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Post by fernwood on Nov 2, 2018 7:23:34 GMT -5
Mystic Merlinite AKA Indigo Gabbro. A friend asked me if I could find some rough of this. She only needs 3 pieces, so the rest I am keeping. Any idea on the Mohs of this? An internet search found a range from 3.5 to 5.5. Does anyone have pointers for tumbling some of it? I want to get some as glossy as I can after pre-shaping. Others I just want to clean up a little.  1 mm  3 mm  2 mm Labradorite. Same friend’s request. This bunch has some excellent flash. Just hard to pick most up in photos.  1 lab  2 lab Turritella is back. I had to get some. This shows about 75% of the package, the nicer ones. A great mix of shapes and colors. Plan on tumbling some, but trying to leave the character in them. There are some that would work as matched sets for earrings.  1 t  2 t I only photographed the fun stuff. The rest of order was just basic supplies. Thanks for looking |
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Post by MsAli on Nov 2, 2018 9:42:52 GMT -5
The mystic Merlin I always thought was a MOHS 6. Could be wrong on that
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Post by fernwood on Nov 2, 2018 9:49:28 GMT -5
From what I read it varies, depending on composition. Some call it a variety of dendrite opal. Much of what I have does show the opal flash. That would indicate a lower mohs in those parts. Just want to be careful not to ruin it.
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Post by hummingbirdstones on Nov 2, 2018 9:54:07 GMT -5
The gabbro polishes up nice when cabbing. I think I have a cab of it in one of my cases, so I'll try to get a picture up for you. Cool material - kind of chatoyant.
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Post by MsAli on Nov 2, 2018 10:01:47 GMT -5
The gabbro polishes up nice when cabbing. I think I have a cab of it in one of my cases, so I'll try to get a picture up for you. Cool material - kind of chatoyant. I would love to see it cabbed. |
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Post by aDave on Nov 2, 2018 11:15:56 GMT -5
Allison MsAli, where did the turitella come from? Thanks. |
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Post by MsAli on Nov 2, 2018 12:02:35 GMT -5
Allison MsAli , where did the turitella come from? Thanks. Not sure ? |
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Post by hummingbirdstones on Nov 2, 2018 12:25:01 GMT -5
Here's my cabbed piece. Sorry about the picture quality. I am a notoriously bad picture taker. Doesn't show the chatoyancy much in the picture and it's subtle in the stone in hand.
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Post by miket on Nov 2, 2018 14:26:00 GMT -5
Still very nice. I'm also not great at picture taking- I'm thinking that I'm 50/50 or so at getting a good one.
But I like the stone and the cab both!
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Post by fernwood on Nov 2, 2018 16:44:21 GMT -5
aDave Everything is from The Rock Shed.
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Post by beefjello on Nov 3, 2018 15:38:54 GMT -5
Neat stuff! Haven't heard of Merlinite before. I really like the loose Turritella shells!
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Post by fernwood on Nov 4, 2018 6:54:54 GMT -5
Neat stuff! Haven't heard of Merlinite before. I really like the loose Turritella shells! Neither had I on the Merlinite. Someone here purchased Turritella shells from Rock Shed a while ago. When I got around to ordering some, they were out of stock. Been checking ever since. Ordered quickly when they were again available. |
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lancemountain
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since March 2017
Posts: 214 
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Post by lancemountain on Nov 5, 2018 23:19:56 GMT -5
will those shells shine up? Interesting!
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Post by fernwood on Nov 6, 2018 5:09:58 GMT -5
They should. Someone here posted some they polished. I also have some that were given to me with a nice shine.
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller 
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,497
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Post by Sabre52 on Nov 7, 2018 18:11:06 GMT -5
Really like the gastropods. Are they agatized? Funny, like the Wamsutter stuff, that is not Turritella, I see a couple of different species in your mix but no Turritella. Maybe Anchura or Cochlespira types. Can't wait to see those tumbled. they should look cool!!!!....Mel
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Post by fernwood on Nov 8, 2018 17:41:03 GMT -5
Sabre52 Right, they were advertised as Turritellas, but the mix is amazing. Going very slow and careful with these after my Tears are out of the 1 lb final polish barrel. Will be trying a mix of 50% shells and 50% polishing pellets. Starting with those that are not the best. Will use diamond file to hand grind some of the matrix off first. Then do 600 pre-polish, checking daily. On to 1200 pre-polish. Check daily. Next is what is either 12,000 or 14,000 polish. Last would be rapid polish. All in rotary with a 4-6 hour Borax cleaning between stages. I have heard of people using some 1/2" pieces of closed foam as a cushioning/filler for fragile stones or fossils. Have you ever heard of this? It is what pipe insulation is made from. Thinking about cutting some from pipe insulation scrap pieces I have. Doing a 24 hour Borax tumble with those in a 3lb barrel. Or, maybe, just running them through the dishwasher. Want to save the best shells and see if my technique works. Yes, some show agate type markings under the loop. I love new adventures.
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