The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Oct 1, 2014 17:21:20 GMT -5
Howdy!! Good to see you posting some cabs. I'm loving all the groovy shapes!! Not sure which I like best- well I do have a fav, but I don't know what it is- 7th picture on the left. Is that an agate? Pretty. Stay well  That, my dear, is Inca Agate. The banding is light and very pleasing to the eye.... I'll try to get a better pic without the reflection. Thank You all for your kind words... it is, as always, appreciated very much!!  |
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Oct 1, 2014 12:00:04 GMT -5
Birdseye Rhyolite??? heard of it but never had any so that's cool.l thanx everyone.... I hope to post more as the weather is cooling off more now with all the rain, and as long as there are no T-Storms I can go out to my shed to work. I have about 40 more in various stages so hopefully I'll have some more soon. good cabs mario ! hows it been?havnt heard from you in awhile I've been good Roy, in some pain, but good... knee is acting up, mostly from having to deal with hip problem, and trying to balance my sugar levels through it ll is a nightmare unto itself!! But as long as I get off my duff and get moving, I seem to be ok. I keep going to your site and looking at the picture of the OB pile, thinking someday it will be mine!!! LOL How you been ?? |
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 30, 2014 16:57:18 GMT -5
If the surface of the wheels is in question as being too rough I would suggest a piece of hard agate and a little pressure.... Work it back and forth against the wheels for a bit and this should help smooth out the wheels surface. I know when they replace the wheels on the genie at the shop that is the first thing that gets done after startup.
|
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 30, 2014 16:53:36 GMT -5
Another batch of awesome Tela!!!! Gratz!!
|
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 30, 2014 16:43:58 GMT -5
Well it's been awhile since I posted anything but my big mouth!! LOL... So I thought I would put up my most recent batch of cabs for your viewing pleasure!! My camera was pitching a fit today and wouldn't take a decent photo to show the shine on some of these. I may re-post a few if I get the camera working better. Enjoy!!   bottom left square is Jade.  unfortunately the top right one broke as I pulled it off the dop.   another view of the Obsidian to show its lines     this one is going into the hat band of a cowboy hat for a friend of mine.   A little of the sunrise de la wampidy' !! or as my friend put it..."it's italian sausage rock!"   Blue Quartz Free form that the photo does not do justice to the look & shine on this piece!  This cab is small and about 3mm thick at the center... a piece of scrap that I figured... what the heck.  Mini Star Trek Emblem in Dalmatian Jasper   Not sure what this is, but, the light spots aalong the right side wouldn't take a shine and the rest of it is mirror bright!  Well that's it... took me all of about a month to make these, as weather permitted (the sunshine state is flooding!! what irony!! LOL) Thanks for looking!! |
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 30, 2014 13:56:59 GMT -5
Thanks for the suggestion. This is actually a leather lap (disc) w/ diamond paste, so I can't rinse it. It could be contaminated though. My plan is to see if it happens on harder cabs, If so, I'll have to replace it with a new one. Rich You can try this.... take an old plastic scraper or one of those fake credit cards you get with offers and spray the lap down till it's WET!!, then use the card to scrape the surface clean (while spinning of course) I have done this with my leather polishing wheel to remove old polish with great success. If it doesn't work you can use it as a dedicated wheel for a courser grit paste, and get a new one for after the 3k. anyways, just a suggestion. |
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 29, 2014 11:14:13 GMT -5
As mentioned earlier on this thread, you really need to contact a smoke shop that deals with E-Cigs ... I can guarantee they will take these on consignment and as you make more you may be able to add them to an etsy site or more area smoke shops!! be a nice way to work without working as you can build at your pace and make the price match your time & effort to build these marvels!!!
And on that note I am glad I quit smoking years ago or I'd be trying to figure out how to save enough money to buy a couple of them from you too!! LOL
|
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 29, 2014 10:54:11 GMT -5
First of all, welcome to the forum!!  The 120/220 1st stage of vibe tumbling is what wears away he most material in a vibe tumbler. The 60/90 grit is too course for a vibe tumbler and will burn through the barrel in no time. If you want to get rid of the cracks/crevices/vugs in the rocks,, a rotary tumbler is the way to go. It is also a slow process, as in weeks/months. It is also the only way to accomplish what you want, unless you have access to a grinder and can grind away the bad spots before tumbling. Also judging by the size of the rocks ... make sure you have a lot of filler, small stuff, to add to the mix too!! (helps get the grit to move around and cushion the bigger pieces so they don't crack further. A vibe tumbler works with the natural shape of the stone and will round the rough edges of the stone but will not remove the cracks and what not. My suggestion is to use the rotary for the rough courses/stages 60/90, 120/220, 600, until you have the stone where you want it, then you can see about polishing with the vibe tumbler. Hope this helps, please post pics of your progress for all to see. |
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 28, 2014 20:44:17 GMT -5
I was looking at the Diamond Pacific catalog and saw they now have an wheel cabbing machine which is nice looking... they even added some extra clearance between the wheels for larger pieces.... nice!!!
