realrockhound
Cave Dweller 
Chucking leaverite at tweekers
Member since June 2020
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Rock piles
Nov 25, 2021 23:57:41 GMT -5
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Post by realrockhound on Nov 25, 2021 23:57:41 GMT -5
What do you guys/gals do with all of your material that doesn’t make the cut? Often you’ll go out, collect a bunch of material and get back home, just to find it’s essentially leaverite. After washing it up and find it’s full of fractures. Or you’ll make cuts and find it doesn’t have the the plumes, quality, etc… you desired. So as previously asked, what do you do with it?
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Tommy
Administrator 
Member since January 2013
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Post by Tommy on Nov 26, 2021 0:15:15 GMT -5
What do you guys/gals do with all of your material that doesn’t make the cut? Often you’ll go out, collect a bunch of material and get back home, just to find it’s essentially leaverite. After washing it up and find it’s full of fractures. Or you’ll make cuts and find it doesn’t have the the plumes, quality, etc… you desired. So as previously asked, what do you do with it? Interesting timing on this question ... today, Thanksgiving 2021, I spent the day loading into my truck about a thousand pounds of rocks that I left behind at the end of 2018 when we moved to Napa. Some of it might be really nice but the majority of it didn't make it into the TLO cabochon production machine for whatever reason when I first brought it home. Some of it was definitely full of fractures and not cabochon worthy but broken up would make for great tumbles. Anyway, while it was fun looking at each 'grouping' and reminiscing about individual adventures at various collecting locations I'm left now wondering what the heck to do with it. I think I'm going to make up about a dozen or more of the best of the best boxes and sell them here on the forum then break up the rest for tumbling? That's all I got at the moment  |
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realrockhound
Cave Dweller
Chucking leaverite at tweekers
Member since June 2020
Posts: 4,446
Member is Online
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Post by realrockhound on Nov 26, 2021 0:27:09 GMT -5
What do you guys/gals do with all of your material that doesn’t make the cut? Often you’ll go out, collect a bunch of material and get back home, just to find it’s essentially leaverite. After washing it up and find it’s full of fractures. Or you’ll make cuts and find it doesn’t have the the plumes, quality, etc… you desired. So as previously asked, what do you do with it? Interesting timing on this question ... today, Thanksgiving 2021, I spent the day loading into my truck about a thousand pounds of rocks that I left behind at the end of 2018 when we moved to Napa. Some of it might be really nice but the majority of it didn't make it into the TLO cabochon production machine for whatever reason when I first brought it home. Some of it was definitely full of fractures and not cabochon worthy but broken up would make for great tumbles. Anyway, while it was fun looking at each 'grouping' and reminiscing about individual adventures at various collecting locations I left now wondering what the heck to do with it. I think I'm going to make up about a dozen or more of the best of the best boxes and sell them here on the forum then break up the rest for tumbling? That's all I got at the moment So... I got a pile that was started by my grandfather, and has been added to by me. I have to figure out where i'm going to move all of this material. I'm thinking about opening it up to the public and selling it all off for a dollar a pound. I've ran out of room to dump material, so I had to resort to dumping it on the riverbank at my parents house haha. Wanting to see what others are doing to get rid of it or store it. |
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rewdownunder
spending too much on rocks
Member since March 2012
Posts: 357
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Post by rewdownunder on Nov 26, 2021 1:02:57 GMT -5
I have a large area for teachers to come and pick thru for their classroom. Give them a bucket and let them take whatever they want. The trash man hates me. Some of the things I am given should never have been picked up. I have also used off cuts from the trim saw to make concrete. The person with the most rocks does not win. They just have a big mess in their yard.
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,492
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Post by Sabre52 on Nov 26, 2021 8:40:17 GMT -5
My wife captures all the pretty leaverites for her garden. She also captures a good deal of my "good stuff". Usually not as problem cause I can steal it back if she doesn't catch me, but man, when we moved from Commiefornia to Texas, I later realized I left a lot of incredible boulders in our yard that were in the gardens or walkways. It especially hurt that I forgot to hunt up a fifty pound lens of nice Porterville jade that was used as a stepping stone, a huge Big Sandy poppy jasper boulder along the pond, and an equally large boulder of Oaxaca Travertine in her raised garden. A guy has to guard his rocks or ya can lose'em. Dang!
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Post by Son Of Beach on Nov 26, 2021 9:04:00 GMT -5
realrockhound I know some of us peasant tumblers could gladly find a home for your riverbank scrap  Tommy that is a good idea
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Post by hummingbirdstones on Nov 26, 2021 10:15:09 GMT -5
We use a lot as yard rocks.
