rocket
spending too much on rocks
Quality slabs for quality cabs in 2022
Member since September 2020
Posts: 292
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Post by rocket on Jan 9, 2022 17:20:48 GMT -5
1. Quality slabs make better cabs
2. Buying quality slabs is easier then finding quality rocks in the field
3. A trim saw is not a slab saw
4. Sintered diamond wheels make me happy
5. Vugs make me unhappy
6. Find the fractures before you cab
7. Some stones don’t like the shape I selected
8. Bad cabs are not the rocks fault
9. It would be much much cheaper to just buy nice cabs, but where is the challenge in that
10. My wife is a better rockhound then I am
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Post by hummingbirdstones on Jan 9, 2022 18:35:25 GMT -5
1. Quality slabs make better cabs 2. Buying quality slabs is easier then finding quality rocks in the field 3. A trim saw is not a slab saw 4. Sintered diamond wheels make me happy 5. Vugs not filled with druzy make me unhappy 6. Find the fractures before you cab 7. Some stones don’t like the shape I selected 8. Bad cabs are not the rocks fault 9. It would be much much cheaper to just buy nice cabs, but where is the challenge in that 10. My wife is a better rockhound then I am Fixed that for you!  |
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Post by stardiamond on Jan 9, 2022 20:11:01 GMT -5
#3 - A person needs to make do with what they have. I used a trim saw to slab small rough for over 10 years. When I finally got a 16" Covington, I had plenty of heartache.
#9 - 15 years ago my wife collected cabs and there were bargains on some nice ones. That is what got me into the hobby. Today, nice cabs are expensive and hard to find. My dynamic is different now because I sell and get a very good return on investment; material, equipment and supplies vs income from cabs sold. I also don't collect; I have inventory.
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rocket
spending too much on rocks
Quality slabs for quality cabs in 2022
Member since September 2020
Posts: 292
|
Post by rocket on Jan 10, 2022 8:23:24 GMT -5
#3 - A person needs to make do with what they have. I used a trim saw to slab small rough for over 10 years. When I finally got a 16" Covington, I had plenty of heartache. #9 - 15 years ago my wife collected cabs and there were bargains on some nice ones. That is what got me into the hobby. Today, nice cabs are expensive and hard to find. My dynamic is different now because I sell and get a very good return on investment; material, equipment and supplies vs income from cabs sold. I also don't collect; I have inventory. Anything over 2” on the trim saw makes me cut twice or rotate, etc…I can never get a completely flat bottom. Still have not figured out how to flatten the bottom on a wheel…any suggestions? |
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rocket
spending too much on rocks
Quality slabs for quality cabs in 2022
Member since September 2020
Posts: 292
|
Post by rocket on Jan 10, 2022 8:30:11 GMT -5
1. Quality slabs make better cabs 2. Buying quality slabs is easier then finding quality rocks in the field 3. A trim saw is not a slab saw 4. Sintered diamond wheels make me happy 5. Vugs not filled with druzy make me unhappy 6. Find the fractures before you cab 7. Some stones don’t like the shape I selected 8. Bad cabs are not the rocks fault 9. It would be much much cheaper to just buy nice cabs, but where is the challenge in that 10. My wife is a better rockhound then I am Fixed that for you!  LOL…#5 is much better now…thanks |
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Post by jasoninsd on Jan 10, 2022 10:18:25 GMT -5
Great list rocket! Every single one of these is genius...except number 8...it's got to be the rocks fault...or the ph balance in the water...or the way the sun is shining on that particular day...or the sound of the flapping butterfly wings outside the window! I mean it's just gotta be something else's fault other than mine! LOL  I will say I do know for a fact that #10 is true for Starguy! |
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Post by perkins17 on Jan 10, 2022 10:24:25 GMT -5
Great list rocket! Every single one of these is genius...except number 8...it's got to be the rocks fault...or the ph balance in the water...or the way the sun is shining on that particular day...or the sound of the flapping butterfly wings outside the window! I mean it's just gotta be something else's fault other than mine! LOL I will say I do know for a fact that #10 is true for Starguy! Yup, #8 is totally wrong! 🤣 If I turn out a bad cab, it's clearly because of the rock. It's NEVER because of my lack of cabbing skills lol. Nice list Rocket! |
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Post by stardiamond on Jan 10, 2022 12:10:58 GMT -5
