James,
 
Welcome to Conch-L, I hope you have a great time on the list.  Those are two
very interesting families to have as favorites, one is very small and
limited and the other quite large.  I also enjoy both the Conus and the
Pleurotomaria.  A quick tip on the slit shells (somehow that name just
doesn't seem grand enough for these fellows) is to watch carefully for
shells less than gem quality.  For unless you have a lot of money, they can
be tough to obtain.  However, I have purchased three different species over
the years and all were less than $45.  They look great in my cabinet and the
imperfections do not show unless you pull them out and really look closely
at each shell.  Don't get me wrong, I really like a gem quality shell, but
sometimes a nick here or there shows the critter had an interesting life and
it often lowers the price.  So watch carefully and you can also get one of
these great shells for less than the hundreds of dollars they normally
cost.  Of course that only works with a few species -- some will never
(probably) be cheap.
 
Good luck with your shells, you've chosen a fascinating hobby/interest.
 
Tom Eichhorst in New Mexico, USA
 
James M Cheshire wrote:
 
> Hi all, I'm new to CONCH-L .
> I am a young collector, aged 14.
> My favorite shell families include
> conidae and pleurotomariidae.
> I hope to make some new friends!
>
> Kind Regards James
>
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