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Post by stardiamond on Nov 3, 2024 15:00:45 GMT -5
I was in Bangkok in 1973 and visited a gem shop. I didn't know much about lapidary or gems. I bought a few black star sapphire cabochons for a dollar each. I recently was looking on eBay for some Blue Biggs Jasper and bought some trim pieces from a seller in Bangkok. The reason an Oregon material ended up in Thailand is likely cheap labor to make cabs. I have no idea of what lapidary material if any is native to Thailand.
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Post by stardiamond on Nov 2, 2024 20:00:05 GMT -5
I have an attached car port that could be converted to a garage, but would spoil the design of the house. The first service used foam to seal. The second service used wire mesh and sealed all the vents near the roof and the crawl space. For the crawl space it was done from inside the crawl space. The carport had three closets, one for the water heater and they were all sealed.
I also had rats using the engine compartment of my car as a toilet. I asked my mechanic and he recommended cayenne pepper. I got a powered sugar dispenser on sprinkled it on the engine block and tossed some on the floor under where the car was parked. I just had my car service and the rats were kept out. They have been known to eat the electrical wires and if they can get into the passenger compartment.....
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Post by stardiamond on Nov 2, 2024 19:29:18 GMT -5
I had a rat problem for over four years. I hired an inexpensive rat service with a two year warranty. They seal of entry points and set snap traps. A warranty means they keep coming back until the warranty expires. They did a half ass job of sealing and I still had a problem when the warranty expired. I did not renew. The problem came to a head when they ate the water hoses in my dishwasher. I hired a highly recommended service that was quite expensive. Only a one year warranty but an excellent job of sealing. A few days after the sealing I caught the entire litter with sticky traps. I have not caught any with the snap traps used by the service. One of the rats died because they quit having litters. The remaining rat would avoid the snap traps, sticky traps and a live capture that I added. I contacted my service and he recommended two other kinds; a T-rex and an electronic and if they didn't work he would put out poison bait. He said that remaining rat had been taught to avoid the other traps. After a few weeks I got him with the T-rex. I'm shopping for a new dishwasher during the Black Friday sales. I have been hand washing dishes for over a year.  |
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Post by stardiamond on Nov 2, 2024 18:56:31 GMT -5
I had an idea of making tombstone shaped cabochons and offering to laser engrave epitaphs. The problem I ran into was cost. I decided to wait for the technology to improve and the cost to come down.
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Post by stardiamond on Nov 2, 2024 18:36:46 GMT -5
HP lapidary is having a Black Friday sale. Their 6 inch machine is about the same as the KN. The sale will likely be 10% off with no sales tax and free shipping. Their website shows the machine with wheels but they have been selling the machine and wheels separately. 10% off the machine and 15% off the wheels. Special deals are shown at their webinars.
I have a Genie and I like spitters as opposed to overhead drip. If I were considering and entry level situation I would consider a two wheel arbor. Batching work and swapping in different wheels.
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Post by stardiamond on Nov 2, 2024 17:51:49 GMT -5
Do you have a worn 280? Johnson Brothers recoats. My experience with a Genie is that the 280 is the worn out the most frequently. There is a comfort zone with being soft and aggressive. I've learned to treat a 280 soft as a sanding wheel rather than a shaping wheel and they last much longer.
SUVA has 140 grit Novas. I mounted a 140 grit soft wheel on my Genie and it isn't that aggressive.
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Post by stardiamond on Nov 2, 2024 15:41:17 GMT -5
2 3/4 diameter or width? The smallest diameter I am familiar with is 4".
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 31, 2024 19:56:19 GMT -5
I am still waiting on the hose kit. I attended the zoom meeting today for their new building. It is huge. They announced their BF deals and it was typically 10% off equipment and 15% off accessories when purchased with equipment. They frequently have those deals on their zoom meetings with sweeteners.
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 31, 2024 19:51:15 GMT -5
It looks more like Bruneau than anything else I could guess, but it could be a lot of things.
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 24, 2024 20:53:34 GMT -5
The only turquoise I know is Hubei. Like most materials I buy it is knowing and trusting the seller. In 1972, I was in the air force and there was a trip organized to Hong Kong. In Kowloon there was a large department store run by the Chinese government. It had herbs, clothing and a jewelry and fine arts department. I bought two necklaces for my mother. One was Persian Turquoise and the other was semiprecious beads. My wife inherited them and gave them away later.
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 24, 2024 19:59:36 GMT -5
I'm waiting for the part and assume it has been shipped. Zeke made a video that I looked for assembly and will try it when I get the part.
As far as the zoom sales, I quit getting emails. I checked and am not blocking them or having them go to the spam folder. I registered another email address and that seems to work.
As an aside, I got an email regarding their Black Friday sale one equipment and supplies. No details or prices. I have bought from these before. Discount is not great, but shipping is free and they include sales tax in the price.
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 20, 2024 16:35:39 GMT -5
PM me your name and address and he says he will get it in the mail this week. Thanks, pm sent. |
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 20, 2024 11:57:00 GMT -5
Zeke responded. He needs the info so he can look into it. I emailed him first and then Sherman. Sherman made a video of the saws operation but not the setup. |
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 20, 2024 11:55:36 GMT -5
I imagine that is the part. When I bought the saw there was a deal which included the pump and some free rock of your choice. Offering the saw and the pump without the part to connect them is BS. There is an area on the top right where the pump is supposed to go and it doesn't seem to want to fit. I'm not sure that it is the right pump for the saw although they look the same. There are also no instructions on how to connect the hose to the pump and to the saw blade. It isn't like plugging in a lamp. |
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 19, 2024 18:45:54 GMT -5
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 19, 2024 15:26:36 GMT -5
Facebook auctions and buy it now.
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 19, 2024 14:59:44 GMT -5
Their zoom sales have stopped. I also found I was missing the hoses for my 14 inch drop saw, emailed three people and there has been no response.
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 17, 2024 18:18:24 GMT -5
I removed the shrink wrap and moved the crating pieces to somewhere no one would trip over them. I found two issues; the pump does not fit in the place it is supposed to go and no hoses were included. I emailed Highland Park (Zeke and Sherman) and am waiting for a response. I'm in no hurry. My goal was to get the saw from my covered outside entry way to my work bench. I usually only slab to make cabs and I have a lifetime supply of slabs and preforms. I have a very nice 12 pound junk of Mook, some Chevron amethyst and botryoidal crazy lace that I had bought over the last few years to slab.
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 14, 2024 18:55:24 GMT -5
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Post by stardiamond on Oct 14, 2024 13:46:21 GMT -5
Another milestone reached. The saw is on the workbench. I wanted to get it there before the rain. The uncrating was more complicated than expected and I was waiting for my son's back to be better. He has a bad back and does weight training to help it. He can dead lift 300 pounds. My feet are unstable so I thought it would be better if he moves the saw himself. The saw takes up a lot of space and I need to move the 10 inch High-tone a few inches to the left overhanging the table.
Having the saw set up hasn't been a priority. I have a lot of cabbing material and made cabs. Sales have been slow.
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