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Post by jasoninsd on Jan 21, 2021 16:48:31 GMT -5
I just wanted to post some of the "wrecks" that have occurred lately. Just because... Pic 1 - Self-collected here in South Dakota. No idea what this material is, but it is very soft - both the white and the maroon areas. There was a fracture that showed up running the whole length of the cab. This is what happens when you try and FORCE it off the wood dop when the cab has been super glued. I still have some more of this material and will try and try again...but it doesn't polish to a high level... Pics 2-3 - Turritella Agates that showed pitting once they were shaped. Pics 4-5 - Cold Mountain Thunderegg Jasper. What was I thinking on this shape? LOL. Actually, a pit showed up in the side and this is how the shape ended up. Should've gone a different route with the shape though. Undercutting on this one as well. Pics 6-7 - Another self-collected rock here in South Dakota. Again, no clue what it is, but this one is soft as well. This isn't one of the worst ones really, just some undercutting happening. I have a little bit more of this material as week, so I will be attempting this material again sometime... Pics 8-9 - Unknown, possibly Black Canyon. Again pitting over the entire dome. Anyway, here's a collection of some "not-so-great" ones.  Comments and critiques are always welcomed. I'm not responsible for supplying any air-sickness bags!           |
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Post by hummingbirdstones on Jan 21, 2021 18:39:25 GMT -5
Yeah, that first one's a train wreck! 
We've all been there, done that.
I don't think there's anything wrong with the Cold Mountain shape. I rather like it. Some stones will just undercut and there's not much you can do about it. I'm having a hard time seeing the undercutting on the stone. Looks good to me!
Pictures 6 & 7 almost look like some type of dendritic opal, but can't tell for sure.
Most of these are not as bad you think they are. The pitting and undercutting are something that we can't control. Only Ma Nature can do that. |
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Post by rockjunquie on Jan 21, 2021 19:03:32 GMT -5
Awwwww..... they're not so bad. Well, except for the first one. The others look fine. Yup, undercutting and pits can happen, more so in some than others. |
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Post by stephan on Jan 21, 2021 20:22:11 GMT -5
Most of them look good to me too. A small, private ceremony can be held for #1. I hate it when that happens, but at least it happened all at once, rather than piece by piece.
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Brian
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2020
Posts: 1,512
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Post by Brian on Jan 21, 2021 21:31:22 GMT -5
A little wreckage is right. Other than the first one, those don’t look too bad! Especially with some tricky materials.
I’m sure I could do much worse!
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Post by jasoninsd on Jan 21, 2021 23:06:35 GMT -5
Yeah, that first one's a train wreck! 
We've all been there, done that.
I don't think there's anything wrong with the Cold Mountain shape. I rather like it. Some stones will just undercut and there's not much you can do about it. I'm having a hard time seeing the undercutting on the stone. Looks good to me!
Pictures 6 & 7 almost look like some type of dendritic opal, but can't tell for sure.
Most of these are not as bad you think they are. The pitting and undercutting are something that we can't control. Only Ma Nature can do that. I wasn't too sad about losing that first one. It really was a wreck before it fell apart. LOL The Cold Mountain? Ummm...I feel like I need to ask, "Piece of pizza pie anyone?" - I should have taken some better pics of the bad spots. A lot along the girdle is undercut. That darn Mother....ummm...Nature!  Awwwww..... they're not so bad. Well, except for the first one. The others look fine. Yup, undercutting and pits can happen, more so in some than others. Thanks Tela, I really appreciate it. I just have a lot higher expectations of what I should be able to achieve right now. I don't know if I would've tried a little harder on the softer material (is that an oxymoron?) if it would have made a difference. I've got some more of the same material, so I'll keep my nose to the grindstone on the next ones...well, in a manner of speaking. Most of them look good to me too. A small, private ceremony can be held for #1. I hate it when that happens, but at least it happened all at once, rather than piece by piece. Thanks Stephan. None of the relatives showed up at the services...they all thought it looked like a mob hit, so they had a few trepidations about attending, lest the same happened to them! A little wreckage is right. Other than the first one, those don’t look too bad! Especially with some tricky materials. I’m sure I could do much worse! Thanks Brian. Rather than cabs, I'm considering these "stepping stones" on my path to better cabbing. |
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Post by stephan on Jan 21, 2021 23:34:24 GMT -5
Btw, I like the Cold Mountain “pizza slice.” Try turning it point down, and thinking of it wire-wrapped.
