jamesp
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Member since October 2012
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Post by jamesp on Nov 3, 2022 10:10:39 GMT -5
I did a 3 month series of trips from a base camp near the Florida Georgia state line back in 2013 collecting coral from rivers and creeks in the territory. I bought back a bunch of 2 to 8+ pound coral heads and sawed them in half to facilitate reducing them to tumbles with a 4 ounce hammer. Most of the color is in the outer layer of the coral head. Example coral heads from south Georgia at the Withlacoochee River with meeh colors: Varieties extending about 250 miles from Tampa to Georgia after sawing in half and hammering them into tumbles back in 2013. All these have been tumbled over the years.: Went back last week and hammered some more tumbles from the remains of those old coral heads and other later found interesting ones. Note how this stuff has rarely a fracture from the hammer blows, great rock for making tumbles. One spot in particular on the Suwannee River yielded the the best colors. Started rolling them last week, about 30 pounds.: 10 years increase in age must have had changed my body. I have a habit of resting the coral head on my thigh and striking tumbles off off the coral heads with a small hammer. A padded footing often prevents fracture propagation when hammering some types of stones. Especially this glassy coral. Apparently I have become sensitive to bruising over the past 10 years. This is the top of my thigh and was a surprise !:
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Post by rockpickerforever on Nov 3, 2022 10:46:57 GMT -5
Nov 3, 2022 8:10:39 GMT -7 jamesp said: 10 years increase in age must have had changed my body. I have a habit of resting the coral head on my thigh and striking tumbles off off the coral heads with a small hammer. A padded footing often prevents fracture propagation when hammering some types of stones. Especially this glassy coral. Apparently I have become sensitive to bruising over the past 10 years. This is the top of my thigh and was a surprise !: You ain't no spring chicken, jamesp ! All of us are getting older, our bodies no longer tolerate what we used to do to them in the past. It is sometimes a challenge for me, when I see a bruise to remember how I did it!
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rocknewb101
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since October 2022
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Post by rocknewb101 on Nov 3, 2022 11:14:52 GMT -5
Those are so cool, and SO many of them!!
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jamesp
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Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,158
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Post by jamesp on Nov 3, 2022 14:35:31 GMT -5
Nov 3, 2022 8:10:39 GMT -7 jamesp said: 10 years increase in age must have had changed my body. I have a habit of resting the coral head on my thigh and striking tumbles off off the coral heads with a small hammer. A padded footing often prevents fracture propagation when hammering some types of stones. Especially this glassy coral. Apparently I have become sensitive to bruising over the past 10 years. This is the top of my thigh and was a surprise !: You ain't no spring chicken, jamesp ! All of us are getting older, our bodies no longer tolerate what we used to do to them in the past. It is sometimes a challenge for me, when I see a bruise to remember how I did it! Must have to do with our thinning blood Jean. Gentle reminders So those bruises just show up from no wheres ? We had a hemophiliac friend, she could bruise real easily. She outlived her predicted age. She always had to be very cautious. Just had two front teeth pulled from a bicycle crash when a kid. They finally had to go. Roots had to be dug out. Novocaine wearing off, talk about pain. Got to be tough to get old ! It has been a long time since tumbling coral. Sort of a blast from the past. I really miss the beautiful scenery collecting it. Primeval enviro for sure.
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jamesp
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Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,158
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Post by jamesp on Nov 3, 2022 14:41:29 GMT -5
Those are so cool, and SO many of them!! Thanks rocknewb101. This coral was silicified by a different process than many western agates are silicified. The dissolved silica came from dissolving diatoms in limestone. Typical of cherts. It is real tough and hard, shapes slowly in tumbling step #1, but because of its high hardness it polished quickly. The shoals in the river is littered with them. No shortage when collecting.
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waterboysh
spending too much on rocks
Member since April 2021
Posts: 369
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Post by waterboysh on Nov 3, 2022 15:10:09 GMT -5
This is the area I live in. I would love to go coral hunting in my kayak but I don't really know where to go or what to look for.
