If you like fire agate take a look at: http://fireagate.com The site
takes a long time to down load but it is well worth it. Lee Epperson
Lee, Thanks for leading us to a very nice site. I enjoyed looking at
the fire agates.
Having said that…this site is indicative of the ridiculous hype
that some people put out to the public in an effort to make people
believe things that just aren’t true!
Are they beautiful fire agates? Of course they are and some of the
best, as far as I can tell from the pictures, I have seen for some
time. Are they so fantastic that ‘enthusiasts would not be able to
identify them as fire agates?’ Not for a minute-fire agates are
still fire agates! Are they beautifully carved and prepared? Yep!
Could they be duplicated…well, there are probably dozens of
carvers and cutters out there who, if offered a reasonable sum and if
they had the time to do it, could cut and carve items just as nicely.
It really aggrevates me when people put out such drivel!
Cheers from Don at The Charles Belle Studio in SOFL where simple
elegance IS fine jewelry! @coralnut2
All, Fire agate is a stone that crosses the line between hobbyist and
professional. At the website of fireagate.com you are seeing the
work started by Bob Beaudry. Bob is a resident of Tucson and the son
of the largest automobile dealer in Tucson. He is very rich and why
is playing in fire agate is a mystery to me.
Most people that cut fire agates are hobbyists. Why? Because fire
agate is the most difficult stone to cut that I have ever encountered
and I have cut thousands of fire agates. The stones you see on the
site are all from the top 5% ( my estimate) of all fire agates mined.
The last I knew Bob owned the rights at Deer Creek and has bought
the Mexican mine at Aquas Calientas. He has first access to the best
rough mined in these locations. In my position I cannot take the
time required to specialize in fire agate. A gem grade stone can take
upwards of 50 hours to cut. I have one gem grade stone in my
collection. I want $2,000 for the stone. It is the best stone I
have seen in the last five years.
Bob hires the best fire agate cutters. He pays them well. What you
see on the site is only a small display of what he has available.
The large (5-10 inch) plates I have seen are not on display. They
normally sell to collectors for many thousands of dollars. As he
write on the site - he has spent millions of dollars to get to where
he is today. Fire agate is the most misunderstood gemstone in the
business and in the hobby. I love the stuff.
Gerry Galarneau