Wheeling and Dealing at a Thai Gemstone Market
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 มิ.ย. 2023
- Every Friday, about 2.5 hours from Pattaya, is the Gemstone Market in Chantanaburi. Is it worth a trip or visit and is there money to be made there in the Gemstone trade? I explore some of the possibilities and give you my strategies for buying stones as we take a detailed look at this trade.
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Loving these vlogs lucus, incredibly interesting. Thanks for including us.
You're welcome Paul 👍
Really fascinating. Thanks
Sounds like you've had an interesting life, could you do a video on your background about what you did before you semi retired in Thailand?
This brings back memories of the first time I was in Thailand in 1985 and spent a number of days in Bangkok looking for a pretty star sapphire and haggling over price after selecting a nice gold ring to set it in. Still wear it and get compliments on the beautiful star it shows under a light.
Great video sir. Nice change up. I get tired of looking at hotel rooms and pools. Thanks.
Cool 👍🙏
Best place to find gemstones is in old jewelry. Dealers pay the precious metals weight for the old jewelry, pop out the stones and melt the metal down. I have baggies full of stones I’ve done this to and can’t find a buyer for… :(😊
@darkwing25 I’m a jeweler and occasionally buy gem lots off of people. I’d be interested in checking out what you’ve got.
Incredibly mind boggling....Thank you for sharing this very interesting side of Thailand.
Very interesting! Good luck!
Definitely join you in your next gem trip to chantaburi. Very interested in your fay trade deals. Great video on gem trade.
Very interesting indeed. I have found a few Jen’s over the years. I love uncut stones and seeing what they can become
Very interesting video Lucas, thanks for sharing 🍺🍺👍
This video was a little gem 💎 😅 sorry couldn’t resist 😂
🤣🤣👍
A cool insight , thanks a lot
Excellent subject.
Very interesting. Great video 👍
Thanks for some new and interesting content.
Welcome 🙏
Very informative video ❤
Very interesting, thank you
Welcome 🙏
Great blog mate
Very interesting... I was there in the mid 90's... my last trip to Thailand. It was absolutely fascinating and not knowing what and how a bit overwhelming. I recall a lady that came to Pattaya and setup shop in one of the big hotels. She sold jewelry... gem stones.. they were from Bangkok. But they did a big business there in Pattaya for all the military. Very reputable even sent yearly Christmas cards . Prices were fantastic and so was the quality. However to tour the area you are in was really interesting. Completely different perspective of Thailand. Your vlogs are always fantastic and professional and just plain enjoyable to watch.
Thanks Ron 👍
Wow! Very cool.
Most Excellent!
Good video lucas very informative
Thank you i
Fascinating subject, what an enthralling atmosphere. 🙏
It's really quite a show, I love the vibe there. 👍
Fascinating ...
Great video very interesting and informative always nice to learn new things
👍👍🙏🙏
Very interesting ❤
excellent video, please do more gem stone trips
Interesting
Interesting blog,,,,
Of all the farang TH-camrs, I follow about 4, you have the most interesting view of Thailand
Thanks 🙏
Very cool! Surprised it is the buyers that sit down!
Thank you very much for sharing take care
Nice buy 👍
Definitely worth a punt. An interesting subject.
Would be great to be taught by someone who knew what to look for.
Great video Loucas 👍✌️🙏
Thanks Rich 👍
v interesting - never seen this before
It's interesting to see this part of Thailand. But in the end, they are still just rocks to me
Thanks Lukas very interesting. Definitely worth a shot of you have an expert with you to navigate and weed out the fakes.
Loucous
Yes, that helps 👍
Was there a follow up video to this one? I would like to see how it turned out after cutting and if he was able to resell.
"grow back". Good one.
Such a small amount but a huge learning no matter the outxome. People who live in boxes tell you it's crazy to move out of the box.
You know I bet you’d make a perfect sales advocate for them !
Things to make money you never think about. Good luck. I know you are aware of the scams. Best of luck!😊
I got to be honest Lucas ,i agree with Malc
Calm down everybody, he’s not spending his rent money ! This is how you learn. 😂
Exactly 🤣....he spent a whopping 500 baht
Your channel is always interesting. U go places/do things, others dont😊. I wish your segments were longer 😊. Would i have to declare these at Customs going back to Manila? Thanks
Ok there, please take care.
