Pricing

[Mark Harrison]

Does anyone know on the forum have any of the following species for sale, i already look on the classified's and nothing came up.

Aphonopelma chalcodes, Avicularia versicolor, Aphonopelma seemanni, Chromotopelma cyaneopubescens

Having looked at various pet stores and there prices, i was wondering how much would a CB sub adult Aphonopelma chalcodes cost? i was quoted £74! im a total newbie but thats like the same cost as a Theraphosa (excuse me if im totally mistaken). Have i avoided being ripped off or am i just wrong on prices. Any help would be appreciated

[Samantha Lewanewsky]

Unfortunately some sellers take advantage of the fact the buyer doesn't know how much the spider is worth, and the buyer ends up paying 3 times the price, or sometimes aren't sold the right species.
I tend to avoid pet shops, but you do get the occasional one with decent prices. I usually shop online, from TheSpiderShop and TarantulaBarn, they're helpful and haven't been ripped off once.
I don't know how much Aphonopelma chalcodes are usually sold for sorry, but £74 sounds a bit too much!

[Mark Harrison]

Thanks sarah, ive looked at the spidershop already, sadly he didnt have what i wanted...just got to keep my eyes peeled i suppose. Yes i have had trouble in the past with being sold mantids. Yeah i thought the price was high for the spider, i assumed that the rarity/size of the spider would dictate the price.

[Samantha Lewanewsky]

I've just asked Lee for you, he owns/runs spidershop, he said he hasn't got any Aphonopelma chalcodes, but he does have a couple of similar species - A.sp."New River" and A.sp."Paysoni".

[Mark Harrison]

Thanks sarah, much appreciated....Ill have to have a look at the sp. you recommended.

[James Box]

i'd expect to pay around £30-40 for an adult A chalcodes from a dealer or hobbyist.
i got A seemanni (evidently blue phase) for a tenner a sling, i think...or maybe it was two for ten was over a year ago!
luckily the C cyanopubescens i've owned have been gifts, so not sure about them...would expect pricey though.
versicolor can be a bit pricey too, i'd expect, though slings aren't too bad, as you'd expect...think mine were under a tenner each.
sorry i can't help for all, but yeah maybe slings are a good choice?
i am currently attempting to breed chalcodes for one, though they take 8-10 years to mature

[Peter Lacey]

I think sometimes ppl forget shops are there to make money, its a business, it has overheads, staff, food, taxes etc. Basic business practise would expect a 100% profit on its stock and hopefully a quick turn-around.
Online dealers, whether they're online stores or breeders do not have the same overheads and therefore can offer their stock much cheaper. It therefore makes sense to purchase from them where possible but you'll obviously incur postal charges and you have no way of examining the sales before purchasing.
You might sense I get a little tired of the shop bashing especially when I see ppl selling spiders for the same price without any of the overheads experienced by shops.

James has experience of buying Aphonopelma so I'd go with his example, GBB would fetch anything from £40-£70 from my experience and versicolor possibly within the lower end of that range. The trick is to shop around, especially when there are numerous offers and make your sale from respected suppliers, whether that be online or shops.
Good luck

[Mark Harrison]

I see your point peter. The particular shop i went to the staff dont seem experienced with tarantula's hence i was slightly dubious. Being a newbie and someone who has had bad experiences with past exotics, i was hoping to buy from a reputable and experienced breeder.

Are slings as hard to keep as ive been led to believe or is it different for each sp.?

[KJ Vezino]

If you want A. chalcodes, then you'll be just as happy with a "New River". Very similar, and equally docile, and some might argue more beautiful. I love mine.

[Peter Lacey]

I see your point peter. The particular shop i went to the staff dont seem experienced with tarantula's hence i was slightly dubious. Being a newbie and someone who has had bad experiences with past exotics, i was hoping to buy from a reputable and experienced breeder.

Are slings as hard to keep as ive been led to believe or is it different for each sp.?

Hi Mark. My sentiments are not so much directed at yourself but my observations over a number of forums where ppl believe a shop is over priced if it offers any exotic at a higher price than what can be found online.

If you decide to buy from an exotic shop it makes sense to get a feel for their experience. Common names as opposed to scientific names, regularly too much moisture in the enclosure, substrates that might only be vermiculite, and a general lack of knowledge of what the species is and where it came from are good clues.
Breeders are often good sources as they'll usually go to lengths to make sure there's no hybrids, they'll often have an abundance of available slings and experience of keeping them in the best of conditions.
TheSpiderShop gets great reviews, Virginia Cheeseman has a good selection, Martin Goss often has a range of inverts and the tarantulabarn is often quoted as a good source. You should have no probs googling these online stores.
Forums such as BTS, Arachnophiles and T-store often have offerings in the For Sale section which is worth keeping an eye on, or post in their Wanted section.

Slings are often quite cheap allowing easy purchases of a handful of Ts. Their requirements are often little more than a film tub, peat or coir substrate, the occassional misting and feeding of small insects twice a week. But, you should expect losses which might be attributed to the learning curve of looking after them or nature's way of weeding out the weak. If you get things right you'll probably end up with a bunch of juveniles that you then decide to sell on, but more importantly you'll have the joy of watching with fascination how these small creatures grow, go through their moults and develop their adult colours. Very rewarding and something you'll certain try at some point in the hobby. My personal recommendation as a first T would be to seek out a large sling or small juvenile, Grammostola, Brachypelma or Aphonopelma make excellent, undemanding starters.
I can't offer you what you're after but I do have some nice sized juvenile B. albopilosum (Honduran Curly Hair) if you're interested.

[mary walters]

Anyone can come collect slings from us when we have them, definitely pick your own.

I think most people are like me though, send the best out and keep the dodgey ones, or send 2 for 1.

You will see cheaper from breeders, my prices got from £1 depending on sp and rarity. When I have parahybana they are 50p.

[lynn mawdesley]

If you want A. chalcodes, then you'll be just as happy with a "New River". Very similar, and equally docile, and some might argue more beautiful. I love mine.

I would agree with that KJ my 'New river' female is stunning

Mark if you check down the page of threads i posted a pic of mine.

Lynn

[Mrs Linda Street]

I go along with a lot of what Peter says about buying from shops, they do have to make a profit, but the word reasonable needs to be added into that, because some pet shops are completely ott, but at the end of the day it's nice to be able to buy a T from within the hobby, then hopefully it benefits both the buyer and the seller with price and history and hopefully a T that has been looked after and in good condition.