timloco
has rocks in the head
Member since April 2012
Posts: 545
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Post by timloco on Sept 21, 2015 16:55:56 GMT -5
I was down with a cold last weekend so I didn't go rockhounding, but I had enough energy to sit in front of the wheels for awhile and work on my technique. I'm getting better bit by bit. Here's some pictures of the stuff I did. These three are from agate I found in Utah. The one on the far right was a pain, little bits kept flaking off the plume parts and turned out a lot thinner than when I started that's for sure. I don't know what this material is but I wish I had more of it, it's gorgeous stuff. I was told this stuff is "sunset chrysochola" It's beautiful, but pretty soft and had a tendency to undercut. I've got a couple more slabs of this I'm looking forward to messing with. This stuff looks like agate but it's pretty fragile, it ground down real quick. I was going to finish the back of the one on the right but when I took it off the dop the superglue took some of the material off with it :-( lesson learned on that one use the acetone to loosen it up good before taking it off. It was my first time using super glue on a screw head screwed into a dowel for my dop stick. This is bloodstone I think. A really challenging one, really hard and it kept the scratches from the previous steps really well :-) I cut this too big for the slab thickness it was and it's really thin at the edges I need to re-grind it to get something a bezel can grab onto. first bloodstone, learning experience. This is my favorite one from the batch, moss agate. It looks like scratches on the front but it's glass smooth they're just filaments in it.
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Post by rockjunquie on Sept 22, 2015 19:58:37 GMT -5
Looks like you had a great weekend!
Yup, that looks like a bloodstone. You know how you can tell? It's hard as hell and a challenge to polish. I love it though because it is sooo rewarding.
The purple mystery is really nice, but I like the Sonora, too.
The stuff that broke with the dop looks like maybe fluorite which is pretty soft.
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Post by roy on Sept 23, 2015 10:31:11 GMT -5
time well spent
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timloco
has rocks in the head
Member since April 2012
Posts: 545
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Post by timloco on Sept 23, 2015 11:01:34 GMT -5
Yup, I've got a couple of small slabs of this I'm looking forward to playing with now that I've tried it. It's a really interesting looking rock. Looks like you had a great weekend! Yup, that looks like a bloodstone. You know how you can tell? It's hard as hell and a challenge to polish. I love it though because it is sooo rewarding.
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Post by Noosh9057 on Sept 23, 2015 11:50:58 GMT -5
They look good!!!!
Roger
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cobbledstones
spending too much on rocks
Member since January 2014
Posts: 482
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Post by cobbledstones on Sept 23, 2015 13:15:14 GMT -5
looking great. I like that moss too.
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Post by mohs on Sept 24, 2015 18:46:21 GMT -5
polishing stone is the best remedy for a cold
interesting materials and good grinding!
Ed
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Post by toiv0 on Sept 25, 2015 2:44:21 GMT -5
I might have to put my grinder by my bed, when I get a cold the fetal position calls me. Nice work
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