cardiobill
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since March 2012
Posts: 879
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Post by cardiobill on May 27, 2012 0:10:36 GMT -5
Absolutely gorgeous Krystee!! The level of talent on this board continues to amaze me. I have seen posts on here questioning if this is a hobby or profession for people. Some of the stuff I see on here would be best classified as art in my opinion. Beautiful!!
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Post by Roller on May 27, 2012 0:22:14 GMT -5
thanks for showing .. Ive been watching this stuff !
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hubrocks
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since April 2011
Posts: 1,563
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Post by hubrocks on May 27, 2012 0:44:56 GMT -5
That is nice,nice,nice!!! Hub
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Post by talkingstones on May 27, 2012 5:22:51 GMT -5
Beautiful Krystee! Love the color and the shaping and and shine are incredible!
Cathy
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grayfingers
Cave Dweller
Member since November 2007
Posts: 4,575
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Post by grayfingers on May 27, 2012 7:49:06 GMT -5
What a treat to see this new agate cabbed by such a pro! Beautiful. Bill
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disderodude
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2012
Posts: 212
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Post by disderodude on May 27, 2012 8:01:18 GMT -5
I love Ed's comment! I often think this way while digging the Disderos, wishing some of these beauties could talk and tell me exactly what happenned out at "The Playground" (name of the Disdero claim), for this material to be scattered in the soil amongst the beautiful Pines and Spruce. Something violent happenned millions of yrs ago! Todd and I sit in the campsite below the huge "Spike" bluff and ponder this... It truly fascinates me!
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cccbock
spending too much on rocks
Member since December 2011
Posts: 499
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Post by cccbock on May 27, 2012 8:57:12 GMT -5
super nice !!
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itsandbits
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since March 2012
Posts: 825
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Post by itsandbits on May 27, 2012 9:23:43 GMT -5
Well Warren, there's 2 huge volcanic events there each one up to 500 ft thick depending on the area you go into and then some glaciation and that layer of ash just under the agate is ash from another pretty big one and then the glaciers came back in and pushed things around some more a few times is my guess. Wells Grey park was a more recently volcanic; and still active, so I suspect that's where the ash layer came from
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disderodude
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2012
Posts: 212
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Post by disderodude on May 27, 2012 9:38:23 GMT -5
Quite interesting! There is a rock bluff going all the way along the top of the portion of the valley where I staked this claim. It seems to me as though some of it broke away and tumbled into the valley below. A lot of the Disderos are found with some of the host rock still attatched, but some of the host has eroded and decomposed leaving just chunks of the seam agate material. Also, what kind of minerals were involved to make all the color combos? Something happenned in the immediate vicinity involving a lot of heat, pressure etc. It's hard to find large chunks that are crack-free!
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Post by helens on May 27, 2012 9:50:17 GMT -5
So do most of the agates have to be picked out of solid rock, or can you find quite a bit that's already shaken loose? Is it the best agates still stuck in the rock?
I have never seen a mine, and have always wondered exactly how rocks are found... I always read about seams and veins (for all types of stones), but don't know how they work. Are there a whole lot of horizontal seams across a big area that are exposed (then you dig deeper to follow the seam?), or are they more a scattered pattern across an area (like if you dropped a handful of rocks on the ground, so that the greater concentration is at a center point, with rest scattered more widely across a much greater geographic area... ie., like a volcanic activity).
I guess the question would make more sense if I ask, are they formed from the action of one ancient volcanic burst in the proximate geographic area, or a plate shift that runs along a very long band (like the san andreas fault) that accounts for these agates (which would make it possible for disdero to be remotely related to say Ellenburgs).
I haven't seen any geological maps or info that explains a potential mineral 'belt' to help pinpoint good rock picking spots. Just geological maps that are huge patches that are broken out by rocks found from the different eras, pre-cambian, mezozoic, jurrasic, etc.
