Blaine Reed Meteorites - List 138 - first summer sale list

Blaine Reed Meteorites - List 138 - first summer sale list

Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………………………LIST 138
July 12, 2013

Dear Collectors,
Here is my first "summer bargains" list. I am sorry it is going out at such a weird time, this was the soonest I could pull something together. I do realize that, in general, these are larger/ more expensive pieces than a usual list. But then the point of this sale is to raise at least a reasonable sum to pay bills and a lawyer or two.

BEDIASITE: Texas tektite.
This is a large specimen, unfortunately, has a large chip (about 25mm x 25mm) on the bottom. But then, with it sitting on a shelf (wood not glass anyway) or a table, you cannot see it. The remainder of this is fairly plain with very shallow etching that still seems to show a good amount of flow/ stretching lines. I think that this is my only Bediasite specimen remaining.
32.9 gram chipped individual – 37mm x 31mm x 18mm - $175

CASILDA, Argentina: (H5). Found 1937. Tkw = 18.35 kilograms.
Here is a beautiful complete slice from the 13 kilogram piece I bought a few years ago (that had been sitting in a Denver basement for 10 years before I bought it). This is dark but quite fresh showing lots of metal in a mottled dark greenish gray/ almost bluish gray matrix. I think this is the only complete slice I have of this and certainly the only piece I'll sell at this price (this usually brings around $4/g).
452.9 gram complete slice – 165mm x 40mm x 6mm - $900

DHOFAR (026), Oman: Lunar anorthositic melt breccia. Found 2000. Tkw = 148 grams.
This is one moon rock that, frankly does not look like one. This has just the occasional small (really small) bright white fragment in a brown matrix. Not exiting but not real common either.
.39 gram part slice – 15mm x 9mm x under 1mm - $400

NWA (2824): diogenite, anomalous. Found 2005. Tkw = 485 grams.
Here was a really weird rock that really did not look like a meteorite when I got it. Luckily, it was and a rare one no less. It, mineralogicaly is a diogenite but its oxygen isotopes show that it is not from Vesta. It seems to be from the same parent body as the famous Ibitera eucrite. Like Ibitira, this meteorite also contianed vesicles. However, unlike Ibitira, these are very small and few and far between.
a) .9 grams – 15mm x 11mm x 2mm - $90
b) 5.8 gram slice – 45mm x 28mm x 2mm - $500

NWA (2871): (Lodranite). Found 2005. Tkw = 2467 grams.
Here is a nice solid natural fragment that could easily be cut into slices (I thought about cutting into a couple nice end pieces and may yet do that). This was originally classified as an acapulcoite but later work showed that its fairly large crystal size showed it was really a lodranite.
50.3 gram natural fragment – 40mm x 35mm x 20mm - $1000

NWA (2968): achondrite ungrouped (Dunite). Found 2004. Tkw = 268 grams.
This was among the largest of the blocky fragments that made up this weird meteorite. I made the mistake of trying to cut a few pieces of this but it simply crumbled into little cubic and rectangular pieces. It later turned out that this meteorite was pretty much nothing but shocked olivine. As such, I think it was the first or second dunite known (a dunite is a "rock" that is pretty much all olivine). This is my only piece and the others sold out (quite rapidly) at around $200/g.
9.65 gram fragment – 18mm x 17mm x 14mm - $800

NWA (4857): Martian (Shergottite). Found 2007. Tkw = about 1 kilogram.
This is a really nice piece of the "new" Mars rock that was available 5 years ago. This was the first time that collectors could get a nice basically complete Mars rock individual. This is a particularly nice complete piece for this material. It has a nice rounded (oriented maybe) shape and wind polished fusion crust covering probably 85 to 90% of its surface.
1.72 gram complete individual – 11mm x 10mm x 8mm - $650

NWA (5745): (Ureilite). Found 2006. Tkw = 9kilograms.
For some reason this is listed as "provisional". Tony Irving did the work on this and confirmed that it was indeed a) a ureilite and b) the same as NWA (2218). None of this was a surprise as the Moroccan that had the original 9kg piece broke it apart at the Tucson show. David Gregory got the bulk of it – about 6kg

(NWA (2218)) Mike Martinez and I got about 1.5kg (NWA (5745). Anyway, this nice end piece seems to be my last specimen of this stuff. This was really hard to cut (thankfully that was Mike's problem). The research showed that this was a bit unusual in that was very low in pyroxene and is composed mostly of olivine with graphite and micro-diamonds (hence the hard cutting). This piece sits nice to display naturally. 

71.3 gram end piece/ cut fragment – 55mm x 40mm x 22mm - $1000

ODESSA, Texas: Coarse octahedrite (IAB). Found 1922.
Here is a not so beautiful but interesting piece of this hard to come by now meteorite. It is a fairly plain flat specimen that that has only minor thumb-printing on one side. It has a rather large split in it that nearly breaks the thing in two. Thinking this was simply a weathering crack (even though the rest of the specimen is nice and solid) I had thought of possibly finishing the job and making two end pieces out of this. I began "work" on this thing by wire brushing it a bit (only moderately, I left the pockets natural). Some quasi-shiny chinks of material fell out of the "weathering crack". It turns out that this is NOT really just a weathering crack (where the meteorite splits apart along the Widmanstatten structure) but a cohenite inclusion! I figured this out by running the XRF on a chunk of the material that fell out – high Fe, a bit of Ni and only a little bit of S or P (ruling out troilite and schreibersite). So, I decided to leave the thing as it is (some cohenite is still indeed visible in the narrow end of the crack). This specimen will come with the 6.3 grams of cohenite I recovered while brushing this iron.
1270 gram individual – 125mm x 70mm x 35mm - $700

