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Post by tntmom on Jan 4, 2011 2:09:04 GMT -5
Last summer my sister in law and neice came up to visit from IL. Neice is a huge Twilight fan and wanted to visit Forks and La Push, so hopped on a ferry and took a day trip with many stops along various beaches on the way. I had stones that I tumbled and really liked but forgot all about them until I got a box of endcuts and found a slabbett of one of the exact stones that I found. Think it's called bloodstone, can someone verify? Next, looks like some sort of poppy jasper but I didn't think you could find them on the NW coast. Never purchased them before either so unsure if that is what they are. These were the only two like this that I found. 3rd is my favorites, don't know why but they just look pretty, sure would like to know what they are, middle one polished like a marble, guessing jasper, but what kind? And lastly (sorry to ask for so much...) is a pretty little brownish stone that didn't reveal it's window until after it tumbled for over a month. It's little, about the size of my index finger nail. Thanks so much! ~Krystee
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Sabre52
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Me and my gal, Rosie
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Post by Sabre52 on Jan 4, 2011 10:18:14 GMT -5
Yeah, I'd agree with you on the bloodstone. Pieces occur along with the poppy jasper in Jurassic deposits all up the west coast of the US from southern California to Washington. That is definitely poppy jasper too, again a product of those Jurassic chert deposits. Common on the Olympic Penn. and in deposits just north of San Francisco Bay and in the Sierra Nevada Mtns. Third examples do look like jasper and similar stuff can be found all over the Pacific NW. Final example is a little Thunderegg type nodule. In Washington there are deposits just outside Naches and of course, they occur all over central and eastern Oregon......Mel
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Post by tntmom on Jan 4, 2011 12:12:25 GMT -5
Awesome, thanks Mel!
Found a lot of pretty stuff on the coast. The best place was North Beach in La Push, but we couldn't bring any of them home with us because it's a reservation. We also didn't have time to explore the Olympic Rainforest. Next trip!
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Post by NatureNut on Jan 4, 2011 12:17:39 GMT -5
Just wanna say WA has some absolutely beautiful beach stones. Yours came out so nicely too. Jo
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Post by tanyafrench on Jan 4, 2011 12:59:16 GMT -5
Those are some beautiful stones. What a treat to be able to walk the beach and find stones like that. Great shine also.
Tanya
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peachfront
fully equipped rock polisher
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Post by peachfront on Jan 4, 2011 17:54:16 GMT -5
I thought the top (pink and green) stone was Unakite and would appreciate knowing where I went wrong. I have some of this so my curiosity is more than academic. I worry about putting the wrong names on my stones...
Agree about the others. Love that poppy!
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Post by tandl on Jan 4, 2011 22:22:37 GMT -5
The green and pink/orange are unakite , which is epidote and orthoclase feldspar Granite . The green ones look to be epidote , sometimes unakite has solid areas of epidote, these may be from the same stone . The brown one with the blue agate looks identical to some "chert" from here in illinois. but is probably a thunderegg .
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Sabre52
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Me and my gal, Rosie
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Post by Sabre52 on Jan 4, 2011 22:32:24 GMT -5
I'd agree the colors are similar to unakite and unakite does occur in Washington state but I've always thought it was more of a granitic type rock composed of compact crystals. I thought the polished example in the pic looks more non crystalline like a jasper and lots of green jasper occurs in that area too which when containing red areas, is often classed as a bloodstone. Epidote rich jasper identical to what the pic shows occurred in the Sierra Nevada Poppy jasper deposits I used to work on my ranch....Mel
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Post by tandl on Jan 4, 2011 22:39:01 GMT -5
Mel , the unakite i find here varies from corse to almost jasperlike consistancy . I should get together a few of the variants and post.
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peachfront
fully equipped rock polisher
Stones have begun to speak, because an ear is there to hear them.
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Post by peachfront on Jan 5, 2011 11:02:08 GMT -5
Tandl, I for one would greatly appreciate if you post your Unakite pix when you get a chance.
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Sabre52
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Member since August 2005
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Post by Sabre52 on Jan 5, 2011 11:57:08 GMT -5
Man I'd love to see those pics. I've never hunted unakite and am always wanting to see pics of new stuff......Mel
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Post by tandl on Jan 5, 2011 17:15:20 GMT -5
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,466
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Post by Sabre52 on Jan 5, 2011 18:46:28 GMT -5
Whoa! That is some pretty unakite and it does look granite like. I've only cut one piece long ago and I had a rough time with it as it was of mixed hardness. Does your variety finish to a smooth surface like the tumbled examples or does it kind of undercut. The one I did took a polish but had a slightly pebbly exterior due to the softer parts sanding away faster than the harder parts. I have that same problem with Wyoming thulite. Is there a secret to getting a smooth even shine on unakite? One of our members gave me a really nice slab from Virginia awhile ago but I've been afraid to mess with it....Mel
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Post by tandl on Jan 5, 2011 19:46:41 GMT -5
Unakite is granite . More of a trade or lapidary name , I have only polished a cab , i posted on cabs today , it polished fine , that one is a finer grained one . I have done some other granites on my flat lap , and they seem fine .there is that crazing/fracturey look . im no expert on polishing , im more of a rockhound and slabber , and have sold alot on ebay .
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peachfront
fully equipped rock polisher
Stones have begun to speak, because an ear is there to hear them.
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Post by peachfront on Jan 6, 2011 12:32:13 GMT -5
Your photographs are most helpful to me, Ted. I have one piece of this material from Virginia, that was a properly identified gift. The other Unakite I have...came from mixed-up rockpiles and estates...so I'm glad to know I have properly ID'd it.
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Post by tandl on Jan 6, 2011 14:22:43 GMT -5
epidotized granite is another name . Granite with appreciable epidote is called this and unakite .
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