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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 20, 2020 23:10:30 GMT -5
What a day! I thought I'd knock out a few cabs today, but it turned out to be a day filled with some painful lessons...both literally and figuratively! Lesson number one: DO NOT attempt to make a cab on your brand new slant cabber without the stone being on a dop stick! I knew my fingers were hitting the grinding wheel, but it wasn't hurting, so I ignored it. Bad idea! Turns out before I knew it, I had given myself a "not needed" and horrible manicure! It took my fingernails down past the point of a nail-biting nervous eleven-year-old in a Friday the 13th movie! I also lost skin on several knuckles...my wife said it looked like I'd been in a fight! Lesson number two: LIGHT TOUCH is needed on the 180 grit grinding disk. After the untimely removal of most of my outgrown keratin, I opted to start a piece already on a dop stick. I thought the shaping was going okay, but I kept taking a little more off...and then a little more off. Before I knew it, the cab was less than half the size it started. A total waste of some leftover material Tommy had sent me for last month's contest. Arghhhh! At this point I was frustrated...so, I decided to cut a slab of prairie agate. Halfway through that, my saw blade became so dull, I barely got through the final cut. Got that done, but I had to smooth both sides on the slant cabber before I could start another cab. No problems there. So, I started to shape the cab. The cab and dome shaped well enough, so I started to sand it with 80 grit on my dremel as I don't have the backing pads for the smoothing discs for the slant cabber. Well, partway through the sanding, I thought I noticed a...SNAP... yep, I did see a fracture on the edge! Arghhhh again! After taking a break doing some meditation and trying to become one with my chakras, I wanted to get back to it. So, I grabbed another piece Tommy had sent me which I had already dopped. Things went very well on the slant cabber. I loved the shape and I think I got the dome right! Whoot Whoot! Onto the sanding with the dremel. Dang, there seems to be a pretty deep scratch right there at the top...SNAP! Again, there was a fracture and the piece just cracked and snapped off! WHAT THE HECK ANOTHER ARGHHHH!!! This piece will probably be able to be saved - altered drastically though, but not today!!! Not one to quit...or maybe just a glutton for punishment, I snatched up a slab from a rock I hounded last week and just made a darn cab from it dang it! LOL Well, this one turned out to be the "pseudo-success". I have no idea what material this is. I think the dome came out pretty good. I'm still having issues with keeping the girdle absolutely even. Part of that problem was due to getting used to doing a cab on a dop stick. I really like the polish I got with the dremel on this one. I spent a lot of time sanding with the 80 grit to get all the scratches out at that level, before moving onto the next stages. Anyway, here are the pics...the good, the bad, and the ugly!         |
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 20, 2020 23:32:55 GMT -5
I’m glad to see your patience and determination produced a cab you’re happy with. Not sure how I’d deal with two cabs breaking in one day, but it probably wouldn’t be a third attempt! Thank you.  I'm happy with it...but far from satisfied with it. I still have a long way to go, but with each failure, there's an opportunity to learn something. I figured Edison failed 1,000 times before he succeeded with creating the light bulb (well...thanks to Tesla!), so maybe I have a few more "failed" attempts before I succeed. Now, I just need to find a Tesla for an assistant! LOL |
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Post by taylor on Nov 20, 2020 23:57:05 GMT -5
It definitely takes a while to learn the right amount of pressure and the correct angles to produce the shape that you want. You are off to a great start! Can't wait to see your progress especially after those pads come in!!
