FMF - Friends of Minerals Forum, discussion and message board

[Bob Morgan]

I love the pictures of those wonderful crystals and will enjoy seeing them this year at Tucson. Alas! my wallet limits my enjoyment to observing.
I used to try to collect 'perfect' crystals. They are quite rare. They are also not too interesting. Now I seek out the peculiar, most of which are quite affordable.
Here is a case that I'll have on display at the main show. Most of the specimens were found at dealers' booths in Tucson over the years.
Many cases of collectors grace the convention center with the widest variety of interests. Often they inspire a love for minerals more than the high end lovelies.

[Bergur_E_Sigurdarson]

Would love to see your peculiar quartzes in more detail (closer photos, as I won't make it to Tucson) :-)

[bob kerr]

The Wednesday opening of Top Gem Minerals and the surrounding dealers is always a wonderful event but this opening was more special than usual.

As I waited in line for the Mexican Luncheon at Top Gem, basking in the AZ sun with temperatures in the mid 70's and sipping on a cold beer, I pulled out my smart phone and looked at the weather conditions back home in western PA - temperature there was -2degF with wind chills near 20 below zero - almost an 80degF difference!! Many other people in line were doing the same. Suffering!

So, the Top Gem opening started with Jason New giving a brief summary of the status of his father Mike who was in a serious car accident - he is in rehab and doing well and hopes to be able to return home soon. Pretty good news for all of us.

In and around Top Gem one was able to get some great deals on Mexican minerals (a specialty of Mike/Jason New), excellent Peruvian minerals at the Ramoses, a wide variety of specimens from Minerama, and some incredible gem sphalerites (China), aqua/schorls (Erongo) and African smokey quartzes from Clive Quiet. Something for everyone.

Across the street the JTI La Fuente show opened with mostly minerals but the treat is expected this Friday when a good bit of Rock Currier's collection will be for sale.

The construction of the new mineral facility behind Sun Gem is making good progress but a weekend opening will be a challenge for these dealers - many of whom have departed the HTCC for various reasons including room space, parking, and a concern about the future of the HTCC.

Then, it was back home to my Condo for dinner and we were treated to another one of those incredible AZ sunsets - see photos.

So tomorrow the ballroom at the HTCC opens as well as many more selling rooms there - should be another great day.

bob

[Pierre Joubert]

Being a quartz fanatic and having handled thousands of specimens, I have an appreciation for your collection and would also like to see more detail. How about a separate entry featuring these in more detail?

[Jordi Fabre]

[bob kerr]

Today at the HTCC was that in between day where dealers are still unloading and lots of customers show up - as a result, there were no parking places around the motel by 945am. The remote parking area was available and thanks to the U-Haul gate being open it was not a long walk at all to the HTCC. Hopefully dealers will have their cars/trucks/vans out of the way by Friday/Saturday or it will be a real mess.

I would guess that 80% of the rooms are open including the Ballroom which I visited first:
- I love to visit Clive Quite first thing on the Ballroom opening day since he has historically been able to provide upper middle level specimens (some of which are high end in some dealer's rooms) for reasonable (but not always) prices. I mentioned his Aqua/Schorls from Erongo previously and here he had his best up for sale - the association is wonderful - blue - black - white (spar) and brown siderite.
Clive also had some incredible malachites and huge African smokey quartzes for quite reasonable prices and a group of huge to TN Carrolites priced for the common man.
- next was a visit to Victor P and the Axinite PM room to view his new haul of Dalnegorst pieces - very nice selection at reasonable prices - and more is due in tomorrow.
- I ran into Jordi and after a chat I took him over to the new out-front tent of Jesus Valenzuela who frequently has the best Milpillas material - and this show was not exception. In the out-front tent he had about 5-6 pieces that are "scary" blue - beyond electric blue. Regrettably the best piece which I had photographed earlier was not there for Jordi to see in person as it was sold - but I present a photo of it here - this is not altered in any way - what you see is what was there.

That's about it for today other than the obligatory sunset photo - amazing things to see here in the desert. Rock Currier sale at the La Fuente tomorrow.

bob

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[Tony L. Potucek]

I am looking forward to hearing about Rock Currier's collection offerings on the first day of the La Fuente show, Bob. You are serving as my eyes and ears since I am not there. Thank you, pard!

tlp

[Jean Sendero]

Is there a catalogue or inventory available for the Rock Currier Collection?

Not yet in Tucson but soon!

Cheers

[bob kerr]

This will probably be the last of my daily reports for a while as most all the mineral shows are open (including the Mineral City Show in the facility behind Sun Gem which has an open house tonight) and I am just shopped out for a while!!

- This morning was the opening of the first flush of Rock Currier's collection being offered to the public. The opening was at the old La Fuente restaurant which is the JTI "venue of the future". It was well organized as each person was issued a number based on when they arrived at the front gate. The first 25 or so were let in initially and as one person left - or was in the check out process - another was permitted in.

