robsrockshop
has rocks in the head
Member since August 2012
Posts: 715
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Post by robsrockshop on Aug 2, 2013 7:11:26 GMT -5
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robsrockshop
has rocks in the head
Member since August 2012
Posts: 715
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Post by robsrockshop on Aug 2, 2013 7:38:17 GMT -5
Well after just now reading about japanese beetles perhaps I should've squashed him instead of set him free. I am not 100% sure that's what this is most of the pics I see on the net they have brownish looking backs. I do know despite the outbreak I don't have any more of these than I did in the past and I haven't really noticed them doing much damage so i'm not too worried about it. My walnut caterpillars are the biggest problem and I declared war on them.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Member since January 1970
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Aug 2, 2013 8:02:44 GMT -5
Yeah, I believe that's a jewel beetle. This is a Japanese Beetle. The head is under the shell.
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robsrockshop
has rocks in the head
Member since August 2012
Posts: 715
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Post by robsrockshop on Aug 2, 2013 8:23:58 GMT -5
Yeah I think you might be right, that's it's not, but if it's a jewel not sure either. Everyone calls them japanese because they are green.
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Post by rockpickerforever on Aug 2, 2013 9:11:51 GMT -5
Rob, cool keokuks! Are you able to cut them down the middle with the vice setup you have? Or is it off-center? Scott, you're wrong about the beetle. You posted a pic of an Arizona fig beetle ( Cotinus mutabilis), AKA Fig beetle, green fruit beetle, etc. Rob posted a pick of a Calosoma scrutator. It's commonly called a "caterpillar hunter" or "fiery searcher" and is a good bug to have around. link The fig beetle is not. My fig tree is swarmed with those big bombers, eating all my fruit.
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Post by roy on Aug 2, 2013 9:16:07 GMT -5
playing with rocks and good old rock n roll wow sounds like a good time
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robsrockshop
has rocks in the head
Member since August 2012
Posts: 715
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Post by robsrockshop on Aug 2, 2013 9:35:48 GMT -5
It was a good time and I do it as often as I can lol.
This saw is a slabbing saw so not the best large geode cutter. The first geode is actually down the center. The 2nd is somewhat offset as it's very large. I debated not cutting it and saving it for a different saw I will build later on but the beer talked me into it. Luckily it is not a big cavity so it's not really that big of a deal. I am debating cutting the large one again though for kicks just to see if it does something else. I'll end up with a 2" hollow slab but heh that might be cool.
I have one keokuk that has 2 smaller football shaped nodules separated by a narrow part not sure what the heck to do with that one yet.
Well if it's a caterpillar hunter there's a few of them hanging out around the Pecan tree where I have the walnut caterpillar problem so that makes sense and now i'm glad I put him back out there.
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Post by Rockoonz on Aug 2, 2013 11:17:01 GMT -5
I used to have the same grinder from when they called it the star diamond. My hydraulic 18 inch saw and 10 inch saw both have the vertical bar clamps like yours only mine clamp even further from the blade, I'm making a modified clamp bar for the 10 to be able to cut closer to center. Skin grafts to fingers, I remember that pain about two days after the surgery, only thing worse was kidney stones. Your geodes are very cool.
Lee
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Post by rockpickerforever on Aug 2, 2013 11:45:18 GMT -5
If you don't mind my asking, what is it you guys are doing to require skin grafts? Chemical spills? Burns? Road rash? Industrial accidents? Worst I've needed (so far!) was stitches.
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Post by vegasjames on Aug 2, 2013 17:23:17 GMT -5
Great geodes. I like how you have the partially full bottle of beer on there. Looks like you are using it to balance the saw.
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Post by Rockoonz on Aug 2, 2013 23:43:09 GMT -5
If you don't mind my asking, what is it you guys are doing to require skin grafts? Chemical spills? Burns? Road rash? Industrial accidents? Worst I've needed (so far!) was stitches. Industrial accidents, twice. First time, middle finger smash and burn on the left hand. No broken bones. 400 degree mold against the finger. Second time a rubber lab mixing mill as shown below. When my hand started to go in to the nip between the rolls adrenaline took over and in the process of extricating myself I pulled the tips off of the middle and ring fingers of my right hand, including some of the bone. Took about 1/4" and 3/8" off the tips and they still remind me vigorously if my hand gets cold. Lee
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robsrockshop
has rocks in the head
Member since August 2012
Posts: 715
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Post by robsrockshop on Aug 3, 2013 8:27:50 GMT -5
I decided to ignite a 5 gallon bucket of scrap acetone/paint etc with an angle grinder right next to me. It was covered up with crap and I didn't know it was there. Long story short I ended up in the burn ward for almost 2 months and a 1.3 million dollar hospital bill. It's a good way to lose weight......I went in the hospital weighing 255lbs and came out 180. I was given a 50/50 chance. It pretty much sucked ass.
