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Post by glennz01 on Dec 10, 2017 14:49:59 GMT -5
I think your Petoskey cab came out really nice. There are some bad eyes on the top, but that’s a fault of the rock, not yours. The shine is excellent. I like the contrast of the bad eyes. Thank you for the vote of confidence. You can send any reject petroskey my way any time, especially the smaller ones. Love working with this material. agreed came out very nice, I wish i had some of those, the alaskan stuff doesnt quite have that texture, also smells like crude oil so i can work on it for very short amounts of time! |
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spiritstone
Cave Dweller 
Member since August 2014
Posts: 2,061 
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Post by spiritstone on Dec 10, 2017 17:31:27 GMT -5
Purple Banded Fluorite. Slab  Preform  Cab  |
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Post by fernwood on Dec 10, 2017 17:43:21 GMT -5
spiritstoneI love purple Fluorite and the cab is beautiful. Nice banding and the shape is great.
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Post by glennz01 on Dec 11, 2017 1:29:49 GMT -5
i can already see that this is going to be another good grouping of cabs.
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Post by rockjunquie on Dec 11, 2017 14:34:51 GMT -5
Great job, fernwood! I'm really glad you joined in.  I'm not sure I'm gonna make it. If I do it will be at the last minute. |
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Post by rockjunquie on Dec 11, 2017 14:35:46 GMT -5
Off to a GRRRRRR8 start!
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Tommy
Administrator 
Member since January 2013
Posts: 12,989
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Post by Tommy on Dec 12, 2017 15:46:42 GMT -5
Here is my entry... Nevada #8 mine Turquoise. I chose this because it's my birth stone in my birth month and yeah, blah blah. I'm also cabbing for my store inventory and I really don't have anything "really" soft that would ultimately make it into my store. Turquoise is listed at mohs 5 but this stuff is quite soft. I love working with it because I'm lazy and I get to skip a bunch of wheels - shape it on the 220, skip to 600, then finish in the 3k/8k range. Going higher grit is futile because it already has a relatively killer shine and I've actually seen the shine level go down past 3000 - maybe it's because of the heat, idk. Anyway, it IS listed as mohs 5 so when it comes to judging - in keeping with the "softer the better" caveat, please give extra credence to those who enter with the really soft stuff. I'm playing for the participation ribbon     |
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Post by gmitch067 on Dec 12, 2017 16:05:00 GMT -5
I never worked turquoise Tom. Is the brown material softer or harder than the blue stone?
It is certainly a beautiful cab.
My Mother used to have a bunch of Navajo turquoise jewelry bought from sites in Arizona and New Mexico. She treasured the pieces. My Sister (who inherited all of my Mother's stuff when she passed away) recently mentioned that the colors seem to have gone a bit darker - giving the pieces a worn/aged look.
Does turquoise soak up the body oils?
Does it have to be coated with something?
Glenn
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Post by rockjunquie on Dec 12, 2017 17:19:41 GMT -5
I never worked turquoise Tom. Is the brown material softer or harder than the blue stone? It is certainly a beautiful cab. My Mother used to have a bunch of Navajo turquoise jewelry bought from sites in Arizona and New Mexico. She treasured the pieces. My Sister (who inherited all of my Mother's stuff when she passed away) recently mentioned that the colors seem to have gone a bit darker - giving the pieces a worn/aged look. Does turquoise soak up the body oils? Does it have to be coated with something? Glenn Yes, turquoise does soak up body oil. I'm not sure about the coating though. Maybe some good quality wax? You could probably repolish with zam to bring back some of the color. orrum would be one of the people to ask here, I think. |
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Post by rockjunquie on Dec 12, 2017 17:21:06 GMT -5
Beautiful cab, Tommy and really great turquoise. I haven't done any US turquoise, yet.... I don't think. Did you soak it in water first? |
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Post by fernwood on Dec 12, 2017 17:54:07 GMT -5
Tommy I love the cab, but I am partial to Turquoise. gmitch067 Stabilized Turquoise tends to discolor less than unstabilized. Turquoise from some mines is softer than others, so even stabilization does not help much. Not just body oils, but other chemicals, even dish soap, can cause a stone to darken. I had make a necklace and ring of some beautiful, unstabilized Sleeping Beauty Turquoise in 1986. I have worn the necklace almost constant since then. The stones are now green. The Turquoise ring has darkened some, but not as much as the necklace. Another ring, which I was careful to not wear when my hands were exposed to any chemicals, retains the beautiful light blue color.
