Roger
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since January 2013
Posts: 1,487
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Post by Roger on Apr 4, 2017 21:51:34 GMT -5
I have been cabbing pretty steadily over the last month but haven't had much time to post any photos. These are a mix of some of what I have finished. Texas Blackheart Palm Blue Mountain Jasper 1 Blue Mountain Jasper 2 Dino Bone 1 Dino Bone 2 Dino Bone 3 Epidote in Quartz Laguna Agate Chatoyant Malachite Mohave Turquoise 1 Mohave Turquoise 2 Malachite and Azurite Needle's Blue Agate 1 Needle's Blue Agate 2 Opal Butte Opal Pietersite w/ Pyrite Inclusion Rhodochrosite Stick Agate Texas Plume Agate Vistaite Jasper 1 Vistaite Jasper 2 Vistaite Jasper 3 Looking at this post it is kind of a photo bomb lol
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Post by fantastic5 on Apr 4, 2017 22:01:19 GMT -5
They are all great, but the malachite is my favorite!
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cabjunky
has rocks in the head
Regency Rose Plume
Member since November 2008
Posts: 683
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Post by cabjunky on Apr 4, 2017 22:04:28 GMT -5
Nice batch of material. Killer shine. Blue mountain cabs are my favorites
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grizman
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since July 2011
Posts: 878
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Post by grizman on Apr 4, 2017 22:12:11 GMT -5
I have to agree your polish is A+. Sometimes cabs don't get that kind of a shine unless they have been in a vibe. Did you polish them on a drum or in a vibe?
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Roger
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since January 2013
Posts: 1,487
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Post by Roger on Apr 4, 2017 23:04:00 GMT -5
I have to agree your polish is A+. Sometimes cabs don't get that kind of a shine unless they have been in a vibe. Did you polish them on a drum or in a vibe? Neither. I polish to 1200# or 3000# on my wheels then jump to a leather pad with a mix of tin oxide, cerium oxide, and alumina. I know there are people who can vibe cabs and get that glossy polish on all planes but I don't have that skill set lol
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Post by rockjunquie on Apr 5, 2017 0:29:19 GMT -5
Nice photo bomb! I'm going with the malachite, too. I love your shapes!
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jasperblue
starting to spend too much on rocks
Diggin' This
Member since August 2010
Posts: 140
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Post by jasperblue on Apr 5, 2017 1:36:26 GMT -5
Any particular ratio for mixing the polishes?
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Post by vegasjames on Apr 5, 2017 1:40:19 GMT -5
All beautiful but my favorites are the blue mountain jaspers.
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Post by MrP on Apr 5, 2017 4:17:37 GMT -5
Very Nice!....................................MrP
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Roger
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since January 2013
Posts: 1,487
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Post by Roger on Apr 5, 2017 8:28:58 GMT -5
Any particular ratio for mixing the polishes? The short answer: I landed on 1tbls cerium oxide, 2tbls Lind A, 3tbls tin oxide mixed in 16oz water. The long answer and background. I have a dedicated polishing machine, a Richardson Ranch Polisher with a 12" leather disk. I tend to cab in large batches, with variety of material types and I don't short-cut by using tumblers anywhere in the process. My current set is 130 cabs which I hope to finish this weekend. I started compounding the polishes primarily because I am cheap and lazy. I didn't want to spend the money to buy multiple leather pads to avoid cross-contaminating polishes and I knew that I also wouldn't stop polishing to change pads between stones. The mix I use came from trial and error. I started off 1:1:1 but found that to be too aggressive for softer stones. I have very heavy hands and my tendency is to apply more pressure on the pad than I probably should. I undercut a lot of stones. I cleaned the pad as best I could and eventually came to a mix of 1tbls cerium oxide, 2tbls Lind A, 3tbls tin oxide mixed in a 16oz jar of water. I wet the pad with a spray bottle, shake the jar, then apply a little of the mix with a toothbrush. To be perfectly honest; after using the same pad for all the testing then for the past 18 months or so, there really is no-way to know for sure what the mix actually is on the pad. I know the pad now and which areas on it are better for different stones. A lot of the time I simply turn on the machine, hit the pad with a stiff nylon brush, spray some water and start polishing. I have gone quite a while without needing to apply any polish to it. It could be a ridiculous way to go about polishing but it works for me. For most of my domed cabs the final polish takes about 60 seconds. Very shallow domed cabs take a bit longer.