SEYMCHAN, Russia: (Pallasite). Found 1967.
Here is a super thin etched complete slice that is roughly 40% pallasite so it shows nice etch structure in the metal zone but still has nice pallasitc zones. This was cut using a wire saw (an expensive endeavor as this meteorite is generally hard to cut) and is polished on one side (the "back" still shows some wire saw marks) but etched on both sides. There is some minor rust spotting on the back unpolished side (this spent some time in humid climate while uncoated0 but this is minor and has not spread what so ever in the years I have had this set aside (4 or 5 maybe).
74.5 gram super thin complete slice (40% pallasitic) – 155mm x 80mm x under 1mm - $375

SEYMCHAN, Russia: (Pallasite). Found 1967.
Here is my personal collection biggest and best slice that was cut from a 5kg or so block I got years ago. The crystals in this are really gemmy and this is nearly as pretty as Esquel or Imilac. I thought I had this sold (for higher than the price here) so I was not worried about the $ and lawyers issue. However, the buyer changed their mind and decided that they could, after all, live without the piece (in all fairness, they already have several pieces that are as nice as this, just not quite as large. I know – they got those from me and they were cut from this same block). I could have sold this in Tucson for over $10k (to someone that had seen it the previous year) but I did not bring it as I was told there would be a bunch of really nice large slices for really cheap at the show. It turned out that these slices were nice but really large (2kg or so I think), had a lot more metal in them and were priced at $10/g anyway! (and supposedly sold out no less). Oops!
990 gram gemmy complete slice – 270mm x 200mm x 3mm - $7500

Blaine Reed Meteorites- List 138 - WE WON! (this round)

Blaine Reed Meteorites- List 138 - WE WON! (this round)

Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
(970) 874-1487
…………………………………………LIST 138

June 25, 2013

Dear Collectors,

I almost had to title this " the even higher cost of justice?" or "selling things to raise bail money".

I have not done much business wise since April (aside from the Colorado Springs Show) as I have been somewhat tied up with an ugly issue that has now, thankfully, been resolved (for now anyway).

You see, I (as well as Blake and Linda) received my/ our very first lawsuit in early May. It was Mr. Curry of Montrose retaliating for our participation in the criminal summons/ trial for his selling fake "plessitic" iron material in Grand Junction. That trial was back last October and he was found guilty on three counts. I am due something around $765 in restitution as part of his sentence from that conviction. About the time we expected that this money should be coming in (he had 6 months to complete his sentence) rather than a check, we received a huge pile of papers from him (delivered by our local sheriff's office) that constituted a "Civil and Criminal Lawsuit". This "complaint" was 55 pages long, was accompanied by another 80 pages or so of "evidence" and demanded our arrests for all kinds of crimes from fraud, criminal impersonation, using a credit instrument while committing a felony (Linda using her credit card to buy the fake rock from the store that was selling them. Not sure how Curry thinks that that constitutes a crime other than the fact he doesn't like what I did with the specimen after the purchase), conspiracy, terrorism, treason and on and on. He demanded $300million in compensation, saying that this was the "lost value" on the specimens of his I have personally analyzed and said are fake. He also demanded that some 55 criminal charges be filed against us by the Montrose District Attorney's office.

Needless to say, this shook us up quite a bit. I really thought that his already being found guilty of the crime of selling fake material in criminal court would have protected me from this kind of thing in civil court. I guess not. It seems that you can file anything you want, saying any made up things you want and the court system (at least in Montrose) will accept and process it as a valid lawsuit. Most of this "complaint" was about the criminal trial in Grand Junction and the events that led up to it. However, this "complaint" had the added spice of supposed conspiracy amongst all of us meteorite people (for "not letting him sell his material") and "terrorism" for having ever bought, owned or sold an NWA meteorite (Curry got his hands on some ridiculous "paper" stating that ALL NWA meteorites are from Algeria and ALL money spent on them goes directly into the hands of anti-American terrorists. I think the people that wrote this little piece of trash have already been sued, successfully, for authoring it).

Not having a clue what to do, I spent 30 some hours typing a "response" to this nightmare for the court. I assumed that this would make the problem go away once all of this was reviewed by a judge. Unfortunately, the court clerk informed me when I turned it in that it might be some time (and many troubles) before a judge lays a hand on any of it.

Luckily, I soon accidentally bumped into a retired civil court lawyer. Actually, I called him up to chew him out and ask why he would talk with a "journalist" that obviously had an axe to grind against meteorite the meteorite dealer and collector community. You see, one of Curry's pieces of "evidence" being used against me (along with the above mentioned NWA paper) was an article by a woman online journalist that pretty much took the same view we saw in a recent New York article (where the claim was made that we are supposedly all smugglers and thieves and the researchers loose valuable info and material because of us). The person I called was Eric Twelker (The Meteorite Market) in Juneau, Alaska. He said he remembered talking with this "author", and answering her questions. He did say however that he had no clue of her real agenda or angle she was taking with her story at the time (I generally will not talk to members of the media unless I know just what their angle is as it seems fairly rare that journalists are really simply trying to get to the truth of a situation and not trying to dig up supporting data for an already decided side of it. Not sure what the overall truth is but this has been my experience over the years anyway, unfortunately). Anyway, I explained my situation and he said he would have a look at the paperwork we were hit with. Despite our consternation over the situation, Eric was quite certain that he could make it all go away in fairly short order.

Over the years I have seen Eric at the various Tucson and Denver shows. He would pop into my room for a few minutes, look around (and maybe buy the occasional specimen) and then leave never to return during that show. He was a man of very few words. However, I learned that those few words say a LOT. I found that he was able to say in a few small sentences the exact things I would probably take 3 pages to cover (he could probably shorten this whole post to one 4 or 5 sentence paragraph and still get the whole points across. Simply amazing).

Anyway, we worked together to put in a "Motion to dismiss or change venue to Grand Junction" (where the bulk of this lawsuit's complaints derived from). This should have forced a judge to get on this quickly (can't dismiss something until they have looked it all over). I relaxed a bit at that point assuming that it was now simply a matter of sitting and waiting.

