Well so good, it does seem like there's at least somewhat of a trade scene happening. I guess it makes sense; there are so many minerals on the market, plus field-collecting, that trading isn't extremely prevalent. But I am glad to see that it's happening. Glenn, I'd write but, there's no way I have any rare silicates :( And Matt, I appreciate the offer, but like I said I'm primarily after Arizona material. I have an obsession with this state for its geography, history (especially our rich mining history!) as well as the rare and classic minerals. So while I do very much like copper minerals, and imagine yours are nice, it just doesn't fit into my goals as a collector! Which again, relates to the reasons why trading isn't heavily popular around here.
Glenn, if you don't mind me asking, why do you collect silicates? Probably the same reason I collect copper-leads? David, I will check out your list, and I got a few PMs too that I'll try to follow up on, so that's encouraging. I agree about being realistic in the value for a trade, and I keep that in mind when talking about trading with someone.
Two examples: (that are on the table for everyone!) I have a rather pretty Tsumeb dioptase on a blanket of Duftite, a small cab, that I paid $150 for (which I think was really pretty reasonable.) But in trading that, by saying $150, the other party is likely to think: that's a lot of money, $150, and that's why I'm trading and not buying in the first place! So who knows - it's quite possible that a piece someone paid $60 for would be more than acceptable for me. So I would theoretically operate that way!
The other is a thumbnail of Diaboleite from Tiger that I bought, that has a price tag still on the label for $200 (I got it for $180.) But, since I'd rather keep the Diaboleite than the Dioptase, I probably
would want a more expensive piece in trade - even though to a lot of people, the very pretty and larger Dioptase might be worth a lot more to them. But then again, if someone had a nice Tiger Fornacite or Boleite or Atacamite or such, regardless of its $ price, I may consider it an even trade, because I already have a much nicer Diaboleite.
So, yeah, I suppose it's all relative. And I have, considering the amount of minerals out there that people find desirable, a really very narrow window of material suitable for trades. But still, I like the idea of it, and hope to do some trading at some point. I wonder, if trading opens one up to material that would probably otherwise be unavailable? What I mean is, are there some pieces that collectors would never sell, but could conceivably be willing to trade? There's another great reason right there!
Thanks for the input everyone! Keep me in mind when you run across old Arizona stuff! :)
Ben Kirchner
Mineral and Locality Search