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Post by mohs on Nov 21, 2020 0:09:53 GMT -5
Ha Ha Jason That was pleasure to read Nah…not a pleasure particularly But you have fine writing style and Express mohs woes so much more succinctly Broken points, caddywhompis shapes, unseemly seams on and on it goes …mohstly Needless to say the ‘rock gods’ can be maliciously tricky Light pressure sound just about right As you gain experience Your natural rocking instinct will kick in> You’ll even best those rock gods once in awhile. We all look at incredible craftsmanship on RTH So that can be a positive and negative when starting But were all incredible rockers Plus its just fun cool crafting rocking activity that means something to you & yours So Let it flow Unpressurized. It’ll shines ! ‘the rock’ won’t really let ya down because your doing what you like and that all that really matters and it nice to have RTH support that matters too!  Heck your cabbing will comes along as well as your writing You’ll be authoring best sellers in no time... |
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 21, 2020 0:10:18 GMT -5
It definitely takes a while to learn the right amount of pressure and the correct angles to produce the shape that you want. You are off to a great start! Can't wait to see your progress especially after those pads come in!! Thanks Taylor! After today's debacle, I think it was easier to make cabs with the dremel than the slant cabber...more time consuming, but easier. LOL I'm having a hard time figuring out how to "see" the cab as I'm grinding it. With the dremel, the cab was upright and I could see the angles I was working. With the slant cabber, I'm struggling with trying to figure out the best placement of the stone...and my angle of view. Frankly, the most painful thing about today's events was messing up two slabs Tommy gave me! I was absolutely heartbroken over the waste of material... But hopefully, today was just a step in the right direction...and yes, I'm dying to get those pad in! |
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller 
Member since June 2011
Posts: 4,063 
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Post by gemfeller on Nov 21, 2020 0:12:52 GMT -5
jasoninsd Those problems are familiar to to nearly everyone who takes stones to wheels. Sorry you had so many unfortunate problems in a single day but that's how one learns. I don't know how much hide and how many fingernails I've ground away over the years. But now I know how to hold most stones without dops, at least on my Genie. I have a slant cabber too and agree that dops are really necessary. It's good you have such a positive attitude after so many painful disasters. I think your writing style is great with lots of humor and self-deprecation. Your responses to other posts are very thoughtful and gracious I've noticed. Keep at it. None of us learned in a day -- or lots of days. In fact after many decades of cutting I still learn new things almost routinely.
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Post by stardiamond on Nov 21, 2020 0:22:01 GMT -5
Grinding with wheels is much easier; vertically, horizontally, upside down. Except for pinkies, I have manicured the rest of my nails. Thumbs and index fingers lose the most skin. No dop on the preform and after dopping, I use a combo method of holding the stone and holding the dop. Worst job on my fingers was sanding the backs of earrings after coming off the dop. Rocks break even when there is nothing visible to indicate that they will.
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 21, 2020 0:23:29 GMT -5
Ha Ha Jason That was pleasure to read Nah…not a pleasure particularly But you have fine writing style and Express mohs woes so much more succinctly Broken points, caddywhompis shapes, unseemly seams on and on it goes …mohstly Needless to say the ‘rock gods’ can be maliciously tricky Light pressure sound just about right As you gain experience Your natural rocking instinct will kick in> You’ll even best those rock gods once in awhile. We all look at incredible craftsmanship on RTH So that can be a positive and negative when starting But were all incredible rockers Plus its just fun cool crafting rocking activity that means something to you & yours So Let it flow Unpressurized. It’ll shines ! ‘the rock’ won’t really let ya down because your doing what you like and that all that really matters and it nice to have RTH support that matters too! Heck your cabbing will comes along as well as your writing You’ll be authoring best sellers in no time... Thanks Ed! You know my "heart" is in the right place! I was thinking the flesh "sacrifice" I left on the cabber today was a sacrificial offering to the Rock Gods, so maybe they'll look a little more kindly on me this weekend! LOL I know people have a tendency to post their successes as opposed to their failures...but there are so many experienced people on here who have fewer and fewer failures they could post! I'll get there...just probably not this weekend! LOL Like I said, I wouldn't have been so upset if I had wasted a few of my river rocks made into cabs, but to destroy a couple beautiful pieces that were given to me and aren't "local" material was the catalyst for the frustration to boil over... Even with the frustration from today, I'm totally having fun with this whole venture. It's intriguing and allows me to exercise the few brain cells I have left! LOL |
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 21, 2020 0:39:09 GMT -5
