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pvjjh |
80. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 9 2008, 6:17 PM EST
"I just - 3 minutes ago- ordered a 4 gallon bucket of stuff, in the mail, no kidding, from Gem Mines. I heard they were cool enough to delivered 4 or 5 gallon buckets, not already dug through, just as if you are there. Lady on another thread has a ball and great great finds this way, so I said what the heck. A LOT CHEAPER THAN FLYING THERE DON'T YA THINK?! And we still get to let our kid dig around in a bunch of dirt. Can't beat that. I am dying to see what I get. When the show was there they got a darn 600 carat saphire I think it was, 600 carat something. Thank you all for the info. we are stiff finding it hard to believe it could be something other than an odd glass thing. I wish I could see the picture desribed above.....how exciting, you bet I am taking the dogs back there for a walk. It was on a pretty low tide and of course I mentally noted exactly where I found it. But we walk there often and this has been all we found so far??.. Boy we just had us a few storms here the last couple of days, wonder what the tide charts say. I am ready to go back and look again with renewed enthusiam!! anyone else wanna go???? "Way cool. I have never heard of Gem Mines. What is the link? I have purchased buckets of material from Gem Mountain in NC plus a couple of others. It is a real kick. If I may make a recommendation on the sorting. If you happen to have screens, use them sort the material. I use a 1/2" screen, then a 1/4" and down to even a 20 mesh screen. If I had one a bit bigger I would forgo the 20 mesh. I actually have found real nice stuff on the 1/4" screen and even on the 20 mesh. We put a couple of garden trowel scoops into the 1/2", (The screens are stackable so we use the 1/2 and 1/4 at one time then the material that goes through the 1/4 we catch in a bucket. We do this dry.) Then we take the 2 larger screens and place them over another bucket and wash the material off, but capture the fines in the bucket for later sorting. No matter how you plan on sorting, be sure to wash everything. It is amazing how much stuff you can miss if you don't. Of course we keep everything we find. The good stuff (I am looking at facet grade material) we keep whole and cut with a rock saw. The rest gets broken up - unless if it is nice specimen - inspected and thrown in the rock tumbler bucket. Your son will have a blast - so will you and your husband! I agree, it is much cheaper to have some material sent out then to fly there and go in person. Though I do want to go there some time. Someday when I am rich... :-) If you found it on the beach, there is a good chance there will be more. Yeah check the tides and take them dogs for a walk. You need to train them to hunt up them garnets. Let them smell the one you found before you go. lol (I wish is could work that way.) And yeah, I wanna go! lol Thinking about the garnet, it is interesting that you found it on hte beach and that it is in such good shape. If it have been there for anytime, it would start to get rounded edges. It hadn' been there very long. Dang running out- Do you find this valuable? |
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pvjjh |
81. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 9 2008, 6:26 PM EST
space. lol Hope you find the mother lode! Hey does your bucket of material come with a free faceting certificate? Some will facet one of your gems and are generally included in the cost of the bucket. We have had some nice gems faceted through Gem Mtn. All I can say is have fun!! As I am typing this I am looking at a pile of rubies/sapphires and one of emeralds waiting to be rough tumbled to clean the matrix material and dirt off so I can better see what we might have. This is like a drug - very addicting. lol Paul Do you find this valuable? |
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pvjjh |
82. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 9 2008, 6:27 PM EST
"I hope the GIANT pics dont bother anyone it was just my lack of knowledge with computers and digital cameras, I didnt expect it to be sooo big, but i dont really understand pixels and that quite yet. i am getting there slowly."The giant pics don't bother me. lol You are doing just fine on this computer stuff. Do you find this valuable? |
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pvjjh |
83. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 9 2008, 6:42 PM EST
Hey treebaby, go to this site and you will see a DVD available with a lot of rock hounding sites around the PNW. www.orerockon.com I have had the DVD for a while now and it is quite interesting and full of info. I got some of the info I gave you off that DVD. I just read rouqecabin's post on another thread and thought I should mention it here as well. Just somthing to look at and think about.
