[meteorite-list] AD: METEORITE CLASSIFICATION SERVICE

[David Weir]

Hello Jason,

Thanks for your thoughtful replies. I don't have nearly the worries that 
some may have over this new planned U of A repository, but I am 
concerned about the temptation by owners of rare meteorites to sell to a 
highly motivated and well-financed entity at prices that they couldn't 
realize within the modest collector community. You have agreed with this 
concern, although I'll differ with you on your choice of words:

"Yeah, it could.  It could raise prices if dealers allowed it to.  And 
if dealers are greedy, that's what'll happen.  The possibility's there."

Marvin does play hardball with his prices, I've had to play with him 
before. I believe it would be an impregnable fortress once a meteorite 
was introduced, which is good for science, but possibly bad for my 
interests. I'm just looking out for number one, and number one is not 
rich enough to compete with a highly funded institution like the U of A.

Jason, my small-sized collection is secure, labeled, weighed to the mg 
scale, and well-maintained in a controlled environment. I have little or 
nothing that isn't also available within the established repositories 
utilized by the research community. I've never had a request to supply a 
specimen from my collection for study. In fact, the Smithsonian 
Collection Manager was not even interested enough in a significant 
donation that I wanted to make to return my call during my 5-day visit. 
I'm more than happy to keep the historic Zeitschel thin section of 
Monument Draw.

Have a great weekend, I'm back to work tomorrow.

David