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Post by Bob on Dec 31, 2021 21:28:46 GMT -5
200 lbs is a lot of dog! My 8 lb dashchund could probably kill one of them though, if she got caught in their throat mid-swallow.
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quartzilla
Cave Dweller
Member since April 2020
Posts: 1,218
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Post by quartzilla on Jan 3, 2022 13:28:18 GMT -5
Rooms in Blythe are booked! Will be myself, my wife, and another couple. Look forward to meeting some of you fellow rock nutz!
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Post by hummingbirdstones on Jan 3, 2022 20:27:35 GMT -5
I'm so bummed we're not going.
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quartzilla
Cave Dweller
Member since April 2020
Posts: 1,218
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Post by quartzilla on Jan 3, 2022 22:05:21 GMT -5
I'm so bummed we're not going. I’m bummed too. Would be nice to meet you and everyone else here. A little part of me was sad when at the beginning of this thread so many of the regulars began posting they wouldn’t be able to make it. I’m still a noob here but sure don’t feel like one because you are all so welcoming and make this a great place to hang out.
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Post by hummingbirdstones on Jan 3, 2022 22:08:26 GMT -5
I'm so bummed we're not going. I’m bummed too. Would be nice to meet you and everyone else here. A little part of me was sad when at the beginning of this thread so many of the regulars began posting they wouldn’t be able to make it. I’m still a noob here but sure don’t feel like one because you are all so welcoming and make this a great place to hang out. We will be there next year come hell or high water!
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Post by perkins17 on Jan 3, 2022 22:20:34 GMT -5
This sounds great. It's really too bad I live like 500 miles away. I would love to go there! I wonder how "hey, do you guys want to go to quartzite this summer?" Would to over at the dinner table. 😂
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Post by Bob on Jan 7, 2022 14:59:06 GMT -5
If any of you who know all about this PowWow have any tips for me on how to accomplish my goals, I sure would be thankful if things are so big there you can get lost and waste miles of walking in wrong places.
I'm not going to buy decorative rocks or anything made from rocks. I tired long ago of walking along tables and seeing thousands of trinkets carved from rocks, and endless amethyst geodes from Brazil. My hobby is rock tumbling and so I'm all about buying rough there if I see something I want. Unusual material, higher quality than usual, or larger than usual--all are things that interest me. For example, I'm always trying to get some decent pieces of psilomelane and haven't had very good luck.
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Post by Son Of Beach on Jan 7, 2022 15:46:32 GMT -5
If any of you who know all about this PowWow have any tips for me on how to accomplish my goals, I sure would be thankful if things are so big there you can get lost and waste miles of walking in wrong places. I'm not going to buy decorative rocks or anything made from rocks. I tired long ago of walking along tables and seeing thousands of trinkets carved from rocks, and endless amethyst geodes from Brazil. My hobby is rock tumbling and so I'm all about buying rough there if I see something I want. Unusual material, higher quality than usual, or larger than usual--all are things that interest me. For example, I'm always trying to get some decent pieces of psilomelane and haven't had very good luck. I hope you score some nice material. That's kind of how I feel about going to a show. I have picked up some nice copper pieces though.
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Post by Peruano on Jan 7, 2022 16:42:18 GMT -5
Bob BobYou may want to go to the PowWow but it sounds rather like you want to the "rock swap" lineup that is in Desert Gardens RV area (second= western Quartzite exit) near the Loves Station. Go along the rows of venders in the line next to the highway and you will find Tony's site. This is a collage of venders selling rough, equipment, and specimens. Its a blast to see the amounts of material that is there. If you don't find something of interest you are not into rocks. I've been up to the PowWow area, but its not the same for me. Alas I'm not going to make it this year. I'm saving my coins to pay for a new heater/cooler for the shop.
