[meteorite-list] NWA 3118 Piggybacking Issues and Classification Services

From: Adam Hupe <raremeteorites_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Nov 18 14:23:39 2004
Message-ID: <008d01c4cda2$9ad28360$6401a8c0_at_c1720188a>

Dear List,

The good news is that dealers are aware of the piggybacking problems and the
ones who do not want to risk their reputations have corrected the situation.
There are still a few dealers engaging in this less-than-acceptable practice
because they refuse to listen or are too cheap or too lazy to acquire their
own classifications. It has been asked, Where can I get my material
classified? If you think you have a pairing and want your very own
classification you can send a 20 gram type sample to the following
institution:

http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~glg100-p/Meteorite.html

Now, there is no excuse for anybody who deals to borrow (steal) numbers.
Scientist will make the proper pairing conclusions so you no longer have to
depend on the Moroccans for this self proclaimed service.

There are very few dealers who are authorized to use the NWA 3118
designation for their meteorites. There are currently more than six
different CV3s from NWA that are not paired so dealers who assume a pairing
to NWA 3118 should have their material checked out. A total of 5,895 is
officially recorded for this find, not a gram more. We recognize there are
several pairings out there and this is good news for collectors but dealers
who were not supplied by the Hupe Collection should stop using the NWA 3118
designation and record their additional weight under a new number.

NWA 3118 dealers known to have official material:

Mark B. was supplied a dealers lot consisting of very small fragments
nothing else.
Jason P. part of team LunarRock expedition H13
Rob W. material is legitimate and claimed in the above weight
ebay Meteoritelab
ebay Naturesvault
ebay Raremeteorites
And a few dealers who sent in material to NAU for pairing purposes but still
should get a new number according to NomCom rules. We thought including
these dealers was the right thing to do at the time because secondary type
specimens were deposited. If they can supply paperwork from NAU, you can be
pretty sure their material is ok.

My problem is with several well known dealers who have sent nothing in for
study, piggybacking NWA 3118. Let this serve as a warning to stop if you do
not have paperwork. I am giving dealers a fair chance to make it right
before publicly mentioning names. If an excuse is given that a Moroccan
dealer said it is NWA 3118 then think again because this is not acceptable.
Moroccan dealers are not authorized to pass out NWA numbers or come up with
official pairings.

I will include names of those who are improperly using the NWA 3140
designation, as well. We have way too many resources tied up including time
and money to let this slide much longer. I look forward to the day this
problem is solved because we can get back to the pleasant business of
collecting and studying these rarities.

Sincerely,

------------------------------------
Adam Hupe
The Hupe Collection
Team LunarRock
IMCA 2185
raremeteorites_at_comcast.net
Received on Thu 18 Nov 2004 02:12:52 PM PST