Nice pickup on the heat sealer Randy....will definitely come in handy and be a lot better than the usual rubber band action

Quick question - where do you all get your poly bags? I've been going by my LFS and swiping them from them but need to get some more soon. I checked out Uline.com but wasn't sure I need thousands

Dive, you can get bags from kensfish.com in smaller quantities. I just get bags from the LFS though, since he gave me a whole box for like $10, so I won't need any for a long time.

not to butt in but the poly bags that he's got came from uline

3x12"
http://www.uline.com/Product/ProductDetail...eywords=s-10940

6x18" (im not sure if i gave you these or not)
http://www.uline.com/Product/ProductDetail...keywords=s-2126

Sorry for cluttering up your thread Randy...



I forgot about those bags and that link. Tanks for posting it Nick.




Thanks for the info and links ScottyReef....I think these were the ones that I was looking at. I guess I may have to bite the bullet and dropped the cash on them at some point.

Yeah, Adam. You're getting the 3x12" bags. Feel free to clutter. lol. Thought I'd post some requested pics here for the pending BAR swap. Keep in mind the acans were cut only a couple of days ago, so they could be a bit irritated and not 100% healed. By request...













Adam, let me know if you want a couple of these acan heads. If so, I'll set them aside for you.

Wow...really nice looking Acan frags!!! I guess it's a good thing we don't live closer to each other since I would just be over at your place drooling in your tank all day Since money is a little on the tight side right now, if you can just PM what all you have in the 1-2 head Acan department maybe I can choose from there. I just couldn't tell in the above if the smaller frags were cut from the larger first picture or if they were different.

As an update on your frags....I was able to get a really nice 1/2-3/4" frag of the Bonsai for you and really really nice chunk of the Red Planet. I was SO happy that I was able to frag the Bonsai for you as I know this is the one that you really had your eye on. Although it has been somewhat of a slow grower so far in my tank, it has started to take off lately. I'm sure all of the frags you're getting are going to be rockin' in your system.

That last Chalice frag picture is awesome...what a stellar little piece. Looks to me like a psychedelic bullfrog submerged under water with some crazy red eyes looking at me Did you say you were going to toss that in my box as well?? Just kidding....keep feeding that bad boy as it looks like it's already starting to grow nicely for you. If only these Chalice weren't so spendy I think all of us would have a tank full of them. I'm sure in due time they will come down in price a bit as more and more people get them and start selling them. You should check out the Chalice showoff thread over on R2R....simply amazing what some people have.

-Adam

Dude, I'll give you 4 heads of EACH for $?? (Check PM ) since you're such a cool guy and we already got a swagger deal goin. They look better in clusters and will multiply faster.

NICE! That bonsai has been evading me for a very long time. Had one once before but I acquired it with no color. Didn't survive after the Interceptor OD. So YES, I am quite anxious to have a chance at it once again. Red Planet too? Right on. My red milli has actual started to turn RED/PINK. Tough coral to keep happy IMO. I hear the Red Planet gets seriously red when it's pleased.

Yeah he reminds of that Gollum character in Lord of the Rings. The BGM is not as drab though, haha. I'd be glad to cut you a piece of BGM and the Miami in our next round of trading. Hopefully it grows quickly! I'll have to take a look at the R2R site. I hear many of the BAR members bring cherry chalices for the group swap. It'll be good to know what I'm searching for.

nice bgm frag!lemme know if you have bgm frag for trade?or what trade/coral you're looking for it.

Yo Makoy, congrats on having your tank featured. You're the Pacquiao of nano reefing. haha

This is the only BGM frag I have . Might not be 4-5mos before it's big enough to share? Could be worth the wait though since this has direct lineage to THE mother colony. Trying to accelerate growth by feeding mysis daily, but it must have a super high metabolism bc it's not growing nearly as fast as the hurricane.

***
BTW, I stopped dosing Elos A.A. last week. I was adding only 2 drops per day, before I noticed something wasn't quite right with the color in my tank. 2 water changes later and I've noticed the color is back.That was the only supplement I was adding to the water other than SeaChem Reef Salt, B-Ionic 2 part, and Kent Tech Mg. Hmmm.