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Post by Bob on Jan 7, 2022 19:49:39 GMT -5
Bob BobYou may want to go to the PowWow but it sounds rather like you want to the "rock swap" lineup that is in Desert Gardens RV area (second= western Quartzite exit) near the Loves Station. Go along the rows of venders in the line next to the highway and you will find Tony's site. This is a collage of venders selling rough, equipment, and specimens. Its a blast to see the amounts of material that is there. If you don't find something of interest you are not into rocks. I've been up to the PowWow area, but its not the same for me. Alas I'm not going to make it this year. I'm saving my coins to pay for a new heater/cooler for the shop. Thx. Now that I think about it I was told to go WHEN the PowWow happens, not to it, so perhaps that matters. I have 4 full days, so plenty of time to explore these tips and do my usual in the desert too.
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Post by hummingbirdstones on Jan 7, 2022 20:12:23 GMT -5
Bob Bob You may want to go to the PowWow but it sounds rather like you want to the "rock swap" lineup that is in Desert Gardens RV area (second= western Quartzite exit) near the Loves Station. Go along the rows of venders in the line next to the highway and you will find Tony's site. This is a collage of venders selling rough, equipment, and specimens. Its a blast to see the amounts of material that is there. If you don't find something of interest you are not into rocks. I've been up to the PowWow area, but its not the same for me. Alas I'm not going to make it this year. I'm saving my coins to pay for a new heater/cooler for the shop. Thx. Now that I think about it I was told to go WHEN the PowWow happens, not to it, so perhaps that matters. I have 4 full days, so plenty of time to explore these tips and do my usual in the desert too. Peruano gave you good advice. Do Desert Gardens first. If you have time, take a spin around the Pow Wow. There are rough vendors there, but you'll get better deals at Desert Gardens.
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quartzilla
Cave Dweller
Member since April 2020
Posts: 1,218
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Post by quartzilla on Jan 7, 2022 22:47:39 GMT -5
Thx. Now that I think about it I was told to go WHEN the PowWow happens, not to it, so perhaps that matters. I have 4 full days, so plenty of time to explore these tips and do my usual in the desert too. Peruano gave you good advice. Do Desert Gardens first. If you have time, take a spin around the Pow Wow. There are rough vendors there, but you'll get better deals at Desert Gardens. I third this advice. For what you are seeking You should hit Desert Gardens first. With 4 days there you have time to shop around. Even Tyson Wells is good for rough but I’d definitely say Desert Gardens would be your main interest.
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Post by Peruano on Jan 8, 2022 8:31:29 GMT -5
I should have been a bit more explicit. There will be old fellows from Nevada selling rocks from their own secret claim; there will be characters from Australia standing beside two shipping containers of rock; there will be a couple of guys with pieces of tiger eye or that are larger than your car, or a lady showing you more agates from Argentina than you can imagine exist in any place outside of Argentina. There will be bejeweled hippies (some needing a bath), old desert rats running saws, suburban ladies, rotund retirees, and yes a cross section of America in a flea market atmosphere, but with a great variety of rock and rock related stuff. Tony usually is in the near NE corner near the parking on the east end (Idaho Rock is the name; hospitality, rocks, and equipment is the game). Be sure and stop to chat with him. I can almost guarantee you will find rocks you didn't know existed and yes even some that you didn't know you needed. Its far different from any rockshop or rock show I've ever been to.
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Post by Bob on Jan 8, 2022 10:46:58 GMT -5
Thx so much for this good info, especially about the rough.