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oldnavy72 |
84. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 9 2008, 7:35 PM EST
Here's a link to the Gem Mtn Store - click the text link on that page that says "Here" and you can see the different prices and what they incude.https://gemmountain.com:239/store.asp p.s. Tell me where the pictures are and I'll tell you all about pixels Do you find this valuable? |
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oldnavy72 |
85. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 9 2008, 7:43 PM EST
Yea it's Gem Mtn - Paul initially gave me the link. I think I'll buy a few buckets with my income tax refund or the special refund that the Prez is getting for us - that's a lot of gems. The best bet is the $120, 5 buckets plus 2 free cuttings. Of course the $75 screams like it's a deal.How much do they charge for shipping? And how can they guarantee gem types if they don't salt it? "Includes 20-25 varieties of gemstones." Other question is that you must have a lot of faith in them to send them a possible "gem" of value for them to give you an appraisal and get YOUR gem back. By that I mean without them substituting a gem of lesser value and quality and keeping the beaut you just sent. Do you find this valuable? |
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pvjjh |
86. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 9 2008, 9:15 PM EST
HI Oldnavy, I’ll try to answer the questions to the best of my ability.Shipping is expensive. As I recall around $50 or maybe a bit more per bucket. Treebaby may be able to tell you a more exact amount. I don't know if they salt the buckets or not. It wouldn't surprise me they might a bit. There always seems to be a couple of nice pieces on top of the bucket. But if they do, it must come from their mines. I haven't seen anything on their website where they add gem from someplace else like Brazil. Some places I have order from state that they do salt with gems from abroad. I myself want the local gems. How many different gemstones, I never have counted the different varieties, but a lot. lol It is like anything else, you can buy several buckets and one will have more gems in it than the other. But they all have quite a few of the buggers. I will have to see if I have any pictures handy of the results of some of the buckets. But I have always been impressed. Yes there is a lot of faith when sending your gems in for ID and faceting. But I fell they are very honest and will always look out for you. I mean they want you to come back. I am not smart enough to pick out just on stone and say I want it faceted. Well I can pick one out, but is it facet grade. I sort through the gems and send in a lot of them. One for positive identification, and the other to let them look at the gems so they can make recommendations some for faceting. Just like if we were there in person. They sort them, ID them and bag them up for you. There are some additional costs as well. Like the shipping for your gems back and depending on what you are getting faceted, there may be an additional charge for that. Some gems are harder and take longer to facet. We have never felt that we were ever taken and the quality of the faceted stones is quite nice. I know our jeweler was very impressed with the stones and cuts. More to follow.. Do you find this valuable? |
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pvjjh |
87. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 9 2008, 9:49 PM EST
The first stone we had cut was an emerald. They cut it out cluster of emeralds the size of a golf ball. I did request that any portion of the cluster was left over to have them send it back to me. They did with the cut gem. There are still facetable emeralds in the cluster. You can always make that request I guess. I don't know if I want to cut it up or leave it like it is. It is a nice specimen. Things I don't send back is anything that is to fractured to faceted and the real small stuff unless it is a real beaut. I also don't send back the quartz materials. That is the clear quartz, plus the smoky and rose quartz. Now Amethyst and Citrine is quartz to, so anything good gets returned so they can look for facet grade material. I send a little note with the gems giving them a prioritized list of facet possibilities plus my name, address and phone number. Once they look at the batch of gems, they call and we discuss the facet recommendations. It may take months before you see your faceted gem. Depends on how busy they are. I guess you can photo the gems you send back then see what they send back to you. I have in the past with other places I have gotten buckets from and haven't seen any missing. But I guess there is always a chance that a gem may be substituted, but it is a faith thing I guess. I just can't see a business like this taking any chances, getting caught substituting and getting a bad reputation. Just isn't worth the loss of business. I guess the bottom line - finely you are probably saying lol - is we haven't felt we have been taken and feel comfortable enough to recommend them to others. And we will continue to buy from them. Just love the searching - an addiction. However, the wife is saying I need to get to doing something with this stuff. lol Do you find this valuable? |
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pvjjh |
88. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 9 2008, 9:50 PM EST
Yes, it is expensive (cheaper than flying), but to me the rewards of the search, family time, the gems and the faceted stone is worth it. It also gives me stuff to play with at home. It is a blast! If you have more questions just ask. I can always write more. lol Paul
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treebaby |
89. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 10 2008, 5:39 AM EST
It is Gem Mtn. ! not mines as I originally said. So I am glad you also had fun with these.
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treebaby |
90. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 10 2008, 5:48 AM EST
hello oldnavy: I was reading another thread in treasure hunting someplace in here, and the person was saying how they do the Gem Mtn. thing and they were talking about some really wonderful finds and how the ups man just dies when they have to carry in the package. The postage was heavy like 50-65, but again the comment was that it's still way cheaper than flying to get it, and they felt they were treated exactly as if they were standing right there. I took a leap of faith and jumped on it after reading more. It just sounds so good.......yeah I know it sounds too good but all the things you ask about were the same things others were asking about and I just liked the responses.
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oldnavy72 |
91. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 10 2008, 1:24 PM EST
Treebaby - You said your Dad was a Lifer, right? lol as a former Chief I resemble that remark (ha). 18 years, back surgery, service connected disability (long story short version 2.7)AS I was thinking about the buckets thing - we could start a bucket group (The Bucket Brigade or some such ) where we could or would get together once a month and go through our buckets together!? Just a thought. I am still looking for a job after having moved here in October. Plenty of interviews, plenty of competition, slow moving to hire companies including MS. So for now I have to spend money judiciously and RockHounding is not at the top of the list. It is difficult "getting the bug" and only being able to collect information about it, but it seems the prudent thing to do. That is funny about the UPS guy [g] and the amount for postage seems reasonable considering the weight. Agree it is cheaper than flying or driving over there to get some, regardless of where it is. Paul - yea I had to ask questions. Can you tell that risk management is something I am used to doing? My motto , and what I want to have printed on the sides and back of my retirement RV is, "Inquiring Minds Want to Know." Do you find this valuable? |
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treebaby |
92. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 10 2008, 4:28 PM EST
Hey oldnavy, my dad was a Master Chief Petty Officer on the Midway. I think he did 20 something years. Leukemia and assorted weird cancers got him. I miss him so so much. He was a kick in the pants fun dad. I think it would be fun to get together and find our treasures sometime. Obviously, in a backyard with hose deal?? I really am quite excited, I should have got the bucket with the certificate for finishing a stone but I didn't this time. Somehow I think there will surely be another time....
