EricD
Cave Dweller 
High in the Mountains
Member since November 2019
Posts: 1,142
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Post by EricD on Sept 27, 2020 17:18:17 GMT -5
I don't. knave sold it to me as "wood, I think". Here's a slice of it sawn across the grain. - MsAli Tommy - Wow Eric that is sweet sweet wood, beautiful. I really like it, except for the virtual spiderweb of fractures. Might be just the reason Tommy doesn't like the stuff!  |
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Tommy
Administrator 
Member since January 2013
Posts: 13,004
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Post by Tommy on Sept 27, 2020 19:58:09 GMT -5
I really like it, except for the virtual spiderweb of fractures. Might be just the reason Tommy doesn't like the stuff! I love the stuff but every time I've tried to make cabs - or even find a solid slab worth cabbing - no success  |
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EricD
Cave Dweller
High in the Mountains
Member since November 2019
Posts: 1,142
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Post by EricD on Sept 27, 2020 20:47:06 GMT -5
I really like it, except for the virtual spiderweb of fractures. Might be just the reason Tommy doesn't like the stuff! I love the stuff but every time I've tried to make cabs - or even find a solid slab worth cabbing - no success  Pm your address and I'll send you a nugget of two that's worth it. Too lazy to find the address myself, from when you sent me the t-shirt and mug |
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Post by stephan on Sept 27, 2020 22:15:38 GMT -5
OK, I got my entry done. No pictures yet of the finished product. I do have a picture of the pre-forms Of the two pieces I cabbed. The one I submit will be named “Against All Odds.” First of all, whoever has been paying my wife to keep me too busy to cab for the month... it nearly worked. You needn’t bother, though. There are more talented cabbers for you to distract. 😁 Once I had the outlines ground, both stones fell off the nails. Old superglue, I guess? The problem is that the shapes I picked are definitely challenging to dome without a dop. I already knew that all my soft wheels are nearly bald, but it turns out that someone shoved some gardening tools against them in the storage closet. Two of the wheels now have dents that cause quite a bit of chatter. I ran out of good light, so I hope I got all the scratches. I will see tomorrow. In spite of the challenges, I wanted to honor Tommy’s generous gift, and the beautiful material itself. I will also post the colla wood and palm root when I get the chance to work them. I will decide tomorrow which to submit.  DSC_1280_Petrified wood cabochon pre-forms by sdttds, on Flickr |
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Post by stephan on Sept 28, 2020 10:43:15 GMT -5
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Post by fernwood on Sept 28, 2020 11:33:49 GMT -5
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Tommy
Administrator
Member since January 2013
Posts: 13,004
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Post by Tommy on Sept 28, 2020 12:52:20 GMT -5
This has been such a fantastic contest with 15 beautiful entries so far and I hate to drag it down with my entry but I'm going to anyway... I started working on this jagged end cut of Indonesian Palm root wood early in the month and I worked on it off and on - each time to the point of stopping in frustration. I've made cabs from this material before and don't remember it being challenging so I think it was just this piece. The main issue was the variable hardness especially within the black area where the shine goes from medium high to matte following the features you can see in the photo. I tried several approaches on the polish starting with wheels all the way up to 50k. Not happy with it I tossed it in the Lot-O for 24 hours ceramic media and AO polish. Still not good enough I went back to my tried and true method of wool carpet on a slow speed lap and called it a day. This was the little chunk I started with. I think I remember finding it in a gem show vendor's scrap bin but I can't be sure.  The rough grinding went good and it only broke once - I would call it a strategic break which reduced it to more of a manageable size.  The finished cab - Sorry I didn't get a better size reference photo - I can assure you that in spite of how many times I say "my fat fingers" they are actually quite average. The finished piece stands approx 65mm x 20mm.  Side view - I'm not completely happy with how it turned out in the black area but I'm glad the sharp points did not dive and the girdle is relatively consistent all the way around.  Edited to add this close-up showing the variability within black area.  |
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Post by MsAli on Sept 28, 2020 13:02:32 GMT -5
I like the black area in that a lot!