Unfortunately, this is NOT entirely how things worked out. While I was in Colorado Springs, we got "served" with more papers, very dangerous papers. This was a subpoena demanding I deliver to the court and Curry at noon on June 25th (today): certified education records (showing I do have a geology degree and such), my passport, ALL international travel records since 1994, ALL communications and records whether electronic (phone or e-mail) or personal contacts since January 1, 2010 with (and then goes on to list pretty much every researcher, institution, dealer and many collectors in the field of meteorites as well as pretty much all law enforcement agencies I have ever worked with and more), All of my customer and dealer contacts including their addresses, phone numbers and e-mails, My income tax returns back 7 years, ALL records of sales, purchases or trades involving NWA meteorites and more!!!

Blake had e-mailed a copy of this up to Eric. Eric quickly said that this was an illegal action on several levels when I called him from Colorado Springs and said not to worry about it. This is easier said than done though and I was left with a less than fully pleasant mood for the show that weekend, unfortunately.

Once I got back home, I called the Montrose court clerk early the next morning. The person I reached was cold and harsh. They supposedly looked up this subpoena and said that it was a legal court clerk issued subpoena and that I will comply or be held in contempt of court. Commenting that we suspected that this was illegal just angered this person. I then commented that there was no way I could pull all of this data together (nor would I. There is no way I was going to give that delusional lunartic all of my customer's information so he could endlessly harass them for having committed the "crime" of ever buying or owning an NWA meteorite) in the time allowed. I was told I could request an extension but the court would not have to allow it. So, while I was contemplating my options, all of which were either dangerous or distasteful (show up and only give a few papers that might actually apply to a civil suit, not show up at all both risking going to jail for contempt or give Curry and the court as much of what they asked for as I could gather) Eric was putting together more motions for me to review and file with the court. One was to remove this blatantly illegal subpoena and the other was for an immediate review of the entire lawsuit for either dismissal or venue change, as we had to have one or the other before the "subpoenaed document deadline" today.

Luckily, these worked like a charm. I filed these on June 12th. On Monday (the 17th) we got a letter from a judge! These motions did indeed finally get one fully involved. It said that they were NOT going to allow the motion for a quick review/ decision on dismissal or venue change (but promised they would look into the case quickly none the less). However, it said that they would indeed throw out the illegal subpoena! (even the judge made comment that it was illegal and should never have been issued). It also had the stipulation that any future subpoenas from Curry would have to go in front of a judge for approval before they would be processed (ouch, that's quite a reprimand/ setback. I wonder what kind of butt chewing the clerk that helped him on that first one is getting now).

That left things hanging a bit and, consequently, a fair amount of concern as to what I/ we might yet ultimately face from Curry's filing of this garbage. Might a judge decide that if there is THAT much smoke there must be some fire somewhere and hit us with some kind of charges for good measure? Might I really have to pay a bunch of money because I called some river cobbles and scrap iron for what they were?

Anyway, we got our answer on the 20th (I have been out of town since, I JUST got home minutes ago). It seems the poor judge that had to deal with all of this (reading over 100 pages of Curry's stuff and a further 30 or so of my response) was completely honest when he said he would review it all soon in the note that eliminated the documents subpoena. This new note basically says that Curry's 55 pages of complaint does not legally show Curry is entitled to any relief (money) at all, among other dings against his outlandish claims. The net result: motion to dismiss is GRANTED. This whole ugly thing goes in the wastebasket of history.

Unfortunately, it does not eliminate the possibility that nutcase will simply file more "complaints" against me. Heck, he has tried to file over 32 fraud complaints against me with the Montrose Sheriff's office, a half dozen or so with the Delta Sheriff's office and an unknown number with the Delta city police – all of which were simply tossed out. Hopefully, any future "complaints" can be dealt with as easily (and less stressfully) as this one. A huge ($300 million) thanks to Eric Twelker!

Now on to a few items for sale:

ALBIN (imilac?), Wyoming. (Pallasite). Found 1915. Tkw = about 126 pounds.
I labeled this as possible Imilac as that is what Matt thinks it could be. Frankly, I do have to agree with him on first glance. Texturally, this does look a lot like a piece of Imilac. It does have angular crystals but nothing as angular as those that the 43 pound piece of Albin I had years ago showed. However, there is good evidence that this is indeed a piece of Albin. First, it has a pretty good pedigree. It came from Ann Black to Patrick Herman to Matt. Secondly, a conversation recently with someone that has seen slices from the pieces of Albin that Bud Eisler turned up with a few years after I got my piece clearly mentioned that they had a texture much more like Imilac BUT their crystals were much darker than Imilac (which these indeed are). I had never seen any cut pieces of Bud's stones so I had no idea of this textural difference (my piece did have the darker crystals matching the color of this piece but it had a lot more olivine in a greater size range). I can tell this piece was likely cut early in the days of wire saws as it is a bit wavy (not perfectly flat). I was told that this also tends to support the idea that this is an Eisler Albin (again, I have never seen a slice of one of his pieces, but I have talked with someone that has on this). Regardless, this is a nice COMPLETE slice of pallasite that we are pricing at (or even a bit cheaper than) what it would be for an Imilac, though I do indeed believe it is an Albin.
59.8 gram complete slice – 70mm x 50mm x 4mm - $900

CANYON DIABLO, Arizona: Coarse octahedrite (IAB).
This is a nice sculpted thin "rim specimen" that came with the David New material I had a few months ago. Unfortunately, this one did not have a label for some reason. None the less, it is a nice well brushed individual of this famous and now hard to buy meteorite.
230.5 gram brushed individual – 85mm x 40mm x 20mm - $160

CHERGACH, Mali: (H5). Fell July 2007. Tkw = about 100 kilograms.
This is a nice ½ individual. Most of this is covered by a fairly thin (typical for this fall) primary crust. This, interestingly, shows obvious bright shiny metal blebs scattered throughout the dark slate gray crust. There are some areas showing contraction cracks as well. The "break" on this is actually a slickenside surface that likely broke late in the fall.
42.6 gram ½ individual – 30mm x 30mm x 20mm - $170