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Post by Garage Rocker on Apr 5, 2017 8:59:02 GMT -5
Great bunch of cabs! I always enjoy seeing your posts, you've always got top notch material. The malachite and blue mountain jaspers are speaking to me today. If you find yourself inundated with saw scraps and end cuts, let me know!
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Post by Bluesky78987 on Apr 5, 2017 9:16:35 GMT -5
Beautious eye candy to wake up to! I'm a sucker for dino bone but all of them are gorgeous. That third bone is to die for!
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Post by roy on Apr 5, 2017 10:22:57 GMT -5
sweet set of cabs !
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,777
Member is Online
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Post by gemfeller on Apr 5, 2017 10:56:02 GMT -5
Another nice set. The 1st and 3rd dino bone cabs are terrific but the chatoyant malachite's the winner on my scorecard.
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Post by rockjunquie on Apr 5, 2017 11:06:07 GMT -5
Any particular ratio for mixing the polishes? The short answer: I landed on 1tbls cerium oxide, 2tbls Lind A, 3tbls tin oxide mixed in 16oz water. The long answer and background. I have a dedicated polishing machine, a Richardson Ranch Polisher with a 12" leather disk. I tend to cab in large batches, with variety of material types and I don't short-cut by using tumblers anywhere in the process. My current set is 130 cabs which I hope to finish this weekend. I started compounding the polishes primarily because I am cheap and lazy. I didn't want to spend the money to buy multiple leather pads to avoid cross-contaminating polishes and I knew that I also wouldn't stop polishing to change pads between stones. The mix I use came from trial and error. I started off 1:1:1 but found that to be too aggressive for softer stones. I have very heavy hands and my tendency is to apply more pressure on the pad than I probably should. I undercut a lot of stones. I cleaned the pad as best I could and eventually came to a mix of 1tbls cerium oxide, 2tbls Lind A, 3tbls tin oxide mixed in a 16oz jar of water. I wet the pad with a spray bottle, shake the jar, then apply a little of the mix with a toothbrush. To be perfectly honest; after using the same pad for all the testing then for the past 18 months or so, there really is no-way to know for sure what the mix actually is on the pad. I know the pad now and which areas on it are better for different stones. A lot of the time I simply turn on the machine, hit the pad with a stiff nylon brush, spray some water and start polishing. I have gone quite a while without needing to apply any polish to it. It could be a ridiculous way to go about polishing but it works for me. For most of my domed cabs the final polish takes about 60 seconds. Very shallow domed cabs take a bit longer. Thanks for sharing all of that. A lot of people wouldn't I don't know that I up for using a compound mix on leather, but I bookmarked this just in case. I have a 50k wheel that I use on some stones.
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jasperblue
starting to spend too much on rocks
Diggin' This
Member since August 2010
Posts: 140
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Post by jasperblue on Apr 5, 2017 16:35:43 GMT -5
Thank you, so very much, Roger. For taking the time to answer. I will give that a try as soon as I get a moment or two. One more item...do you use a smooth leather buff or rough? Thanks again! Your work is awesome!👍🏻
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Roger
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since January 2013
Posts: 1,487
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Post by Roger on Apr 5, 2017 17:38:24 GMT -5
Thank you, so very much, Roger. For taking the time to answer. I will give that a try as soon as I get a moment or two. One more item...do you use a smooth leather buff or rough? Thanks again! Your work is awesome!👍🏻 It was smooth'ish when it was new but I didn't like the way it polished. I took a stiff wire brush and ran the wheel with the brush scratching the leather until it felt like suede. Slightly roughed builds more friction and heat. It can also grab the cab if you aren't careful. But, it holds the polish better and polishes faster.
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Roger
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since January 2013
Posts: 1,487
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Post by Roger on Apr 5, 2017 17:44:41 GMT -5
Nice photo bomb! I'm going with the malachite, too. I love your shapes! Thank you Tela. You haven't seen anything yet..I have slowed down and reevaluated how I cab. I have been sloppy and rushing too much. I have been experimenting with shapes and domes. The next batch has some interesting things going on
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Post by nowyo on Apr 5, 2017 19:58:29 GMT -5
That is some beautiful material and a great job on all of them. I find your polishing interesting for a couple of reasons. Looking forward to more.
Russ
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jasperblue
starting to spend too much on rocks
Diggin' This
Member since August 2010
Posts: 140
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Post by jasperblue on Apr 5, 2017 23:59:44 GMT -5
Thanks again, Roger!
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