jasoninsd Those problems are familiar to to nearly everyone who takes stones to wheels. Sorry you had so many unfortunate problems in a single day but that's how one learns. I don't know how much hide and how many fingernails I've ground away over the years. But now I know how to hold most stones without dops, at least on my Genie. I have a slant cabber too and agree that dops are really necessary. It's good you have such a positive attitude after so many painful disasters. I think your writing style is great with lots of humor and self-deprecation. Your responses to other posts are very thoughtful and gracious I've noticed. Keep at it. None of us learned in a day -- or lots of days. In fact after many decades of cutting I still learn new things almost routinely. Thank you so so much for this. I really do like using the dops, it'll just take a bit to get the hang of it...not hangnail of it...just the hang of it! I figure every day I get out of bed I'm given an opportunity to learn something new...I don't always take that opportunity, but I know it's available! LOL Thanks for the comment about my posts. I know I'm new(ish) to the forum and very new to cabbing and tumbling, so I know I can't add anything of any merit with regards to the "what" and "what not" to do's, but I figure I can be a sideline cheerleader...or yell leader, 'cause I'm a guy...like Jake from State Farm. Grinding with wheels is much easier; vertically, horizontally, upside down. Except for pinkies, I have manicured the rest of my nails. Thumbs and index fingers lose the most skin. No dop on the preform and after dopping, I use a combo method of holding the stone and holding the dop. Worst job on my fingers was sanding the backs of earrings after coming off the dop. Rocks break even when there is nothing visible to indicate that they will. I have no idea what my wife pays for manicures, but I figure the next time she says she's going to get one, I'm going to tell her I have experience and I can do it for her at no charge! LOL (Just kidding...she's a "farm girl". I don't know that she's ever had a manicure! I suppose I should ask her if she wants one!) I did try that "combo" grip method with the dop and stone today. I liked the feel of that! I saw the fracture on the prairie agate pretty much right away, but I thought I was going to get away with it. Nope! I didn't see the fracture in that Sci-Fi Jasper and that one really surprised me and broke my heart! |
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Post by stephan on Nov 21, 2020 1:00:31 GMT -5
Ha Ha Jason That was pleasure to read Nah…not a pleasure particularly But you have fine writing style and Express mohs woes so much more succinctly Broken points, caddywhompis shapes, unseemly seams on and on it goes …mohstly Needless to say the ‘rock gods’ can be maliciously tricky Light pressure sound just about right As you gain experience Your natural rocking instinct will kick in> You’ll even best those rock gods once in awhile. We all look at incredible craftsmanship on RTH So that can be a positive and negative when starting But were all incredible rockers Plus its just fun cool crafting rocking activity that means something to you & yours So Let it flow Unpressurized. It’ll shines ! ‘the rock’ won’t really let ya down because your doing what you like and that all that really matters and it nice to have RTH support that matters too! Heck your cabbing will comes along as well as your writing You’ll be authoring best sellers in no time... Thanks Ed! You know my "heart" is in the right place! I was thinking the flesh "sacrifice" I left on the cabber today was a sacrificial offering to the Rock Gods, so maybe they'll look a little more kindly on me this weekend! LOL I know people have a tendency to post their successes as opposed to their failures...but there are so many experienced people on here who have fewer and fewer failures they could post! I'll get there...just probably not this weekend! LOL Like I said, I wouldn't have been so upset if I had wasted a few of my river rocks made into cabs, but to destroy a couple beautiful pieces that were given to me and aren't "local" material was the catalyst for the frustration to boil over... Even with the frustration from today, I'm totally having fun with this whole venture. It's intriguing and allows me to exercise the few brain cells I have left! LOL Sacrifices not just of flesh, but of keratin and stone.... The gods should be happy, and bless the next round. Hidden fractures are no fun, but I usually save the cab, and after the frustration wears off, I can often see the rescue cab. Maybe the fractures mean we didn’t listen to the rock (or it mumbled). |
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 21, 2020 1:13:13 GMT -5
