[meteorite-list] Trends with WI Fall and alike for July

From: Mike Bandli <fuzzfoot_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu, 1 Jul 2010 08:59:48 -0700
Message-ID: <0890205C4FD54A7C93D7E8118A919832_at_Bandli1>

Hello MikeG,

Maybe you don't mean it, but your post implies that those that don't wait
for some kind of price drop are inexperienced, impatient, or na?ve. This
couldn't be further from the truth. Many of those that purchase immediately
are just the opposite - experienced, long-time collectors. It has nothing to
do with "being the first on the block to own it." In the case of Wisconsin,
many wanted complete stones, which were few and far between. Many wanted
pre-rain material. Whatever the reason, they are all good reasons, and
everyone is happy.

MikeG wrote: "Despite the marketing hype, there is little special about any
of them beyond the significance the buyer attaches to them."

I won't attach any significance to them, but will state the facts:

Whetstone Mountains - the first recovered Arizona fall in nearly 100 years.
Probably the most documented recovery in history. Very little available to
collectors. Fireball captured on video.

Daule - the first and only Ecuadorian meteorite to ever be recovered.
Obviously an historic event for Ecuador. Beautiful shock breccia. Under one
kilo available to collectors.
 
Wisconsin - the most covered fall in history. Witnessed by tens of thousands
of people. Stunning breccia. Low recovered weight and horrible search/find
ratio (much more expensive to find). The pre-rain, low-oxidized material
will always hold a premium, because the contrast of the breccia is lost with
oxidation. I believe this one will also be orbit calculated.

For those of us who don't view things through the prisms of type or price,
all meteorite falls and recoveries are special and significant events.

Best regards,

Mike Bandli

----------------------------------------------
Mike Bandli
Historic Meteorites
www.HistoricMeteorites.com
IMCA #5765
-----------------------------------------------
 
-----Original Message-----
From: meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com
[mailto:meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com] On Behalf Of Galactic
Stone & Ironworks
Sent: Thursday, July 01, 2010 7:26 AM
To: Shawn Alan
Cc: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Trends with WI Fall and alike for July

Hi Shawn and List,

Perhaps I am off-base here, but I think we are witnessing (in part) a
dynamic of collecting meteorites.

New collectors are steadily entering this field/hobby and those who
stay will mature and learn. Their knowledge of meteoritics,
collecting, and the market will increase with their experience. What
we saw with Ash Creek is different than what we are seeing now with
Wisconsin because the greater collector market is maturing. Perhaps
now we are in-between the influx crowds of newbies and the majority of
current collectors are becoming more savvy in their purchases. One of
the first lessons about falls that newbies learn is patience. It's
the same with most things - the first person on the block to have a
thing, pays much more for that thing. So the rest of the people sit
back and wait for the price to come down - which it usually does.
Those who wanted to be the first on the block to own Wisconsin now
have it, and now the rest of us are waiting to get a better price.
The new and inexperienced will rush out to pay top dollar for a common
chondrite because it is exciting to them, regardless of the petrologic
type or circumstances of the fall. Perhaps the "Class of Ash Creek"
has graduated and now we are seeing the benefits of patience, rational
assessment, and experience.

Of course, this could change in a moment when the second season of
Meteorite Men starts and a new flock of eager beginners discovers
meteorites. Or when the next brilliant fireball goes viral on
YouTube.

I still don't own a sizeable specimen of Ash Creek, Whetstone
Mountains, Daule, or Wisconsin and I won't until the right price comes
along. Those falls just don't fit into my collecting scheme - because
they are ordinary chondrites that fell under ordinary circumstances
(for the most part). Despite the marketing hype, there is little
special about any of them beyond the significance the buyer attaches
to them. Do any of the above have the makings of a truly "historical"
fall - maybe, maybe not. Are they rare types? No. I'm not trying to
downplay any of these falls, but I think few would argue that these
falls were well worth the prices they were introduced at.

Best regards,

MikeG

On 7/1/10, Shawn Alan <photophlow at yahoo.com> wrote:
> Hello Listers,
>
> I have noticed with the Livingston WI meteorite Fall in April that the
> prices were at a good high, well over $100 a gram for the first month
being
> sold on eBay and alike. And then a rush happened over night with a few
> sellers on eBay and the meteorite market and it was mayhem. However, in
the
> past few weeks I have noticed prices dropping low, and I mean low. Tonight
> on eBay a WI slice weighing at 3.8 sold at $78 and another slice at 9.66g
> sold at $285.
>
> With other recent falls they tend to stay high for the first year from
what
> I have seen with sales and research, but with the WI fall this isn't the
> case. I am left to wondering why is it with this fall that it had a great
> led in sales in the first month and dropped so low in less then 2 months,
> not to mention the lack of WI meteorites found in the field? Is it that
> majority of the WI fall meteorites are being sold at a recorded high
weight,
> dealers selling the big boys all at once?
>
> I see that this coming month that sales with historic falls will keep
going
> up and the exchange of rare and special meteorite falls will be revisited
> for the fact of the rich history they command in the market and with
> collectors alike. Also not to mention, the new NWAs that keep popping up
> will bring a new twist to the collecting world. All I can say is history
> repeats its self and history can out weigh anything through and through
> again while trends come and go. Hold on and lets see what July brings for
> the hot summer month to cool our needs for meteorites.
>
> Shawn Alan
> IMCA 1633
> eBaystore
>
http://shop.ebay.com/photophlow/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=&_trksid=p
4340
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-- 
------------------------------------------------------------
Mike Gilmer - Galactic Stone & Ironworks Meteorites
http://www.galactic-stone.com
http://www.facebook.com/galacticstone
------------------------------------------------------------
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Received on Thu 01 Jul 2010 11:59:48 AM PDT