We've been discussing what we're going to do with the stuff that's not up to our standards for slabbing and cabbing. Some of it will probably get donated to the lapidary class at the community college. Selling some for a minimum amount on here is a good idea. Folks who are new and need practice rough for cabbing or tumbling are always looking for inexpensive ways to find it.
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rewdownunder
spending too much on rocks
Member since March 2012
Posts: 357
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Post by rewdownunder on Nov 26, 2021 11:15:39 GMT -5
Having to move is always the moment of truth for any rockhound. My Wife and I could never downsize just because of the need for storage space for rocks & minerals. While we were still working it was not as big a problem because Oil Companies will move rocks for geologists. There are still some "landscape" rocks at our old place in Denver I would love to have. I hate think of all the material that has ended up in landfills over the years.
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Post by stephan on Nov 26, 2021 20:49:16 GMT -5
Since my wife has consulted herself and unanimously decreed that we have too many rocks, and I'm not making enough money on them to justify their presence (after I had gotten rid of more than 90% of what I used to have), I started to Freecycle the non-lapidary quality stuff as landscape rock for others. I've made some neighbors very happy. I've also sold some of my lapidary quality "extras" here for just enough to cover my expenses -- if that (very deliberately).
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Post by rmf on Nov 26, 2021 21:40:20 GMT -5
Back in 1978 I joined a local rock club. they went on a rock hunt to find Geodes. At the time I had a VW Rabbit and so I came back with the back end full to our apartment. After cracking them in the parking lot and discovering they were all solid I packed them up to our second story apartment and the next rock hunt I hauled them back where I found them. From then on I cracked on site and only took the good stuff.
Learning to tell the leverite from the good stuff is a big part of the hobby. Having to pack the crap back to where you got it, is motivation to learn quick and don't make the same mistake twice.
Happy hunting.
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Post by stephan on Nov 26, 2021 21:59:19 GMT -5
Back in 1978 I joined a local rock club. they went on a rock hunt to find Geodes. At the time I had a VW Rabbit and so I came back with the back end full to our apartment. After cracking them in the parking lot and discovering they were all solid I packed them up to our second story apartment and the next rock hunt I hauled them back where I found them. From then on I cracked on site and only took the good stuff. Learning to tell the leverite from the good stuff is a big part of the hobby. Having to pack the crap back to where you got it, is motivation to learn quick and don't make the same mistake twice. Happy hunting.  Ok, I’ve heard about “returning them to nature,” but this is the first time I’ve heard about someone returning leaverites to their birthplace. |
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 26, 2021 22:08:07 GMT -5
Back in 1978 I joined a local rock club. they went on a rock hunt to find Geodes. At the time I had a VW Rabbit and so I came back with the back end full to our apartment. After cracking them in the parking lot and discovering they were all solid I packed them up to our second story apartment and the next rock hunt I hauled them back where I found them. From then on I cracked on site and only took the good stuff. Learning to tell the leverite from the good stuff is a big part of the hobby. Having to pack the crap back to where you got it, is motivation to learn quick and don't make the same mistake twice. Happy hunting.  Ok, I’ve heard about “returning them to nature,” but this is the first time I’ve heard about someone returning leaverites to their birthplace. I do it! LOL If I cut a rock that I thought would be interesting and it proves not to be, I'll toss it in a 5-gallon bucket. Once it's full, I'll take it out with me the next time I go out hounding and "let it go"! LOL - It's really fun to toss some Crazy Lace scraps in there to really throw people for a loop if they find it out here! LOL |
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Post by stephan on Nov 26, 2021 22:14:04 GMT -5
Ok, I’ve heard about “returning them to nature,” but this is the first time I’ve heard about someone returning leaverites to their birthplace. I do it! LOL If I cut a rock that I thought would be interesting and it proves not to be, I'll toss it in a 5-gallon bucket. Once it's full, I'll take it out with me the next time I go out hounding and "let it go"! LOL - It's really fun to toss some Crazy Lace scraps in there to really throw people for a loop if they find it out here! LOL LOL, you are delightfully evil. I can set the next person who finds it. “Amazing! This looks just like Mexican stuff. And if I didn’t know any better, I’d say somebody slabbed this. So weird.” |
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 26, 2021 22:21:21 GMT -5
