grant
noticing nice landscape pebbles
Member since March 2007
Posts: 85
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Post by grant on Mar 13, 2007 19:27:27 GMT -5
Hmm, is this what it looks like? ?
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grant
noticing nice landscape pebbles
Member since March 2007
Posts: 85
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Post by grant on Mar 13, 2007 19:28:24 GMT -5
Hmm, I can see I have to get much better at taking pictures.
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Post by lbowman1 on Mar 13, 2007 21:44:10 GMT -5
Hehe. I have the same problem with the camera. I got a box of what I thought was mahogany obsidian (black with wide brown stripes) but after it was slabbed a lot of it turned out to be gold sheen. Thanks Stefan. ;D
When gold sheen is cut a little on an angle the stripes go from looking brown to being shiny and gold, sort of the same color as tigereye. The stripes on that are very narrow, like little streaks about as thick as a sheet of paper and they come in groups running parallel.
I wish I could take pictures of mine but the chunks just look black and the slabs still show up brown instead of golden. I'll keep working on it.
Lori
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stefan
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2005
Posts: 14,095
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Post by stefan on Mar 14, 2007 11:42:32 GMT -5
Good Luck Lori- I tried to take pictures of the stuff- It just would not show! Grant- that looks like it could be Mahagony-
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Post by freeform on Mar 14, 2007 13:12:13 GMT -5
OK, this is often confusing. so i will try not to confuse it further. But if i do, i am sorry. Most obsidians are "Flow" types. Showing mixed black and Mahoganey colors. These can always produce sheens, but they are not real sheens, specificly. But flow types. You really dont know what you get untill you cut it open. And as lbowman1 notes, it requies oreination to produce any sheen.
Ture Gold Sheen, will be almost completly black, with no visble color mixing as in flow types. When i see sheen in flow types, its most often a copper sheen, but can kinda look golden. Good golden and silver sheens will resemble Rainbow obisdian in intensce color. Vers be intermintance like in the flow types. Banjo was out diggin this past weekend, and found a piece of nice Silver and Green Sheen. There was no mahoganey color, and the sheens were extremely intense.
now, im sure this will vary still with opinion. As others may have experinced gold sheens as flow types, or the oppisite. But in my experince, i have never seen a true gold sheen in flow obsidians. But i have seen them sheen. If you have any sheen potenial in obsidian, copper is the most common, then silver, then gold, then rainbows. i would say, but ive seen a number of low grade rainbows over the years. More single sheens colors like greens, blues, purples. Vers a true mix of colors. But you will never really know until its cut right and exposed the sheen. Which to me, leaves the case at being Flow obsidian.
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Post by lbowman1 on Mar 14, 2007 15:56:50 GMT -5
I've had fun learning about obsidian the last few weeks. I've only seen one book on rocks and minerals that mentioned obsidian having sheen at all. Back when I bought all my beads ready made the only obsidian I ever saw was plain black. Obsidian has a lot more personality than I thought. I guess it's my latest obsession.
One really fascinating slab that Stefan cut for me has glowing golden swirls instead of stripes. He did an outstanding job cutting this stuff. I really love that piece. I can understand how the stripes are formed in layers but I have no clue how the swirls got there. It's amazing how beautiful that ugly old black rock can be once it's cut.
Lori
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stefan
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2005
Posts: 14,095
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Post by stefan on Mar 15, 2007 10:41:31 GMT -5
SHain!!!! Well that adds to the fasination of this ROCK!!! Now the stuff I cut for Lori is Probably Copper Sheen- as it was mostly in the Flow Bands that the SHeen was present (still some of the most Beautiful material I have seen!) What was so striking also was the Lace patterns that just POP out on this stuff- Just amazing- I never really appreciated Obsidian as a whole- especially as a Lapidary Material- But this stone has as much to offer as some of the finer agates- And after cutting Lori's stuff (You got that from Hinkles??) I really have come to love that Volcanic Glass (despite the Obsidian slivers!!!)
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Post by lbowman1 on Mar 15, 2007 12:07:08 GMT -5
Yep, mine is that cheap $7 plus shipping frb from Hinkles. I want more of that stuff!
Lori
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stefan
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2005
Posts: 14,095
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Post by stefan on Mar 16, 2007 9:51:39 GMT -5
Dang Lori- I didn't realize it was that cheap- YOU got a freakin steal and a half!!!!! Especially with some of that stuff I pointed out (A couple of those slabs would probably Ebay for $7 a piece!!!!) Too bad the pictures would never show the true beauty- I tried again to take some- NO GO--- I'm gonna try backlighting some this weekend- maybe then we can show this stuff off
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