RockingRuralMo
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2022
Posts: 138
|
Post by RockingRuralMo on Jul 23, 2023 20:46:27 GMT -5
I got a mystery rock at a local show last month. The ID forum was extremely helpful in pegging it as Needles Blue Agate. (The guy who was selling it labelled it "Some kind of Jasper?" but I liked the color so I bit.
I was too chicken to cut into a proper slab, but made these out of an end cut and a chip that came off in the slab saw. They aren't perfect, but were a cool way to get to know a new material. (I always see cracks and scratches once I share pics - so frustrating!)  
These were from a piece of petrified palm that I got from a different show - it was a faced end cut the guy said was too small for his saw. Again, very far from perfect, but I love working with this material. (It's WAY harder than the needles blue though - quite a change from this to that.)
|
|
|
|
Post by liveoak on Jul 24, 2023 6:23:17 GMT -5
The second blue one, in the natural light is really nice.
Can't wait to see what you do with the other slabs.
And the pattern in the first pet wood is pretty cool.
Nice ones- thanks for sharing,
Patty
|
|
rockbrain
Cave Dweller 
Member since January 2022
Posts: 3,172
|
Post by rockbrain on Jul 24, 2023 8:34:47 GMT -5
Some nice looking cabs there RockingRuralMo. I do the same thing with seeing scratches and flaws once I post the enlarged pics. I imagine it might be pretty tough to try and work around the cracks in that Needle's Blue. |
|
rocknewb101
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since October 2022
Posts: 1,368
|
Post by rocknewb101 on Jul 24, 2023 9:10:37 GMT -5
Beautiful colors!! Nice job! I always struggle with the same - it looks super shiny and glossy in my hand and when I take up close pics I can see scratches and flat spots. Very frustrating, but all part of the learning curve, I think. I even look through double magnifying and still come out with some. Oh well...
|
|
RockingRuralMo
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2022
Posts: 138
|
Post by RockingRuralMo on Jul 24, 2023 11:11:08 GMT -5
Some nice looking cabs there RockingRuralMo . I do the same thing with seeing scratches and flaws once I post the enlarged pics. I imagine it might be pretty tough to try and work around the cracks in that Needle's Blue. It may be a chore. This piece wasn't exactly chosen for its suitability, so it had some issues. (A second cut I did from the same end cut cracked and I haven't re-worked it yet.)
There are pieces of the stone that definitely look better, but I was trying to work with scrap chunks. It's probably time to learn some stabilizing skills. |
|
|
|
Post by rockjunquie on Jul 24, 2023 12:54:33 GMT -5
Nice work!
There is another stone that looks very much like Needles Blue. I'm not sold on this one being Needles Blue. I can't remember the name of the other one, but Tommy does. |
|
Tommy
Administrator 
Member since January 2013
Posts: 12,989
|
Post by Tommy on Jul 24, 2023 14:32:57 GMT -5
Nice work! There is another stone that looks very much like Needles Blue. I'm not sold on this one being Needles Blue. I can't remember the name of the other one, but Tommy does. It might be needles blue - I think I see rhyolite as well as blue chalcedony. The other similar stone is found in the Brenda area but the difference is the rhyolite matrix is much lighter in color and not as reddish. |
|
RockingRuralMo
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2022
Posts: 138
|
Post by RockingRuralMo on Jul 24, 2023 14:58:36 GMT -5
Tommy I appreciate the feedback. (And I apologize if this posts twice - I think the matrix ate it the first time.) It's tough to positively ID when I've never seen NBA or its look-alikes before, and I definitely don't want to call it the wrong thing and look like a fraud. Here are some pics of the rough chunk (now chunks) and a slab: Do they help clarify? Thanks again for weighing in. Other lapidaries know a lot more about materials than I do.
ETA: The guy tagged it as "some kind of Jasper?" but after processing some of it I think he may have been mistaken. It's softer than Jasper - at least softer than the polychrome and picture jasper I've cut before. It cut fast enough that I got away from the 80 grit and did most of my shaping on the 220.
  
|
|
AzRockGeek
has rocks in the head
Member since September 2016
Posts: 703
|
Post by AzRockGeek on Jul 24, 2023 15:05:39 GMT -5
BC ocean jasper?
|
|