"Took about 1/4" and 3/8" off the tips and they still remind me vigorously if my hand gets cold."
Ouch! I can relate. When i'm outside in the winter both hands will hurt so bad initially that I almost cry. Then they go dead and I can get back to what I was doing. Sometimes I decide whatever it is I was going to do isn't worth getting thru the several minute 'adjustment' phase. I have to be careful after they go dead because I could end up with frostbite and not know it. Yay.
I'm still pretty adept at opening a beer bottle though. LOL. I can still do pretty much every thing I did before but I now have fumble fingers so I operate tools differently etc and have dificulty with small parts needless to say the facetor went by by and I would've ended up in the mental ward trying to operate it. It's also a 'very' annoying handicap in the sense I am a fairly strong person and despite bench pressing 315lbs for repetitions people only focus on the 'bad' and since I have a hard time grasping shopping bags at the grocery store i'm often asked if I want help and because my right forearm looks like a frankenstein appendage I still have little old ladies opening doors for me.
I realize people are just trying to help but there are some days it just really gets on my nerves.
At any rate today is looking to be a promising day as my best friend since grade school is coming over and it will be a day and all night adventure of beer, guns and 4 wheelers. Yep, I didn't learn a damn thing lmao.
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robsrockshop
has rocks in the head
Member since August 2012
Posts: 715
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Post by robsrockshop on Aug 3, 2013 8:33:02 GMT -5
"Great geodes. I like how you have the partially full bottle of beer on there. Looks like you are using it to balance the saw. " LOL. It didn't stay partially full for long. I was sick most all last week, the entire weekend and sill only about 85%(of course that's optimal for me I think). So needless to say I hadn't a drink in nearly 2 weeks. Since we will hit the trails today I might drag my friend to the high hills where the glacial till is and look around a bit. Nothing of huge lapidary importance but I usually can find something of interests but i'm not real picky. Couple weeks ago I found a host rock that has odd shaped jasper in the middle that goes all the way thru.
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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 Aug 3, 2013 16:39:35 GMT -5
Yup, Jean totally nailed it on the beetles. The fig beetle is a bad pest on soft fruit but the other is a very beneficial predator species for your garden. When I was a kid, some kids glued a thread to fig beetles and wore them as jewelry or flew them around as they are very strong fliers....Mel
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Post by rockpickerforever on Aug 3, 2013 22:28:15 GMT -5
OUCH, both of you, Lee and Rob. Dang, I haven't had so much as a broken bone. I will admit to having done some stupid things in the past, but fortunately, got lucky and avoided catastrophe. Or had a guardian angel watching over me. Hope you've figured out how not to repeat...
Thanks for backing me up that that, Mel. Scott may know his reptiles, but he's not too smart about bugs, LOL! Yeah, we used to tie thread on those big bomber fig beetles when we were kids, they do fly pretty cool!
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Post by roy on Aug 4, 2013 11:34:14 GMT -5
with my saws that have this style of clamp i made this gripper it works great and holds just about any shape of rock with out any slipping
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Member since January 1970
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Aug 4, 2013 15:35:40 GMT -5
That is sweet Roy. I will be starting on one today. Thanks for posting it. Jim
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robsrockshop
has rocks in the head
Member since August 2012
Posts: 715
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Post by robsrockshop on Aug 4, 2013 19:49:06 GMT -5
That's a cool clamp i'll make one too thanks. These geodes had enough flat on them I had a pretty good grip on them despite what it may look like. I couldn't budge them so I let it rip.
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robsrockshop
has rocks in the head
Member since August 2012
Posts: 715
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Post by robsrockshop on Aug 4, 2013 20:50:35 GMT -5
I'm not real sure how a thread on keokuk geodes has followed this path of degression but my dad said that when they were kids they would stick various items such as straw up a horse flys rear end and watch it fly like a drunken pilot. I didn't start this subject but since it came up....LOL.
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Post by rockpickerforever on Aug 4, 2013 22:17:24 GMT -5
Just roll with it, Rob. There's been stranger threads. Mel brought up flying the beetles on thread. We never put anything up their backsides, though.
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