ingawh
starting to spend too much on rocks
The rock wants to shine, I just help it get there
Member since February 2011
Posts: 194
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Post by ingawh on Nov 1, 2015 17:43:28 GMT -5
Hi Guys - Here's what just came out of the Lot-O. (Actually this is two batches) Picked up a bunch of this porcelanite stuff while kayaking the Yellowstone river in northeastern Montana this fall. It's naturally fired clay, created when a coal seam burned underground. Can be tricky - very uneven mohs, random composition - but I like trying to coax a shine on ugly ducklings and tough cases. I might try creating more slurry in the Lot-O to protect against chipping. I might give in and try add another step. This is still my 2-step method. Anyone else worked with this stuff? Porcelanite - favorite new rock to tumble polish. by Inga Holmquist, on Flickr
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Post by captbob on Nov 1, 2015 18:59:35 GMT -5
What variety! Are they all the same type of rock?
very shiny
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Nov 1, 2015 19:20:06 GMT -5
Self collect shiny rocks. It don't get much better then that.
Chuck
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ingawh
starting to spend too much on rocks
The rock wants to shine, I just help it get there
Member since February 2011
Posts: 194
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Post by ingawh on Nov 1, 2015 19:39:24 GMT -5
What variety! Are they all the same type of rock? very shiny Yep, it's all porcelanite. The heat from the coal-seam fire also gives the color variety, depending on the content of the clay and amount of heat it's subjected to. Here's some at the base of a bluff where it falls from. You can see some of the black coal on the right as well. Raw porcelanite by Inga Holmquist, on Flickr
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,274
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Post by jamesp on Nov 1, 2015 19:51:07 GMT -5
Colors and patterns. Very interesting creation process. Fine tumbling too.
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indiana
spending too much on rocks
Member since October 2015
Posts: 285
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Post by indiana on Nov 1, 2015 20:00:01 GMT -5
Very nice looking and cool stuff. Do you have any more info on this material? When I search, I'm finding a brand name for some kind of flooring.
I'm wondering if it explains some stuff I find occasionally that I thought was pottery shards until I started finding pieces with shapes that are almost certainly not man made.
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Post by Jugglerguy on Nov 1, 2015 20:10:31 GMT -5
That's cool stuff. I've never heard of it before. You sure got it shiny.
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ingawh
starting to spend too much on rocks
The rock wants to shine, I just help it get there
Member since February 2011
Posts: 194
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Post by ingawh on Nov 1, 2015 21:08:22 GMT -5
Very nice looking and cool stuff. Do you have any more info on this material? When I search, I'm finding a brand name for some kind of flooring. I'm wondering if it explains some stuff I find occasionally that I thought was pottery shards until I started finding pieces with shapes that are almost certainly not man made. Here's some Wikipedia stuff: "The reddish siltstone rock that caps many ridges and buttes in the Powder River Basin (Wyoming), and in western North Dakota is called porcelanite, which also may resemble the coal burning waste "clinker" or volcanic "scoria".[68] Clinker is rock that has been fused by the natural burning of coal. In the Powder River Basin approximately 27 to 54 billion tons of coal burned within the past three million years.[69] Wild coal fires in the area were reported by the Lewis and Clark Expedition as well as explorers and settlers in the area.[70]" I was near the North Dakota border on the Yellowstone river when I gathered this stuff. You could see the remnants of the coal seam that burned and "fired" the clay layer. The geologist on the trip identified it as porcelanite (there are variant spellings: porcelainite, porcellainite, porcellanite, etc.) I kinda like that name better than "clinker," now that I read this. It's a better description, too - like natural porcelain. Search for "porcelanite rock" and you'll get more hits.
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Post by nowyo on Nov 1, 2015 21:55:30 GMT -5
Interesting. I was going to say it looks really familiar to some stuff I have a little of, then I saw this third post and said "Ah Ha!". Never had heard it called that before, we always just called it clinker. Some call it all scoria although it really isn't. Interesting stuff, guess I need to play around with it a little more.
Russ
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ingawh
starting to spend too much on rocks
The rock wants to shine, I just help it get there
Member since February 2011
Posts: 194
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Post by ingawh on Nov 1, 2015 23:02:38 GMT -5
Interesting. I was going to say it looks really familiar to some stuff I have a little of, then I saw this third post and said "Ah Ha!". Never had heard it called that before, we always just called it clinker. Some call it all scoria although it really isn't. Interesting stuff, guess I need to play around with it a little more. Russ I'd love to hear (and see pictures) if you try tumbling some. I've tumbled it with agate before, and some of it will take a good shine with these 7-mohs companions, but some is more chip-prone, and other pieces (or colors within the same piece) are softer. Makes it an interesting new challenge. Some of the cool patterned pieces would make nice wire-wrap jewelry. Cheers!
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timloco
has rocks in the head
Member since April 2012
Posts: 545
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Post by timloco on Nov 1, 2015 23:17:33 GMT -5
That took a nice shine, well tumbled! I saw similar rocks in the Bisti Badlands in New Mexico never thought to tumble them.
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quartz
Cave Dweller
breakin' rocks in the hot sun
Member since February 2010
Posts: 3,343
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Post by quartz on Nov 1, 2015 23:22:52 GMT -5
Nice polish on that, considering what it is, nothing like challenging the difficult. Great color variety. There's a little cinder cone near Malheur Lake in S.E. Oregon that has a lot of obviously heat affected rock laying around, wonder if it would take a polish like your material, the rough appearance is very similar. I'll grab some next time we go by.
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ingawh
starting to spend too much on rocks
The rock wants to shine, I just help it get there
Member since February 2011
Posts: 194
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Post by ingawh on Nov 2, 2015 1:27:23 GMT -5
Here are some pieces I brought back to slab or tumble. A couple are just specimens where the rock got so hot it dripped or turned to glass. 2015-11-01_10-12-30 by Inga Holmquist, on Flickr
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Tom
fully equipped rock polisher
My dad Tom suddenly passed away yesterday, Just wanted his "rock" family to know.
Member since January 2013
Posts: 1,557
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Post by Tom on Nov 2, 2015 21:41:47 GMT -5
Great tumbles they look really nice. I honesty think I like the unfinished stuff better. Great finds. Is it only accessible by boat? I live in Saskatchewan may have to take a run down there.
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megalotis
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2009
Posts: 226
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Post by megalotis on Nov 6, 2015 12:19:46 GMT -5
Wow! Those really turned out nice! T-Rocks in Quartzite has a good amount of this material; I decided to pass on it because I remember reading somewhere that wouldn't take a polish. Next time I'm over there, I might have to pick some up.
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