I do it! LOL If I cut a rock that I thought would be interesting and it proves not to be, I'll toss it in a 5-gallon bucket. Once it's full, I'll take it out with me the next time I go out hounding and "let it go"! LOL - It's really fun to toss some Crazy Lace scraps in there to really throw people for a loop if they find it out here! LOL LOL, you are delightfully evil. I can set the next person who finds it. “Amazing! This looks just like Mexican stuff. And if I didn’t know any better, I’d say somebody slabbed this. So weird.” "OMG! Someone just sliced up a Fairburn and left it out here!" - is what I imagine hearing! LOL  |
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realrockhound
Cave Dweller
Chucking leaverite at tweekers
Member since June 2020
Posts: 4,446
Member is Online
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Post by realrockhound on Nov 26, 2021 22:22:58 GMT -5
Ok, I’ve heard about “returning them to nature,” but this is the first time I’ve heard about someone returning leaverites to their birthplace. I do it! LOL If I cut a rock that I thought would be interesting and it proves not to be, I'll toss it in a 5-gallon bucket. Once it's full, I'll take it out with me the next time I go out hounding and "let it go"! LOL - It's really fun to toss some Crazy Lace scraps in there to really throw people for a loop if they find it out here! LOL Ok.. I have to admit, I’ve been doing this a lot recently. I like to spread material in spots that’s not known for said material. Here in Oregon, the BLM post official rockhounding site markers. I’ll take out 2-3 5 gallon buckets full, of rough that I deem not worthy, then just start scattering all over the area. Here’s the crazy thing though, go back out there a few weeks later, and people have picked it all clean. Oh to be a fly on the wall and see people get jazzed over some Maury moss, nydegger plume, thundereggs, etc… that are not even remotely close to being found in the area 🤣 |
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Post by stephan on Nov 26, 2021 22:30:09 GMT -5
At least now I’ll know who to blame if future editions of “Gem Trails of …” prove to be AFU.
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 26, 2021 22:33:00 GMT -5
I do it! LOL If I cut a rock that I thought would be interesting and it proves not to be, I'll toss it in a 5-gallon bucket. Once it's full, I'll take it out with me the next time I go out hounding and "let it go"! LOL - It's really fun to toss some Crazy Lace scraps in there to really throw people for a loop if they find it out here! LOL Ok.. I have to admit, I’ve been doing this a lot recently. I like to spread material in spots that’s not known for said material. Here in Oregon, the BLM post official rockhounding site markers. I’ll take out 2-3 5 gallon buckets full, of rough that I deem not worthy, then just start scattering all over the area. Here’s the crazy thing though, go back out there a few weeks later, and people have picked it all clean. Oh to be a fly on the wall and see people get jazzed over some Maury moss, nydegger plume, thundereggs, etc… that are not even remotely close to being found in the area 🤣 Imagine the stuff that isn't found for decades...or even longer. Imagine the "experts" finding it and arguing over how that material came to be in that area! "Oh, tectonic shifting must have caused the relocation of that material!" LOL |
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Post by stephan on Nov 26, 2021 22:36:49 GMT -5
Ok.. I have to admit, I’ve been doing this a lot recently. I like to spread material in spots that’s not known for said material. Here in Oregon, the BLM post official rockhounding site markers. I’ll take out 2-3 5 gallon buckets full, of rough that I deem not worthy, then just start scattering all over the area. Here’s the crazy thing though, go back out there a few weeks later, and people have picked it all clean. Oh to be a fly on the wall and see people get jazzed over some Maury moss, nydegger plume, thundereggs, etc… that are not even remotely close to being found in the area 🤣 Imagine the stuff that isn't found for decades...or even longer. Imagine the "experts" finding it and arguing over how that material came to be in that area! "Oh, tectonic shifting must have caused the relocation of that material!" LOL I still say it was carried by a swallow. ”are you saying that agates are migratory…?” |
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 26, 2021 22:38:08 GMT -5
Imagine the stuff that isn't found for decades...or even longer. Imagine the "experts" finding it and arguing over how that material came to be in that area! "Oh, tectonic shifting must have caused the relocation of that material!" LOL I still say it was carried by a swallow.  |
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realrockhound
Cave Dweller
Chucking leaverite at tweekers
Member since June 2020
Posts: 4,446
Member is Online
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Post by realrockhound on Nov 26, 2021 22:45:45 GMT -5
Im having quite the laugh at this conversation. This is hilarious. My brother found a bunch of this orange agate in a creek west of the cascades, out around McMinnville OR. Honestly the material was kinda cool. looked a lot like carnelian. The downside to it however was that being in water, it was full of fracture. The other problem is that it was soft. I threw a lot of it out on the desert at a popular hounding site. I wanted to know what went through peoples heads when they thought, how did all of this tumbled stone get all over the desert. Not to my surprise, after walking around the area, people picked it clean.
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