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Post by HankRocks on Nov 3, 2022 15:29:36 GMT -5
Nov 3, 2022 8:10:39 GMT -7 jamesp said: 10 years increase in age must have had changed my body. I have a habit of resting the coral head on my thigh and striking tumbles off off the coral heads with a small hammer. A padded footing often prevents fracture propagation when hammering some types of stones. Especially this glassy coral. Apparently I have become sensitive to bruising over the past 10 years. This is the top of my thigh and was a surprise !: You ain't no spring chicken, jamesp ! All of us are getting older, our bodies no longer tolerate what we used to do to them in the past. It is sometimes a challenge for me, when I see a bruise to remember how I did it! Must have to do with our thinning blood Jean. Gentle reminders So those bruises just show up from no wheres ? We had a hemophiliac friend, she could bruise real easily. She outlived her predicted age. She always had to be very cautious. Just had two front teeth pulled from a bicycle crash when a kid. They finally had to go. Roots had to be dug out. Novocaine wearing off, talk about pain. Got to be tough to get old ! It has been a long time since tumbling coral. Sort of a blast from the past. I really miss the beautiful scenery collecting it. Primeval enviro for sure. Like my Dad used to say when he was in his late 80's, "On a good day he didn't feel any pain". This is coming from a guy who painted his whole house by himself at 84 and spread a dump truck full of dirt at about the same age. Father Time and Mother Nature they will collect from all of us!!!
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jamesp
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Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,158
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Post by jamesp on Nov 3, 2022 15:55:02 GMT -5
Must have to do with our thinning blood Jean. Gentle reminders So those bruises just show up from no wheres ? We had a hemophiliac friend, she could bruise real easily. She outlived her predicted age. She always had to be very cautious. Just had two front teeth pulled from a bicycle crash when a kid. They finally had to go. Roots had to be dug out. Novocaine wearing off, talk about pain. Got to be tough to get old ! It has been a long time since tumbling coral. Sort of a blast from the past. I really miss the beautiful scenery collecting it. Primeval enviro for sure. Like my Dad used to say when he was in his late 80's, "On a good day he didn't feel any pain". This is coming from a guy who painted his whole house by himself at 84 and spread a dump truck full of dirt at about the same age. Father Time and Mother Nature they will collect from all of us!!! The 80+ year olds maintaining these farms around here never complain either. And some will work you into the dirt. We got softer than Dad's generation Henry. Staying active must be the medicine.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 3, 2022 16:17:00 GMT -5
jamespMan James! You go big or go home huh? With your tumbling and with your tormenting your body! Those are some awesome pieces there.
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jamesp
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Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,158
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Post by jamesp on Nov 3, 2022 17:19:20 GMT -5
This is the area I live in. I would love to go coral hunting in my kayak but I don't really know where to go or what to look for. Are you closer to White Springs Fl or Valdosta Ga ? About the only time to collect is when the rivers down there are way low in water level...
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Nov 3, 2022 17:25:15 GMT -5
jamespMan James! You go big or go home huh? With your tumbling and with your tormenting your body! Those are some awesome pieces there. Had a business that made you work a ton in warm weather(with wife) and none during the cold season so the long journeys(w/out wife lol). That is a younger coral than the material you find up your way. It adhered to the top of the limestone bedrock left from your older ocean if not mistaken. It is like the only tumble able rock in Florida.
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 3, 2022 17:25:49 GMT -5
Are you sure that bruise came from the coral...or did you say the wrong thing to the Mrs. again?? I loved seeing them sorted in the buckets/barrels! Any one of those pictures of the tumble ready rough would make an amazing 1000 piece puzzle!!