But I can buy the parts and build it for less than half the cost of what they are asking for it.
|
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 28, 2014 20:19:41 GMT -5
excellent score on those eggs!!!!
I've never seen them that big, gratz!!
|
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 28, 2014 20:05:08 GMT -5
The cabs look great, really nice work there!!
As far as losing the shine as you went past 3k..... I would suggest trying this;
Get a spray bottle of water and an old tooth brush and with the grinder running spray the offending wheel with water while holding the tooth bursh against it. You may have some contamination on the wheel that is dulling the surface instead of polishing it.
I won't guarantee that this is the cause, but it sounds like it. If this corrects the problem, you may have to change out the water, if you are using a spritzer/spitter before changing wheels to remove the courser grit. if you are using a drip feed check the wheels anyways... there may be something there causing the problem.
Either way best of luck with it!!
|
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 28, 2014 19:54:36 GMT -5
Very nice Chuck... Groove wrapping is one of my faves... very clean and takes nothing from the stone.
|
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 13, 2014 12:20:19 GMT -5
very nice looking stuff indeed!!!
|
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 12, 2014 13:13:50 GMT -5
I have a lot of success going to 14000 on the diamond wheel and then super cerium/holy cow polish. Mine has a lot of mica-type inclusions that really sparkle and are all green/white striped.... will get a pic of mine on here in a bit to show you.... it's not polished, but looks pretty good raw!) Here's a pic of the stuff I have...  |
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 11, 2014 19:04:28 GMT -5
Welcome from Florida.... Land of sun and sand.... but no rocks.....  |
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 11, 2014 18:42:36 GMT -5
I think the stone is absolutely beautiful material and you have done an exceptional job with it!! Jade w/Diopside... drool material in my book. I am working Jade at the moment and I think your 'Orange Peel Effect' is actually the difference in hardness between the Jade and the Diopside. The stone is jade, and is relatively soft, which is why it is carved so widely.... however, Diopside is a crystal and as such is definately harder than the Jade so will not grind down as quickly. That coupled with the fact that the Diopside is interspersed all over the stone as very small crystals means that when you use a soft wheel to sand/polish it, it will try to conform to the crystals and remove the softer Jade around the crystals leaving you with the 'Orange Peel Effect' you are getting. The Jade I am working has long black lines in it that are actually softer than the Jade and as such are all slightly lower than the Jade. I kind of like the effect myself, adds some character to the piece, I am enough of a character already!!!. But as Tela said, A light touch is needed from about 600 on up so as not to remove more Jade and get the 'Orange Peel Effect'. I would suggest if it is that bad, to go back to the 600 wheel and try to smooth it out and from there use a light touch and a lot of water and gently reface the stone and polish it.... also, if you have it, Zam works good on Jade to bring out a nice shine, as well as Cerium Oxide. Best of luck, post more pics as you go!! Her are 2 cabs I did recently with my Tiger Stripe Jade (my own name for it!) All the black areas are slightly undercut because they were softer than the Jade itself.   |
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 11, 2014 18:28:38 GMT -5
5 will get you 10 it's Montana Agate... I have some looks identical to that. Layered Montana? Montana Agates can display more layering than any other agate out there!!! And not just through banding!! I have some Montana Agates that look like they cooled before they could form properly. They look like the molten rock was in the process of rolling over itself, similar to a wave of molten material, when instead it cooled leaving a void in the center that you can look through. And when cut open show some banding too!! I was looking through my bucket this morning, thinking about this thread and I pulled out 4-5 rocks that are very similar to the one in the picture, some white, some black, some orange, all had that beat up moonscape look to them, and all are Montana Agates. Ad all are interesting and different on the inside too. |
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 11, 2014 17:25:56 GMT -5
No. Do not delete it. Leave it, join us in conversation, teach us about Indonesian Corals, show us lot's of pictures, become friendly and we will be more open to buying from you. We are all friendly here and welcome new folks with knowledge and stories to share. Thanks for your polite reply to the responses in this thread. Exactly!!!!...... If you, cheapagate, are willing to enlighten us about your product, it would go a long ways towards us getting to know about you & your materials. From there you might want to join in some of the other discussions/threads we have going.... Tumbling, slabs, areas where your product might really shine. My motto is "You can't teach if you refuse to learn" is especially true of this situation. |
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 11, 2014 8:17:00 GMT -5
it always amazes me that someone can look at a picture devoid of any landmarks or regional markers and 2 years later come back and say... hey that's my land in that picture. I guess the wind doesn't blow there and it never rains more than a tenth of an inch so erosion changing the landscape is out of the question too.... place is still in the same pristine condition as when this photo was taken...... very unusual and cool!!
|
|
The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
|
Post by The Dad_Ohs on Sept 11, 2014 8:08:32 GMT -5
I didn't realize that was Jade till you people said so... I thought it was Ob at first, just unpolished.
Very cool!!
An early version of the xylophone!!(sp)
|
|
