Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,484
|
Post by Sabre52 on May 3, 2013 9:12:31 GMT -5
Howdy folks, Despite the arctic blast we're having here in Texas ( in the 30's this morning-good grief!) I've been trying to cut into a least one new piece of George West wood every day. I sure wish I had bought a microscope with a camera hookup. Been looking at some of these under the scope and they are incredible. Here are some slabbing results....Mel Very disorganized mossy shrinkie: Don't know what the heck kind of wood this is. Strange looking shrinkie anyway. I guess this is some kind of hardwood. Daniel? Really incredible detail under the scope. Close as I can get with the camera:
|
|
Fossilman
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2009
Posts: 20,709
|
Post by Fossilman on May 3, 2013 9:39:38 GMT -5
I like it Mel.......................You guys have great petwood down your way......
|
|
|
Post by rockpickerforever on May 3, 2013 10:01:19 GMT -5
That's some great stuff, Mel! How do you look at it under a microscope? Cut a really thin slice? Too bad there is not a definitive "petrified wood" index, to identify them. Or maybe there is, and I just don't know about it? Would be cool to know what some of the better agatized/opalized woods I have are.
And definitely strange weather... While you're freezing your tushy off in TX, and peeps are getting snow in Iowa, we're having a 2-day heat wave here in SoCal. Ninety-five degrees yesterday on my patio, supposed to be hotter today. And the humidity is non-existant, down to 5% in some places yesterday. Really playing havoc with my husband's (and many others, I'm sure) sinuses. It got down to 50 degrees overnight, so we'll have a long (50 degree) thermometer today. After that, a cool down by 20 degrees over the weekend, and actual RAIN the first part of next week. Go figure... Jean
|
|
Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,484
|
Post by Sabre52 on May 3, 2013 12:30:29 GMT -5
Jean, I talked with my stock broker ( Ojai resident) yesterday and he told me about all the heat and fires down there. That is one thing I don't miss about California. I used to hate getting evacuated for brush fires.
For the pet wood, I have a very nice dissecting scope I use for entomology work. I put the slab in a dish and cover it with a thin layer of water and the scope is so good you can actually look down into the wood. It reveals some of the most surreal landscapes I've ever seen. While decomposition has reduced some of the wood to agate casts, in other pieces, the silica replacement of cellular structure is remarkable. In some of the palm vascular bundles, you can actually seen more minute vessels within the larger bundles. So fun I spent a couple of hours last night looking at wood under the scope and oohing and ahhing *L* I know, I'm just a little eccentric. Just a wee bit *L*.....Mel
|
|
|
Post by Tonyterner on May 3, 2013 13:59:39 GMT -5
Those first two are really interesting, especially that second one. It'd make a great cab.
As far as wood ID goes I have (or had) a lot of microscopic photos of wood showing the cellular structure. Unfortunately my portable hard drive died and the backups are in my desktop computer in storage. I obtained these years ago when I did a lot of writing about wood species for my woodturning club. Once we move into the new house I'll try and remember to look for them, they might be helpful.
|
|
|
Post by rockpickerforever on May 3, 2013 14:16:41 GMT -5
The best I have to use is a loupe or magnifying glass. Even those can give some pretty amazing detail that you couldn't see before. Sounds like your dissecting scope is loads of fun. I remember those from high school biology. Better to look at p wood than disgusting frogs, worms and fetal pig parts!
We've had several small fires locally. I heard on the news that the closest one, near Valley Center, was just put out. The closest large fire currently is the Summit fire. It's north of the I-10 in Riverside county, and is about 90 miles north of me.
We've always had big fires here every so often over the years. They are cyclical, depending on how much rainfall we've had. The last two big ones were in 2003 and 2007, both in late October - when the Santa Ana winds turn them into horrific fire storms make fighting them almost impossible. Guess we're due for another big one now. Without enough rain earlier this year, everything is already dead and brown, at least a couple months ahead of schedule. Lots of fuel. For the one in 2003, we were out at Ocotillo Wells when it started. The fire had closed the route we would be taking home, and because of the high winds, they had also shut down I-8, so we couldn't go south and come back that way. We ended up spending a few extra days out there. By the time we got home, it had burned to within a few miles of here.
At least the temps are coming down tomorrow. It's only 95 degrees now, don't think it will even get to 100 today. And the winds (at least here) are back to normal. Jean
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Member since January 1970
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on May 3, 2013 16:52:38 GMT -5
wow summit burning again!
JUDY!!! They need you!!
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Member since January 1970
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on May 3, 2013 16:54:08 GMT -5
|
|
jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,548
|
Post by jamesp on May 3, 2013 17:33:15 GMT -5
I have been looking for an old reliable microscope but should consider digital one.Something tells me the digital one may be real good with the power of digital amplification.
|
|
snuffy
Cave Dweller
Member since May 2009
Posts: 4,319
|
Post by snuffy on May 3, 2013 18:21:14 GMT -5
I have been looking for an old reliable microscope but should consider digital one.Something tells me the digital one may be real good with the power of digital amplification. I like mine,but wish I had gotten one with more room for larger slabs.Have to be cut real thin to fit on it. Your coral James Palm snuffy
|
|
Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,484
|
Post by Sabre52 on May 3, 2013 18:43:34 GMT -5
Digital scopes are a really cool idea but after doing some research, I think I'll have to wait till I get a new computer as they requite more modern operating systems than I have. I found one I really like that is a digital dissecting type scope and has more room under the objective than all those smaller tube type scopes plus is had eyepieces and a lower power range. Many of the scopes have way too much magnification.. My only fear is I'm not computer savvy enough to figure how how to use one. After doing some reading, they seem pretty complicated for an old school computer dummy like me *L*.
Jean, We had a big Ojai fire some years ago that was so bad we had like 15 minutes to evacuate the house. right ahead of the flames. Had time to grab the pets, my best guns and that was it. Parked in a McDonalds parking lot up the hill to watch to see if our home burned or not ( didn't but came close). Folks in McDonalds were really wonderful NOT!!! They were charging evacuated folks on a per cup basis for water. Cheap bastards! We were cooking in a car with one dog, three parrots, and turtles all over the floor and no water except what they were selling. Still makes me mad every time I think of it!.....Mel
|
|
|
Post by rockpickerforever on May 3, 2013 19:08:49 GMT -5
Mel, times like that seem to bring out the best - or the worst - in people. I hope I never have to evacuate like that, and find out!
Since I posted earlier today, we've had several other fires break out in the county. But we had some cloud cover today, so it only got to 95 degrees, and started cooling off pretty early. It's a good 10 degrees cooler right now than it was 24 hours ago. And like I said earlier, no wind. Now if people would only take heed of the warnings about how dry it is, and wait a few days until we have some rain/higher humidities to use their weedwhackers - cause of one of the fires today! Jean
|
|
Minnesota Daniel
freely admits to licking rocks
A COUPLE LAKERS
Member since August 2011
Posts: 891
|
Post by Minnesota Daniel on May 3, 2013 19:37:25 GMT -5
Mel, I have no idea what that material might be. If you play with the contrast and sit back away from the screen and stare, patterns sometimes emerge. One side is for comparison to the one I drew on. These are cells or pores lining up in perpendicular rows. I don't think there are any growth rings. Who knows.
|
|
Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,484
|
Post by Sabre52 on May 3, 2013 20:46:55 GMT -5
Daniel: I looked at that too and went to Strauss's wood ID site. That Texas specimen is either distorted or just weird but I think the cells ( tracheids) being lined up like that and of that size, makes me think it's a conifer of some kind. Frankly though, it's just a guess *L*....Mel
|
|
bhiatt
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2012
Posts: 1,532
|
Post by bhiatt on May 3, 2013 21:00:27 GMT -5
Good looking stuff there. Texas has some wild wood. This guy here has some of the best looking petwood Ive ever seen and its all from Texas. Also has a killer collection of rio grande agates. His collection is one the best Ive seen. Most all of it he has collected himself. Check out all of his sets of Texas petwood, it will blow you away. www.flickr.com/photos/97769244@N00/sets/72157613759024309/
|
|
Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,484
|
Post by Sabre52 on May 3, 2013 21:16:23 GMT -5
bhiatt: You're probably trying to reference Darwin ( Matt) Dillon's site. I've talked with him several times at the San Antonio show and his collection is remarkable. He's the guy who got me interested in Texas wood and Rio grande Agate ....Mel
|
|
bhiatt
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2012
Posts: 1,532
|
Post by bhiatt on May 3, 2013 22:02:29 GMT -5
yep the same guy. Dont know why the link wont work.
|
|
jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,548
|
Post by jamesp on May 4, 2013 4:46:30 GMT -5
Matt Dillon steered me to Lake Falcon on the Rio GRande.You are right Brad,he's got his own collection,well photographed and organized,and he just retired and moved closer to the Rio.I expect to see him spend even more time on his Rio collection and documentation Some of Matt's shrinkwood,you could spend all day on his flicker site www.flickr.com/photos/97769244@N00/sets/72157625868775508/Brad,here is some black skin rocks including black on amazing bone www.flickr.com/photos/97769244@N00/sets/72157624131830589/with/5400507478/Matt mentions Mangenese Oxide as the possible cause,maybe a mystery.I question salts Any input Mel? BTW My dental hygienest has been using a camera on a 'probe' to look at my teeth on a monitor for over 10 years.I feel certain they got some smokin scopes these days.I see Snuffy and Daniel magnifying.
|
|
Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,484
|
Post by Sabre52 on May 4, 2013 8:17:34 GMT -5
James, Matt is one cool guy isn't he? He has the best booth at the show ever. I usually drop almost all my spending money at that one place *L*
I've got my eye on the AmScope 10X-60X digital binocular microscope but will have to wait till I can get a new computer too.
I think "Desert Varnish" is manganese oxide+iron Oxide but I'm not sure about the black exteriors on some of the Texas material as it does not have that shiny varnish effect. Perhaps the black "varnish " on Texas rocks is desert varnish that has been weathered and dulled by rainfall over the eons, as the type found on the desert forms under low rainfall conditions....Mel
|
|
jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,548
|
Post by jamesp on May 4, 2013 9:08:21 GMT -5
It does not take long to collect a spectacular collection on Falcon Reservoir.I was blown away by that place.I know that is a big honey hole for him.There is enough shoreline for 100 forums to get rock. I looked up AmScope and got lost in the mass selection.Being a biology man you know you microscopes.Curious why this 10-60 model.I understand 60 is about more than you need for rock.
|
|