DAVY (a), Texas: (L4). Found 1940. Tkw = 50.6 kilograms.
Here are a couple pieces that come with TCU Monig labels. One is a complete slice and the other is an end piece. Interestingly, these are both fairly large and surprisingly solid pieces for this meteorite and are about the same weight.
a) 94.4 gram end piece – 85mm x 42mm x 18mm - $140
b) 96.1 gram complete slice – 90mm x 65mm x 5mm - $145

GIBEON, Namibia. Fine octahedrite (IVA). Found 1836.
This is a nice moderately brushed complete individual. It has some soft sculpting (it has a large indent on one side) but is not an art piece. However, it does stand up to display nicely on its own. It has been brushed but only to the point where some of the original brown still shows. A nice but not exceptional fill your hand display piece.
1657 gram complete individual – 120mm x 85mm x 40mm - $1000

HOLBROOK, Arizona: (L/LL6). Fell July 19,1912.
Here are a few nice little complete individuals. I think that these are relatively recent recoveries as they do show some weathering effects. Though they do have some minor rust spotting they all show lots of nice black crust. These are in "as found" condition and still have some of the local soil I deeper recesses.
a) .30 gram individual – 8mm x 6mm x 3mm - $10
b) .40 gram individual – 7mm x 6mm x 5mm - $13
c) .72 gram individual – 12mm x 7mm x 5mm - $20
d) 1.0 gram individual – 15mm x 8mm x 5mm - $25

Blaine Reed Meteorites - List 137 Chelyabinsk part 2 and Colorado Springs show

Blaine Reed Meteorites - List 137 Chelyabinsk part 2 and Colorado Springs show

Dear Collectors,
I rapidly sold out of the Chelyabinsk pieces I had on my last posting. There were some 20 of you that left requests for specimens and probably a good number of you that didn't contact me for thinking I had already sold all. Anyway, I just picked up another batch of pieces and just got home with them last night. So, if you requested a piece, I now have your piece (in the size you requested). I'll be contacting you as soon as I can with the details. If you didn't request a piece but wanted one none the less, I have a small amount (100 grams or so) available in sizes between a couple grams and 20 grams or so.

Colorado Springs Show: June 7th-9th (I'll be gone from the 6th through the 11th)

I don't usually do small retail shows. However, this year the folks running the show have a BIG meteorite theme. They have done extensive media work to let the public know that they will have the Canon City roof (that the Canon City meteorite fell through in 1973, as well as a piece of that meteorite I believe). They will also have a display case of Chelyabinsk and a LARGE collection of Lunar meteorites. Lots of special meteorite things and they could not find a meteorite dealer to offer specimens to the public. They finally talked me into the job. To be honest, i have a LOT of other hot irons in the fire right now so I probably won't be at my best preparation wise for this one (have gout at the moment, surprisingly painful and makes it hard to move to get much accomplished at the moment). Anyway, for those of you that might like to visit this show (let me know if there is anything special you want me to bring) it will be at the Western Museum of Mining and Industry: 1025 North Gate Road, Colorado Springs, CO (I-25 at exit number 156A).

I'll try to pull together some real list offerings in the not to distant future. I have plenty of "new" material but these "irons in the fire" have me extremely tied up (and stressed) at the moment so i just don't have time to do any cataloging right now.

Blaine Reed
P.O. box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
(970) 874-1487

Blaine Reed Meteorites List 136. Chelyabinsk and more

Blaine Reed Meteorites - List 136. Chelyabinsk and more

Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………LIST 136
April 30, 2013

Dear Collectors,
Here is the e-mail version of my mailed list that many of you are just now receiving. As you can see, I was serious when I sent out the "have patience" note concerning the new Russian fall above one of my recent e-mail small lists. I had no idea how fast and how affordable I was going to be able to pick up Chelyabinsk. I had already had a full "mailed list" typed in and ready to go (had planned on having the envelopes stuffed and stamped before I left for Denver). Thankfully, I found out about the Cehlyabinsk's availability and delayed everything a few days. I have to admit that there is a chance that having yet further patience may mean you may be able to pick up a piece even a bit cheaper yet sometime down the road. However, the ones I have now are pristine as they were picked up right after the fall. Later pieces are likely to be quite rusty as there was a lot of snow in the area that has turned into small lakes and mud as things warmed up (Not good for meteorite preservation). Anyway, I worked pretty hard to have a selection of other interesting items so please do have a look at them as well. Enjoy!

BENDEGO, Brazil: Iron. Coarse octahedrite (IC). Found 1784. Tkw = over 5300 kilograms.
A single large mass was found near the rivulet called the Bendego. This was loaded up for a move to Rio de Janeiro, a move that took nearly 100 years as the meteorite (according some info I found on line) collapsed a bridge on the way and was left stuck in a stream bed for decades until it was retrieved. The piece ultimately made the some 900kilometer journey and is currently on display in Rio. Recently, some oxide fragments have turned up, presumably from the original find area of the meteorite. I have not seen much of this material available, so I don't think a lot was recovered. Most pieces are much like the fairly small flatish specimens I have here. One specimen I got though is really quite surprising for its size (I only have the one).
1) Oxide fragments as found:
a) 9.5 grams - 28mm x 25mm x 5mm - $20
b) 18.2 grams - 35mm x 30mm x 6mm - $36
c) 24.2 grams - 55mm x 23mm x 7mm - $48
d) 38.9 grams - 45mm x 40mm x 10mm - $75
e) 146.6 grams - 87mm x 50mm x 17mm - $275

