Opals....

[oldgoat]

Can anyone tell me some relative values on rough opal? An older friend of mine has a bunch of Coober Pedy, Lightning Ridge Boulder, Mexican and fire opals and doesn't remember what he paid or what they are worth nowadays...Would like to buy them from him but don't want to rip him off, he needs the money...Any responses would be appreciated...

 

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[fossis]

PM Jeweler Dave, he would know.

fossis..............

 

[oldgoat]

Thanx, fossis...I looked on e-bay to find a comparison piece and could only find chips...One of the pieces that my friend showed me covered my whole hand and was about two and ahalf inchs thick...

 

[Eu_citzen]

The "fire" (colour) and what type of opal it is will dictate the price, if I recall right red colour being the most expensive one.

This might be worth a read:
http://www.opalrough.com/pricing.htm

Here's another one to look at:
http://a1opals.com/_wsn/page2.html

Maybe that may help a bit..


Regards,
Eu

 

[Mike_of_Tenn]

I collect all kinds of opals and would love to see some pics if possible. I am not an expert by any means just a hobby I have been into for about 10 years now..I might be interested if they are for sale.

Mike

 

[oldgoat]

Sorry, I haven't been up here in a while, been trying out my new hours at work, they switched me from nites to days....thank you for the links.
The biggest problem I have with this guy is that he is so afraid of being ripped off that he won't even take them into an appraiser...I've offered to take him but I think that he believes that we would be in cahoots...lol. Unfortunately, he could really use the money, but he'll sit on these rocks until he starves...

 

[MEinWV]

I just did a quick search for "Opal rough" online. There are some good sites that show and tell and have prices, so check them out and print some pages to show the person you want to deal with.

Good luck!

 

[EE THr]

Oldgoat;

Be careful when valuing opals.

They contain water. If the water is sealed-in, they will retain their look. If the water dries out, they will loose their quality.

If you search the Web, you will see some that are stored in water. Will they "dry out" when removed from water storage and formed into gem stones?

They should be stored dry for some period of time before valued. Then sawing them down could cut into a weak spot, and water loss could occur. Slabbing them down before dry storage would likely be better.

eethr

 

[mirkaba]

Opals vary greatly in their valuation. Lightning Ridge is the highest value opal and boulder the lowest. Don't know much about the Mexican opal. A couple years ago I cut a 600.00 stone out of a 3.00 piece of rough. 9x14 mm N1 black, bright red flash. I am a confirmed opalholic. Go to opalauctions.com for info.....Bob