#3 - A person needs to make do with what they have. I used a trim saw to slab small rough for over 10 years. When I finally got a 16" Covington, I had plenty of heartache. #9 - 15 years ago my wife collected cabs and there were bargains on some nice ones. That is what got me into the hobby. Today, nice cabs are expensive and hard to find. My dynamic is different now because I sell and get a very good return on investment; material, equipment and supplies vs income from cabs sold. I also don't collect; I have inventory. Anything over 2” on the trim saw makes me cut twice or rotate, etc…I can never get a completely flat bottom. Still have not figured out how to flatten the bottom on a wheel…any suggestions? My trim saw is the Genie trim saw attachment that was a bonus when I bought my Genie. It uses an 8 inch Mk303 blade so it will slab bigger rocks than a 6 inch blade. I rotate and then push through. Generally, I can flatten the back of a cab, rotating figure 8 the preform against a wheel. It I want it perfect, I do 80 grit wheel, 80 grit flat lap and then rotate against the 220 hard and 280 soft. Only one side needs to be completely flat and there is an option to make that the bottom. It is the best side, then I flatten the other to make a nwe bottom. |
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rocket
spending too much on rocks
Quality slabs for quality cabs in 2022
Member since September 2020
Posts: 292
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Post by rocket on Jan 10, 2022 12:51:48 GMT -5
Great list rocket ! Every single one of these is genius...except number 8...it's got to be the rocks fault...or the ph balance in the water...or the way the sun is shining on that particular day...or the sound of the flapping butterfly wings outside the window! I mean it's just gotta be something else's fault other than mine! LOL  I will say I do know for a fact that #10 is true for Starguy ! Re: #8…the first half of 2021 went something like this; The tops breaks off on 3000 wheel…stupid rock The bottom edge chips…bad rock Vug mysteriously appears in girdle…#@$ rock and so on and so forth across dozens of cabs…until lesson #8 was written and posted…and finally accepted |
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Post by jasoninsd on Jan 10, 2022 13:05:08 GMT -5
Great list rocket ! Every single one of these is genius...except number 8...it's got to be the rocks fault...or the ph balance in the water...or the way the sun is shining on that particular day...or the sound of the flapping butterfly wings outside the window! I mean it's just gotta be something else's fault other than mine! LOL I will say I do know for a fact that #10 is true for Starguy ! Re: #8…the first half of 2021 went something like this; The tops breaks off on 3000 wheel…stupid rock The bottom edge chips…bad rock Vug mysteriously appears in girdle…#@$ rock and so on and so forth across dozens of cabs…until lesson #8 was written and posted…and finally accepted LOL! Yep! You know, 2020 was a horrible year and 2021 wasn't all that much better. I know bad things usually happen in threes...so here's hoping that we don't go for the trifecta in 2022! LOL |
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Post by greig on Jan 10, 2022 18:13:19 GMT -5
I'll add a few hard earned lessons:
- Empty tables and shelves will quickly collect tools and rocks until they are unusable
- One can never have too much indoor lighting in a work area
- Never buy a direct drive flat lap whose electric motor is directly under the wheel
- Don't leave rocks, crystals or cabs where a puppy can grab them
- Wear gloves when digging broken quartz and tremolite
- Be careful near falling trees
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Post by Starguy on Jan 10, 2022 19:11:11 GMT -5
Every single one of these is genius...except number 8...it's got to be the rocks fault...or the ph balance in the water...or the way the sun is shining on that particular day...or the sound of the flapping butterfly wings outside the window! I mean it's just gotta be something else's fault other than mine! LOL I will say I do know for a fact that #10 is true for Starguy ! LOL. I think you hit the nail on the head jasoninsd . That made me laugh. I’m not going to show her the post though. I don’t want her to get a big head. So far I haven’t had to quit cabbing because it was her turn. She hasn’t offered to clean out the big tumblers either. She definitely has a good eye though. It’s nice that she tells me which are her favorite cabs and tumbled rocks. |
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Post by Rockoonz on Jan 11, 2022 12:21:27 GMT -5
I'll add a few hard earned lessons: - Empty tables and shelves will quickly collect tools and rocks until they are unusable - One can never have too much quality indoor lighting in a work area - Never buy a direct drive flat lap whose electric motor is directly under the wheel - Don't leave rocks, crystals or cabs where a puppy can grab them - Wear gloves when digging broken quartz and tremolite - Be careful near falling trees I loaded my shop with 4' daylight LED fixtures to chase the shadows away, and when I try to do photos I can see the colors cycling on my screen, plus I have to find scratches by braille. The gooseneck on my old cabmate with a high quality LED bulb has somewhat fixed it, just need another for the genie and one for the carving and intarsia station. A good deal on Amazon or at Wally world is fine for finding what you drop on the floor, but that's about it. |
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Post by stardiamond on Jan 11, 2022 12:23:52 GMT -5
Clamp on light with a led spotlight is what I use with my genie.
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Post by Rockoonz on Jan 11, 2022 12:29:26 GMT -5
rocket I too love to find that perfect slab in the bottom of the sellers slab tub at a show, but that box-o-chocolates effect of opening the saw and finding a slice of heaven on the slab tray never gets old. 10x when I dug it too.
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