herb
spending too much on rocks
Member since November 2011
Posts: 475
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Post by herb on Aug 6, 2023 15:00:27 GMT -5
I haven't been doing much cutting so far this summer. Too many hot days which doesn't make for a pleasant experience in an even hotter garage! Probably the most time I spent slabbing this summer was for someone who wanted a bunch of thin (1/8") slabs to use as backer for some project she was working on. I cut some black obsidian, but also some more colorful stuff like this which I assumed was granite.  IMG_2184 by Shiny Objects, on Flickr I was surprised when I held it up to the light to see how translucent it was!  IMG_1333 by Shiny Objects, on Flickr This piece of rough has a tiny less than an inch wide corner of it ground and polished. Based on the green color and the shine of that little bit, I thought this might be jade. But now I am not so sure.  IMG_2167 by Shiny Objects, on Flickr I don't know if this has a name, but I really liked the combination of lace and dendrites!  IMG_2169 by Shiny Objects, on Flickr I picked these up at this spring at our clubs picnic in the silent auction. I seem to remember seeing something similar posted here in the past. Anyone have any ideas of what it might be?  IMG_2164 by Shiny Objects, on Flickr And finally, I had a small agate with a small chipped off section that showed a little bit of fortification banding so I decided to take a slice to see what the banding looked like. Turns out the bands were fairly faint, so a bit of a disappointment until I held it up to the light:  IMG_2177 by Shiny Objects, on Flickr |
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Post by jasoninsd on Aug 6, 2023 15:40:20 GMT -5
Fourth picture down is Silver Lace Onyx. Great example of it too!  Fifth picture reminds me of Serpentine...don't hold me to that though! LOL |
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Fossilman
Cave Dweller 
Member since January 2009
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Post by Fossilman on Aug 9, 2023 13:18:11 GMT -5
Liking the turtlebacks on that last agate...
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Post by rockjunquie on Aug 9, 2023 13:33:22 GMT -5
Nice slabs! I second the silver lace. |
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Post by Mel on Aug 25, 2023 11:58:24 GMT -5
I would say the first two are granite; I cut a lot of that when I started because it's super plentiful around here. It polishes amazingly really easy and gets a heck of a shine, even if the patterns aren't anything out of this world.
The green I would think is probably a lower quality nephrite jade (I have some that looks similar) BUT Jason could be right about serpentine too. Does it feel kind of greasy?
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iamchris
has rocks in the head
Member since June 2023
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Post by iamchris on Aug 25, 2023 15:12:46 GMT -5
So pretty! Thank you for sharing.
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herb
spending too much on rocks
Member since November 2011
Posts: 475
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Post by herb on Aug 25, 2023 15:33:08 GMT -5
I would say the first two are granite; I cut a lot of that when I started because it's super plentiful around here. It polishes amazingly really easy and gets a heck of a shine, even if the patterns aren't anything out of this world. The green I would think is probably a lower quality nephrite jade (I have some that looks similar) BUT Jason could be right about serpentine too. Does it feel kind of greasy? It does feel a little greasy. I rubbed it and a piece of agate between my fingers and there is a noticable difference, not a lot, but noticable. What initially made me think it was jade was the small corner that was windowed the surface almost had a glow to it. Not sure what to call it but it kind of looks like your seeing refle tions from under the surface instead of just the surface. |
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realrockhound
Cave Dweller
Chucking leaverite at tweekers
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Post by realrockhound on Aug 25, 2023 17:44:50 GMT -5
Gat dangit herb. I like that 4th slab. Also.. that last one, how thin did you slab it? With that turtle backing pattern, if you slab it about 1/16” you can get Iris in them sometimes. |
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Post by jasoninsd on Aug 25, 2023 21:24:34 GMT -5
I would say the first two are granite; I cut a lot of that when I started because it's super plentiful around here. It polishes amazingly really easy and gets a heck of a shine, even if the patterns aren't anything out of this world. The green I would think is probably a lower quality nephrite jade (I have some that looks similar) BUT Jason could be right about serpentine too. Does it feel kind of greasy? It does feel a little greasy. I rubbed it and a piece of agate between my fingers and there is a noticable difference, not a lot, but noticable. What initially made me think it was jade was the small corner that was windowed the surface almost had a glow to it. Not sure what to call it but it kind of looks like your seeing refle tions from under the surface instead of just the surface. The Serpentine I've worked felt like the slab and cab were covered with Dawn dish soap it was SO slimy feeling!! |
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Post by Mel on Aug 26, 2023 12:48:23 GMT -5
It does feel a little greasy. I rubbed it and a piece of agate between my fingers and there is a noticable difference, not a lot, but noticable. What initially made me think it was jade was the small corner that was windowed the surface almost had a glow to it. Not sure what to call it but it kind of looks like your seeing refle tions from under the surface instead of just the surface. The Serpentine I've worked felt like the slab and cab were covered with Dawn dish soap it was SO slimy feeling!! I never knew that about serpentine! Good to know. I've heard the same about jade, also that it feels quite heavy for what it is. I wonder if you could try polishing a piece of it since apparently (I have not tried) jade can be tough to polish. There was a member here who worked with a lot of jade but I can't recall who it was. Sometimes it's just fun having a mysterious rock. |
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herb
spending too much on rocks
Member since November 2011
Posts: 475
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Post by herb on Aug 28, 2023 9:27:39 GMT -5
Gat dangit herb. I like that 4th slab. Also.. that last one, how thin did you slab it? With that turtle backing pattern, if you slab it about 1/16” you can get Iris in them sometimes. I think the one in the pic is 1/8 inch. I remembered you need to do a thin cut to get the iris, but didn't realize it was that thin! I'll try taking another slice that is 1/16 to see what happens |
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realrockhound
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Chucking leaverite at tweekers
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Post by realrockhound on Aug 28, 2023 9:35:06 GMT -5
Gat dangit herb. I like that 4th slab. Also.. that last one, how thin did you slab it? With that turtle backing pattern, if you slab it about 1/16” you can get Iris in them sometimes. I think the one in the pic is 1/8 inch. I remembered you need to do a thin cut to get the iris, but didn't realize it was that thin! I'll try taking another slice that is 1/16 to see what happens Nevermind then, 1/8 should show something. |
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