Hi Lucas . Faceting Gem stones is where the money at.. It's quite skill . Just to get the equipment, and then have somebody that know what he doing, or her. It's quite a skill to be-able to make the finished product. That's where the money is. The first skill is getting the right stone. One that doesn't have many flaws in it. Then go from there. Good luck. You really have to know what you're doing. A good quality gem store is worth more than Gold. You had better know somebody with top skills in the Gem market. Stay with Blue or red stones, that what I know. Good luck And thanks
Yes Denny, I agree. I have one friend 30 years in the business and an ex-employee of hers who did the cutting so I bit of a team I guess. Teamwork makes the Dreamwork 👍
Luke you have consistently put out content of Thailand for many years now, through the passing of your girlfriend to COVID, how do you do it? Where does your energy enthusiasm and passion come from
miss this kind of vlog
Hi Lucas, you need a trip to Lady Barber ... I would love to see a video from there. Stay safe
Which one is that?
Cheers 🙂
Very good deal Lucas ... Since you like the BLUE things 😊
Yes like your hat 🤣👍👍
Boh Ploi is well known for its locally mined Blue Sapphire stone .. It also has a Buddha on a hill with steps (many steps) It's known as the Blue Buddha ( containing a large Blue Sapphire stone)
A large blue "ROCK" 😁
Thai Blue Sapphires are over saturated. Those from the old mines are no longer producing. Today the big producers are Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Madagascar not Thailand.
Just a fun fact for you. Since posting this. A ruby ring just sold through an auction house. For a meager 35 M $USD. So that should inspire your desires to be active in the jewelry / gem business. That would be enough to sustain your Thai lifestyle for a couple years atleast... 😎👍
nice video stone may have some silk issues is it heated ?
u got a cutter?
:) love the gem trade
Cool 👍
Hey Luckaz , Very interesting vid only got to say it’s a cut above the rest. Chris
Thanks Chris 👍🙏
Given whats happening in Burma that is where I would be looking to buy Sapphires...Right on the borders second bush to the left..
Yes used to be a lot for sale at the walking bridge at Messai.
The question is are you willing to risk your life to go there and put that theory to the test?
@@retiredsailor4 Messai is very safe. We travel up there from Chiang Mai frequently👍🏻
@Miki Moto That's great Miki, I'm so happy to hear that. I'm just concerned about the situation in Burma, that's all
@@retiredsailor4 Yep! We are still waiting for the day the Military get kicked out of power and the country can thrive again.,😉😊
Interesting video, thanks.
Do you have any insights on checking quality and authenticity?
Yes some but I trust the judgement of others with more experience than my own.
You into gem business now brother 😁👍🏼
Will you be able to do a video about the tailor shops best deals?
Years ago I visited Bangkok and bought a great deal in tailor suits and clothing made in silk.
Thank you,
This one looks like a fairly steep learning curve. I seen your video that expressed your interest in physical gold was wondering how much gemstone prices fluctuate is the price volatility comparable to gold-silver ect.
It's probably more connected to supply and demand at any given sale but I don't think the prices fluctuate the same as gold and other commodities traded in financial markets.
Majority of the gemstones bought by people are not investment grade. Try re-selling a gemstone, you won't even come close to recovering what you spent. This is definitely true with Diamonds. There are very few exceptions, example a Pigon blood ruby from Myanmar. Very expensive and not easy to get your hands on one.
I will check out that gem market someday.
If you sell it for more than you paid for it then - Is a WIN!
We’ll see what happens but it’s a small venture anyway 👍
Where i lived in Africa, the government had a monopoly on gem stones. If you found gemstones, you were supposed to sell them to the government which would then resell them back. In other words, it was a tax and the system was riddled with corruption because of valuations and whom you knew/were related to. Be interesting to talk to the Africans in the market and get their story.
Yes that’s a whole other aspect to it, very interesting
Looks interesting! It would definitely be neat to learn about. Also, sapphires are my favorite stone!
I’d probably be too nervous to make a purchase though, lol. I never thought I’d be good at buying/selling, but when I gave up my job to care for mom I kind of jumped into the reseller world. I do okay selling mostly vintage glass online, though I only have a few hours a week to spend on it these days with mom getting worse. I look forward to seeing how your purchase pans out!
Yeah it’s a lot to learn 👍
Hopefully you did well…..I am too cautious with gemstones here! Still, great video…
We’ll see, small start anyway 👍
MINESTONE McCAIN ..... just rolls off the palate, doesnt it - - New helmet logo : " carat, claity, cut, color "
I bought a couple of years ago gemstone in Boploy near Kanchanaburi. At home a jewelry told me, that this was more an adventure than a good buy. Since that time, I stay away. If you are not an expert forget it
Yes I ageee
The gemstones were produced long before Elvis was born Lucas, it'll take them a while to reproduce.
🤣😂👍👍
Please keep us posted on this venture Lucas. Very interesting! My girlfriend is Cambodian, living in Thailand. I have learned that when I'm interesting in buying something to discretely tell her i'm interested, walk away, and then let HER do the haggling. I suck at it!