Thanks Ed! You know my "heart" is in the right place! I was thinking the flesh "sacrifice" I left on the cabber today was a sacrificial offering to the Rock Gods, so maybe they'll look a little more kindly on me this weekend! LOL I know people have a tendency to post their successes as opposed to their failures...but there are so many experienced people on here who have fewer and fewer failures they could post! I'll get there...just probably not this weekend! LOL Like I said, I wouldn't have been so upset if I had wasted a few of my river rocks made into cabs, but to destroy a couple beautiful pieces that were given to me and aren't "local" material was the catalyst for the frustration to boil over... Even with the frustration from today, I'm totally having fun with this whole venture. It's intriguing and allows me to exercise the few brain cells I have left! LOL Sacrifices not just of flesh, but of keratin and stone.... The gods should be happy, and bless the next round. Hidden fractures are no fun, but I usually save the cab, and after the frustration wears off, I can often see the rescue cab. Maybe the fractures mean we didn’t listen to the rock (or it mumbled). If the rocks were talking today I wouldn't have been able to hear them...I had the radio turned way up to try and cover up all the colorful metaphors being spewed forth! I didn't pitch the cabs in the trash...I did chuck them onto the workbench...you know, for safe keeping...and as "gently" as I could muster. They're looking forward to a better day! LOL - I'll definitely rework that Sci-Fi, but I have a few thousand prairie agates laying around, so I might just move onto the next one of those! LOL |
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Post by stephan on Nov 21, 2020 2:05:46 GMT -5
Sacrifices not just of flesh, but of keratin and stone.... The gods should be happy, and bless the next round. Hidden fractures are no fun, but I usually save the cab, and after the frustration wears off, I can often see the rescue cab. Maybe the fractures mean we didn’t listen to the rock (or it mumbled). If the rocks were talking today I wouldn't have been able to hear them...I had the radio turned way up to try and cover up all the colorful metaphors being spewed forth! I didn't pitch the cabs in the trash...I did chuck them onto the workbench...you know, for safe keeping...and as "gently" as I could muster. They're looking forward to a better day! LOL - I'll definitely rework that Sci-Fi, but I have a few thousand prairie agates laying around, so I might just move onto the next one of those! LOL Haha. Some of my challenges have sat for quite a while before being reworked. I definitely see a possible rescue in the sci-fi... with the awareness that any of those pretty lines could be the next trouble spot. |
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 4,063
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Post by gemfeller on Nov 21, 2020 2:06:42 GMT -5
jasoninsd, What are you wearing, Jake from State Farm?
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Post by rockjunquie on Nov 21, 2020 7:37:05 GMT -5
That's me- a glutton for punishment. In other words - stubborn. LOL!
I've had plenty of "those" days. Ugh.
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 21, 2020 7:46:42 GMT -5
That's me- a glutton for punishment. In other words - stubborn. LOL!
I've had plenty of "those" days. Ugh.
I sure as heck wasn't gonna let a bunch of rocks get the best of me dangit! I figure those without any failures can cast the first stone! (See what I did there! LOL ) I should have said I started that last cab yesterday...wait for it... stone faced! LOL |
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kyoti
has rocks in the head
Member since June 2020
Posts: 542
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Post by kyoti on Nov 21, 2020 9:18:25 GMT -5
I think your finished cab came out great. Don't let the rocks get you down. They're like puppies, competing for attention and generally causing trouble. Lol If you knew how many batches of tumbled rock that went into my "try again dufus" container this fall. Wowser it was bad. Got high hopes for the current batch. They are starting their last day of polish. Fingers crossed. Also, you didn't ruin those cabs, you freed them to express their desire for a new shape  . The greyish one is asking for teardrop or triangular, I think. |
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 21, 2020 10:52:58 GMT -5
I think your finished cab came out great. Don't let the rocks get you down. They're like puppies, competing for attention and generally causing trouble. Lol If you knew how many batches of tumbled rock that went into my "try again dufus" container this fall. Wowser it was bad. Got high hopes for the current batch. They are starting their last day of polish. Fingers crossed. Also, you didn't ruin those cabs, you freed them to express their desire for a new shape . The greyish one is asking for teardrop or triangular, I think. Thank you! I love the puppy comparison! Thankfully the rocks aren't chewing up my furniture yet! LOL You know with throwing out a "teaser" about the batch getting done today, we're all gonna be expecting pics! Fingers and toes crossed it'll be a "thanks-giving" batch! I like the outlook on the cabs wanting a different shape (that made me chuckle)! The "teardrop" was definitely there yesterday...just not in the rock! LOL - The breaks were just another fine example of how difficult it is to make mother nature do what "we" want! |
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Post by miket on Nov 21, 2020 11:02:46 GMT -5
Jason, I think it turned out great!
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 21, 2020 11:36:43 GMT -5
Jason, I think it turned out great! Thanks Mike! I've got a ways to go, but I'm having fun...overall...not necessarily EVERY minute...but it's more than 50%! LOL |
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Post by MsAli on Nov 21, 2020 18:49:58 GMT -5
Its is fer sure a learning curve and very different than a regular cabbing machine
The angles took me forever to learn and now its pretty much only used for polishing
Wait till a cab goes flying
Still can't find an opal I was working on
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. The greyish one is asking for teardrop or triangular, I think.
