Fossil news and information blog related
useful tips, information, links, stories
Here is where I hope to gather in one place everything having to do with 'fossils,' I will send blog links to here for more information
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links of interest
mammoth ivory mammoth ivory for sale. fossil information (How to grade, pricing basic info) how to You tubes main page (see the categories, I have a dozen 'how to,' videos free to view, from repair to dealing with scraps. ) General fossil blog video-finding ice age fossils Links to supplies -sources I use Cactus juice for stabilizing Star bond glues for repairs Fossil information Is part of my selling fossils page info on how to grade and tips for buying |
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,Right is me at the Tucson fossil show. Note the size of an ice age short face bear! Above is a fang off such a bear I sell. However harder to get hold of, dang. Went from $50 to $300 in 2022. Hard to even get now. I've found 2 in my lifetime in Alaska. But I know a guy... who might know another guy.... but my only contact is Jan. at the show! Wilderness guy with no electricity or address.
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An article about the travel of one ice age mammoth over a 28 year period. Interesting in that he seemed to cover the entire state! Information based on layers in his tusk! Hope you can read the writing. How mammoths lived in past is part of the magic of having a piece of fossil.
Hello fossil ivory customer.
Best prices information posted 2022
Glad to meet you. I tend to like emails best, and one reason is I can save them and review details of what we communicated about. No record of phone calls so I may space out prices I quoted, colors- dimensions- details of your requirements and such. I’m getting older, deal with a lot of people, and can forget!
For large orders the best is to see me in Tucson each year at the show. Days Inn, I-10 and St Mary’s. room 177 by the pool. Usually end Jan until about Valentines day. I’m there 4 days early. Some years all the best, half the inventory is gone before the show starts. Best to make an appointment. Depends on the year and deals I get involved in. Sometimes sell, like this year, $300 a pound grade for $90 a pound.Lower grade can be as low as $20 a pound. I cannot promise amounts or exact deals in advance, but generally move in and out, hundreds of pounds in 2 weeks at the show. Like this year, 600 pounds to pick from, usually 3 grades. you go through the bins, weigh it yourself, bring it to me to pay for. Many knife makers buy their year supply, best deal minimum 20 pounds. It can be worth the flight to Tucson, which is a business write off. I fly round trip from Alaska for under $500. You can save thousands on 20 pounds.
Next best deal is to inquire just before the show and just after. Like about Jan 25th – 29th, and again Feb 10th – 15th. Or at least before April 1st. Just before the show I may have made a huge deal, often I trade a full tusk for material knife makers want. Some deals are 100 pound totes of raw unsorted not graded yet. I may want to dump some weight fast as I have no room to put it. It's out in the parking lot at the show. I need show start up money. Like I needed $1,000 meteorite to cut up for knife blades. I need cash. Or the show has not begun, no one knows how it will go, all dealers want to have their costs covered for the show. I have $5,000 invested up front before I make any profits. I do not relax till I break even. If you can help, I have deals. No, I will most likely not personally inform you when I have deals. However it might be a good idea to sign up for my mailer, choose ‘fossils,’ as your interest, and I try to keep fossil people updated. However the hint is you are behind the curve if you wait for me. Smart for best deals is make the effort to initiate the contact and catch me at the right time. This hint is for “let’s move a lot,” it takes a minimum of $1,000 to get my attention. One fossil mammoth ivory set for knife scales is retail, look on the website.
Next best deal is right after the show. I may not want to store it all here in Tucson in the heat and where I do not have access to it for a year. I have to high-grade, pack and pay for shipping to Alaska. Catch me before I pack it and ship it so I pack less. Once I have it back in Alaska all those costs are added on. By the time I list it on my web site the best deals are over. There are deals, listed on the web site like ‘by the pound’ no discussions. I do my best to fill your needs and if not happy return for refund. Shop time is $65 an hour. I simply cant make money making myself available to answer questions over a pound or less. I mean I try, but dang, I could spend 10 hours a day doing nothing but talking to customers, time not paid for. Try to understand. I do my best to offer lots of information, videos, information pages to help you out. If you are worried about your pound, I suggest you buy it by the piece with pictures and descriptions. My view is, deals, making money, is about taking chances. The more you pay, the more of a sure thing you have. My first Tucson show cost me investing 2 years wages, and all I did was broke even. But I learned more in 2 weeks then my previous 20 years. Not much is risk free.
