[meteorite-list] Darryl Futrell on flanged button prices (Was: Spectacular Tektite on eBay)

From: Norm Lehrman <nlehrman_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Mon, 9 Aug 2010 11:02:31 -0700 (PDT)
Message-ID: <141617.65952.qm_at_web81008.mail.mud.yahoo.com>

Sorry, I was typing in the dark and hit a button that sent the message before I was done.

The one on Ebay is significantly over-priced. For $1800, I think I can still source a flawless specimen. With the rim chips, I would not pay $1000, but times are certainly changing. They haven't made any more of these for a very long time and the supply is getting very lean.

I think I told the story on our website, but I traded my youngest daughter's hand in marriage for one fine flanged button. We were living in West Aus and spent lots of time out searching. On the fateful day, Derek (our great current son in law) came out with us, his first tektite hunt. Cookie and I had over 1000 finds each to our credit (australites that is, not a single fully flanged button) and had a pretty good eye. We know how to tell them from kangaroo droppings (bite them!).

We were walking a dry stream channel southeast of Kalgoorlie and finding nothing. My daughter is American Indian, and I had been kidding Derek that if he wanted to marry her he was going to have to come up with a fine bunch of horses and blankets for the father of the bride. It was hot and dry and swarming with flies and kangaroo droppings were about as exciting as it got. Then Derek shouted "hey norm, about those horses and sheep and stuff---would this do???" He was holding up a perfect, flawless flanged button. I accepted on the spot. He has my daughter and a fine family, I have a fine flanged Australite and some great grandkids. What's more, we're both happy with the deal.

People sometimes ask what my daughter thinks of being sold for a flanged button, and I assure them that she understands their rarity and is honored to command such a premium!

Three years has passed since we moved to Africa and suspended the Tektite Source. Cookie has now moved back to the USA and is getting the inventory unpacked; I'm still wandering Africa at least until the end of the calendar year. But within a few months we should have things up and running again. Thanks for waiting. We have a long list of clients to contact when she finds everything. If you have items of interest from the website, let us know and we'll get to you when we can---

I need to visit our own website, but unfortunately I think we are completely out of good flanged buttons (that are for sale--there's for sure on that isn't!)

Cheers,
Norm
http://tektitesource.com

--- On Mon, 8/9/10, bernd.pauli at paulinet.de <bernd.pauli at paulinet.de> wrote:

> From: bernd.pauli at paulinet.de <bernd.pauli at paulinet.de>
> Subject: [meteorite-list] Darryl Futrell on flanged button prices (Was: Spectacular Tektite on eBay)
> To: Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
> Date: Monday, August 9, 2010, 9:05 AM
> Hello Brian and List,
>
> Brian wrote: "On this beautiful tektite, I stand
> corrected."
>
> On December 3rd, 2000, I asked our late Darryl Futrell (+
> Aug 13, 2001) what
> a reasonable price for a perfect Australian button would be
> and the next day he
> responded like this:
>
> "A perfect flanged button goes for about $2000 or more.
> Maybe a sandblasted one might turn up for $1000 or so."
>
> Best wishes from someone
> who wishes he had one too
>
> Bernd
>
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Received on Mon 09 Aug 2010 02:02:31 PM PDT