Steph

Dave (orbboy), are you still in the running?

Cool. Is there any way to get you to post pics of those three on a different background so I can see inside? I'll try wheedling, flattery, bribery, most anything.

are those clearies - in the front row on the bottom board?

Great idea. Seriously great idea for those of us on a budget. Very nice. "if you see any i need to post in id section for second opinion" The blackish one, 2nd from left, on the front board, piqued my curiousity. I'm also a little curious about the one next to it on the edge of the board. Would want to pick that one up and give it a spin if I were in the room with you.

Oooooooh. That mix is a little different than I'm used to in MK bags. Neat!

I like your Alox too.

I sure wish I had photo shop! I see something involving Darth Vader and the pic of Ann from the Texas marble show thread. LOL. Just kidding. Crank up that banana!

Amen! Excellent analogy. Nancy Frier restored the Alox machine as a labor of love. Some people at Jabo shared their resources and talent with her and thus were privileged to be part of the restoration. Some of the people there didn't have official ties to Jabo. Some did. Whoever helped, it was Nancy's project, in her role as heir to the Alox legacy. The marbles are whatever Nancy says. That's how I feel about it. I was kind of dreading this subject being brought up on this board. However, you did it very well. I hope that everyone who participates in this thread will do it with due deference to Nancy Frier and her family. Her family is part of marble history. She has generously shared some of it with us. I have never met her in person but have spoken with her some and shared many emails and she doesn't strike me as one who would relish the rough and tumble that some of these marble threads become. Let's be considerate of her and her family's feelings in this. Thank you everyone.

But David, did MK have marbles with that color of base?

what a tail!

Doh! I knew that! But I also thought I had heard about people being able to save the pontils during grinding. I've heard of people hand polishing marbles. That could save pontils, right?, but it sounds like lots of work. Is there some way to machine grind but not make it all automatic?

Alright!

I'm going to move this post to the main chat area, with this question: Who all made turquoise base patches?

Way to go !!!!!!

Neat. The levitating marbles effect is rather cool.

2010 inductees, per post #17 of the Texas marble show thread: Berry Pink Roger Howdyshell Beri Howdyshell Fox David McCullough Howard "Hod" Powell Dan Grocki Those are the first six. It is a new project, started this year.

I know that sometimes pontils are left on. I don't know a lot. But I'm sure that sometimes they are. If I recall correctly discussions about whether pontils are left on seem to boil down to (1) how deep the damage is and (2) client preference. It's been discussed several times in the years I've been reading but I've been way back on the sidelines so I remember a lot about it. Maybe P.M. or email Leroy if he doesn't drop in soon to comment.

No fair! You made me cry!

Pen, the china is fake. There is a guy in Germany who has been making these. The work is getting better. However it is still unrefined in comparison with real chinas. To the best of my understanding.

Hi Rich. It's possible no one noticed your question on the 6th. With this thread being tucked away in the Restoration forum and all. I've moved it over to the main chat now. Maybe the right eyes will see it here. If not, a new thread could help. Someone should have an answer! :-)

I can't speak for Bubba, but I bet a lot of people are disappointed to hear mibs ID-ed as Champ. Ravenswood is a more exciting ID for many. Not sure what the gist of the argument is. Just sayin'. I feel like I'm contributing to a hijack of the thread. Maybe mostly because I don't know where it is going now. That's an all-out great comparison shot, Winnie. I'm not "disappointed" about the Jabos looking like foreign swirls. But I am getting a little apprehensive about my confidence in future ID's.

I'll take care of the W. I thought that was a Canadian idiom! lol One concern here might be if this thread turns into a how-to on making fake chinas look real. But of course people want to know! Sue posted a pic once which I use to convince myself that the fakes are fake. I'll show you that pic. I'm not brave enough to repost it though. I guess that's her call.

ai yi yi!

In addition to regular ups and downs of the market place, there's the possibility of parallel universe type futures for marbles. People do their retro thing, and it's possible that marbles could become a craze again if they're in the right place at the right time. Could become wildly popular for a couple of years and create a whole new group of people nostalgic for that time in their youth when certain marbles were must haves. Hey, it could happen. Or by some quirk of fate or marketing some other toy could be picked for the retro craze, and that one could be the one which gets the nostalgic bump for the next generation or two.

The S is pretty cool. Kinda superman colors.