Buying items off the web site..Keep in mind, by the time I grade it, sort, take pictures, weigh, describe, measure, and keep track of…. well the more time invested the more the price goes up. Yes, advantage is you get to inspect each and every piece or set, no pig in a poke or unknowns. You have to decide. I do not know your skill level, tools you have, and nothing can beat you choosing. Keep in mind, by the time I offer finished sets for knife scales or polished displays, you pay by the ounce what it can be bought by the pound for in the raw, in some cases. In other words you could buy by the pound and have half loss you can not use, and still save money.
Or if you have no skill you can ruin a pound and have to come back and buy finished. Making money is not for the squeamish. It can take years of practice and learning. Most workers will not make great profits and save a lot right away. Other customers know more, have higher skill level then I do! Some customers who are new at this, contact me telling me it is my fault they ruined their pound purchase, and now hate me.
But yes in truth I would prefer to sell you raw, in volume, even though I make more profit creating and selling finished! Making knife scales is not creative. I enjoy much more, making custom knives, working on my books, selling my finished art.
I laugh, I seem to gravitate to ‘volume,’ a gift I have. The wife calls me a packrat. I may or may not offer deals off items on the web site. Depends on my mood today, how much product I have at the moment, how much I like you, or want to help. I’ll usually discuss prices and product if you need like 10 sets, you may not have to pay retail, or spending over $500. Contact me. Or a very special need for a very specific thing and not adding in the same sentence, “but I don’t have any money” I prefer “I have a need, and am willing to pay.” I do not make money off sob stories. I like most, to deal with successful people, or the young who are gifted and need a break, or the old who once had an edge but now are doing what they can, as long as it is not some scam. I got helped when young. So I like to ‘pay it forward.’ Usually I prefer to choose who to help out.
Keep in mind I feel I have the best prices even my retail as listed. I am the source. In Alaska working for myself, I have a much lower overhead then the competition. I do not need the money that bad. I’m in this for the game. Money is just one factor as a way to get respect. As long as I am having fun, I’m in. Deals are about fun. I run business how I want. Best price is about knowing all these things. Glad to meet you.
The same info applies to many fossils and other raw material I sell.
Best prices information posted 2022
Glad to meet you. I tend to like emails best, and one reason is I can save them and review details of what we communicated about. No record of phone calls so I may space out prices I quoted, colors- dimensions- details of your requirements and such. I’m getting older, deal with a lot of people, and can forget!
For large orders the best is to see me in Tucson each year at the show. Days Inn, I-10 and St Mary’s. room 177 by the pool. Usually end Jan until about Valentines day. I’m there 4 days early. Some years all the best, half the inventory is gone before the show starts. Best to make an appointment. Depends on the year and deals I get involved in. Sometimes sell, like this year, $300 a pound grade for $90 a pound.Lower grade can be as low as $20 a pound. I cannot promise amounts or exact deals in advance, but generally move in and out, hundreds of pounds in 2 weeks at the show. Like this year, 600 pounds to pick from, usually 3 grades. you go through the bins, weigh it yourself, bring it to me to pay for. Many knife makers buy their year supply, best deal minimum 20 pounds. It can be worth the flight to Tucson, which is a business write off. I fly round trip from Alaska for under $500. You can save thousands on 20 pounds.
Next best deal is to inquire just before the show and just after. Like about Jan 25th – 29th, and again Feb 10th – 15th. Or at least before April 1st. Just before the show I may have made a huge deal, often I trade a full tusk for material knife makers want. Some deals are 100 pound totes of raw unsorted not graded yet. I may want to dump some weight fast as I have no room to put it. It's out in the parking lot at the show. I need show start up money. Like I needed $1,000 meteorite to cut up for knife blades. I need cash. Or the show has not begun, no one knows how it will go, all dealers want to have their costs covered for the show. I have $5,000 invested up front before I make any profits. I do not relax till I break even. If you can help, I have deals. No, I will most likely not personally inform you when I have deals. However it might be a good idea to sign up for my mailer, choose ‘fossils,’ as your interest, and I try to keep fossil people updated. However the hint is you are behind the curve if you wait for me. Smart for best deals is make the effort to initiate the contact and catch me at the right time. This hint is for “let’s move a lot,” it takes a minimum of $1,000 to get my attention. One fossil mammoth ivory set for knife scales is retail, look on the website.
Next best deal is right after the show. I may not want to store it all here in Tucson in the heat and where I do not have access to it for a year. I have to high-grade, pack and pay for shipping to Alaska. Catch me before I pack it and ship it so I pack less. Once I have it back in Alaska all those costs are added on. By the time I list it on my web site the best deals are over. There are deals, listed on the web site like ‘by the pound’ no discussions. I do my best to fill your needs and if not happy return for refund. Shop time is $65 an hour. I simply cant make money making myself available to answer questions over a pound or less. I mean I try, but dang, I could spend 10 hours a day doing nothing but talking to customers, time not paid for. Try to understand. I do my best to offer lots of information, videos, information pages to help you out. If you are worried about your pound, I suggest you buy it by the piece with pictures and descriptions. My view is, deals, making money, is about taking chances. The more you pay, the more of a sure thing you have. My first Tucson show cost me investing 2 years wages, and all I did was broke even. But I learned more in 2 weeks then my previous 20 years. Not much is risk free.