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disderodude
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2012
Posts: 212
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Post by disderodude on May 27, 2012 10:31:26 GMT -5
I have found nice chunks in the soil, then a foot away find a chunk that fits perfectly with the original one. Then, at dig 2 I located some sweet blue in the host rock that went down into the ground and of course were buried by tailings since found. I continued to expose more seams in the dig 2 bluff and we found multi-colored seams still in the host rock that were kind of vertical and of course were buried also. It's hard to get people to follow a program when all they're interested in is harvesting beautiful agate. Then they're like: Ummm, where did the seam go? Well, if you look at the direction of the seams, you ran out of bluff and buried the seam with a mtn of tailings! Now I need a machine to get back to the original grade and start going down to chase the material! Digs 2 and 3 are about 120 yards apart with the dig 3 material mostly in soil. On the top of the bluff above digs 2,3 I located more colorful material heading in the general direction of 2 and 3. Dig 4 is located approximately 300 yards down the slope from 2 and 3 and yields the same material. Spike (the original Legacy claim), is located about 3/4 of a mile away and has given up mostly brown/yellow chunks of seam right along the road but in the last 2 yrs has yielded reds, blues and purples also. There is a lot of ground in between. Once the demand for the material shows me it's time to start getting larger quantities, I will make the necessary adjustments. This is why I'm still very attatched to every piece...I have maybe 300 lbs left right now including rough and specimens. In order to justify the money I spend during exploration to my sweetie....I guess I need to let some go!
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adrian65
Cave Dweller
Arch to golden memories and to great friends.
Member since February 2007
Posts: 10,777
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Post by adrian65 on May 27, 2012 12:52:51 GMT -5
What a beautiful material! And your trade mark killer shine is there.
Adrian
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stoneviews
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since April 2009
Posts: 1,864
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Post by stoneviews on May 27, 2012 14:54:45 GMT -5
Awesome!!!!!!!!
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Post by helens on May 27, 2012 15:03:42 GMT -5
Well, Warren, sounds like you want to dig it right, and try to figure out where the parts are:).
Here in Florida, there's an old phosphorus mine, and it's where a lot of the old calcite clamshells are found. I have not been there, but I have read about it... and what the mine owner does is takes a small backhoe (like a bobcat), and digs up big scoops of the area where the fossils are located, and moves them to a clear area for people to dig through. This way, they aren't burying the stuff again where they are found, and also it's easier to dig through the already broken up tailings than the hard dirt/rocks for those paying to dig (I guess he gets to see what gets dug up too as he's scooping so he can pull out any potential super big pieces too?).
From the look of the seam that Todd posted earlier, I thought... well, if you drill near but not on the seam, load the holes with expansion material that will crack the surrounding rock but not the seam, then pick up the rubble with a small bobcat and move it to a clear area with no rocks... it may be way easier to 'mine', than to have lots of people hacking at seams, cracking agates, and burying your seams/veins. WHILE making it easier for them to sort the tailings without the backbreaking labor?
Here in Florida, you can rent heavy equipment for a day or 2, then return it. If you cracked all the visible seams 1 day, you could rent a bobcat (small backhoe) out there and move it into little mounds for sorting somewhere far enough away from the actual dig to not mess up any agates. Just a thought:).
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Post by Tony W on May 27, 2012 18:13:18 GMT -5
Great cut for a great pattern! Love that. T
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hand2mouthmining
spending too much on rocks
Purveyors of California Gem Rock
Member since September 2011
Posts: 495
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Post by hand2mouthmining on May 27, 2012 21:49:03 GMT -5
An amazing cab, indeed! Great work! Wish we could afford some ... Sigh!
Pax, Kris
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Post by rockjunquie on May 28, 2012 20:43:09 GMT -5
I can't remember if I commented the first time I came to look at this, but I keep coming back to look and have to tell you- this is one killer cab!!! Superb in every way!
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goldensummergirl
noticing nice landscape pebbles
Reach for the stars...and the stones.
Member since August 2010
Posts: 85
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Post by goldensummergirl on May 28, 2012 21:38:11 GMT -5
THAT is one gorgeous cab!!!
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Post by gingerkid on May 29, 2012 13:53:01 GMT -5
Gorgeous Disdero cab, Krystee! Perfect in every way!! ;D
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Post by helens on May 29, 2012 23:03:35 GMT -5
Like I said, Krystee is the most meticulous cabber I've yet seen. Not that others are not fantastic cabbers, but she's totally detail obsessed and it shows. I have 2 of her cabs... holy crap... flawless... really really flawless.
I just cabbed one of the disdero I have, I didn't do the final polish, and I have plans to make it as the focal for a bracelet. I'm hooking up with a silversmith friend this Thurs, we have a playdate at her studio, and I have my fingers crossed it's out of the tumbler by then. If not, I'll see if I can make the silver bezel for it anyway and finish the polish later.
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