From my experience trying my hand with dosing Brightwell A.A., I found it really easy to overdose the tank and end up causing more harm than good. Just seems like a REALLY small amount goes a long way. Even now that I've started dosing MB7/Vodka, I'm still really reluctant to mess with the aminos again.

I've heard similar experiences with Biofuel from Seachem, the Elos A.A., and the Brightwell Coral Amino.

Seems like you have a really good thing going so no need to tinker too much

Glad you posted this info, Adam. Assures me that I've done the right thing for now. Never looked for anyone else's cautions with A.A. I decided to stop from my own observations. I'll be watching your thread intently for feedback on MB7/Vodka. Have a good Friday all.

good to finally meet randy. hope ya made out like a bandit

Likewise, Sam. The BAR swap was incredible. Nice peeps & very hospitable. Don't even know what I got yet. Looks like 20 pieces total!@#! Still trying to setup my new QT. I'm hell of exhausted over here. Forgot to mix salt before I left this morning.

Added 3 chalices and 5 new species of zoas to the display tank. Dipped them in FWE/Revive/Iodine solution first.

The rest is mostly SPS, but I'm thinking I really need to QT those for a few days at least. Can't wait to see what they look like under actinics PCs.

This is sureal. I don't think I'm buying coral for a little while. If I'm dreaming, don't wake me.

sounds great rand post pics i am a little pissed i couldnt go but i got a couple great pieces from my friend too so i guess i can feel to bad

LOL i told ya man hey that dude hooked u up w/ a large piece of bazooka joe! good score man. i can't wait to see pix of your goodies

The ultra premium stuff was wiped out within the 1st round, but I brought more coral home today than EVER. Freakin Sam was literally the 1st to pick out of everyone! Haha. For the record Sam, you grabbed the EXACT ONE I wanted. LOL. I was able to grab a killer Smurfzilla Echino, not to mention a 1+" Bazooka Joe trade for a slice of the Miami Hurricane. I owe that BAR member BIG TIME for that one.

Don't feel too bad though. I'm only 20mins away . You've given me some excellent stuff and I'll never forget it. Looks like you picked up some cool Scot-Ty pieces. Hehe, that's got a nice ring to it. I like em both.


Did you see what else he had in his cooler? a special release of the Darth Maul chalice. I owe it to you and Scotty for pulling me out to these incredible swaps. I hear the MARS regional swap is in Sept. How's that one?

i had my eye on only 2 pieces outta them all. when the 2nd one wasn't there when i picked again, i went on a SPSpree LOL. i didn't look in his cooler. i didn't know tom collected chalices. last time i spoke to him, he had mainly sps. i might go to the MARS swap.. i'm kinda burned out after this one. the drive was killer 4 me.

Sounds like you had a great swap Randy. Sure you'll have room for all of the pieces you'll be getting from me on Tuesday Looking forward to seeing your Bazooka Joe and all of the other new additions.

BAZOOKA JOE Frag
The next few days will be a critical period for this coral. It was FRESHLY CUT at the swap! One of the BAR members was nice enough to trade for a slice of the Hurricane. If the eye on the right doesn't make it, the other one forming on the left side definitely will. Hoping it will take some mysis tonight


This angle shows the incredible potential of this chalice. Can't wait until it grows out.


Introducing SMURFZILLA ECHINO/CHALICE. Picked this one out 1st round at the swap.


It may not look like much until you see the mother.



The fun ain't over yet. Adam's corals are on the way...

FYI Adam, I'm keeping ALL of the new SPS in quarantine at least until I ship out to you on Monday. At this moment in time, I can honestly say my display tank is 100% pest free. (underscore at this moment in time)

Oh la la ... I will take one of those ... one of those ... aaaaannnnnddddd ... you know something ... just shipped me your tank ... and I ship you mine That's fair no?

I have completely underestimated the awesomeness of chalice corals.

Time to buy.

Wowzer Randy. That Bazooka Joe is going to be one heck of a piece!!! The other Chalice additions are stunners as well but the Joe really overshadows them with the overall and rim color. Stunning.

Goodies are on their way to you Randy. Guaranteed by Noon tomorrow

Looking great randy I need to come over and see them in person. So what sps did you end up with anything amazing?