Buying items off the web site..Keep in mind, by the time I grade it, sort, take pictures, weigh, describe, measure, and keep track of…. well the more time invested the more the price goes up. Yes, advantage is you get to inspect each and every piece or set, no pig in a poke or unknowns. You have to decide. I do not know your skill level, tools you have, and nothing can beat you choosing. Keep in mind, by the time I offer finished sets for knife scales or polished displays, you pay by the ounce what it can be bought by the pound for in the raw, in some cases. In other words you could buy by the pound and have half loss you can not use, and still save money.
Or if you have no skill you can ruin a pound and have to come back and buy finished. Making money is not for the squeamish. It can take years of practice and learning. Most workers will not make great profits and save a lot right away. Other customers know more, have higher skill level then I do! Some customers who are new at this, contact me telling me it is my fault they ruined their pound purchase, and now hate me.
But yes in truth I would prefer to sell you raw, in volume, even though I make more profit creating and selling finished! Making knife scales is not creative. I enjoy much more, making custom knives, working on my books, selling my finished art.
I laugh, I seem to gravitate to ‘volume,’ a gift I have. The wife calls me a packrat. I may or may not offer deals off items on the web site. Depends on my mood today, how much product I have at the moment, how much I like you, or want to help. I’ll usually discuss prices and product if you need like 10 sets, you may not have to pay retail, or spending over $500. Contact me. Or a very special need for a very specific thing and not adding in the same sentence, “but I don’t have any money” I prefer “I have a need, and am willing to pay.” I do not make money off sob stories. I like most, to deal with successful people, or the young who are gifted and need a break, or the old who once had an edge but now are doing what they can, as long as it is not some scam. I got helped when young. So I like to ‘pay it forward.’ Usually I prefer to choose who to help out.
Keep in mind I feel I have the best prices even my retail as listed. I am the source. In Alaska working for myself, I have a much lower overhead then the competition. I do not need the money that bad. I’m in this for the game. Money is just one factor as a way to get respect. As long as I am having fun, I’m in. Deals are about fun. I run business how I want. Best price is about knowing all these things. Glad to meet you.
The same info applies to many fossils and other raw material I sell.
I put together new video footage because I have so many customers who do not know what to do with what they refer to as unusable and useless scraps left over from the cuttings, or end up in the pound of raw they buy from me. Some is to short for their project! Some complain , others ask for advice when something cracks or breaks. Some would like to save money, buy a lower grade, and learn to fix it up so it can be used. Some found or acquired material already damaged.
Rather than explain to each individually, it works out well to actually show you what can be done, that I do, that might help in fixing or adding length to a set of short scales. How to videos These techniques can work on display restoration and even other materials like wood issues. I am not offering these videos publicly to everyone, as not everyone wold be interested in this specialty subject so have the link available just to my customers and those who follow me. This is a good reason to join up for my mailer if you have not already! Get updates, useful information and deals. These 3 are added March 2022
How to deal with left over scraps
How to deal with thin or cracked fossils
How to deal with major damage in fossils
Keep in mind I have other videos covering related topics like how to stabilize, dye use glues sand etc to refer to if needed. This is the main list of my videos Miles videos
I might put work on more and even put together a coarse I could offer for sale on all aspects of knife making. If this interests you add a comment to this blog as to what you would like to learn and in what way it would be useful. I'd like an idea how many would be interested and in what!
Rather than explain to each individually, it works out well to actually show you what can be done, that I do, that might help in fixing or adding length to a set of short scales. How to videos These techniques can work on display restoration and even other materials like wood issues. I am not offering these videos publicly to everyone, as not everyone wold be interested in this specialty subject so have the link available just to my customers and those who follow me. This is a good reason to join up for my mailer if you have not already! Get updates, useful information and deals. These 3 are added March 2022
How to deal with left over scraps
How to deal with thin or cracked fossils
How to deal with major damage in fossils
Keep in mind I have other videos covering related topics like how to stabilize, dye use glues sand etc to refer to if needed. This is the main list of my videos Miles videos
I might put work on more and even put together a coarse I could offer for sale on all aspects of knife making. If this interests you add a comment to this blog as to what you would like to learn and in what way it would be useful. I'd like an idea how many would be interested and in what!