Proposal for another cab contest

I would like to see such a contest, but you are taking all the fun out of it (except for the winner) by not letting us all vote on the winner. Participants send cabs to Tommy or you and whoever posts the photos here with no names. We all get to vote.

Maybe you and Tommy switch hosting the contest every other turn so that ya'll can enter as well.

The method proposed in the poll doesn't involve me, so why should I care?

I'm not playing, so do as the cabbing folks decide.

NOT saying that you or Tommy wouldn't be better qualified to judge than this motley crew as a whole.
Probably easier to judge actual quality of the work when holding a cab and seeing it in person.
Pictures can leave so much out and we all know it's tough to judge any rock just with a picture.
I sure wouldn't want to have to take the pictures!!
Send 'em to one of our ace photographers for that part.

Maybe a good compromise would be a 50/50 judging. (60/40?) (whatever)
The group vote counts for 50% of the grade and the "official" judge vote counts for 50%.
I don't know quite how all that complicated math would work, but I'm sure ya'll will figure something out!

Either way, I'll watch the game.

That's a pretty good idea captbob - maybe if Tela or I judged the technical aspects based on a written criteria then the overall cosmetic beauty side is judged on the board based on photos by a neutral photographer. I could do the photos before sending them on to Tela.

Edited to add the photos thought.

I voted "Maybe." I want to see the specific criteria as well as a resolution of the judging aspect before making a final decision. Frankly I'm not too excited about the idea.

I'd be interested in WATCHING a winner take all cab contest.

LOL!!! Subtle much? 

I understand your concerns. Valid points. First, I assure you that, as a wire wrapper, I can be unbiased. I've evaluated cabs for my own silver settings. Granted, not a lot, but I have a good range in mind for a cab's girdle (or not) that can be both for wire wrapping and for setting. The goal would be to shoot for the criteria, not for a finishing preference.

I wasn't going to get as specific as the angle of the girdle. However for purposes of the criteria, you probably wouldn't not want to enter a reverse girdle, simply because it is not within the realm of an average cab. I was thinking to judge the evenness of the dome, the evenness of the height of the girdle, the final polish, etc. I was thinking to require a back polish and allow no doublets or triplets. Those could be for another round, maybe. Shape, at this point, not limited, size not limited. Any material you please. However, you will be judged by the overall cab considering the difficulty of the material. In other words- If you turned in a perfectly polished jade, it would more impressive than a jasper. Don't turn in a funky, difficult shape if it's not finished perfectly, too. Shape could be judged as it pertains to the material. So, you would want to be working with the stone. You could use a template, but the template shape should compliment the material. I suppose you would need to add a picture of the slab. This could be sent to Tommy and passed to me- assuming it would be me. I wouldn't give credit for the material itself. BUT, a minimum value should be decided. We can't have one person enter a 20.00 cab alongside 50.00 dollar cabs. So, use some good stuff. Yes, that is subjective. Sorry. But, I do have an idea, or I can find out, what the appox value would be.

Anyway- that's my line of thinking, at his point. I am open to suggestions and discussion.

Meant to add. I, personally, won't be judging the overall "beauty" of the cab. That, as I am reading it, will be up to vote on the board.

Gemfeller has a lot of the same issues I have.

A cab first has to be pretty and desirable.

Second it has to be well cut for the purpose it's intended for. Those are very subjective elements that elicit different responses from different people. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder as the hackneyed but true saying goes.

I'm certainly not going to waste my time fiddling with calipers to make sure I cut stones to perfect calibration.

Another point for me is I wouldnt be sending off a highly desired stone after putting that much work into it with the chance of losing it due to a technicality like a less attractive shine. Some stones are like that and dont take a high shine. I dont know...?