Prices, do you really pay that much?

rynon · #1 08/25/2007, 06:26 PM

I've looked around and most sites list the "name brand" zoas for insane prices.......I MEAN INSANE. Do you all really pay that? I think it's zoafrag.com.......nice stuff, but man thats nuts!!!! I love these things but I am not willing to pay $85 a polyp for something that spreads like wildfire in my tank. I was given some eagle eyes that are spreading like mad.......at least 5x the size I recieved in a few months. Just wondering? If I knew these things were worth this much I would have a zoa tank...man. Thanks everyone!

yellowslayer13 · #2 08/26/2007, 02:01 AM

i under stand lps and things rhat grow slow but i got some armor of god palys and they have tripled in two months

Ace1 · #3 08/27/2007, 12:42 AM

can you spare a frag of the armors? lol

pledosophy · #4 08/27/2007, 02:30 AM

If I like it and it is that cool, I'll pay it. I know it will grow like wild fire so then I ca trade that frag for something else I want. I try to mostly get frags from fellow reefers which keeps the costs down.

I.E. I just paid $25 for 8 polyps of eye of rah, good deal IMO, but from a reefer not a site.

hoyta · #5 08/27/2007, 08:36 AM

People pay way too much for some zoas. Some are worth it, though!
If you only propagate one polyp a month, then the prices are obviously higher

Azurel · #6 08/27/2007, 02:37 PM

It's an assumption that when you get them that they will spread like wildfire. Till you get them you don't know if they will or they won't. I have a bunch of the "named" zoanthids and palys some do grow fast and some just sit there. Now if I sent you some they might grow fast or they might not, you can't be so sure. I have a frag of PPE that I have had for 2 years and have had only one polyp spout in that amount of time. While I now guys that get a polyp every few weeks each situation is different. Allot of those color morphs on Zoafrag.com are not heavily distributed as he and a few others cherry pick from the wholesalers so before the can even make it into normal lines of distribution they have already been sucked up by a minority of retailers wither it be on-line or in a brick and mortar. I personally wouldn't pay some of them prices just because I don't need them that bad. But if he had one that I had to have in my tank the cost of having it is what you will pay. I can guarantee you that he would charge those prices wither he put a name on them or not.....

rynon · #7 08/27/2007, 03:07 PM

I work at a LFS. We don't get these super nice zoanthids but get nice looking ones....blues, greens, oranges, yellows, etc.......nothing "named". We buy a large rock for CHEAP........lets put it this way, we sell the rocks for 54.99.........a rock the size of your fist. I know these are just run of the mill zoanthids but they still look nice....not as nice as some I've seen. So, I guess if you want RED, PURPLE, NEON GREENS, ORANGES, PINKS, you do need to pay a premium on them..............run of the mill is super cheap. We cannot find a wholesaler who has these nice zoanthids? If you know of one would you be willing to share? We order from a few places, one in Michigan, 2 in California....if you are willing to share but want it to be private just PM me..............or just blow this off

Twisted · #8 08/28/2007, 07:46 PM

When it comes to the really expensive stuff, here is what we do, and it works pretty good, atleast the couple times we have done it.
If you find something online that you like then you get thre or four other people to look at the site and find something they want, once you have all agreed on the items you all pay 25% of the total bill...if there are four of you...
Then when you get it, you all take home the piece you chose, but the first three frags from those pieces are already owned by the other three people you went in with....

Of course complications can arise, a piece dies, a persons tank crashes etc... but so far no complaints.

cutnup · #9 08/29/2007, 04:02 PM

zoas aren't even in anymore. they are sooo 6 months ago.

wicked_NaCl_h2o · #10 08/29/2007, 08:17 PM

my zoas were only $24 and thats with the rock.

melev · #11 08/30/2007, 02:41 AM

I prefer trading zoanthids when possible. I don't even bother buying them via those sites.

