Friday 25 February 2011
Monday 21 February 2011
1 kilo bottle of pure Gallium
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| 1 KILO OF PURE GALLIUM |
One of the rarest metals known to mankind. Doesn't look like much does it? : )
1 kilo bottle of pure Gallium
I got it straight from China and it cost a fortune just in postage and bank charges. It came in a huge bundle of bubble wrap, presumably to prevent it getting to 29*C and melting.
The bit I find strange about the whole thing with Gallium is, the modern world cannot get by without this metal, and yet, it is much cheaper than gold even though it must be 100 times rarer than gold. I read one of the ways they collect it is by scraping the soot from flues on coal fired power stations. Millions of tonnes of burnt coal only produces 30tonnes of Gallium worldwide.
Like Silver this metal is vital for modern electronics. Gallium Arsenide is used for LED's and pure Gallium for wetting circuits.
I think I'll advertise it as 1 kilo of pure Gallium at first and if there are no takers I'll melt it into moulds, like chocolate bars. That way it suits all budgets.
I won't be able to accept paypal for this because Paypal charges are too high for such an item. Instead, email me and I'll give my account details and you can pay into that. Then I'll post it.
If anyone would like more of this I can try and buy a few kilos more. There are no guarantees on getting it though. They've banned selling it to the Japanese, they could easily do it to the Brits.
As an investment I think Gallium is a perfect investment metal. Any upset in the supply can cause the price to go through the roof.
Palladium is 15 times rarer than gold and is cheaper than gold but in 2000 its price went up ten fold because the Russians didn't want to sell any that year.
The metal is quite safe to hold but I think it holds it value if it hasn't been melted and held in the palm of your hand, picking up skin cells and sweat. : )
You wouldn't put your hands all over a Silver bullion round would you?
1 Kilo Copper Bars
The copper bars are ready!
They're polished to perfection and have just been stamped today. They look amazing and hopefully I'll put them for sale tonight on the shop http://buycopper.co.uk/
I'll package them in cling film so they keep the oxygen out which dulls the shine, but you also get to see the bar beneath the cling film.
Cheers
http://buycopper.co.uk/
Thursday 17 February 2011
1 Kilo of Gallium for sale very soon
I took the plunge.
I've found a supplier in China that is willing to sell me some Gallium. Luckily I've traded with China before which helps and luckily I'm British and we haven't annoyed the Chinese within the last 100 years so they're still willing to trade with us for now. If I was Japanese it wouldn't have happened.
I was told however to be careful what I say in our trading. I'll leave it at that.
The Gallium is >99.99% pure so perfect as an investment metal. You can see the certificate of authenticity below
What I will probably do is list it for sale as a 1 kilo bottle, but also list smaller amounts for sale. If somebody wants to buy a smaller amount I'll split this bottle and turn it into ingots of some kind. If anyone would like 1kilo or more of Gallium please contact me and I'll order some in.
As Gallium melts at 29*C the problem is handling. It's a bit like chocolate. If you hold it in your hand it will melt. Containers need to be able to cope with melted Gallium turning solid and putting strain on the container.
I've read a good way of storing it is to keep it in those zip lock plastic bags and if it melts simply put it in the freezer so it can easily be removed from the bag.
There is plenty of documentation of Gallium on google and youtube if you need more information.
I read that this metal is going to be extinct within 10 years and the figures kind of support this. It is an unbelievably rare metal. I read it was extracted from the soot in factory chimneys. You can pretty much only get it from China these days and it is heavily used in electronics.
If you ask me, I'd gamble that this is the most undervalued metal.
As for pricing. I haven't worked it out yet. I have to buy the Gallium in Dollars, so the bank gives a crummy exchange rate, Then charges £25 for the transaction, then the Chinese bank charges $30 for turning Dollars into Yuan, shipping is expensive, then when it gets to Blighty, there's import duty and VAT of 20% to pay.
Believe me though. This is one metal you'll be glad paying for. : )
If anyone is interested in buying another rare earth metal Indium (used in TFT screens) please email me at info@titanclassics.com
and keep checking on the site http://buycopper.co.uk/ for updates.
Copper bars update.
I'm pestering the pressings workshop to hurry up with the 40 1 kilo copper bars. They were supposed to be ready yesterday but they've gone quiet.
I've found a supplier in China that is willing to sell me some Gallium. Luckily I've traded with China before which helps and luckily I'm British and we haven't annoyed the Chinese within the last 100 years so they're still willing to trade with us for now. If I was Japanese it wouldn't have happened.
I was told however to be careful what I say in our trading. I'll leave it at that.
The Gallium is >99.99% pure so perfect as an investment metal. You can see the certificate of authenticity below
What I will probably do is list it for sale as a 1 kilo bottle, but also list smaller amounts for sale. If somebody wants to buy a smaller amount I'll split this bottle and turn it into ingots of some kind. If anyone would like 1kilo or more of Gallium please contact me and I'll order some in.
As Gallium melts at 29*C the problem is handling. It's a bit like chocolate. If you hold it in your hand it will melt. Containers need to be able to cope with melted Gallium turning solid and putting strain on the container.