CHELYABINSK, Russia: (LL5). Fell February 15, 2013.
Well, here it is! The new fall that created a 300 kilo- ton explosion that blew out windows, damaged buildings and injured over 1000 people. I recently made a yahoo groups e-mail comment saying "have patience" on this one (pieces of this were selling for low hundereds of dollars per gram at the time). I had no idea that I would be able to come up with pieces so quickly and at such a great price. These are all nice little individuals. They are stones as found. They are very fresh and have only moderate areas of chipping and broken areas that are mostly secondary crust. None are really absolutely complete (very few pieces from this fall are and those command a pretty large premium) but I guarantee you will really like these pieces.
1) Fresh individuals as found:
a) 1.4 grams - 11mm x 11mm x 5mm - $35
b) 2.7 grams - 14mm x 11mm x 9mm - $67
c) 5.1 grams - 20mm x 15mm x 9mm - $125
d) 10.8 grams - 25mm x 19mm x 11mm - $260
e) 25.0 grams - 45mm x 22mm x 17mm - $600
f) 48.6 grams - 35mm x 28mm x 27mm - $1070
g) 78.6 grams - 50mm x 33mm x 27mm - $1570

NWA (7046): Ordinary chondrite (H4), W2. Found before September 2011. Tkw = 1819 grams.
One stone that showed lots of chondrules on its surface was purchased at the 2011 Denver show. Cutting and analysis showed "a dense population of chondrules" inside. These features led both the buyer and researchers to believe that this was likely a type 3 stone. There was indeed a fair amount of spread in the iron contents of the olivine and pyroxene (as well as some residual glass) in this stone that tended to support the type 3 belief. Unfortunately, the Meteoritical Society Nomenclature Committee concluded that this meteorite was indeed not unequilibrated enough to qualify as a true H3. Regardless, the chondrules (and there are a lot of them) show very nicely in this stone (as good as any H3s I've had).
1) Slices, all have natural edges:
a) 8.3 grams - 32mm x 18mm x 5mm - $13
b) 14.2 grams - 35mm x 28mm x 4mm - $22
c) 30.5 grams - 52mm x 38mm x 4mm - $46
d) 47.0 grams - 60mm x 45mm x 4mm - $71
e) 73.1 grams - 70mm x 63mm x 5mm - $110
2)End piece: has 95mm x 35mm area of crust on back.
194.8 grams - 95mm x 73mm x 12mm - $290 – Main mass.

NWA (7428): Ordinary chondrite (L6), W2, melt breccia. Found before February 2012. Tkw = 1380 grams.
The Meteoritcal Bulletin has this as 1830 grams total, but all of Matt's records (I got this from him) show it as 1380 grams. Obviously, a digit got swapped somewhere along the line. Anyway, when I first saw this I was certain that it was an H melt as it looks very much like one I had years ago. This has large (up to 5cm wide) dark melt veins containing partially melted oval shaped chondritic fragments all set in an L-chondrite matrix. What made me think that this was an H melt is that this meteorite is mostly light tan to brown with dark gray melt veins whereas pretty much all of the other L-melts I have seen are green.
1) Slices, all have natural edges:
a) 3.8 grams - 20mm x 20mm x 3mm - 19
b) 8.2 grams - 30mm x 19mm x 4mm - $40
c) 13.1 grams - 32mm x 22mm x 5mm - $60
d) 22.1 grams - 55mm x 28mm x 4mm - $100
e) 56.1 grams - 80mm x 48mm x 5mm - $250

UVALDE, Texas: Ordinary chondrite (H5). Found 1915. Tkw = 8.2 kilograms.
I got a handful of slices from TCU just before Tucson. I didn't show them there as I wanted to put them on this list (it has been a number of years since I have had any of this material, there is not a lot of this available). According to the Catalog of Meteorites (yep, I still have and use the old book version from time to time) this was originally reported by Nininger as one mass and fragments totaling 7.5kg in 1939 (Monig likely got this material from Nininger). This is a fairly weathered stone (as
many Texas finds are) showing little metal in a mostly brown matrix on cut surfaces. These pieces are all slices and cut fragments and each comes with a TCU Monig Collection label.
1) Slices:
a) 18.3 grams - 33mm x 28mm x 6mm - $55
b) 33.1 grams - 60mm x 35mm x 5mm - $100
2) Cut fragments:
a) 6.2 grams - 28mm x 18mm x 4mm - $19
b) 13.5 grams - 25mm x 25mm x 9mm - $41
c) 48.0 grams - 65mm x 40mm x 8mm - $140

NWA (7397): Martian meteorite (Shegottite). Found before June 2012. Tkw = 2130+ grams.
A 2130 gram individual was found near Smara, Morocco (I had a huge 48g slice of this piece for $16k in Tucson. I likely can get it back if anyone is interested). Intense fieldwork recovered numerous additional small fragments (it is these I have here). The interior of this meteorite shows large ovoid crystals of low Ca pyroxene (surrounded by a rim of olivine and chromite) in a matrix that is primarily pyroxene (both low and high Ca), maskleynite and olivine. These ovoids don't show all that well in these natural fragments. None the less this is interesting stuff and, by far the cheapest Mars rock that I am aware of.
1) Fragments as found:
a) .20 grams - 8mm x 5mm x 3mm - $50
b) .38 grams - 9mm x 6mm x 4mm - $95
c) .53 grams - 9mm x 7mm x 5mm - $135 - has some crust.
d) .83 grams - 12mm x 7mm x 6mm - $205
e) 1.30 grams - 14mm x 10mm x 5mm - $320
f) 2.24 grams - 13mm x 10mm x 8mm - $545
g) 6.32 grams - 25mm x 13mm x 11mm - $1500

