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Post by bobby1 on Aug 6, 2024 12:40:15 GMT -5
Here is my latest submission to my column "Bench Tips" in Rock and Gem Magazine. It is 2-1/4" tall. I carved, sanded, and polished 4 grooves from the front of the cab. Then I drilled and polished 4 holes from the back. The material is carnelian from Brazil.
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Post by bobby1 on Jul 11, 2024 20:27:36 GMT -5
This is my latest submission for my Bench Tips Column in Rock and Gem magazine. It is 3" across and is made from Glass Buttes Obsidian. People have described it as "Otherworldy"
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Post by bobby1 on Apr 10, 2024 19:24:22 GMT -5
Here is my latest work where I laminated a layer of basanite on a Brazilian agate slab. I carved an image through the basanite deep enough for it to show the Brazilian agate. I also made a hemisphere from lab-grown quartz and mounted it into the top layer so the agate would show through. The cab is 3-1/2" high. Also shown is the reverse side of the cab.
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Post by bobby1 on Dec 7, 2023 21:09:05 GMT -5
The centerpiece is a half-dome cab of rhodochrosite recessed into the milky chalcedony by 1.5 mm. I do this to give it more durability than just gluing it onto a flat surface.
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Post by bobby1 on Dec 7, 2023 1:12:18 GMT -5
2" tall
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Post by bobby1 on Dec 7, 2023 0:10:07 GMT -5
This is a little different because I wanted to try a pattern on a piece of my favorite material - Milky Chalcedony
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Post by bobby1 on Oct 20, 2023 10:39:19 GMT -5
This one has a basanite backing with a fire agate embedded in the opening.
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Post by bobby1 on Oct 15, 2023 23:31:20 GMT -5
One is carnelian and the other is milky chalcedony
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Post by bobby1 on Oct 2, 2023 12:48:22 GMT -5
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Post by bobby1 on Jul 31, 2023 9:23:53 GMT -5
I made a recess into the big cab and epoxied the small round cab into the recess.
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Post by bobby1 on Jul 24, 2023 23:45:44 GMT -5
Here are two new cabs that I did for my Rock and Gem Magazine Bench Tips column. I called them Twins .... Almost. They are 2 inches tall. One is carnelian and the other is one of my favorite materials - milky chalcedony.
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Post by bobby1 on May 30, 2023 1:51:12 GMT -5
It is a Brazilian agate cab with a new type of carving from the back. I used a small core drill and some special tools to shape the flat-topped cores. The tools were made from a segment of a common nail and a piece of small wood dowel. The cab is 1-3/4" tall. Bob
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Post by bobby1 on May 5, 2023 2:23:43 GMT -5
The 4 orbs are holes drilled from the back and polished. I made the tab on top so that it can be drilled from right to left so a wire can be used to make a necklace.
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Post by bobby1 on May 3, 2023 19:31:16 GMT -5
This piece is made from Brazilian Aagate and it is 3-1/2" tall
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Post by bobby1 on May 3, 2023 19:24:53 GMT -5
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Post by bobby1 on May 1, 2023 23:19:53 GMT -5
As you can see from the first photo I ground a recess into the piece. I made a silver bezel around the stone and epoxied it and the stone to the carving.
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Post by bobby1 on Apr 30, 2023 23:21:21 GMT -5
This is one of my carving projects. It is about 2-1/2" tall. I like the rich glow that can be found in one of the most common agate-like materials - milky chalcedony. Not many people use this material because it doesn't have any color bands like you find in agates. I inlaid a fire agate in the center.
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Post by bobby1 on Mar 7, 2023 10:48:25 GMT -5
I met the mine owner of the Blue Lace agate a number of years ago. He said the seam of agate went vertically deeper as they dug. Concurrently the seam diminished in thickness so due to the cost of fuel to dig it, the mine was getting unprofitable and would soon be shut down, so it is essentially dug out.
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Post by bobby1 on Mar 7, 2023 10:40:53 GMT -5
I have been working with obsidian for many years but only with 8" wheels, not flat laps. I have never had any problems with contamination. I do have scratches but it is because I have let the upper edge come in contact with the wheel. The obsidian briefly overheats and generates heat and a chip breaks loose and drags across the face of the stone and causing a scratch. If you had contamination it would cause multiple parallel scratches each time the wheel went around. They would have a fresh scratch look with sharp outer edges. I actually dry sand all of the pieces and slabs that I work on but that is a different story. Here is a slab of rainbow obsidian that is 4" across that I did recently. I grind wet but sand dry on sic 3" wide expando wheels.
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Post by bobby1 on Mar 4, 2023 1:39:03 GMT -5
This one was previously posted before I did my carving on the back. I spaced the holes randomly and overlapped some. I didn't polish the holes as I usually do because I like the look of the rough surface in the holes.
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