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Post by stardiamond on Oct 11, 2020 15:28:38 GMT -5
I got a little under 3 pound piece of rough from altamont on Etsy. I thought I saw gray spots on the face of the primary picture, but they didn't show when I got the rock. They did show up on some of the slabs; spooky. Largest slabs are a little under 6 inches.  |
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Post by stephan on Oct 11, 2020 17:17:06 GMT -5
Interesting name. “Dead ringer” for Owyhee? Cool-looking stuff. If the gray/black takes a polish, it might provide some interesting contrast.
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 11, 2020 17:44:46 GMT -5
Back when I started buying rocks, other than turquoise and the ites, the only material I knew from Nevada was Howardite and Wonderstone.
More recently there has been a lot of newer material being dug; Dead Camel, Red Camel, Dead Ringer, Blue Dream, Mescalero etc. The person who finds it comes up with a name. A lot of it comes from the Dead Camel mountains.
Oywhee comes from the Owyhee mountains in the Oregon/Idaho area. I am particular with the material I buy. When I can't get Owyhee or Willow Creek (Idaho) that I like, I try new material, Most recently Mescalero and Blue Dream that come from the same mine. I decided to try some Dead Ringer. The dark stuff in the slabs looks like jasper (not matrix). I'll probably try to design some cabs incorporating it into the pattern. I go through a cycle of buy, design and cut. I've got a lot of preforms already made of other material so i probably won't get to the Dead Ringer for a while.
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller 
Member since June 2011
Posts: 4,060 
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Post by gemfeller on Oct 11, 2020 19:16:28 GMT -5
stardiamond, the Dead Camel Mountain materials come from prospects that are very close together and have rather similar characteristics. They formed in much the same way as the Malheur County Oregon "Owyhee" type picture jaspers and again have similar appearances. I have slabs of Dead Camel jasper that look very much like your slabs. Tommy's the resident expert on that area since it was his "secret" digging area before it was popularized several years ago by Philip Stephenson (Sp?)
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 11, 2020 20:15:39 GMT -5
I've bought a bunch of Owyhee from Tony/catmandewe. His material was harder than some of the Owyhee that I got in the past. I don't know what the difference is between Dead Camel and Dead Ringer. The Dead Ringer I slabbed seems to be very hard. I am familiar with many of the Owyhee patterns and would prefer it to the Dead Ringer pattern. I try to get the most interesting material available. What I see on ebay now doesn't meet my standards.
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Post by jasoninsd on Oct 11, 2020 21:36:19 GMT -5
Wow. You really do come up with some amazing material! I love seeing the progression of the patterns through the different cuts/slabs (e.g. the "lessening" of the dark brown area - or the grey area - as the slabs progress).
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Post by stephan on Oct 11, 2020 22:00:35 GMT -5
I've bought a bunch of Owyhee from Tony/catmandewe. His material was harder than some of the Owyhee that I got in the past. I don't know what the difference is between Dead Camel and Dead Ringer. The Dead Ringer I slabbed seems to be very hard. I am familiar with many of the Owyhee patterns and would prefer it to the Dead Ringer pattern. I try to get the most interesting material available. What I see on ebay now doesn't meet my standards. Harder than Owyhee is saying something! |
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 11, 2020 22:18:13 GMT -5
I haven't ground it yet. Just from appearance and feel. The gray/blue (I'm colorblind and others call it blue) made me refine my sanding patterns. I kept getting little flat spots. Willow Creek and Morgan Hill is more forgiving.
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Post by roy on Oct 12, 2020 10:26:13 GMT -5
I've bought a bunch of Owyhee from Tony/catmandewe. His material was harder than some of the Owyhee that I got in the past. I don't know what the difference is between Dead Camel and Dead Ringer. The Dead Ringer I slabbed seems to be very hard. I am familiar with many of the Owyhee patterns and would prefer it to the Dead Ringer pattern. I try to get the most interesting material available. What I see on ebay now doesn't meet my standards. dead camel and deadringer are back to back claims there is a nasty story to this but i'll leave it be |
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