AUSTRALITES: Tektites from Australia.
I generally don't like to offer something that I have offered so recently (I had the partial flanged buttons on my October 2012 list). However, these are really neat and I am certain that they would sell out rapidly before they made it to a list if I showed them around much (I sold a number of them in Tucson already). These are not fancy pieces, just nice intact (no fresh chipping) natural round and elongate "cores" (sorry no flanges on these pieces). These are quite unusual in their size. I don't recall having (or really ever seeing any quantity of) Australites this size before (the rest of mine are the typical 2 to 4 or 5g size range). Better yet, these actually have some locality info with them (fairly rare for tektites, generally).
1) Kalgoorlie, Western Australia:
a) 10.7 grams - 25mm x 23mm x 13mm - $50
b) 12.7 grams - 22mm x 21mm x 20mm - $60
c) 15.4 grams - 28mm x 25mm x 17mm - $100 – only one this size.
d) 32.3 grams - 50mm x 23mm x 17mm - $300 – my largest and only this size.
2) Finke River, South Australia:
a) 10.7 grams - 22mm x 22mm x 18mm - $50
b) 15.2 grams - 25mm x 24mm x 18mm - $100
c) 19.3 grams - 30mm x 27mm x 16mm - $145

Please note:
The post office drastically increased most shipping rates since my last list. For small US orders $3 should still be fine. Larger orders are now $12 (insurance is extra if desired – I'll look it up if you want it). The real increases came in overseas (even Canada) shipping. These prices pretty much doubled and more from what they were before (and they say we have no inflation). Now small overseas orders are around $9 (I'll have to custom quote any larger items/ orders). Thankfully, it seems that the rate for registration (recommended on more valuable overseas orders) is still $12 (for now).
My fax machine has pretty much blown up on me. I can nurse it to work if I must (but often lose the incoming fax if I am not really careful). For overseas orders, it probably is best to go ahead and use my brmeteorites@yahoo.com e-mail. I generally get/ deal with phone calls quicker but I will try to keep up on checking e-mail this time.

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale -List 136 David New labeled material

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale -List 136 David New labeled material

Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………………………LIST 136

April 13, 2013

Dear Collectors,

Here is a neat small collection of David New labeled material I picked up in Phoenix recently. All of these are nice specimens and come with a corresponding David New label. These are not in alphabetical or type order, just in order that they were in the plastic storage/ tackle box that they came in.

I know, this was supposed to go out Tuesday (the 16th) But I am, yet again, leaving town (I have been gone something like 7 weeks this year so far). I am going up to the Denver Spring Show next weekend. I will be leaving Thursday morning so waiting until Tuesday to send this out would have only left 2 days to take, pack and ship orders (on top of trying to prepare and pack for the trip). I don't set up at this show. It is the only one where I am not stuck permanently in a room. I get to wander around and visit/ work deals with the dealers that are set up. However, I will have a "sleeping room" at the hotel. So, if there is anybody out there that will be attending the show and wants me to bring anything in particular to see, please let me know so I can get it packed for the trip. I should get back home from this trip on Tuesday the 23rd.

MILLBILLILLIE, Australia: Achondroite (eucrite).
Here is another piece but this is a nice complete slice that has nice natural (uncleaned) crust completely around its edge. The interior is the bright salt and pepper texture of much of this material but does have a couple zones (one vein like) that are really fine grained.
14.4 gram complete slice – 37mm x 33mm x 5mm - $250

CAMEL DONGA, Australia: Achondrite (eucrite). Found 1984. Tkw = 30+ kilograms.
This is a complete individual. It is a later recovery as the crust is complete but no longer fully shiny but closer to 50% shiny and somewhat brown in areas. Early found pieces of this meteorite (in the late 80's) were often really nice with black shiny crust. This eucrite was unusual in that it has a high amount of native iron in it. It is probably this that caused this material to weather so rapidly (and does indicate that, as we suspected at the time, this fell very shortly before it was first "found").
14.7 gram individual – 28mm x 20mm x 17mm - $350

TENHAM, Australia: Ordinary chondrite (L6). Fell Spring 1879.
Not sure whether to call this a slice or an end piece. It was obviously cut off of a naturally broken end of a stone but there is a little bit of sanding flat spots on that natural broken surface. Regardless, this is a nice specimen and has complete fusion crust around its edge.
13.0 gram complete "slice" – 33mm x 25mm x 5mm - $100

HOLBROOK, Arizona: Ordinary chondrite (L/LL 6). Fell July 19, 1912.
The label on this has one minor error – it lists the fall year as 1915 (a "mint error" perhaps?). Any way this is a part slice that has two cut edges and the remainder is fusion crusted (about 50% of the edge is crusted). This has a little bit of wetahering to it, so it was not a real early recovery but nice none the less. It does have an interesting 4mm troilite nodule on the polished side. Wasn't sure how to price this one. More recent find individuals and fragments have generally been offered to me around $20 to $30/ gram.
14.4 gram part slice – 37mm x 28mm x 5mm - $400

HENBURY, Australia: Iron. Medium octahedrite (IIIAB). Found 1931.
This is a nice shaped little individual that has been wire brushed (rare for Henbury actually). It has a long sculpted shape resembling many of the Canyon Diablo rim specimens I have seen but still has some red dirt in a deeper spot clearly showing that this nice piece is indeed a Henbury.
38.2 gram elongate brushed individual – 65mm x 20mm x 10mm - $100

MOLDAVITE: Besednice locality.
It has been a long time since I have had a Besednice moldavite. This locality is famous for the deeply etched frilly shaped specimens found there. No other locality really quite matches the sculpting/ delicate shapes of the Besednice pieces. This is a nice complete specimen that is thin so it does not have as deep o etching as some I've seen (but it clearly shows beautiful green coloration even in a box). However, it does have a fairly delicate frilly edge.
2.5 gram complete specimen – 38mm x 15mm x 5mm - $75

WILUNA, Australia: Ordinary chondrite. (H5). Fell September 2, 1967. Tkw = 150+ kilograms.
This is basically a complete slice of a fragment that was found some time after the fall. It has brown fusion crust along 50% of the edge (remainder being natural break). The interior still shows lots of metal and chondrules in a mixed tan and brown matrix.
18.7 gram complete slice – 55mm x 25mm x 5mm - $150

