Post by ulstergeki on Apr 22, 2012 22:00:47 GMT -5
Hi, my name is Zach and i admit i have a problem. I have always collected rocks, so when i went to college, i ended up taking a metals class where i learned basic lapidary. I learned on a huge 8 wheel machine that was so antiquated i had to true the wheels before i got a chance to really use it. Well anyways a few years later, i got married had kids and was'nt thinking about rockhounding as much, and then i met one of my coworkers, her husband had died and left her a garage full of rocks and tools, and she offered it to me. It seems her husband was keen on cutting opals, so when i mentioned it was my favorite stone to cut back in college, she knew she found someone to use it all. It took two weekends and a couple trunk fulls, but we got everything to my garage from hers, and i have since become even better at creating cabs, not perfect, but im getting better. I primarily use a raytech gem lab cabber 2, a 2 wheel arbor 6" I have a single rough grindstone on one side, 100grit, and on the other side a expanding drum for belts, it works well for me. I have yet to figure out the crystalite pads that came with it, but i will try to find out more about charging diamond compounds on laps and the like.
Now my latest purchase was a craigslist ad, i traveled 250 miles each way to pick up site unseen, it included a raytech 15" vibrating lap, a 10" beacon star slab saw, a raytilt (im not sure wheat im going to do with this, maybe a cerium oxide polishing station?) and a 3# slik tumbler. I have a general idea of what to do with a tumbler, but i cant ask specifics from my work friend(she knows so much about stuff shes great, but she looks down on tumbling, thinks everything should be hand ground to a distinct shape) So that's why im here, to learn more from everyone and hopefully share my triumphs and probably many failures as well. I hope to get to know everyone here,
p.s. my profile says im a girl, i can say, im not, that would be a mistake.
Now my latest purchase was a craigslist ad, i traveled 250 miles each way to pick up site unseen, it included a raytech 15" vibrating lap, a 10" beacon star slab saw, a raytilt (im not sure wheat im going to do with this, maybe a cerium oxide polishing station?) and a 3# slik tumbler. I have a general idea of what to do with a tumbler, but i cant ask specifics from my work friend(she knows so much about stuff shes great, but she looks down on tumbling, thinks everything should be hand ground to a distinct shape) So that's why im here, to learn more from everyone and hopefully share my triumphs and probably many failures as well. I hope to get to know everyone here,
p.s. my profile says im a girl, i can say, im not, that would be a mistake.