To avoid the fluorescent lamp flickering, change the video FPS to 50 since Thailand electricity is 50hz as most of the world outside of north america.
very very interesting
Question where will I get Sidney? It's semi precious rainstairs that you put on dance questions or on clothing. I'm been googling at for a long time and coming to Bangkok. Singh, and that is the type of thing I'm into. I'm not into precious styles, so I'm into rhymesters that you could put on crowns and all kinds of clothes. And that type of thing, can you help?
👍
Interesting video! There is money to be made but risks if you don't know what you are doing. At a B500 investment you don't have much to lose.
I agree 👍
Been there,an down that ! Remember if an i mean if you rarely see the perfect uncut stone ,an you get cut an polished ,an get in a setting, USA market just slap's you silly to find you have small fortune.
Good luck!
Funny that they put a sticker on the little solarcell of the calculator. 😅
The torch never justify colour , do the white paper test 😊
Been there done that, can't see that much has changed. It is an interesting place though. Thanks for the update!
Nice exposure to the gem market.
So after all of that you only spent less than $15 USD. 😂
Makes for a good video though.
Looking forward to your next one.
This is just my take on this, whilst the start price and the finish price might be large what has to be paid out along the way and what is the time frame from start to finish, the profit may then not look so good. For instance if on the example given , 500 to 7000 and it took 24 hours of your time that is only just over 290 baht an hour or less than $10. Is that a fair way to calculate it?
thats still an average Thai daily wage per hour
@@ant2312 Since when has Loucous been a Thai?
Yes always have to consider time spent for sure. But more of an interest than a business really 👍
@@ant2312 290 THB is less than the minimum wage in Thailand so it's certainly not an 'average' daily wage, it's worse than the worst daily wage.
Before I owned my pub, I used to sell diamonds !! Coloured stones I didn't get into but I heard that you have to be careful that stones that have inclusions are lasered out and replaced with plastic of the same colour as the stone, making it a stone with no inclusions. Becareful !!
Yes, I've heard that as well.
02:48 | I've never seen a place where "No Smoking" is prohibited. Seems you have light up before entering this building!
Dude that's a hardcore rule they have there.😆
Well picked up.
Nice 🇦🇺🏍🇺🇸🇹🇭🤙🙏🍻
Thanks Erikh 👍
Schöne Edelsteine 💎 Lukas 👍 Video 🤳👍🙏🙏🙏 Liebe Grüße aus Hamburg 😎🥊🍺🎸
Danke Achim 👍👍👍🙏🙏🙏
I’m wondering. Does anyone know if it’s legal to buy and take home to a foreign country or if there are restrictions/laws on that in Thailand.
Asking for a friend 👀
Rough you cut bring as much as you like . Cut you pay duty
What is the update on this gemstone?
Are the authorities interested in a farang trading for profit in Thailand or is this managed through a Thai intermediary?
Really no difference in buying a stone at a gemstone market or a bag of rice at an afternoon food market. Selling may be a different story as it could be construed as a business.
What an adventure! How fascinating. Best of luck! Edit: Wow, 500 Baht is the tip I'd give the driver of a van to get up there and back. Seems like you're doing this more for fun and the challenge of making a profit. Have fun!
I didn’t see that coming. Thrifty to the very end. 500 baht.
Yeah, just a small purchase to test the waters.
Some "ROCK'S" are harder to find than others! 😋
Plenty of fake stones for the newbies.
There has been a couple of good TV shows following gem dealer crews traveling the world to cut deals. Well worth watching if one can download.
thing is if you walk in here without any real knowledge you are in trouble.
“Buy low, sell high” is the slightly saner cousin of “get rich quick”. Most merchants look for simple profit and a decent return on their time and money. Just invest in a bar with one of the saner ex pats, or even manage one and learn the ropes. But ah, the lure of money just waiting to be dug up out of the ground.
When I was in the car business, the one I liked the most was the Guy who would say: " I'm losing money on every deal I do, but I'm making it up on volume" 🤣😂🤣
@@Rides4Kickz 555
Please update us about the stone
ok, will do.
I see the beauty in the raw gem stones.
Quite inexpensive too.
Maybe its less conspicuous but with all those expensive gemstones around you'd think there'd be armed security everywhere. Obviously, there's something to deter theft or robbery.
Good point, I think it would be a very daring deed to pull off with all those people around plus the mototaxi mafia 🤣
I was in Chantabury several times in the early 2000s, I didn't like the place, gem-stones attract lots of shady people and the mafia which was too obvious.
Lol, I can see that 🤣
new camera ?
Nope, same same.
What was that song.
Were there any Opal sellers?
Opal fruits made to make your mouth water. SORRY couldn't resist it
@@grahamjohnson4702 Face Palms himself....hahahah, haven't had those for years.
A couple but not many
I have a very big sapire stone