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Post by orrum on May 9, 2015 9:09:17 GMT -5
So after seeing Biker Randy Graveyard Plume backed with black I am thinking! Whoa everybody calm down I just got out of the shower so my hair is wet and the old brain is steaming but not overheating yet! LOL. Yes I am capable of higher level mental acuity. Did I spell that right? LOL
Back to the subject. I am thinking, there's that word again, I wonder if I epoxy little pieces of attractive stone to a backing. Let it dry and then grind it into a desired shape without doming. Then make a painters tape dam around it and pour that full of clear epoxy. Now I have a flat shape with pretty things in it and showing black lines between the small pieces. Can I cab this to make a dome and finish the girdle? Will the epoxy shine? How much heat can it take during polish. I see Randy polishes his edges. Also I have seen cabs backed with colored epoxy done by.... Err brain overload, overheating. The guy in Ga. I can't remember his name but he makes a lot of colored backed see thru cabs.
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Post by rockpickerforever on May 9, 2015 10:53:19 GMT -5
Bill, once you've gone to the trouble of making your "flat shape with pretty things in it and showing black lines between the small pieces," don't bother with an epoxy coating on top. You will not be satisfied with the polish. Epoxy a clear quartz cap on it, then dome it and put the polish on that.
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Post by orrum on May 9, 2015 13:23:43 GMT -5
Ok that will work. Just happen to have some optical quartz left from my Quartzsite exercise in frustration with chasing the color in Spencer Idaho Opals. Not a real successful project. Got pissed off and took a hunk of Spencer opal and flat lapped the back flat and then flat lapped the front until I got a little color. Then I doped it and cabbed it normal style on the Genie. Ted the instructor had a ball joking with me about my cowboy up cab it or else. I figured I would get a pretty piece of matrix. Spencer matrix makes attractive cabs or tumbles. Lucked up and the cab is awesome! Ted said it was very very good! Got it in my box waiting to see if it cracks or craze before I silver smith it next season.
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Post by Rockoonz on May 9, 2015 13:39:34 GMT -5
Yep, what she said, cap it. We use the 330 optical epoxy, there are others as well. When mixing, keep your mixing stick in contact with the epoxy at all times, if you lift it off you will add air bubbles when you put it back down. Apply a fairly thick coat of the mixed 330 to the surface to be capped, surface should be clean and lapped perfectly flat. Before putting the also ground flat quartz on, quickly wave a butane torch over the epoxy, this will bring air bobbles to the surface and pop them. When you put the cap on put it on like you close a book from one end to the other to push out excess epoxy and air. I do this on a piece of Mylar that the epoxy won't stick to, others use aluminum foil. I keep the excess epoxy nearby to check so I can see when it's cured.
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Post by orrum on May 9, 2015 15:26:47 GMT -5
Hey great Rookonz. I am gonna try this direcyly!
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Post by Bikerrandy on May 10, 2015 10:17:31 GMT -5
Intarsia triplet, what a cool idea!!
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Member since January 1970
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Post by Deleted on May 10, 2015 12:01:22 GMT -5
I have some Welo opal that Jan gingerkid so graciously gave to me and I have been wondering what to do with it. This sounds like a great thing to try if the opal can deal with being totally encased in epoxy. I would worry about it being too thick also and not sure if an opaque or translucent backing would be best. Same as always, too many unknowns. haha Jim
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