jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Feb 25, 2013 11:23:41 GMT -5
Before After Before After Before After Before After Before After Cooked in sand and divided with aluminum foil.Thanks for your interest.
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bhiatt
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Post by bhiatt on Feb 25, 2013 13:12:26 GMT -5
Are those from the spot where the water looked red in the picture? Those are pretty cool looking. I think you mentioned spot 14 R or 4R(you wrote something like when you were talking about it)
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Fossilman
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Post by Fossilman on Feb 25, 2013 13:25:25 GMT -5
James can a guy get this stuff in bigger chunks??? Like for knapping blades and etc...
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Feb 25, 2013 14:52:40 GMT -5
That water is red Brad,but 4R is in Florida-the Suwanee River.All of these came from the Withlacoochee River in south Georgia.But same tannic stained water.The Suwanee River drains the infamous Okeefenokee swamp.The Withlacoochee flow about a hundred miles from this coral spot to the Suwanee River.So it is all coonected and the sturgeon share the same water. The last batch of coral with the black in it came from Zephyr Hills Florida where i sent Helen.Remeber all that crying she did about how much work it was to get the coral.You think she will find this ?:>That black color is most likely salt,and it is a common color as you get closer to the ocean.
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Feb 25, 2013 15:00:17 GMT -5
I do not cook big pieces because of the long duration you have to leave the oven on.Still experimenting with thin material,it cooks a lot quicker.I do have big coral that is not heated.The knappers call it wrist breaker,it is better cooked because it is so hard.Do you wanty to try the uncooked?I will eventually cook big stuff to slab and knapp,just not finished testing.
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Post by Pat on Feb 25, 2013 18:02:54 GMT -5
Looks like cooking changes the color to red primarily. Why?
Those cases where the white did not change, would they change if you gave them higher heat or longer duration?
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Feb 25, 2013 19:38:59 GMT -5
It is all about the iron content Pat.White rock probably has no iron....Going hotter than 600/650 causes fractures.Duration past my 6 hours does not change anything.Durations of 20-30 hours are required when cooking large nodules to get the heat to the center,and slow ramp ups/downs to avoid temperature differential that would crack the hot outside from the cold inside. But yes,you do get wilder color w/higher temps, but the rock looks like a hot marble dropped in ice water.And iron controls the color of many agates and minerals.And it is heat sensitive.The first pic has the white stuff on the left.That coral was very translucent,after cooking it is very white and turns opaque like milk glass. The biggest change is the waxy texture.The knappers like the waxy smoothness of the knapps.It changes a grainy agate to dead smooth.They say it is a molecular thing.
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Post by helens on Feb 26, 2013 5:51:33 GMT -5
I saw that!!!
Actually... the last batch I cooked, I ramped up super super slow, and I took it to 650 (have to check notes, but pretty sure, since the first time I took it to 750). I cooked BIG pieces (2 fist sized), and they did not crack I don't think...
See, I don't have a saw, so I can't cut it to tell if it cracked, but they all came out intact, no skin breaks in the white crust. I did a 60 degree/hour ramp DOWN all the way back to 250 too. I think the slow ramp down helped also.
Anyway... at 650, colors weren't quite as rich as 750, but zero fractures. I didn't test it higher because I was curious if the big ones would crack, so I'd get better info doing it with your max temp. I meant to tell you this but forgot til you reminded me! Largest piece I put in was about 7" long x 4" wide... didn't crack:P.
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Feb 26, 2013 10:51:22 GMT -5
They can crack going up as fast as going down-well done.The colors do get richer at fracture level temps-it is a fact.600 for glassy material and 650 for grainy material is about right.That last photo is Zephyr stuff and i did not care for the color;it was not that attractive.But i cooked a few Zephyrs last group and they stole the show.The Zephyr stuff is unpredictable and will be a new learning curve.
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Post by helens on Feb 26, 2013 12:06:41 GMT -5
Well, my plan was to cook all the ones I had, then send some of them to saw people to cut. If I cook ALL of them first, then there's no confusion between cooked and uncooked later.
Then... I pillaged all of them to decorate my new pond, and forgot all about cooking... LOL! We need to go crawl in the 15' hole and try to get some more:P.
I bought waterproof rubber boots this last week on Ebay in preparation. Not sure exactly how we'll get in or OUT of the hole wearing rubber boots tho, they definitely aren't going to be great for climbing... hrm.
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Feb 27, 2013 10:20:39 GMT -5
You are always whinning Helen about that hole.Suck it up and get tough.Floridians are tougher than a ten cent steak,get with the show.Do bring a rope and buckets to pull your finds and tools up the hill.
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Post by helens on Feb 27, 2013 11:02:47 GMT -5
I need to find a different hole is what!! LOL!
What can we anchor a rope to? Sliding mud:)? We'd need a 10' section of rebar sledged down to 3" showing, and even that would probably pull out...
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Feb 28, 2013 19:50:06 GMT -5
I wish i could find the other place close to there.There was a stack of 100-500 pound heads the farmer had piled.And the road side ditch was covered up in the bottom.And the dying orange grove had ditches full of it but i wanted permission to get in there.A hispanic couple was living in the trailer there.I should have asked permission to get in there.It is a big place.
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Post by gingerkid on Mar 1, 2013 11:11:14 GMT -5
You are always whinning Helen about that hole.Suck it up and get tough.Floridians are tougher than a ten cent steak,get with the show.Do bring a rope and buckets to pull your finds and tools up the hill. ROFL!! Did you shoot those before heat treating them, James?
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Mar 1, 2013 12:37:05 GMT -5
I had to get on Helen's case gbrat.And i did! By the way, Notice your motto at the bottom"No rock is safe...."So that means i can shoot them!:>
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Post by helens on Mar 1, 2013 21:45:51 GMT -5
Sok:). Maybe one of these days, we can go there together and I'll film you climbing out of that hole! LOL!
I was hoping we could go Sunday, but we'll see how cold it is first:).
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