WyckedWyre
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since April 2007
Posts: 1,391
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Post by WyckedWyre on Sept 16, 2006 12:47:43 GMT -5
Just got some nice Imperial Jasper from www.rocksnpots.com. Weren't you asking me about these? S
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WyckedWyre
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since April 2007
Posts: 1,391
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Post by WyckedWyre on Sept 16, 2006 13:15:06 GMT -5
...or was it the Bruneau? ::)S
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Post by stoner on Sept 16, 2006 13:30:07 GMT -5
Wow, you got some nice looking Bruneau jasper there Susan. And the imperial isn't bad either.
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rollingstone
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2009
Posts: 236
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Post by rollingstone on Sept 17, 2006 2:28:55 GMT -5
Susan, Indeed I was asking you about both those materials. And a week or so ago I won an ebay auction from those same folks for 2.5 lbs of imperial jasper, that appeared in the pics at least, quite similar to what you got (mine hasn't arrived yet). Yours sure does look great. I have typically avoided these folks in the past because they like to ship via Fedex (which can be incredibly expensive coming across the border, as often there is a $40 "customs broker fee" added -- versus no fee, or up to $5 on larger orders via the postal service.) The auction I won stated shipping was by Fedex, but I emailed them and it turned out they were willing to ship USPS if I won the auction. I should maybe email them about shipping methods on their Bruneau also. Gemshop is high on my list for Bruneau also, particularly since they have done such great things with their rock pics lately -- now you can really can see what kind of material you are buying, instead of the old website with a tiny pic that showed next to nothing.
Anyhow, you had mentioned in a previous message that the imperial tends to undercut. Can you elaborate?, as I'm not really sure what you mean. Does it undercut around the banded layers?... they all look like the same material to me, just different shades?
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WyckedWyre
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since April 2007
Posts: 1,391
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Post by WyckedWyre on Sept 17, 2006 8:04:18 GMT -5
I believe I obtained my previous material from the Gem Shop. It was their Royal Imperial Jasper, and came in different colors - mostly reds, pinks, greens, creams. It shaped up quickly, but some of the pieces pitted. This stuff is pretty much all red.
My Bruneau has been collected from various vendors - Rocksnpots, Stoneage Industries and The Gem Shop. The pieces I have left are the larger, nicely patterned ones that I thought I might be able to cut up someday.
Anyway, I've been happy with everything I've gotten from Rocksnpots. We'll see how this Imperial holds up to the tumbler if and when I ever get a free barrel...
;DS
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rollingstone
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2009
Posts: 236
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Post by rollingstone on Sept 18, 2006 15:48:25 GMT -5
Thanks for the sources. The imperial I managed to pick up fairly cheaply on ebay, but Bruneau seems wildly expensive on ebay. It might just be in an expensive cycle now, but definitely those brick-and-mortar rock shops currently have much better prices for Bruneau, so I'll look there unless the ebay prices drop off sharply. No rush though, I'm backlogged by about two lifetimes on my tumblers anyway. ;D
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wades
starting to spend too much on rocks
Gottfried Reiche (1667-1734)
Member since February 2006
Posts: 202
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Post by wades on Sept 19, 2006 11:36:46 GMT -5
Drool.
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Post by gemkoi on Sept 19, 2006 12:57:54 GMT -5
Theres actually a few different types on the market of Royal Imperial. The gemshop has the trademark of the name, but over 80% either has fractured centers or can very soft skind. I bought a lot from them back when they first started selling it. Only 1 out of 20 was real jasper. Ive also seen piles of cut pieces for sale in Quartzsite, 3-4tons worth when all was junk because the centers were fractured. Now the market has shifted to call Royal imperial jasper, all types coming out of the Old Imperial Jasper mines of Mexico. The type Garth has from RnP, was called Rainbow Fantasy Jasper which has been imported mainly by www.multistoneintl.com. It is much harder then the Royal Imperial the gemshop sells and is what you got there Susan. It the same type of Orb or gem jasper as Burneau. Imperial, Blue Mtn, Willow Creek, and Morrisonite. I traded a load of it from Garth years ago for a load of Antelope. Still got 40pounds. They are true jasper skinned, dark, maroon and grey/blue types. Vers the Pink/green/blue types of the True Royal Imperial. But ive cut many fine cabs from that stock, its great for matchin pairs. AS far as undercutting, the Royal Imperial i got from gemshop would do such, it would mostly be in the outer reaches, towards the skin. Or in some cases is was a very soft material all the way to the center. But the gem fine patterned RIJ would be solid jasper in the center. I have several examples in my sold cabochon gallery, but i too note them all as Royal Imperial because thats were the market went so to not confuse buyers further, because they are the same jasper. Also, gemshop i do believe still has the short movie on RIJ. They talked about its occurrence and percentage of orbs. They also talk about how an orb is not layers, but more like waves created by a single motion. Because when you look at Orb Jaspers, and you can see it in both your photo examples. These layers never span the complete circle. They always end up flowing back into eachother. Unlike banded agates or lace agates, which show a true separation of each layer. Its what makes it a gem jasper and not just as jasper, this orb pattern.
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rollingstone
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2009
Posts: 236
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Post by rollingstone on Sept 19, 2006 22:36:06 GMT -5
Shain, very interesting and informative. I'll print this out for future reference. Thanks for the information.
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