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Post by stardiamond on Mar 15, 2020 19:07:06 GMT -5
I ordered a template from them which is great and some Royal Imperial which is not great. I emailed them and got a response today.
" We realize now the wording is confusing for the rough Royal Imperial Jasper on our website and we will be updating it to clarify. The “select” is only meant to differentiate material that is sold by the sack or in premade lots. It is not a higher grade material, it’s just able to be picked through and selected instead of having to buy a set quantity. I apologize for the misunderstanding.
Most of the Royal Imperial material we have is smaller pieces, but with some digging I was able to find some larger pieces that I’ll send out for you today."
That is what I call customer service.
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Post by opalpyrexia on Mar 16, 2020 9:31:07 GMT -5
Have you purchased rough from them before and been satisfied? Making rough purchases based on reference photos rather than the actual material has kept me from buying from them. (Years ago I made a rough purchase at their Cedarburg store but was able to select what what I wanted.)
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Post by MsAli on Mar 16, 2020 9:33:34 GMT -5
I have bought from them several times and have had mixed results.
I am excited to find out they will be a vendor at the show in May
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Post by knave on Mar 16, 2020 9:59:36 GMT -5
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Post by MsAli on Mar 16, 2020 10:11:10 GMT -5
Brainerd
It is the Cuyuna Gem & Mineral show
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JBe
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since January 2019
Posts: 103
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Post by JBe on Mar 16, 2020 10:47:25 GMT -5
I've purchased rough from them several times and have been mostly satisfied.
On one order of broken thunder eggs the rock I got was about 90% host rock. This was the only time I don't feel I didn't get my money's worth. The price per pound was pretty cheap and it was combined with other stuff shipping-wise so I didn't feel like it was too much of a loss.
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Post by toiv0 on Mar 16, 2020 21:06:32 GMT -5
I have always been able to wheel and deal with them in person. I like to go through their barrels.
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Tommy
Administrator 
Member since January 2013
Posts: 12,931
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Post by Tommy on Mar 17, 2020 16:57:03 GMT -5
I have always been able to wheel and deal with them in person. I like to go through their barrels. That's why everyone else's stuff is just so-so ... Billy has been rooting through the barrels grabbing all the good stuff  Seriously though I've bought rough from them six times. My first four orders I was very pleased with - cold mountain t-eggs, agua nueva agate, kambaba jasper, and mushroom rhyolite. My last two orders were some sci-fi jasper which was just kind of meh, then some natures paintbrush that was complete garbage. All together I've been mostly pleased with product and customer service. |
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doublet83
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since March 2016
Posts: 118 
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Post by doublet83 on Mar 19, 2020 12:34:00 GMT -5
I have always been able to wheel and deal with them in person. I like to go through their barrels. That's why everyone else's stuff is just so-so ... Billy has been rooting through the barrels grabbing all the good stuff  Seriously though I've bought rough from them six times. My first four orders I was very pleased with - cold mountain t-eggs, agua nueva agate, kambaba jasper, and mushroom rhyolite. My last two orders were some sci-fi jasper which was just kind of meh, then some natures paintbrush that was complete garbage. All together I've been mostly pleased with product and customer service. This is exactly the problem with ordering rough from them online. The rough has probably been picked through and you're getting the left overs. I ordered several pounds of 1st grade Laguna rough from them for $35 / lb. The material I got was really only $4/lb material and not a single one could cut a specimen that was worth anything. I guess I could have made use of their generous return policy or what seems like their good customer service, but I just ate the cost myself since they didn't do anything wrong. But I would never buy rough from them again, especially not online. I have seen them at shows and they are selling the same rough that you can pick through, along with high end specimens cut from the same rough. I have also purchased specimens from them in person and gotten fair prices. The problem is never buy the rough from them online because it has probably been picked thru hundreds of times as they are selling the same rough at shows. Also certain kinds of rough, like expensive Laguna or Condor, or Agua Nueva (the kinds I like to buy) is very susceptible to being picked through because you can see the quality of the banding from the broken parts of the agate. |
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Post by stardiamond on Mar 19, 2020 19:37:54 GMT -5
Buying rough is always a gamble. I've bought more rough recently than I have ever bought before and had mixed results. The only rough I have bought completely blind was the Royal Imperial and it was inexpensive. I wrote them and they sent me some new pieces. I will slab them on Saturday and the faces I cut indicate the material will be usable. A person can't expect to hit a home run on every rough purchase and a significantly discounted price vs slabs should help balance things out. My normal process is to have at least a picture. I also ask questions and want to trust the seller.
Material being offered at $35 a pound should be high quality and would expect the seller to provide it.
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