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Post by greig on Jan 22, 2021 0:00:00 GMT -5
I am impressed with the quantity and quality of cabs you are turning out. I don't know about you, but I learn more from fails than wins. And not all the fails are my fault. I appreciate that you show the ones that you are unhappy with and it will make the next success all the more sweet. We are all pulling for you. ;-)
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Post by jasoninsd on Jan 22, 2021 0:50:08 GMT -5
Btw, I like the Cold Mountain “pizza slice.” Try turning it point down, and thinking of it wire-wrapped. Maybe I could market it as a "high-end" spinner pointer? I don't even want to start thinking about wire wrapping...I'm still trying to convince my wife that should be her part...but I'm  with that! LOL I am impressed with the quantity and quality of cabs you are turning out. I don't know about you, but I learn more from fails than wins. And not all the fails are my fault. I appreciate that you show the ones that you are unhappy with and it will make the next success all the more sweet. We are all pulling for you. ;-) Thank you so much Greig! I'm right on board with you with regards to learning from fails. I made these two nights before I did the Kaleidoscope Prism Stones (which I was happy with). I knew the two materials in this batch were really soft, and knowing the KPS was soft as well, I wanted something that was comparable to get the light-touch "technique" a bit more understood. I'm getting a lot more confident with each cab I make...whether they're wins or fails. I do know the pitting has nothing to do with me, and is all material. The undercutting I want to believe I can still do something different (somehow) to prevent it...unless it's being caused by the "flex" in the polishing pads with the sponge pad backing on them. If that's the case, I would need different polishing pads without the sponge pads to give them a firmer surface. If that's the answer, I'm going to have to figure out how to explain an additional $300 in equipment...which I don't really want to do right now. The other answer might be to just use the dremel again with solid sanding disks which wouldn't have the flex to them. Maybe I'm still applying too much pressure even when I think I'm not which is causing the undercutting and an even lighter touch is necessary... Maybe I'm putting more thought into it than is necessary...and maybe it's just the material and there's nothing I can do. LOL |
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Post by holajonathan on Jan 22, 2021 0:52:30 GMT -5
# 6 & 7 -- assuming is will polish up decently, looks like an interesting rock. I like it.
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Post by jasoninsd on Jan 22, 2021 1:35:56 GMT -5
# 6 & 7 -- assuming is will polish up decently, looks like an interesting rock. I like it. I agree! I really liked it when I cut it. It was a surprise to see the dendrites. Below is a link to the thread where I asked for an ID. In the first pic, the piece on the left is the endcut, so that's what the rock looked like when I found it. The cab that fell apart is from the last bunch of slabs in that thread. forum.rocktumblinghobby.com/thread/93884/south-dakota |
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Post by holajonathan on Jan 22, 2021 2:32:56 GMT -5
# 6 & 7 -- assuming is will polish up decently, looks like an interesting rock. I like it. I agree! I really liked it when I cut it. It was a surprise to see the dendrites. Below is a link to the thread where I asked for an ID. In the first pic, the piece on the left is the endcut, so that's what the rock looked like when I found it. The cab that fell apart is from the last bunch of slabs in that thread. forum.rocktumblinghobby.com/thread/93884/south-dakotaThanks for the link and photos. I find sedimentary rocks with similar a similar dendritic pattern on the surface, but I always assumed that this was some sort of staining or weather and not something that actually penetrated the rock. Next time I find out that is half way interesting I will have to cut it open and find out. |
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Post by jasoninsd on Jan 22, 2021 7:54:20 GMT -5
I agree! I really liked it when I cut it. It was a surprise to see the dendrites. Below is a link to the thread where I asked for an ID. In the first pic, the piece on the left is the endcut, so that's what the rock looked like when I found it. The cab that fell apart is from the last bunch of slabs in that thread. forum.rocktumblinghobby.com/thread/93884/south-dakotaThanks for the link and photos. I find sedimentary rocks with similar a similar dendritic pattern on the surface, but I always assumed that this was some sort of staining or weather and not something that actually penetrated the rock. Next time I find out that is half way interesting I will have to cut it open and find out. When I cut it, I was half expecting this to resemble brecciated jasper in some way due to the quartz-like areas. There were no indications of the dendrites on the exterior, so it was a but of a surprise. It's definitely not "colorful" by any means, but neither was a pea-green 1970 Chevy Nova SS 396, and I like that! LOL (By the way, I'm not a "car" guy...I just happen to know that one! LOL) |
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Post by rmf on Jan 22, 2021 8:08:13 GMT -5
I once finished a 38mm rd malachite. then accidentally dropped it 6" to the top of a wooden stool and it broke in half.  I mind less when they break in the rough out phase but the farther along the more I have invested. |
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Post by jasoninsd on Jan 22, 2021 8:19:29 GMT -5
I once finished a 38mm rd malachite. then accidentally dropped it 6" to the top of a wooden stool and it broke in half. I mind less when they break in the rough out phase but the farther along the more I have invested. I had just finished a cab the other night, put it in my pocket for "safe-keeping", went to pull something else out of the pocket, dragging the cab with it...dropped to the concrete garage floor and broke the point off. Arghhh! It's "fixable", so not a total loss...but it'll be a pain and won't be the same. You're right about the time invested mirroring the amount of heartbreak involved. I've been cutting preforms of some nice pieces only to have them shatter along an unseen fracture line and I can shrug that off...but the closer I get to finishing one and something occurs, the more the shoulders drop! LOL |
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with that! LOL
I mind less when they break in the rough out phase but the farther along the more I have invested.