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Jahic
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since September 2020
Posts: 139
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Post by Jahic on Sept 28, 2020 13:17:49 GMT -5
That’s a wicked cab Tommy!
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betojdesigns
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since September 2020
Posts: 120
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Post by betojdesigns on Sept 28, 2020 14:49:15 GMT -5
I want to participate in this, looks like fun.
Here is the Petwood Rough material that I used.  Petwood Preshaped  Petwood finished top  Petwood Finished Dome |
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Post by stephan on Sept 28, 2020 16:19:42 GMT -5
This has been such a fantastic contest with 15 beautiful entries so far and I hate to drag it down with my entry but I'm going to anyway... I started working on this jagged end cut of Indonesian Palm root wood early in the month and I worked on it off and on - each time to the point of stopping in frustration. I've made cabs from this material before and don't remember it being challenging so I think it was just this piece. The main issue was the variable hardness especially within the black area where the shine goes from medium high to matte following the features you can see in the photo. I tried several approaches on the polish starting with wheels all the way up to 50k. Not happy with it I tossed it in the Lot-O for 24 hours ceramic media and AO polish. Still not good enough I went back to my tried and true method of wool carpet on a slow speed lap and called it a day. This was the little chunk I started with. I think I remember finding it in a gem show vendor's scrap bin but I can't be sure. The rough grinding went good and it only broke once - I would call it a strategic break which reduced it to more of a manageable size. The finished cab - Sorry I didn't get a better size reference photo - I can assure you that in spite of how many times I say "my fat fingers" they are actually quite average. The finished piece stands approx 65mm x 20mm. Side view - I'm not completely happy with how it turned out in the black area but I'm glad the sharp points did not dive and the girdle is relatively consistent all the way around. Edited to add this close-up showing the variability within black area. Wow! That is cool. I like the black area, too. I also like the straight-from-rough approach. Challenging, but it really allows for creativity, especially when the piece throws you some curve-balls. Great work. |
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Post by stephan on Sept 28, 2020 16:23:09 GMT -5
I want to participate in this, looks like fun.
Here is the Petwood Rough material that I used. Petwood Preshaped Petwood finished top Petwood Finished Dome Nice |
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 4,068 
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Post by gemfeller on Sept 28, 2020 19:33:43 GMT -5
Great entries everyone! It's wonderful to see so many people participating. What a change from previous contests when only 3 or 4 people entered. Good luck to all.
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Post by pauls on Sept 28, 2020 23:54:03 GMT -5
Great entries everyone! It's wonderful to see so many people participating. What a change from previous contests when only 3 or 4 people entered. Good luck to all. Agreed, I don't know who my vote will go to, really fabulous cabs in this contest. |
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Post by orrum on Sept 29, 2020 7:15:09 GMT -5
And it ain't over yet!!!
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Post by fernwood on Sept 29, 2020 9:10:05 GMT -5
So many awesome entries. Gonna be a tough vote, but all are winners in my eyes.
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Post by knave on Sept 29, 2020 9:52:43 GMT -5
So many awesome entries. Gonna be a tough vote, but all are winners in my eyes. So this is a participation trophy huh? Lol |
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Post by rockpickerforever on Sept 29, 2020 12:33:14 GMT -5
knave said "So this is a participation trophy huh? Lol" FUNNY! Had considered entering, but didn't want to muddy the waters any more than they already are.
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dreamrocks
fully equipped rock polisher
I got lucky this morning and was able to post this no others since
Member since November 2018
Posts: 1,232
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Post by dreamrocks on Sept 29, 2020 14:08:04 GMT -5
knave said "So this is a participation trophy huh? Lol" FUNNY! Had considered entering, but didn't want to muddy the waters any more than they already are. yeah right you want a participation trophy too. Come just admit it |
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Post by knave on Sept 29, 2020 14:52:19 GMT -5
I didn’t mean it badly Beth.
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... to the New Guys from The ChatBox V.2 Crew