quahog13
off to a rocking start
Member since February 2012
Posts: 5
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Post by quahog13 on Feb 6, 2012 20:18:09 GMT -5
Hi, I'm new to the board. I'm also new to lapidary work. I've always been a fossil collector and have some scraps of Mammoth and walrus ivory (fossilized) I purchased from an Alaskan carver. Has anyone worked with these materials? I assume they are softer than stone? I don't have a lot and the pieces are not very big so I'm wondering how to tackle them. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
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agatemaggot
Cave Dweller
Member since August 2006
Posts: 2,195
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Post by agatemaggot on Feb 6, 2012 23:41:46 GMT -5
I haven't worked any of this material but found some at a site called Raw Materials / Alaska. I will have to keepan eye on this post to see if anyone has !
Harley
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rockdude
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since May 2008
Posts: 187
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Post by rockdude on Feb 7, 2012 8:52:20 GMT -5
I've used it to make cabs for rings. Got a lb from IJS for around $40 IIRC. It came in pretty much 3 colors, an Ivory color just off-white, then some was a brown like milk chocolate sorta. The third color was a streaky gray/brown combo. Mostly the light color if cut across the grain has the herringbone design pronounced enough to be of use in jewelry design. I think 600 grit SC paper was as fine as I went, then Tripoli to polish it off.
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quahog13
off to a rocking start
Member since February 2012
Posts: 5
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Post by quahog13 on Feb 7, 2012 9:06:56 GMT -5
thanks for the info, looking forward to some experimenting.
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Post by rockmanken on Feb 7, 2012 20:21:27 GMT -5
I have put it and mammoth teeth on knives as scales. It is very soft, but polishes up nice. The teeth tend to undercut because of the different hardnesses as you go down the tooth. The ivory is a bit harder and doesn't undercut. I go to 14,000 and then cerium. Ken
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jcinpc
has rocks in the head
Member since April 2009
Posts: 722
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Post by jcinpc on Feb 11, 2012 23:08:54 GMT -5
down here in Fl we find mammoth and mastodon teeth diving the rivers, any ivory usually crumbles when taken out of the water. I have made alot of pendants from the mastodon teeth
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