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Post by orrum on Dec 12, 2017 22:23:12 GMT -5
Great cab Tommy.
Thanks Tela for the hood opinion of me turquoise. Philnm is a pro on herevwit turquoise and Radio etc. We have a bunch of hood turquoise csbbers. Yes the turquoise foes darken and absorb skin oils especially the unstabilized ones. Old pawn indian jewelry is prized for the richness and patina of both stone and silver. I would not hit it with Zam etc due to the loss of this quality. But beauty is in the eye of the beholder so please feel free to make it your way.
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rivarat
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since June 2016
Posts: 140
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Post by rivarat on Dec 13, 2017 3:38:09 GMT -5
Not a big fan of soft materials, always had problems with undercutting and finishing. Maybe because I really only use cerium on leather, mostly because I have mainly hard materials. Here's a small selection of what I had the choice of. Finally settled on some of the Stichtite in serpentine AKA Atlantisite From what I found on the net Mohs hardness Serpentine: 3 - 4; Stichtite: 1,5 - 2 Preform  Final  |
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Post by rockjunquie on Dec 13, 2017 7:22:25 GMT -5
Beautiful cab rivarat! I love that stuff and I know what a challenge it can be. Great job! |
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fishnpinball
Cave Dweller
So much to learn, so little time
Member since March 2017
Posts: 1,491
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Post by fishnpinball on Dec 17, 2017 18:49:06 GMT -5
I picked out a piece of chryscolla from my dads old stock. Hardness 2.5 - 3.5. The material did like to break apart for no reason.  DSC00751 by ngboettch, on Flickr  DSC00754 by ngboettch, on Flickr |
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Post by rockjunquie on Dec 20, 2017 18:24:28 GMT -5
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Post by fernwood on Dec 20, 2017 19:18:51 GMT -5
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 4,059
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Post by gemfeller on Dec 21, 2017 18:16:11 GMT -5
I don't normally cab anything under 6 hardness due to that "suitable for jewelry" clause in the rules for this month. I probably don't have any super-soft rough for that reason but if time allows I'll see if I have something hidden away I've forgotten about. If I don't participate this month it's because of those limitations. In any event I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year.
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Post by rockjunquie on Dec 21, 2017 22:33:34 GMT -5
I don't normally cab anything under 6 hardness due to that "suitable for jewelry" clause in the rules for this month. I probably don't have any super-soft rough for that reason but if time allows I'll see if I have something hidden away I've forgotten about. If I don't participate this month it's because of those limitations. In any event I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year. Lots of soft stuff is suitable to pendants- maybe not rings, but pendants. You do turquoise, right? That can be pretty soft. |
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 4,059
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Post by gemfeller on Dec 21, 2017 23:52:48 GMT -5
I don't normally cab anything under 6 hardness due to that "suitable for jewelry" clause in the rules for this month. I probably don't have any super-soft rough for that reason but if time allows I'll see if I have something hidden away I've forgotten about. If I don't participate this month it's because of those limitations. In any event I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year. Lots of soft stuff is suitable to pendants- maybe not rings, but pendants. You do turquoise, right? That can be pretty soft. I don't do much turquoise anymore for that very reason -- seems like I ended up repolishing/repairing nearly every stone I sold. I cut opal but that's in a special category: its fragility is a given and it has to be worn with care even if it's set in a protective mounting. I'm not knocking softer materials; people love pearls and other softies, and as you say, many soft gems can be worn with care as pendants and pins. As I explained I generally use harder materials for their greater durability and I can't think of anything I have on hand that will compete well in this contest. I have rhodochrosite, lapis, and some webbed variscite. Maybe some others. But nothing in the 2 or 3 Mohs range, which I think is the point of the competition: the softer the better. Besides, it's damned cold in my shop and I'm reluctant to even go out and check what I have. But tomorrow's a longer day. |
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I'm not sure I'm gonna make it. If I do it will be at the last minute.
Nov 14, 2024 18:17:57 GMT -5
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Nov 15, 2024 17:44:51 GMT -5
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