The material was wide in variety and much of it went quite fast. I was 46 and had to wait almost a half hour to get in. By that time the material was well picked over but there was still lots of unique material - although not cheap at all. Boleite cubes, unique crystal forms of minerals (an elongated Bolivian cassiterite and an also elongated smithsonite from Broken Hill), Mexican minerals, Indian zeolites and lots of polished stuff.

I would say that the best of Rock is yet to come. Although there were many interesting things that one just doesn't see anymore, many people were expecting some of the killers that he had many of and they were MIA. Still a good addition to the collecting community. Photos attached.

There is no list of what is to come in the future - it would indeed be nice to have such a list.

- I went over to the UK Mining room who opened last night with a minor, controlled feeding frenzy, but there was lots still available from the Diana Marie mine. Gemmy, lustrous and interesting penetrating twins were readily available for reasonable prices compared to what I've seen in the past. Get 'em now while the getting is good.

- I went over to the Pueblo Show at the Riverpark Inn - very crowded but limited on minerals - an amazing eclectic variety of items to be bought. One Chinese dealer had some of those great mirror-like malachites from Sepon, Laos for reasonable prices - I couldn't resist.

So, more to follow but not for a few days - I may be broke!

bob

[Jordi Fabre]

Tucson 02/04/2019

The Tucson Show is divided into three major parts: that of the Hotels that goes from the end of January to the beginning of February, the part of the Westward Look that goes from the beginning of February to the "Main Show" at the Convention Center, and the part of the "Main Show" itself.
As a constant throughout the days of the Show are continuously opening new offers (yesterday opened the Hotel Elks Lodge, tomorrow will open the Tucson New Mineral Show, etcetera ...) But grosso modo, these three major parts are the which constitute the main body of the Show. Taking advantage of the fact that Bob Kerr is already making some great chronicles of the daily circumstances of the Show I think that now that the start of the first part has already passed (the Hotels) and it is beginning the second part (Westward Look) this is a good time to make some reflections.

As Bob has well explained there is a "new boy in the neighborhood". What last year was grew up in the area of Oracle Street around the Hotel La Fuente, this year has been fully consolidated with the addition of a powerful new Show, the "Mineral City Show" and that area has become very eclectic and something that should be visit. Gather from "classic" Shows such as La Fuente or Elks lodge, to wholesale stores such as Top Gem, Midwest Minerals and many others, and to this we must add two "different" shows, the "Sun Gemstone" and the "Mineral City Show" . These two shows starts from a completely different concept than previously known as they are based on a group of dealers who meet, buy a piece of land, build there at their convenience, and from there they already own their own showroom. They will keep from one year to the next and that being their property they will be able to enable, decorate and prepare at their convenience.

Last year I visited the "Sun Gemstone" and I was already impressed by the concept (which had been tried before with a proposal of a large building on 22nd Street, but was not successful) and this year with the addition of the "Mineral City Show" although it is still in part under construction it looks very good, both because of the spaciousness of the exhibition halls and because of the high number of dealers with quality pieces, so, I think we can say that the idea has been a success and that this new concept could be an important part of the future of the Tucson Show.
The exhibition dates of all these Show are very flexible and although they are basically located between the opening of the classic Hotels and the start of the Westward Look-Main Show each exhibitor is free to open when they want and close whenever they want.

To summarize, we could say according to the words of a dealer friend of me, that the innSuites-TCC could continue to be "the real Show" but these new points of sale would become something like "the future". Time will tell.


Bad weather in Tucson yesterday and today with heavy rain that because of the unusual generates numerous problems in roads, buildings, facilities...

[Jordi Fabre]

Tucson 02/08/2019

Today is the official start of the Westward Look Show.

A lot of fine pieces to see, everybody should come and see.
Leave your mind open don't watch the prices and come there to enjoy! 😎

[bob kerr]

Here's a few photos of specimens that caught my eye - hope you all enjoy them.

I avoided the opening of the Westward Look today but hope to get there tomorrow with no doubt lots of other photos of great specimens to follow.

bob

[Don Lum]

[Jordi Fabre]

Tucson 02/09/2018

Tucson is a giant, and its size is so huge that finally there is everything for everyone.
The Westward Look has the fame to have the best and most expensive pieces but also in the Westward, with time, patience, and without being overwhelmed by certain pieces and certain prices, you can also find excellent pieces with more or less reasonable prices.
My loyal assistant Jordi Deusedes who is specialized on this type of offers and inspired by the HQLP section of the Mineralogical Record, made yesterday a personal selection in the Westward Look of these "reasonable" pieces.
Here is the result of his selection. The names of the dealers do not appear to avoid presumed favoritism, if someone has an interest in any of these pieces it will be easy to locate them in the Show.

[Jordi Fabre]

Tucson 02/10/2019

Yesterday the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County displayed a part of his impressive collection in the "Saturday Collector Day" at the Westward Look.
They will repeat this exhibit at the Main Show (except the Proustite)

Here you have the images of this suite of wonders: