Not quite Indonesian coral, but getting close
Jul 11, 2014 8:23:15 GMT -5
rockpickerforever likes this
Post by jamesp on Jul 11, 2014 8:23:15 GMT -5
Bring it on, James! That coral is so hard, how is it on your saw blade?
Baby powder for bikers, okaaay. Sure bet you wouldn't want to inhale that stuff. Probably worse for the lungs than smoking, what with the grit and all.
Check out the absolute hardness. mohs 1,2,3,4,5,6..... scale is comparative and deceptive. The absolute hardness is accurate.
Notice diamond is 16 times harder than quartz and 4 times harder than the next softer rock ruby. Ain't that something.
And just because a crystalline quartz will scratch a quartz agate, it may require more force to scratch one vs the other.
And the scratch may be way deeper in one vs the other.
Point being, diamonds laugh at all forms of quartz, but some are 'tougher' or may pull harder on the diamond.
And may pull the diamond particles out of the binder.
If you run the blade on slow speed feed the coral about has no wear effect.
The old fellow that got me into coral split thousands of large corals over 30 years on his 24 Highland using the same blade.
He just put the feed on slow. Same as making cabs, guessing that pushing lightly would save the diamond wheels.
Mohs hardness Absolute hardness Image
1 Talc Mg3Si4O10(OH)2 1 Talc block.jpg
2 Gypsum CaSO4·2H2O 3 Gypse Arignac.jpg
3 Calcite CaCO3 9 Calcite-sample2.jpg
4 Fluorite CaF2 21 Fluorite with Iron Pyrite.jpg
5 Apatite Ca5(PO4) 48 Apatite crystals.jpg
6 Feldspar KAlSi3O8 72 OrthoclaseBresil.jpg
7 Quartz SiO2 100 Quartz Brésil.jpg
8 Topaz Al2SiO4 200 Topaz cut.jpg
9 Corundum Al2O3 400 Cut Ruby.jpg
10 Diamond C 1600 Rough diamond.jpg