rockroller
spending too much on rocks
Be excellent to each other.
Member since October 2013
Posts: 359
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Post by rockroller on Sept 14, 2015 22:37:29 GMT -5
I am lucky enough to be able to find some nice Unakite and Epidosite in creekbeds pretty close to where I live. Most is only big enough to tumble... But some are big enough for the 10" saw... Hope you like it! ~Roland
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herchenx
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2012
Posts: 3,360
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Post by herchenx on Sept 15, 2015 4:18:03 GMT -5
Nice, great to see some of your rocks!
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Post by Jugglerguy on Sept 15, 2015 5:25:07 GMT -5
That looks a lot like the stuff I find in Lake Superior. I love that stuff!
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Post by rockjunquie on Sept 15, 2015 8:00:19 GMT -5
Wow, it looks so different from our Virgina unakite.
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Post by Jugglerguy on Sept 15, 2015 15:45:45 GMT -5
Hey @rockjunkuie, could you post a picture of Virginia unakite?
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Post by rockjunquie on Sept 15, 2015 19:28:45 GMT -5
Hey @rockjunkuie, could you post a picture of Virginia unakite? Sure. Our stuff has very saturated colors. It is almost exclusively green and dark salmon. The above is something I made years ago with a Virginia Unakite.The pictures on the wiki page are from my neck of the woods, too. It is Virginia's state stone. I wish I liked it, it is one of the few rocks that I could collect if I went to the mountains to rockhound. Here at the beach, there is nothing.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Sept 15, 2015 19:44:17 GMT -5
our unakite is mostly hounded on the beaches so its usually pretty smooth already.I did not realize the Virginia stuff was hounded in the mountains. Is it larger pieces then? Is it hard rock mining or loose on the ground to pick up?
Chuck
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Post by Jugglerguy on Sept 15, 2015 20:09:42 GMT -5
The Virginia stuff is very speckled like granite. Actually, I think unakite is a type of granite, isn't it? When I pick unakite on the beach, I avoid the speckled stuff because it tends to undercut like granite when tumbled. I prefer the stuff that's more streaked with color. The green epidote holds up better than the red/pink/orange feldspar too. No red here, so I guess this is just epidosite.
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Post by victor1941 on Sept 15, 2015 21:47:20 GMT -5
I recently returned from a vacation in a private home north of Santa Fe, New Mexico in a small town called Tesuque. We stayed in a home 4 miles east of Tesuque in the foothills that contained a good quantity of epidote and unakite for easy surface collecting. Since we were flying I was very limited in what I could bring back but wanted to let others know the location. Some of the smaller pieces have tumbled well but some of the larger material cut into cabs have undercut in the vibe. The only problem I see collecting is most of the area is privately owned.
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rockroller
spending too much on rocks
Be excellent to each other.
Member since October 2013
Posts: 359
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Post by rockroller on Sept 15, 2015 22:15:42 GMT -5
That looks a lot like the stuff I find in Lake Superior. I love that stuff! You can pick it up many places in the mountains here, usually enough on the surface so that you don't have to dig. The river tumbled stuff is a better indicator of what is hard enough to polish. The batch I have in the vibe has such a wide variety of colors that I'm really excited about it. If I can get a shine anywhere near yours Jugglerguy, I will be quite happy!! Your pendant piece is a nice combination rockjunquie. I think there is some of that in this area but harder to find. ~Roland
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Post by rockjunquie on Sept 16, 2015 9:45:53 GMT -5
our unakite is mostly hounded on the beaches so its usually pretty smooth already.I did not realize the Virginia stuff was hounded in the mountains. Is it larger pieces then? Is it hard rock mining or loose on the ground to pick up? Chuck Chuck, I haven't hounded any myself, but I know others who have simply "picked up" large pieces for their yards. I do not believe that it has to be mined. Here is some more info I found... www.dmme.virginia.gov/dgmr/rocks.shtmlBecause it is relatively resistant to weathering, unakite can sometimes be found as rounded cobbles in rivers that flow from the Blue Ridge Mountains. Here is a good, short article you might find interesting. VA Unakiteedit- All of the pieces that I have had, have had good polishes on them and I have tumbled many with steel shot and they were fine.
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Post by rockjunquie on Sept 16, 2015 9:49:27 GMT -5
The Virginia stuff is very speckled like granite. Actually, I think unakite is a type of granite, isn't it? Yes, it is a type of granite or so it says in my research.
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meviva
Cave Dweller
Member since July 2013
Posts: 1,474
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Post by meviva on Sept 16, 2015 13:38:50 GMT -5
The above is something I made years ago with a Virginia Unakite.The pictures on the wiki page are from my neck of the woods, too. It is Virginia's state stone. I wish I liked it, it is one of the few rocks that I could collect if I went to the mountains to rockhound. Here at the beach, there is nothing. OMG!! I love this wrap! Andrea
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Fossilman
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2009
Posts: 20,709
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Post by Fossilman on Sept 17, 2015 10:08:03 GMT -5
Now those are nice!!
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Post by broseph82 on Sept 17, 2015 18:11:29 GMT -5
Here's a slice from some unakite snowmom sent me from Michigan. Wish I had a nice 5lb piece or bigger
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rockroller
spending too much on rocks
Be excellent to each other.
Member since October 2013
Posts: 359
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Post by rockroller on Sept 17, 2015 18:24:00 GMT -5
Here's a slice from some unakite snowmom sent me from Michigan. Wish I had a nice 5lb piece or bigger broseph82Technically speaking, its only unakite if it has epidote/quartz/pink feldspar. Epidote and quartz only is epidosite. I have a piece as big as you are asking for if you want to pay for the shipping. Don't think I can get it in the 10" saw anyway! ~Roland
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Post by broseph82 on Sept 17, 2015 21:05:16 GMT -5
Ok here's some unakite (end piece) from snowmom
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Post by snowmom on Sept 18, 2015 3:51:12 GMT -5
There's plenty here, i'll keep my eyes open for ya!
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