ESQUEL, Argentina: Stony-iron (pallasite). Found before 1951. Tkw = 750 kilograms.
This is a fairly thick rectangular slice that I strongly suspect David got from Alan Lang as one side is unpolished. Some 25 years ago some of us dealers got some 5kg blocks of Esquel and this was how Alan prepared his pieces early on (we had little time to get things ready for the Tucson show, I barely got my pieces done in time). Regardless, this piece shows really pretty gemmy mostly green olivines. This could be cut into several thinner pieces, but then the matching New label would no longer match.
20.5 gram rectangular slice – 30mm x 20mm x 7mm - $500

GIBEON, Namibia: Iron. Fine octahedrite (IVA). Found 1836.
This is a thick rectangular piece that has one natural edge. This is obviously a fairly old piece as the coating has yellowed quite a bit but has done a great job of keeping the piece rust free. One face is etched and shows a nice texture.
44.2 gram part slice – 30mm x 20mm x 9mm - $90

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale - List 135 - an after Phoenix offering 04APR2013

Blaine Reed Meteorites For Sale - List 135 - an after Phoenix offering 04APR2013

Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………………………LIST 135
April 4, 2013
Dear Collectors,

This was supposed to go out a couple days ago. Unfortunately, a couple days ago I was still in Phoenix. I was gone for nearly two weeks on this trip. I was helping my uncle, who we visit on the way to and from Tucson, finally de-clutter and unload a bunch of stuff (he was not one of those "Hoarders Buried Alive" stars but certainly would have earned an honorable mention). We (Blake, my uncle and I) were successful beyond our wildest dreams. We filled a 40 yard dumpster with obvious garbage (including pretty much the entire house of carpet and pad that had been soiled by his dogs and those of the previous house's owner). We also had a huge yard sale that filled the driveway, back porch and much of the back yard. At the end of the sale we had only a couple small carloads of stuff that ended up being donated. Anyway, huge amount of work but in the end hugely successful but had me finally getting home late last night.

BRENHAM, Kansas: Stony-iron (pallasite). Found 1882.
Here is a beautiful "little" complete slice that has been cut very thin so it passes light through probably 2/3 of the crystals. Though some are a bit dark close to ½ of the crystals in this thing pass light quite brightly. This is probably the last slice from a 351lb piece that was found in 2006. I was told that this was found on a hill side so it did not spend its life soaking in a bunch of ground water. Also, this meteorite was cut using nothing but alcohol (no water based coolants which can leave water behind the crystals to cause a rusting problem later). I have a large slice (2265g – most of the complete slices were more than a couple kilos in size) from this same meteorite, cut the same way. I have had it without any special storage for 2 ½ years now and it looks fine (MAYBE a couple tiny spots of rust if you look really carefully). So, this particular Brenham (cut the same anyway) I trust as being stable.
456.1 gram complete slice – 360mm x 150mm x 2mm - $1600

CAMEL DONGA, Australia: Achondrite (eucrite). Found 1984. Tkw = 30+ kilograms.
This is actually a fairly fresh individual. There are signs of weathering but certainly not to the extent of many I have seen coming out lately. The crust shows a little bit of yellowish or brown tinges in few areas but shows a lot of shininess and flow lines. There is one chipped area (about 10mm x 8mm) showing the light colored interior but this stone is otherwise complete.
13.7 gram individual – 27mm x 21mm x 18mm - $275

DEAKIN (001), Australia: Ordinary chondrite (ungrouped type 3). Found 1978. Tkw = 109.5 grams.
I am at a bit of a loss how to price this one. It might be really interesting and "valuable" to a certain collector out there, but as a somewhat weathered (not horribly though, it still shows plenty of metal) find it might not be of much interest. Not sure how this got out as all of the "total known" material is listed as being in museums (according to the Catalog of Meteorites anyway). I know the previous owner who likely did a museum trade to get it when he was buying up as many odd/ rare meteorites he could get back in the late 1990s. The catalog also mentions that this has affinities to the LL group but the magnetic attraction and small chondrule size (looking much like H type or even smaller) makes me think that this does deserve the "ungrouped" classification. This piece looks like it has weathered crust covering about 40% of the natural exterior. Interesting piece(?)
6.84 gram cut fragment – 20mm x 10mm x 12mm - $240

FOREST (002), Australia: Found 1980. Tkw = 26 kilograms.
This specimen is labeled as I remember it when it first came out (Robert Haag was selling it) – Forest (b). A bunch of different meteorites started showing up from the area so everything was switched to numbers. This was probably a good idea. My Meteorites A to Z shows something like 37 different Forest area meteorites at the time of publication (there may be more now). Definitely would have run out of alphabet there. Anyway, this is nice little cut individual that shows nice brown crust on a 22mm x 20mm area of the natural exterior. The cut and polished face on this is roughly 22mm x 12mm.
10.0 gram cut individual – 25mm x 20mm x 9mm - $40

FORESTBURG (a), Texas: Ordinary chondrite (L4). Found 1957. Tkw = 26.6 kilograms.
Here are a couple pieces I got from the TCU/ Monig collection just before the Tucson Show. Both of these have a TCU, Monig Collection label. One piece is a fairly large (for this stuff) slice that has one cut edge about 45mm long (the remainder is natural with a couple areas showing some weathered crust). The other piece is a large chunk that has two cut faces that make it a bookend (and it is almost large enough for that job). This could easily be cut into more slices or left as is. One of the polished faces on this piece shows a couple interesting large (up to 10mm x 7mm) troilite inclusions.
a) 58.2 gram slice – 73mm x 70mm x 4mm - $115
b) 435.2 gram bookend cut fragment – 70mm x 66mm x 45mm - $600

HOLBROOK, Arizona: Ordinary chondrite (L/LL6). Fell July 19, 1912. Tkw = 400+ kilograms.
This is a nice complete individual. It does have an area (about 13mm x 12mm) that looks chipped but careful inspection with a loupe shows definite fusion crust on the high points of this "chip", so it is really an area of very light secondary crust. The remainder of the stone is covered nice black primary crust. This is a bit after the fall recovery as there is some adhering dirt (I have not attempted to clean this). A nice not so little piece for this fall.
13.0 gram complete individual – 30mm x 18mm x 13mm - $325