I've read a good way of storing it is to keep it in those zip lock plastic bags and if it melts simply put it in the freezer so it can easily be removed from the bag.
There is plenty of documentation of Gallium on google and youtube if you need more information.
I read that this metal is going to be extinct within 10 years and the figures kind of support this. It is an unbelievably rare metal. I read it was extracted from the soot in factory chimneys. You can pretty much only get it from China these days and it is heavily used in electronics.
If you ask me, I'd gamble that this is the most undervalued metal.
As for pricing. I haven't worked it out yet. I have to buy the Gallium in Dollars, so the bank gives a crummy exchange rate, Then charges £25 for the transaction, then the Chinese bank charges $30 for turning Dollars into Yuan, shipping is expensive, then when it gets to Blighty, there's import duty and VAT of 20% to pay.
Believe me though. This is one metal you'll be glad paying for. : )
If anyone is interested in buying another rare earth metal Indium (used in TFT screens) please email me at info@titanclassics.com
and keep checking on the site http://buycopper.co.uk/ for updates.
Copper bars update.
I'm pestering the pressings workshop to hurry up with the 40 1 kilo copper bars. They were supposed to be ready yesterday but they've gone quiet.
Monday 14 February 2011
Gallium and Indium bullion
If things go well I'll be buying 1 kilo of Gallium and will split it to sell as an investment metal.
Its not a process of taking a hammer and chisel to the metal. You just heat it to about 30*C and it melts. Very strange indeed. In 99.99% pure form it is very silvery.
I think as an investment Gallium is excellent. Everyone knows about the rapid rise in Gold and Silver, but Palladium shot up in price too but nobody really noticed it. I remember in 2009 its price rise was way ahead of Gold and Silver. Maybe it was in 2010 as well, I haven't checked.
The palladium price in 2000 shot up ten fold because Russia blocked its export for political reasons. Ford used Palladium in catalytic converters so had to buy it whatever the cost.
I believe Palladium is 15 times more rare than gold, so these rare earth's are very sensitive to supply shortages.
The world only produces about 30 tonnes of Gallium per year. Bear in mind China alone produces 300 tonnes of Gold per year and you realise just how rare Gallium is.
Gallium is used in integrated circuits and LED's. You have probably noticed LEDs seem to be on everything within the last 20 years. There are new super bright low power LED's taking over the high energy halogen spot lights now. How long before governments demand LEDs instead of halogen lights you may ask?
From my reading I understand Gallium to be quite safe to handle. Not quite the same with another metal I'm interested in selling, INDIUM. The youtube video below should explain the uses of this rare earth.
I can get hold of Indium but I'm concerned about selling it. It seems just touching it is toxic. It can be stored in an appropriate container with a Hazmat warning on it, but it kind of takes the fun out of owning the metal.
On the positive side of owning Indium, 20 years ago nobody knew we'd all have TFT monitors and screens using Indium. The supply must be coming under strain.
And finally:
Did anyone read The Telegraph a few weeks ago where a company called Zest that was losing money, changed it's name to Rare Earth Metals on the AIM and immediately went up in value 300%
They hadn't even got any supply chain or any metal in stock.
These metals are really difficult to get hold of. You need to to import them from China, build relationships and if they don't like you, they'll ban the sale to you, just like they've done to the Japanese.
Food for thought.
Friday 11 February 2011
One Kilo copper bars ready next week
Sorry about the delay getting new copper bars for sale.
Getting anything manufactured takes time but making these copper bars is a strange process indeed.
I picked up the 40 copper bars from the polishers on Wednesday and they are perfect!
They're individually wrapped in tissue and when I opened a couple to check, it was a WOW moment.
I dropped them off at the pressings shop today and was told that they will be ready on Wednesday next week (16th Feb)
Some things I've learned from having the copper bars made is how hard it is to get hold of copper. We take it for granted. It's all around us and yet when I buy from the supplier there are long delays and I buy every last kilo they've got of the size copper I need.
Other things
So far this year we've seen revolutions in Morocco and Egypt. China is in trouble with a real estate bubble and high inflation and the economic outlook still doesn't look good. I know the media likes to say exports are up and the great recession is at an end but if they were correct surely food, fuel and metal prices wouldn't be so high.
I think I'll put my trust in the value of metal over anything a government or bank has to say.
Getting anything manufactured takes time but making these copper bars is a strange process indeed.
I picked up the 40 copper bars from the polishers on Wednesday and they are perfect!
They're individually wrapped in tissue and when I opened a couple to check, it was a WOW moment.
I dropped them off at the pressings shop today and was told that they will be ready on Wednesday next week (16th Feb)
Some things I've learned from having the copper bars made is how hard it is to get hold of copper. We take it for granted. It's all around us and yet when I buy from the supplier there are long delays and I buy every last kilo they've got of the size copper I need.
Other things
So far this year we've seen revolutions in Morocco and Egypt. China is in trouble with a real estate bubble and high inflation and the economic outlook still doesn't look good. I know the media likes to say exports are up and the great recession is at an end but if they were correct surely food, fuel and metal prices wouldn't be so high.
I think I'll put my trust in the value of metal over anything a government or bank has to say.
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