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Nov 3, 2022 17:38:51 GMT -5
Are you sure that bruise came from the coral...or did you say the wrong thing to the Mrs. again?? I loved seeing them sorted in the buckets/barrels! Any one of those pictures of the tumble ready rough would make an amazing 1000 piece puzzle!! I figured that photo may draw a comment. Never figured it would be Jason(ho ho ha ha). She's never cripple me, needs her slave too much ! Thanks for that, it could have been arranged/selected better to provide more color for that. Funny, all that exploring to find the spots with the best colored material and I never returned to hit those spots thoroughly. Just sorta sampled them. And part of the problem was that it took 3 hours to go upstream to where no man goes and then return loaded without dragging bottom. I did get a little motorized kayak that will get to spot in 45 minutes. Maybe next year.. A lot of the nicer coral is hidden on the river bottom(with sand banks) and no one knows it is there w/out snorkeling. Love taking people rock hunting on those secluded rivers, it is pretty and primeval territory. I should send you some cab grade stuff. It is HARD material.
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pebblesky
fully equipped rock polisher
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Post by pebblesky on Nov 3, 2022 18:12:09 GMT -5
Love to see the details on tumbled corals.
I am pretty sure if I run hammer all around my thigh it wouldn't just be bruises... there might be random body parts...
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 3, 2022 18:53:38 GMT -5
Are you sure that bruise came from the coral...or did you say the wrong thing to the Mrs. again?? I loved seeing them sorted in the buckets/barrels! Any one of those pictures of the tumble ready rough would make an amazing 1000 piece puzzle!! I figured that photo may draw a comment. Never figured it would be Jason(ho ho ha ha). She's never cripple me, needs her slave too much ! Thanks for that, it could have been arranged/selected better to provide more color for that. Funny, all that exploring to find the spots with the best colored material and I never returned to hit those spots thoroughly. Just sorta sampled them. And part of the problem was that it took 3 hours to go upstream to where no man goes and then return loaded without dragging bottom. I did get a little motorized kayak that will get to spot in 45 minutes. Maybe next year.. A lot of the nicer coral is hidden on the river bottom(with sand banks) and no one knows it is there w/out snorkeling. Love taking people rock hunting on those secluded rivers, it is pretty and primeval territory. I should send you some cab grade stuff. It is HARD material. I never turn away material...especially from you!! You know I'm good for a trade or two! Funny story: When my wife and I got married, I got her a hot air balloon ride for a wedding gift. She had never flown before, so I figured that would be a nice surprise. She was excited about it...but a little nervous. We went for the ride...and boy was it a ride!! They launch first thing in the morning when it's cooler...but as we were sailing along, the wind picked up like crazy. It blew us into the National Park...where you're not supposed to land hot air balloons! Well...we didn't land...we crashed when we came down! Everyone got banged up pretty good...but no major injuries. My wife ended up with a decent bruise on her knee. When we got home, we were taking pictures of the injuries...and "someone" came up with the idea to put on a bunch of eye make-up and make it look like she had a black eye...then send the pictures to her family with the saying "Well this happened only a few days after the wedding!" - and wait to see which of her family was going to react first! So we did! LOL
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waterboysh
spending too much on rocks
Member since April 2021
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Post by waterboysh on Nov 4, 2022 10:42:09 GMT -5
This is the area I live in. I would love to go coral hunting in my kayak but I don't really know where to go or what to look for. Are you closer to White Springs Fl or Valdosta Ga ? About the only time to collect is when the rivers down there are way low in water level... White Springs is basically exactly halfway between me and Valdosta.