No way, I couldn't do that to you Man. That deal would be too much in my favor


Chalices are interesting creatures. Too bad they're so freakin expensive. I'm only trading until this economy recovers!

LMAO!!! I don't know about that

Economy gets better ... chalices prices go up ... hahaha.

The Bazooka is even more stunning in person! I've got a get you a piece of this one of these days Looks like it's still in healing mode though. Its edges have gotten just a bit darker, but that was expected.


Tomorrow is guaranteed to be a great day.


I've already posted the spectacular! BUT there may be some *potentially* spectacular SPS in there. They definitely need to color up. My guess is that the owners kept them in frag tanks for a few weeks before the swap.


LOL, I hope so. Cuz that's when I BREAK EVEN!@#!

I am just waiting to come up with my own line of chalices ... need catchy names though ... then frag them suckers up

Here is Manhattan ... you can totally pull that off ... as long as it has some fancy @$$ name ------------> = $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Hahaha. It's all about branding.


***
TOAST to a successful trade with Adam a.k.a. divecj! No QT, just dip for his stuff. All frags are now safely in the display. Nice frags. Great color! I moved the swap frags from my QT into the display as well. Closely inspected them for several days. No pests from what I can tell. They look MUCH NICER under the halide than PCs. I could have kept them in there another week longer, but I didn't want them to brown out completely. Worth a little risk for a little color .

Hmmm. WHAT TO DO WITH ALL THESE FRAGS??? I have the regional MARS swap to attend on the 12th of Sept. Maybe I'll wait until after MARS before I decide on where to mount all of this coral. LOL

Toast to you as well Randy. I hope that you're happy with what you got on your end. Glad that you didn't put my frags through the torturous QT ... they're picky and they only like the good light

I hear ya on the frags....I think I may be done with adding any branching, plating, and encrusting SPS for a bit. Need to make sure the ones that are in there have plenty o' room for growth. I think I'll be focusing on Chalice and really nice Acans for a while now. Thanks for getting me hooked again with some freaking awesome Acans

Look forward to seeing how the guys look in your tank. I'm sure they are going to be stellar with your care and attention.

My pleasure, Adam! Glad you like em. The frags you shipped are still adjusting to my 250w halide, I can tell. The monticap and superman have lightened up quite a bit since I put them in the display this morning - even though they're at the very bottom of the tank. May have been the dip as well. I did keep them in there for 10mins or so. Keeping hopeful for the little piece of bonsai you that were able to snip off. I won't hold you accountable for that one at all, since I did ask for a tiny piece of it . The rest are doing fantastic, but I'll wait for the whole bunch to acclimate before I snap any pics. Thanks again!

Quick CHALICE Photo Update

Bazooka Joe
Appears to be healing. Exposed skeleton is now covered with new growth. But it quickly lost color within 48hrs of placement in the tank. NOTE: It was freshly cut on Saturday morning. Chalice experts: Is swift color change normal?


My first chalice. Someone please let me know if there's a name for it. I just call it "Pink Chalice." Maybe I should call it "Victoria's Secret" and make some money off it. LOL


FINALLY, the BGM is showing new growth around its edges.


This is the one that started the chalice craze for me. Incredible growth. It started with 11 eyes (1.5mos ago?) and I recently cut two frags. Now it has about 16! (taken above water)


Still open to trading an eye for an eye. Anyone with a tyree pink watermelon? (taken with camera submerged in water)

looks good man! i was concerned that fragging that morning might catch infection. looks like they took care of the joe.

haha if you don't already have a name for it, why not victorias secret? i named my micromussa the super walmart micromussa

yo you going to the local swap on the 12th? dang didn't realize it was so close already..

Bazooka needs to get it's metallic green rim back!

Victoria's Secret it is, because she looks hotter than Heidi Klum on red satin sheets.

MARS? Hell yes. What r u fragging?

Chalice are looking stellar Randy....absolutely incredible growth on the Hurricane. I guess they weren't lying when they say that it's a fast grower.

