gemfeller
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 15, 2020 0:47:27 GMT -5
Look great -- I'm envious.
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 9, 2020 20:03:10 GMT -5
Hope you have a great day and a rockin' year ahead!
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 8, 2020 14:53:47 GMT -5
Really pretty stuff. What area?
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 7, 2020 17:09:01 GMT -5
In real life I dislike cool light, ie, the 1st gen leds were blue in color, and fluorescent lighting is typically a harsh light. I have an expensive flashlight with very warm light and it is also 1800 lm which is quite bright. I’ve noticed that warm lighting can almost turn the whole cab or slab yellow, throwing a tint on the whole thing. I suppose the correct answer is Lighting Tent, but I wish I could get repeatable results without setting up a tent. The cheap eBay led magnet lights do ok, but the reflection shows all the little bulbs. My wife has an OTT sewing light. But heh heh. Yeah.... lol. Thanks for any tips. The answer is the white balance setting on your camera. By adjusting it to a white or 18% gray background, it automatically adjusts the color temperature of the light you're shooting in. I most frequently use an old Nikon 4500 point-and-shoot. It has excellent optics and you can set it up for automatic white balance in virtually any lighting condition. Try it -- I think you'll like it.
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 6, 2020 13:53:49 GMT -5
I prefer the small end up - those proportions somehow look better to me. Looks like you got an exceptional polish for this material.
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 5, 2020 10:21:04 GMT -5
Very nice work. Thanks for posting. I also think the "turtle shell" is stromatolite.
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gemfeller
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Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 4, 2020 20:44:30 GMT -5
I do it routinely on my Genie but the technique's easier to do than explain. Vince and I share a background in opal cutting and I think that experience may be key. Learning how to manipulate the stone with your fingers without damaging your delicate digits is part of the opal-cutting learning curve. And that's what's needed to learn how to polish cab backs on wheels I think. Um, Rick? I coached Vince on opal cutting when he was first learning. Well how come you can't polish cab backs on your Genie wheels? I knew you were both opal cutters but several times you've posted about Vince's dexterity on the wheels when cutting, and when you said you'd resorted to a flat lap I drew the wrong conclusion. Mea culpa!
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 4, 2020 15:26:18 GMT -5
Well done Scott & Jeannie! I have nothing but the best wishes for you and your "Colorado high" retirement.
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gemfeller
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Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 4, 2020 11:04:02 GMT -5
I have a friend that swears he can do it on his 8” CK. Vince can polish a back on wheels, but I can't. It's tricky and takes a certain skill and technique which I apparently lack. I've tried a couple of times, but I was not successful. So I said to myself, "Self, this is why G_d made flat laps. You have one, use it!" I do it routinely on my Genie but the technique's easier to do than explain. Vince and I share a background in opal cutting and I think that experience may be key. Learning how to manipulate the stone with your fingers without damaging your delicate digits is part of the opal-cutting learning curve. And that's what's needed to learn how to polish cab backs on wheels I think.
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 4, 2020 10:54:01 GMT -5
Gosh I can't pick my favorite. Maybe the Montana although I'm with you those shapes aren't my favorite but the execution and the pattern are stunning. Thanks. I probably wouldn't have cut the Montana in that shape if the pattern hadn't seemed so complete and intriguing. It's a big cab, around 60 mm long, and I have no idea how it could be used in jewelry. But it was a challenge and fun.
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 3, 2020 23:18:13 GMT -5
The blue one is the bees knees! Thanks. Wish I could find more of it.
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 3, 2020 14:14:59 GMT -5
Let me put my 2 carats in. I've done a lot of silversmithing and I don't understand how you can securely bezel set a cab without a slight angle on the girdle. It doesn't have to be much but the bezel needs to "capture" the stone tightly by pressing against the girdle angle. If my methods aren't state of the art, someone please enlighten me.
I don't entirely understand the needs of wire wrappers because I've never wrapped. Based on my selling experience some wrappers like a straight 90-degree girdle. Others I've been told don't care and can wrap either way.
As for the bevel on the back, it's to prevent stone damage caused by pressing a cab into a bezel seat that has accumulated solder around the inside base of the bezel. It's not really needed if soldering is done properly, or if the excess solder is routed out before stone setting.
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 2, 2020 14:08:05 GMT -5
Nice to see my old stomping grounds again Tommy. Old Three-Finger Butte was like a compass when navigating those little trails in Malheur County OR. The sight of it brings back memories. I lived in Boise during the height of the picture jasper mining/collecting frenzy in the 1970s. It was an exciting time. I'm glad you had a great trip. Thanks for posting the images. That sagebrush country is Home to me.
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gemfeller
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Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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ID help
Jun 1, 2020 17:50:22 GMT -5
Post by gemfeller on Jun 1, 2020 17:50:22 GMT -5
That looks pretty nice and with color to boot. Nice Thank you The color's off -- it was a quick image with an unfamiliar camera. It's basic brown like most of the whale bone I've collected.
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gemfeller
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Member since June 2011
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ID help
Jun 1, 2020 17:26:25 GMT -5
Post by gemfeller on Jun 1, 2020 17:26:25 GMT -5
I agree: whale bone. Quick shot of wet rough collected on the beach near San Luis Obispo, CA.
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 1, 2020 13:53:39 GMT -5
I have one. I'll try to get images later today. It's a Raytech.
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gemfeller
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Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on Jun 1, 2020 1:14:31 GMT -5
Pretty stuff. Post the finished stone please.
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on May 31, 2020 13:44:22 GMT -5
I lived in Salt Lake City for 11 years and I sure do miss the mountains and the scenery -- but not the winters! Your pictorial essay brings back treasured memories of outings, especially to the Uintas but to the southern part of the state as well. The state's Travel Council slogan, "Life elevated," certainly describes the Utah experience. Thanks for posting.
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on May 30, 2020 21:19:59 GMT -5
Love the copper complex. It really looks flashy. Do you have any idea if the metals will remain bright? I'm not sure. Copper oxidizes over time but I have another cab cut from the same slab and it seems to be holding up, though it didn't have as much copper showing. The other metal is dull even after polishing so I don't think it'll change much.
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gemfeller
Cave Dweller
Member since June 2011
Posts: 3,813
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Post by gemfeller on May 30, 2020 19:16:51 GMT -5
While spending time at the wheels cutting my entries for the cab/silversmithing contest, I tackled a few stones I'd been meaning to cab for a while. They're a motley lot -- there's definitely no theme -- but each has a "personality." What do y'all think? I love this "jasper," which is really rhyolite, for its other-worldly mood and patterns. This is not the pick of the litter by far but I like the texture and abstract "picture." Mimbres Apache Jasper Copper Complex I found a small slab of this copper complex at a show a long time ago. It's unique in my experience, containing chrysocolla, turquoise, native copper (which glitters beautifully in bright light) along with another grayish metal I haven't ID'd. It's quite hard, dense and takes a brilliant polish. Copper Complex With Native Metals This clear, clean and lusciously-colored chrysoprase is from the original Marlborough deposit in Australia. The rough dates from the 1950s and I've been hoarding my little stash but am now ready to cut it. Chrysoprase This shape isn't one of my favorites but a slab of Montana agate fractured, leaving this general shape. It's big, a bit over 60 mm. long, but it was fun to cut. Montana Bearclaw Thanks for taking a look. Keep safe everyone.
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