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treebaby |
93. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 11 2008, 11:19 AM EST
"Yea it's Gem Mtn - Paul initially gave me the link. I think I'll buy a few buckets with my income tax refund or the special refund that the Prez is getting for us - that's a lot of gems. The best bet is the $120, 5 buckets plus 2 free cuttings. Of course the $75 screams like it's a deal.HELLO EVERYONE: I JUST GOT A NOTE FROM GEM MNT. CONFIRMING MY SHIPMENT!!! Boy am I excited. The shipping was $46. That is honestly the most I have paid for postage in my life but again, it is certainly cheaper than flying in. We are really talking here in this family about a get out of the state type of vacation. This place is on the list. I will let ya'll know what I get. I will try to remember to take pictures of what it looks like on arrival. Then what I sort it out to. Oh boy. Do you find this valuable? |
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pvjjh |
94. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 11 2008, 9:30 PM EST
"Paul - yea I had to ask questions. Can you tell that risk management is something I am used to doing? My motto , and what I want to have printed on the sides and back of my retirement RV is, "Inquiring Minds Want to Know.""Hey Oldnavy, glad you asked. Of course I may have gotten a little wordy. lol I guess it is just I get excited about talking about this stuff. Gettting the buckets is the next best thing to being there. I just hope you feel the same way when you get your buckets. You will get a lot of gems and have a lot of fun looking. :-) Do you find this valuable? |
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pvjjh |
95. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 11 2008, 9:38 PM EST
"HELLO EVERYONE: I JUST GOT A NOTE FROM GEM MNT. CONFIRMING MY SHIPMENT!!! Boy am I excited. The shipping was $46. That is honestly the most I have paid for postage in my life but again, it is certainly cheaper than flying in. We are really talking here in this family about a get out of the state type of vacation. This place is on the list. I will let ya'll know what I get. I will try to remember to take pictures of what it looks like on arrival. Then what I sort it out to. Oh boy."Woohooo. Wait until you se the UPS person show up grunting and groaning with your bucket. lol Yeah let us know what you get and what you think about it all. It always made me sad when I dump the last little bit out of the bucket.. lol As for an out of state vacation. NC and AR are on my list. Would like to look for diamonds in Arkansas then off to the gem mines in NC. A couple of months and a bunch of $'s I can do it. argh! lol Have fun! Do you find this valuable? |
washingtoncougar |
96. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 15 2008, 3:16 PM EST
Hello Y'all,here is a site the wife (RockPuppy) found, it's not Washington but it is right next door, http://www.idl.idaho.gov/bureau/Minerals/gem_guide/gg_index.htm Enjoy I have tried to go to NC, Gem Mountains online store but it won't open, their main page is ok. Does anyone else have this Problem? Dave Do you find this valuable? |
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pvjjh |
97. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 15 2008, 7:34 PM EST
HI Dave, tried the link to the Gem Mtn store and it worked fine for me. Here is the link, give it a try. Thanks for the ID gem link too. Paulhttps://gemmountain.com:239/p_result_1.asp?mode=search&table=Product Do you find this valuable? |
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pvjjh |
98. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 18 2008, 6:36 PM EST
"HELLO EVERYONE: I JUST GOT A NOTE FROM GEM MNT. CONFIRMING MY SHIPMENT!!! Boy am I excited. The shipping was $46. That is honestly the most I have paid for postage in my life but again, it is certainly cheaper than flying in. We are really talking here in this family about a get out of the state type of vacation. This place is on the list. I will let ya'll know what I get. I will try to remember to take pictures of what it looks like on arrival. Then what I sort it out to. Oh boy."Hey treebaby, that bucket should be arriving this week and least one can hope. Let us know when you get it. I tried to get one coming for me, but the wife put her foot down and said I had to do something with the ones I already had. I almost said I know what I could do with them.... But me being the gentleman that I am... lol I hope you have as much fun as we have had with the the buckets and hunting for the gems. Do you find this valuable? |
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treebaby |
99. RE: Wet in Washington
Feb 18 2008, 8:47 PM EST
"Treebaby - You said your Dad was a Lifer, right? lol as a former Chief I resemble that remark (ha). 18 years, back surgery, service connected disability (long story short version 2.7)THE BUCKET IS HERE. LORDY LORDY IS MUST WEIGH 60 POUNDS. WILL TRY A PICTURE. Do you find this valuable? |