Loving the name on the Pink Chalice....guess I know own a piece of the Victoria's Secret chalice

I wish we had as many frag swaps here as you guys do. It's usually a once a year thing around here. If I had more time and the impetus to do it, I would start a South Carolina Reefing Society...maybe sometime in the future. There are tons of great reefers in the state but hardly any are part of any reefing forums.

I think it also helps to start out with a decent-sized piece. Sigh, if I could only buy 10 eyes at a time, how satisfied i would be.

Haha. That name just increased the value of your frag tenfold! "Everybody lusts for a piece of Victoria's Secret." LMAO.

Ya know, I think the BAR and MARS swaps were annual events too. Just coincidentally back to back.

Could be wrong but looks like "Lava Chalice"??? Anyways, Victoria's Secret sounds better though...

Hmmm. Could be...

I dont think it is the lava flows i have seen are bright red with large coralites. the piece of mine is doing well i do have one question is this chalice kind of a slow grown because mine healthy but it not making a lot of headway in the growth department. I like Victoria's Secret you shoul make up your own LE name so you can start branding them

Hey Scott, I think it could be a slow grower if it wants to be. LOL. I've had it for just about 3yrs and it only grew a total of 3.5" in diameter. But I also kept it in the harshest of conditions for a good year. In the pic above, you can see new growth as the base only 1 month from fragging. So it could easily take off under optimal conditions. I'm pushing higher Alk levels @ 10-12dkH and Ca @ 440+. I load the tank with Mg to allow for this higher limit. I also feed my tank TWICE per day so that could be the reason why? *I'm changing 5gals weekly in case my skimmer can't keep up with the increased feeding regimen. Try placing mysis/brine on top of it and you'll see it puff up with little mouths that open up to take in the food. It's cool.

BTW, per your recommendation, I've been running the 4-8 dual light cycle on my frag bin. Also ordered a custom piece of tempered glass from this company in Roseville, to perfectly fit in the slot of my hang on light. That should eliminate 90% of the UV. I'll let you know how corals react after it's installed. Bc of my UV concerns I only keep a handful of stuff down there.

Let me think about this name thing a little more, while I continue my search for a true ID on this pink chalice.

***
Thought this was a cool shot. Sour apples, Japanese Hornets, Blue Tubs, Cat Eyes, Devil's Armor.


Sour Apple Zoas

Those Sour Apples and Japanese Hornets are SUPERB Randy.

Hows your Bazooka Joe doing I just got one today in a trade its only like one large eye and some smaller one on the side but i got a great deal on it though. I also got two other chalice but the Nano-Reefs are going to have wait until i release them as my own LE

Thank you Sir. Hopefully they grow out quickly.

Sounds alot like the piece I got! Congrats. My guy seems to be acclimating well to its new environment. All exposed skeleton has been covered by new growth and its green rim is showing nicely once again

I picked up a couple of cool Aussie Chalices from YourReef and ordered some pre-cut chalices from Exotic Aquarium yesterday. Like 10 of em. LOL. EXOTIC HAS THE ABSOLUTE LARGEST CHALICE SELECTION I'VE SEEN. Mostly came in from Bali. Word has it that the big industry guys have already acquired pieces from them and named them as their own Auction Edition frags. Great guys at Exotic. Met the owner for the first time yesterday. They don't claim lineage and keep pricing affordable to collectors, even though they might own the mother colonies! Thanks for the tip on that, Sam I owe you one.

Anxiously awaiting your LE release, Scott...

lol np. how much were the pieces? i didn't wanna know what they costed when i was there LOL

This chalice is more of a pink on emerald green versus the colors shown.


This one is red with yellow eyes. Bad pic.



I don't even know yet!@#! We agreed that they would be fragged and we'd discuss price later. LOL

LOL oh man what have u got yourself into!? haha jp

nice chalices man. you will be norcal chalice king very soon

Wow this is a great setup you got here Purp! I spent the past 3days reading through your entire 62pg is amazed of all the wonderful things you have accomplish on this tank. This is truly should be TOTM. Love your corals additions! Keep me posted bro
-David

We're not going to see you on America's Most Wanted for a hit you had to do to pay back your corals, are we

Can't wait to see ALL of your new pieces.

-Adam

if thats the case, i'm not answering any of your phone calls from the slammer randy