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Tommy
Administrator
Member since January 2013
Posts: 12,682
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Post by Tommy on Jan 8, 2022 12:19:16 GMT -5
I'm not specifically directing this to answer Bob's question - more of just me relating my own opinions and experience. Everything the guys have already said is very accurate but I think I have a different take on it and it's all about perspective and what I was doing in the hobby/business and what do I wanted to accomplish. For me, I would glance at certain types of rough and buy a uncut rock occasionally, but at my mission was shopping for slabs for making cabochons. To this end I found the PowWow to be THE destination and I would try to take two days to go through it all. Usually the second day begins with an unscratched itch - some rock caught my eye and I lose sleep over it (kidding) and want to go back and see if it's still there. The way I see it, the PowWow is a club show with a ton of slab vendors, while also having a lot of finished jewelry/trinkets/polished specimen, and of course rough rock and lapidary equipment sellers. Many of these vendors make this show the only one they sell at all year, others are on the club sale circuit, but they've all been accumulating material for sales and the PW is their breakout sale. Getting there early was always key for me - Wednesday is doable but too early because a lot of vendors are still arriving and setting up. If the weather is crappy forget about PW on Wednesday. Thursday is perfect because the crowds have not descended yet, and for me, Friday is PW mop-up and Desert Gardens and Saturday is a rockhounding day to escape the crowds. Desert Gardens is a smaller but still awesome show that is heavily packed with all types of vendors up front by the highway, that tapers off into an area where vendors are spread farther apart and it comes across as (no offense intended please) a bit of a Quartzsite RV/migrant/homeless camp on the far back back side where not coincidentally the bathroom/showers are placed. Up front next to the Diamond Pacific building is where Tony's stall resides, and towards the back is where the Australian miners are typically with a massive display of specific Aus mined rough rock that has to be seen to be believed. I haven't heard if they are going to be there - Au is still pretty heavily locked down I believe. Overall, DG does seem to be weighted more towards rough rock sellers, with a healthy dose of already polished trinket sellers, and there are a a lot of slab sellers as well. As a slab buyer, my problem with DG is that it opens to a crowd of early birds on Jan 1st and by the 3rd weekend of the month the slab dealers feel picked over to me. Again, these are just my opinions/experiences and it's entirely possible that I'm close to a rock shopping coma, with a budget that is on life support by this point, but I typically don't find much at DG that fits my specific goal. I find myself walking around searching for smaller chunks of higher end rock like dino bone or Tiffany stone that being so late in the show the prices are more negotiable on. I also look at the many polished rock vendors searching for a good deal on polished display specimen slabs that (God help us) I can cut up for cabochons. Hope this coffee soaked rant helps somebody
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Tommy
Administrator
Member since January 2013
Posts: 12,682
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Post by Tommy on Jan 8, 2022 12:24:33 GMT -5
I should have been a bit more explicit. There will be old fellows from Nevada selling rocks from their own secret claim; there will be characters from Australia standing beside two shipping containers of rock; there will be a couple of guys with pieces of tiger eye or that are larger than your car, or a lady showing you more agates from Argentina than you can imagine exist in any place outside of Argentina. There will be bejeweled hippies (some needing a bath), old desert rats running saws, suburban ladies, rotund retirees, and yes a cross section of America in a flea market atmosphere, but with a great variety of rock and rock related stuff. Tony usually is in the near NE corner near the parking on the east end (Idaho Rock is the name; hospitality, rocks, and equipment is the game). Be sure and stop to chat with him. I can almost guarantee you will find rocks you didn't know existed and yes even some that you didn't know you needed. Its far different from any rockshop or rock show I've ever been to. Nice description, I could not have said it better
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vwfence
has rocks in the head
Member since January 2013
Posts: 557
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Post by vwfence on Jan 8, 2022 15:20:15 GMT -5
everything thats been posted is correct , but the Aussies arent there this year and on Monday we went down and we found there wasnt as much rough this year as is normally there and prices have risen greatly . Zippy and Tony are still the same as always though .
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Post by Bob on Jan 9, 2022 16:23:41 GMT -5
...look at the many polished rock vendors searching for a good deal on polished display specimen slabs that (God help us) I can cut up for cabochons... Wow. Never knew that cabbers might do that, but seems kind of smart if price is good.
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Post by Bob on Jan 9, 2022 16:25:54 GMT -5
Guess picked bad year for rough and my first year. Was really looking forward to the huge Aussie thing I've heard about.
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vwfence
has rocks in the head
Member since January 2013
Posts: 557
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Post by vwfence on Jan 9, 2022 18:19:16 GMT -5
there is still a lot of stuff there , just not in the quantity there usually is . ALso it depends on what kind of rough you want .
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