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jamesp
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Member since October 2012
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Post by jamesp on Nov 4, 2022 11:47:33 GMT -5
Love to see the details on tumbled corals. I am pretty sure if I run hammer all around my thigh it wouldn't just be bruises... there might be random body parts... That bad habit seeded when I used to make tumbles on site in the river where the coral is found pebblesky. The kayak did not have much space so reducing the coral heads to tumbles made sense. And I could pick out the best tumble shaped hammered off rocks - i.e. no fractures, no divots, etc. I'd bring a chair to sit in(and later a rubber pad to protect my thigh !!). Enjoy killer scenery. Funny, I was not alone, the shoals that were loaded with coral heads were also loaded with chips where native man sat and made arrowheads and chopping/scraping tools. These chips and fragments also made fine tumbles. These scrapers and pottery shards were found on a single shoal rock bar way up the river at very low water level where few boats could go. The glassy fossil coral was the coupe-de-grace of arrowhead making material: Scrapers from another rock bar found in a 30 foot circle: Note water/sand blast polish:
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Nov 4, 2022 12:01:41 GMT -5
Are you closer to White Springs Fl or Valdosta Ga ? About the only time to collect is when the rivers down there are way low in water level... White Springs is basically exactly halfway between me and Valdosta. Well I don't like you. You live where I want to live and I am very jealous. To bad Jim. Yes I can put you on fossil coral within 300 to 500 yards down river from the White Springs boat ramp where Hwy 41 crosses the river on the east side of town. But you must go at low low water level and it would help if you were in bathing suit and could feel along the bottom of the river. The east bank has exposed coral out of the water. Lots of yellow and black coral. This is some of what I collected there in a short stop. You should see the better finds sawn: The yellow ones came from this spot, the other colors from a secret spot(sorry): www.flickr.com/photos/67205364@N06/albums/72157646653965727
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jamesp
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Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,158
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Post by jamesp on Nov 4, 2022 12:14:00 GMT -5
I figured that photo may draw a comment. Never figured it would be Jason(ho ho ha ha). She's never cripple me, needs her slave too much ! Thanks for that, it could have been arranged/selected better to provide more color for that. Funny, all that exploring to find the spots with the best colored material and I never returned to hit those spots thoroughly. Just sorta sampled them. And part of the problem was that it took 3 hours to go upstream to where no man goes and then return loaded without dragging bottom. I did get a little motorized kayak that will get to spot in 45 minutes. Maybe next year.. A lot of the nicer coral is hidden on the river bottom(with sand banks) and no one knows it is there w/out snorkeling. Love taking people rock hunting on those secluded rivers, it is pretty and primeval territory. I should send you some cab grade stuff. It is HARD material. I never turn away material...especially from you!! You know I'm good for a trade or two! Funny story: When my wife and I got married, I got her a hot air balloon ride for a wedding gift. She had never flown before, so I figured that would be a nice surprise. She was excited about it...but a little nervous. We went for the ride...and boy was it a ride!! They launch first thing in the morning when it's cooler...but as we were sailing along, the wind picked up like crazy. It blew us into the National Park...where you're not supposed to land hot air balloons! Well...we didn't land...we crashed when we came down! Everyone got banged up pretty good...but no major injuries. My wife ended up with a decent bruise on her knee. When we got home, we were taking pictures of the injuries...and "someone" came up with the idea to put on a bunch of eye make-up and make it look like she had a black eye...then send the pictures to her family with the saying "Well this happened only a few days after the wedding!" - and wait to see which of her family was going to react first! So we did! LOL Oh no, good intentions gone bad. You probably had a blast, perhaps not the better half. I'm jealous(as long as no life was lost) Thankful no one was injured severely. You got a long ride at no charge ! I know you were attempting a romantic outcome where you swept here off her feet ! Maybe that happened anyway, I hope so. Bet you guys cherish the memory. Perhaps not the inlaws... It brought to mind this song except substitute "brass bed" for "hot air balloon basket":
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Nov 4, 2022 12:52:37 GMT -5
Are you closer to White Springs Fl or Valdosta Ga ? About the only time to collect is when the rivers down there are way low in water level... White Springs is basically exactly halfway between me and Valdosta. You can go now. The Suwannee is down to 276 cubic feet per second flow rate at White Springs. I prefer 100 to 200 cfs but you should score. Please keep me/RTH posted on what you find. A good spot again is just below the hwy 129 ramp on the left side headed downstream. You should see 1 to 10 pound rocks laying on the sand about 300 to 700 (?) yards down - left side.
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