean bessey <deanbessey_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Fri, 27 Apr 2007 12:49:32 -0700 (PDT)
Message-ID: <876088.45412.qm_at_web56106.mail.re3.yahoo.com>

Come on folks, this is relatively "common" material.
Surely someone can send me a photo, weight and price -
or lead me to a web page URL that has them.
> Thanks, Michael
>
While it is (Or Was) common and large pieces surely
exist that could easily make a slice that size the
vast majority of NWA869 is small - most under 200
grams anyway. I have gone through more than 3000 kilos
of NWA869 and the largest piece that I handled is just
over 40 pounds. My best guess is that there were 7000
kilos found so I handled just under half of it. I know
its very hard to get a grip on the TKW's of NWAs as
the nmoroccans try and hide that info (Which I think
is counterproductive as my belief is that NWAs are all
undervalued partially because of the TKW deception and
we all put a risk premium on more turning up - I know
that I wont offer as much for rarer classification
material as I normally would because of fears that
more will turn up after I buy it) but I think unless
something strange turns up my 7000 kilo guess on TKW
is the best that anybody will ever come up with. There
are bigger pieces I am sure but the rule of the main
mass being 20% of the total weight probably isnt true
with NWA869. Hence part of the reason why it is harder
to get bigger slices.
Also, while it was common several years ago the
strewnfield has been hunted out more than two years
and no new NWA869 has come out in morocco in quite a
while now. You couldent buy it in morocco for 10 cents
a gram anymore. Actually you would have a hard time
getting any from the moroccans at any price nowadays
as they just dont have any anymore.
A lot of NWA869 has been made into jewelry and (Like
gibeon) has left the collector market and it is such a
beautiful meteorite that most collectors have more
than one. This is partly why supply has been reduced.
You still get NWA869 sold cheap on ebay (Especially
very small ones) by dealers who have had it for a
while and got it cheap and is just reselling it at
cost plus rather than by replacement value but NWA869
could no longer be considered "common", at least not
in morocco.
Sorry, while I probably have some in storage in canada
I have none here for sale now. The 2000 or so kilos of
NWAs that I have bought since I moved to New Zealand
has contained no NWA869 at all. Not even a few small
ones mixed into unsorted mixed lots (Like the
moroccans were regularly doing 3 years ago just to get
rid of them - three years ago, if I bought 400 kilos
of mixed unclassified material I could bet that it
would be spiked with 40 or 50 kilos of NWA869).
How times quickly change
Sincerely
DEAN
www.meteoriteshop.com




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Received on Fri 27 Apr 2007 03:49:32 PM PDT