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Post by sitnwrap on Jul 18, 2011 10:42:52 GMT -5
I cut an ugly black rock yesterday and after the 2nd cut I think it is rhodonite and there was a lot of minute gravely stuff on the rock. much like what would happen with soft matrix or hitting a lot of crystal pockets but this rock is solid. I was just rinsing it off but then noticed some shine so I stopped and looked closer. Is this stuff raw silver slivers or metal from my saw? I did google search and found a site that said silver can be found in Rhodonite but I'm not sure. I had rinsed basically all of it off before noticing but managed to capture a miniscule slivers.  this pic taken with my loupe agaist my camera to get a macro shot and then cropped the pic for a closer look.  the ugly side of the rock  the cut side which I looked at through my loup to see if I could see any evidence of silver but I didn't find any.  a pic of the saw blade (that cord is nowhere near the blade when plugged in ;D)  afterwards I also checked my shirt and sure enough, I found more slivers. So, what do you think? Is it silver slivers or metal kicking off from the saw? I figured this would be interesting for others to see.  |
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Post by jakesrocks on Jul 18, 2011 10:58:40 GMT -5
See if a magnet will stick to your saw blade. If yes, try picking the slivers up with the magnet. The magnet wot pick up silver. My guess would be slivers from the saw blade, but you never know.
Don
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Post by sitnwrap on Jul 18, 2011 11:16:55 GMT -5
Thanks Jake, I'm going to try that now. Will be back with the results.
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Post by Dicky the Rockhunter on Jul 18, 2011 11:34:36 GMT -5
rhodonite will carry silver wire , but I an not sure of your find. Usually when silver is found raw it is black ( tarnished )
Dicky
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Post by sitnwrap on Jul 18, 2011 13:10:22 GMT -5
Jake, I did what you suggested but I had to find more slivers as I didn't save the others since I had pics. I even went through my shirt but every time I tried to grab it I lost it  The saw blade is magnatized and I ran the magnet through the saw pan to try and find slivers. What is really puzzling is that the magnet was picking up scraps of the rhodonite but no other material scraps. I was thinking that maybe the blade running up against the rock would slightly magnatize it but I also cut other rock yesterday and the magnet did not pick up any other scrap. I did manage to find one little silvery sliver which looks tarnished as Dicky mentions. Here are some pics of it all     so the pot thickens: Are there magnetic minerals also found in rhodonite or what ever this rock is and if so, would it magnatize the silver in the rock. (if it is silver). also, I was pushing hard on the saw that left silvery markings on both this rock and a couple others but no other scraps were picked up. I think investigating things just adds more questions then answers but I guess that makes it more fun. lol. |
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Post by jakesrocks on Jul 18, 2011 13:17:23 GMT -5
Silver won't magnetize. You say that you were pushing hard against the blade, and that you left silver marks on other rocks too. My guess is that you were pushing harder on one side of the rock than the other, and shaved a little metal off your blade. Nice color in that rhodonite. Should cut some nice cabs.
Don
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Post by johnjsgems on Jul 18, 2011 13:28:50 GMT -5
The rhodonite from above Silverton CO has lots of metals in it. Pyrite, gallena, lead, etc. It was the waste rock at the silver mine so could likely have a little silver as well. As Dicky said, the rock with silver I've found always shows as black spots.
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Post by gr on Jul 18, 2011 14:13:43 GMT -5
Wouldn't pure native silver be alot softer or malliable than a shaving off of a blade. And, silver will shine bright if scraped with a knife (or saw blade). Just a thought
gr
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Post by sitnwrap on Jul 18, 2011 18:02:50 GMT -5
Gary, you have a good point but that sliver jumped on the magnet like a flea to a dog. lol.
The evidence does point to it being minute saw metal particles. The saw was second hand off craigslist and I've been using the blade it came with.
I learned a lot with all the info and doing this so thanks tons guys.
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Post by johnjsgems on Jul 18, 2011 18:13:19 GMT -5
Have you checked your saw bearings/pulleys? Pieces of steel could be from a component rather than the blade or rock.
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Post by Woodyrock on Jul 19, 2011 0:37:48 GMT -5
Lori:
Rhodonite can be magnetic, many manganese ores have iron in them, and of course Rhodonite is a manganese ore. Have a look at the current issue of Rock& Gem, and you will see a Coloradosilver mine, with Rhodonite. The silver ore is blue. Since your wee silvery peices jumped to the magnet, you sawed some steel.
Woody
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Post by sitnwrap on Jul 20, 2011 8:14:42 GMT -5
Yesterday I spent some time looking at the blade with my loupe and saw evidance where the metal was coming off and the blade is not so healthy. Time for a new blade lol. I did have my husband check the rest of the saw and that seems fine. Also, Just a reminder to all reading this, remember your safety gear when cutting  Thanks again everyone. Lori |
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Post by mohs on Jul 20, 2011 11:06:11 GMT -5
I picked up piece of quartz that had a silver pocket
turned out to be mica when poked at with my knife
it was pretty deceptive
instructive thread & interesting experiment !
Ed
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