Chalcopyrite peacock ore

[joolz]

I put some Chalcopyrite Peacock ore in my tumbler and it disappeared completely, anyone know why?

[jasoninsd]

Did you tumble it by itself with a ton of media?

It's a super soft mineral...and my have ground itself totally away...

[lordsorril]

Chalcopyrite is Copper Iron Sulfide with a mohs hardness of 3.5-4, while SiC has a mohs hardness of ~9. 
With several magnitudes greater in hardness and sharp edges: the SiC never wore down and cut your material into smaller and smaller pieces.

If you try it again: I would recommend only using a tiny amount of SiC and the rest Aluminum Oxide (rounds and smooths).

[vegasjames]

The colors on the peacock ores (chalcopyrite and bornite) are a tarnish on the stone, and thus a very superficial layer.

The stones will have to be tarnished again. Usually this is done with acid treatment. Don't recall the exact process, but there is a specific method using an acid and some scrap copper that is suppose to work really well.