Hi Dcob and all, I can tell you I have seen some beauties over...

Hi Dcob and all,

I can tell you I have seen some beauties over the years and it really is a solid case of buyer beware, although as I have said nimble traders can still make a dollar.

I have been manufacturing mining equipment in Brisbane since 1989 and involved in mining long before that. One of the most interesting mines I ever visited was Grasberg and I got to know several of the people on site quite well. (By the way all fine upstanding gentlemen of integrity.)

It was in Irian Jaya around the mid-nineties that I learned to fasten my seat belt tightly and to keep it on when in a helicopter. The reason for this was that at the time the occasional geologist around Busang had a habit of falling out of them mysteriously.

The Calgary Bre-X boys at the time made David Breeze look sincere by comparison.

These boys took stock ramping to a whole new level sending a penny stock to over $280 Canadian dollars in a few short months. Of course some people got the timing right and still made a lot of money before the fraud was uncovered by Freeport.

Drilling for oil / gas or Gold is never a simple matter and anyone that believes an estimate of 75% of success probably deserves to provide company directors with a lavish life style.

I recommend younger players read the following link on the Bre-X story and whist doing so remember the regulating bodies where all there policing the situation in much the same way as our dear own ASIC still do today!

http://geology.about.com/cs/mineralogy/a/aa042097.htm

Cheers and very best regards: Andy