JUANCHENGE, China: ordinary chondrite. (H5). Fell February 15, 1997. Tkw = 99+ kilograms.
This is a really nice fresh complete stone that has only a couple small (5mm x 3mm) edge chips. The crust is dark slate gray to black, though there is an area that has a purplish tinge to it (like that found on some Allende). This, amazingly for this fall, shows some flow lines. The shape of the stone, the flow lines and a hint of a roll-over rim shows that this stone was oriented for at least part of its fall.
30.7 gram complete individual – 40mm x 22mm x 20mm - $185

Blaine Reed Meteorites - List 134 - more after Tucson stuff 14MAR2013

Blaine Reed Meteorites - List 134 - more after Tucson stuff

Blaine Reed
P.O. Box 1141
Delta, CO 81416
Ph/fax (970) 874-1487
…………………………………………………………………LIST 134
March 14, 2013

Dear Collectors,

Here is another offering of things I brought back from the show. I am sending this out at an odd early time as I will, once again, be leaving town for awhile. I don't plan on leaving until the 20th or 21st but that would only leave me one or two days, at most, to take and pack orders if I waited until the proper time to send this out (which would have been the 19th). I am not certain exactly how long I will be gone (helping out my uncle in Phoenix), but should be back sometime around April 3rd (I'll try to have the date, once I have a better handle on it, left on my answering machine).

ALLENDE, Mexico: Carbonaceous chondrite (CV3.2). Fell February 8, 1969.
I got this in a bag with a card that said Allende or Murchison. Unfortunately, it is definitely just Allende. This is a cut fragment (kind of a ½ end piece/ bookend cut) that is quite fresh. It does have some crust – about a 25mm x 10mm area. Nothing exciting but I do have to say that all Allende I have offered the past couple years has sold quickly.
10.6 gram cut fragment – 35mm x 14mm x 12mm - $90

DAR al GANI (476), Libya: Martian (shergottite). Found 1998. Tkw = 2015 grams.
This is a nice little end piece of this well known Mars rock (and likely rare as such). It shows the classic dark olivine crystals in a mixed light and dark green matrix.
.73 gram end piece - 13mm x 8mm x 5mm - $500

DIMMITT, Texas: Ordinary chondrite (H3.7). Found 1947. Tkw = 147 kilograms.
This is a really nice end piece of this interesting meteorite. It is fairly thin so it has a good surface area. The back is much better than average for Dimmitt. This has very nice distinct (weathered) fusion crust covering most of it. There are some areas of secondary crust/ late break but not much. Best of all though, this is a Monig specimen and comes with a TCU Monig Collection label.
105.6 gram end piece – 70mm x 55mm x12mm - $200

D'ORBIGNY, Argentina: Achondrite (angrite). Found 1979. Tkw = 16.55 kilograms.
Here is a nice small lot that would be great for resale. It has three larger pieces that are around 7mm in size and a capsule that contains pieces around 2mm to 4mm size. Total weight is just under .8grams. This has got to be the weirdest meteorite in existence. From the textures of these pieces, I would never guess that this was a meteorite. Rare and interesting.
.79 grams of fragments - $230

HUCKITTA, Australia: Stony-iron (pallasite). Found 1924.
Here is a rare one. This is NOT the usual oxidized material but a nice small end piece that is fresh! This has a couple dark olivines as are usual in Huckitta but the metal is bright and fresh. Years ago a handful of these small fresh Huckittas came out. I am not aware of any further pieces turning up since.
2.6 gram end piece – 15mm x 10mm x 5mm - $100 – fresh metal.

KATOL, India: Stone. (primitive achondrite). Fell May 22, 2012. Tkw = about 10 kilograms.
These samples are from a larger piece that I broke up using my chisel press. This material is SUPER FRESH (looks like it was probably picked up minutes after the fall) and I did not want to risk contaminating it in any way by attempting to cut it. All but the smallest piece has some fusion crust. The mid-sized pieces have secondary crust and the larger have really nice areas of primary crust. The largest piece even has scuffs/ skid marks from where it hit the ground. This, to my knowledge, has not been classified yet, so I'll have to make some "provisional" information cards to go with these pieces. It is clear on inspection though, that it is some kind of primitive achondrite (complete metamorphosed chondrite) but its color and texture don't match any others (acapulcoite, winonaite, lodranite, etc.). Really nice and strange stuff!
1) Fragments:
a) 1.31 grams – 10mm x 8mm x 7mm - $110
b) 2.59 grams – 15mm x 10mm x 7mm - $210 – 11mm x 5mm secondary crust patch.
c) 3.73 grams – 16mm x 13mm x 9mm - $290 – 12mm x 12mm secondary crust.
d) 10.7 grams – 22mm x 22mm x 8mm - $770 – 22mm x 20mm primary crust.
e) 23.1 grams – 32mm x 20mm x 20mm - $1500 – around 40% primary crusted.

PLAINVIEW (a), Texas: Ordinary chondrite (H5). Found 1917, may have fallen spring 1903.
Here is a complete slice of this always popular material. This meteorite is technically a find but there was a large piece (25 pounds) that was found in a horse pen the day after a fireball was witnessed in the area in 1903. The type and texture of that piece matches the other Plainview (a) stones (I have had actual pieces in the past that were cut from that specimen). This slice was cut from a piece that was somewhat fragmented and found later. This shows distinct fusion crust along about 1/3 of its edge with the remainder being thin secondary crust or natural breaks. This particular piece is different/ special in that it seems to have a large (roughly 30mm x 25mm) darker inclusion on one end that looks like it might be an impact melt zone.
69.9 gram complete slice – 80mm x 35mm x 8mm - $280