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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jan 26, 2023 15:36:49 GMT -5
I may run out of rocks one of these days but I will never run out of bowling balls. Pretty sure that by weight I have more bowling ball then I do rocks at this point. I do not make these very often and the ones I do make have all been gifts. This one is for a woman that was a volunteer coach back when my son was just getting started as a youth bowler. It is made from a ball he used back when she was helping him out.    On a side note. The last few times I have worked with this stuff I was disappointed with the way they came out after using the genie. Now I after the hard wheels I use actual sanding pads that are made for resurfacing bowling balls. They are sponge backed and used wet. Grits from 280-5000 are available. The sponge backing is great and I have even started using them on Petoskey stones when doing them by hand.  Chuck |
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Post by jasoninsd on Jan 26, 2023 16:54:44 GMT -5
That's really fascinating! Beautiful in fact!  |
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Post by HankRocks on Jan 26, 2023 17:02:19 GMT -5
It has the look of one of the deep space photos from the Hubble Telescope, or from the new James Webb Telescope.
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khara
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2022
Posts: 1,980
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Post by khara on Jan 26, 2023 18:41:14 GMT -5
Really cool. So… how does one go about slabbing a bowling ball??
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dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Jan 26, 2023 21:16:02 GMT -5
That is a really creative idea.
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Post by rockjunquie on Jan 26, 2023 21:58:03 GMT -5
That's a very touching project and I'm sure she'll love it. It would make me cry.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jan 27, 2023 9:35:22 GMT -5
Really cool. So… how does one go about slabbing a bowling ball?? Performance bowling balls all have engineered cores in the center. The shape the bowling ball makes going down the lane is modified by using different polymers on the shell portion and different shaped weight blocks in the center of the ball. There are 8 major brands and each one releases about 10-15 new balls each year. So that weight block in the center means no slabbing. I bust them up with a sledge hammer which is no fun at all. After I have the now smaller outside pieces I can use the trim saw to flatten them out a bit. My son is currently bowling for a college down in Florida and has 15 new balls in his dorm room. He left 32 of his older ones at home. That sounds like a lot but honestly that is very normal at his level in the sport.   Chuck |
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rockbrain
Cave Dweller 
Member since January 2022
Posts: 3,172
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Post by rockbrain on Jan 27, 2023 9:42:40 GMT -5
That's such a great idea! Are there miniature finger holes drilled on the back of the pendant?
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Post by hummingbirdstones on Jan 27, 2023 10:01:30 GMT -5
Really nice pendant, Chuck! I had to stare at the second picture for a while before I could see the wire.  |
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jan 28, 2023 11:09:07 GMT -5
Really nice pendant, Chuck! I had to stare at the second picture for a while before I could see the wire. Thank you. I don't get too worked up over groove wraps but the side shot on this one is pretty much textbook for how I would like them all to look. Good groove depth. Nice even bail binding and nice clean non marred wire work. Chuck |
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NDK
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2009
Posts: 9,440
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Bowlerite
Feb 4, 2023 11:33:38 GMT -5
via mobile
Post by NDK on Feb 4, 2023 11:33:38 GMT -5
That's a cool wrap Chuck. Drummond Island RocksThe few pieces of bowlerite I've done I work on the wheels to 600 (it's been a while, I don't remember if I start on the 220 hard or 280 soft - probably the soft wheel so it's basically 2 steps on the wheels) then use buffing compound for plastic on a cotton polishing wheel and that's it. |
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Feb 4, 2023 12:58:48 GMT -5
That's a cool wrap Chuck. Drummond Island RocksThe few pieces of bowlerite I've done I work on the wheels to 600 (it's been a while, I don't remember if I start on the 220 hard or 280 soft - probably the soft wheel so it's basically 2 steps on the wheels) then use buffing compound for plastic on a cotton polishing wheel and that's it. My kid does all of his own maintenance on his bowling balls to save some money in the pro shops. I got him a ball spinner so after a ball gets about 20 games on it he will take the surface down to between 360-500 and then back up to whatever the manufacture specs were. This keeps a ball performing like new. Its a bit of a science and depending on what grit you stop at will have some effect how the ball hooks on the lane. High polish = less hook. Lot's of experience with sanding and polishing this stuff over the years with him. What he does translates very well to what I do on the jewelry end. Spinner. Bowling equipment prices have gone crazy just like lapidary stuff. Think I paid $550 for that same one two years ago.  Chuck |
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