George Grogan · #12 08/30/2007, 08:30 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by cutnup
zoas aren't even in anymore. they are sooo 6 months ago.

rynon · #13 08/30/2007, 03:34 PM

Thanks everyone. Everytime we get these at the store I WANT to buy some. Problem is that I of course want the really nice colorful ones, I get a discount, store makes less, so I don't even bother asking. We just got some REALLY bright orange and yellow zoanthids I would love to have.........nicest ones in the tank, I am not asking

. Of course I could ask if I can buy a couple polyps....it's a big rock and see what they say. 5 polyps for 5 dollars would definitely be a profit......looking at it from total polyps on the rock...maybe I'll give it a try? I LOVE looking on those sites with the named frags...........do they really look THAT good? Thanks again.

Bebo77 · #14 08/30/2007, 03:45 PM

lol.. i would NEVER pay that much for zoas..

cutnup · #15 08/30/2007, 04:59 PM

i do the same thing melev

mskurdah · #16 08/31/2007, 12:29 AM

I think you should/can order one or two 'cool' zoas, grow them out and THEN start to trade. I've seen first hand you DO get better stuff through 'those' sites. But if you are in CA you can get lucky and they will be local so it's not really much different than going to a LFS -- most of these guys will give you a big discount when you are local. I've done this both with reefready and with ultimatefrags -- both guys are REALLY cool, helpful, and have great setups.

ReneX · #17 09/03/2007, 08:21 PM

Yeah, I've payed a lot for some zoas.

I look at it this way: do I love it? Do I love it enough to pay that much for a polyp or two, in the hopes that it will grow? Will I still be happy if it doesn't? If the answer is yes, and I have the cash, I'll buy it.

If I don't have the money, or I don't want that particular Super Duper People Eater bad enough to pay that much, I don't buy it. No one's twisting my arm to make me buy these things

berniekyle · #18 09/04/2007, 10:38 AM

I just bought some envy orange ppe's. These are probably the

most expensive polyps out there. It comes down to how bad you

want it and whether you'll pay for it. The problem is too many

people (myself included) are willing to pay the prices people are

asking. I justify it to myself thinking I'll frag it and make my

money back. I think thats what everybody does. It just never

seems to work that way.

berniekyle · #19 09/04/2007, 10:51 AM

First it wont post, then it shows up twice. Sorry

Twisted · #20 09/04/2007, 10:55 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by melev
I prefer trading zoanthids when possible. I don't even bother buying them via those sites.

I agree....but didn't somebody have to buy them at some point to trade them?

clarkiis · #21 09/04/2007, 11:17 AM

I got a Blue zoa rock(which turned purple) size of a softball for $1 at my LFS, They were selling it for more but they had a great sale, around the time of Reefapolooza buy one coral get next coral for $1.. no limit but obviously yu have to pay for the more expensive ones. I should have went for more expensive corals though, could have gotten 2 $150 corals for $151 wasnt thinking at the time damn.

melev · #22 09/04/2007, 12:10 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Twisted
I agree....but didn't somebody have to buy them at some point to trade them?

When I was trading, there wasn't a dollar craze going on. We just loved the corals and wanted more of each kind. The zoanthid forums used to go nuts with pictures and posts of the many kinds.

It has turned into a cash cow for some. I don't get caught up in that stuff.

aquarius77 · #23 09/04/2007, 04:14 PM

I have to agree with marc even though i have noticed i have been getting cought up in it myself. I wont even offer up my named zoos that ive paid to much for, i would feel like i needed to charge someone a hefty price cause thats what i paid. That creates a problem for me, i would sooner give my corals away when they need trimmed than offer them up and have someone tell me im asking too much.

Bebo77 · #24 09/04/2007, 04:28 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by berniekyle
The problem is too many people (myself included) are willing to pay the prices people are

asking. I justify it to myself thinking I'll frag it and make my

money back.

see thats my big gripe.. the hobbyist who is trying to be a retailer... we dont have the overhead that these "farmers" do ... so why would you charge the same price as them?

its "thinking" like this that makes this hobby sooooo expensive..

cutnup · #25 09/04/2007, 04:41 PM

alot of these people are probably not even growing them out. they probably pay 15 bucks on a wholesale order for some zoanthids, frag them all up, stick a catchy name on them, and charge a arm and a leg.