saxplayer
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since March 2018
Posts: 1,327
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Post by saxplayer on Jan 19, 2022 21:05:13 GMT -5
I got mine today. I will post photos later, but they are pretty awful looking rocks. They are basically low grade chert which is common all over the country... Ohio, Michigan, Texas, New Mexico, to name a few places. Calling this stuff "agate" is a crime. A few of mine are some sort of rhyolite garbage, and almost all the rest are either black with lots of holes, or ugly browns. I don't think there's a decent rock in the box. And no agate, that's for sure. They are simply slacking, sad to see. I would be more than happy to help get a group of people to actually donate a challenging material to tumble, that at least everyone gets a batch of material that has the potential to 1) shine and 2) be nice
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saxplayer
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since March 2018
Posts: 1,327
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Post by saxplayer on Jan 19, 2022 21:06:20 GMT -5
Group shot: Rhyolite? Ugly brown with pits and soft spots. This is driveway chert here in Michigan. Lots of pits in these, and two of the black pieces look like quartzite or some sort of metaphoric sandstone. It pains me to say that these are the "best" pieces in the box. I wouldn't bend over to pick up any of them out of my driveway. If you haven't already signed up, I would skip this year... Cool now I don't have to post mine that came in yesterday. Mine look 100% just like yours. Very hard to be excited about this tumble. Chuck Maybe a prior winner could put some pressure on the powers-that-be to actually provide some real rough? I would help find that rough if needed.
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rockbrain
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2022
Posts: 2,491
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Post by rockbrain on Jan 19, 2022 21:28:21 GMT -5
That's not encouraging. I mailed off my check earlier today.
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Post by rockjunquie on Jan 19, 2022 22:59:59 GMT -5
As one who doesn't really tumble, but loves to watch these threads every year- I have to say- everyone always complains about what they get, but they end up with at least a few keepers. Y'all can do it if anyone can!!!
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Post by holajonathan on Jan 19, 2022 23:08:47 GMT -5
I got mine today. I will post photos later, but they are pretty awful looking rocks. They are basically low grade chert which is common all over the country... Ohio, Michigan, Texas, New Mexico, to name a few places. Calling this stuff "agate" is a crime. A few of mine are some sort of rhyolite garbage, and almost all the rest are either black with lots of holes, or ugly browns. I don't think there's a decent rock in the box. And no agate, that's for sure. They are simply slacking, sad to see. I would be more than happy to help get a group of people to actually donate a challenging material to tumble, that at least everyone gets a batch of material that has the potential to 1) shine and 2) be nice What I received is really sad. I was relieved to see that some others who have participated in this contest many times (like Chuck [ Drummond Island Rocks]) seem to agree with my assessment. My disappointment has little to do with the fact that I paid $35 for rubbish rocks. I've spent many times more on disappointing rocks, and I don't complain about it on RTH. The real problem is that the contest becomes a joke with such low quality rough. The results are going to be bad no matter who tumbles the rocks I received. I can guarantee it. All I ask for are some decently solid rocks that are half-way interesting and take a very good polish. This need not be fancy material. To the contrary, pet wood of any kind would be great. Something like Ohio flint would also be great. Both can be challenging tumbles, but they are also great tumbling rocks and the skill of the person doing the tumbling is evident in the results. Should everyone on RTH who is unhappy agree to contact the Feather Ridge Lapidary club and lodge a similar complaint? Maybe if enough of us complain something will be done to fix the competition for 2022. Without a coordinated effort, I am inclined to toss them into my driveway and cut my losses. One complaint is not going to do anything...
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Post by holajonathan on Jan 19, 2022 23:09:59 GMT -5
As one who doesn't really tumble, but loves to watch these threads every year- I have to say- everyone always complains about what they get, but they end up with at least a few keepers. Y'all can do it if anyone can!!! I get your point, but these are really bad... I've seen rocks from other years, and unless its my imagination, these are much worse. Maybe Chuck ( Drummond Island Rocks) can confirm or rebut my perception?
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lunker
Cave Dweller
Member since April 2021
Posts: 425
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Post by lunker on Jan 19, 2022 23:42:58 GMT -5
I think the rocks should be lower grade for a tumbling contest. Anyone can polish good rocks. It takes experience to polish a turd 😁. Just my opinion
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saxplayer
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since March 2018
Posts: 1,327
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Post by saxplayer on Jan 20, 2022 0:40:13 GMT -5
I think the rocks should be lower grade for a tumbling contest. Anyone can polish good rocks. It takes experience to polish a turd 😁. Just my opinion Yes, in general. But in choosing a rock it has to be a material that is equal footing. If 1/2 the contestants can’t tumble them due to material breaking down it isn’t fair. Choose equal crap at a minimum. Better yet choose decent material and make it challenging. That’s possible but not done.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jan 20, 2022 8:50:57 GMT -5
As one who doesn't really tumble, but loves to watch these threads every year- I have to say- everyone always complains about what they get, but they end up with at least a few keepers. Y'all can do it if anyone can!!! I get your point, but these are really bad... I've seen rocks from other years, and unless its my imagination, these are much worse. Maybe Chuck ( Drummond Island Rocks) can confirm or rebut my perception? This is my 10th year. I have pictures of the rough I received for each and every year and this stuff is probably the worst material yet. Hard to compare this to a year like obsidian where I knew every piece in the box would at least end up flawless and glossy. The obsidian year must have been horrible to judge though with several entries looking the same. This is another year where I think there is too much variety in the material. I think whoever gets lucky with 5 colorful patterned pieces wins. Chuck
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Post by fernwood on Jan 20, 2022 9:00:23 GMT -5
Chuck, Drummond Island Rocks I agree. The variety of materials received posted here is amazing. Some appear to have received the good stuff, others received a lot of stuff that really cannot be tumbled. If I just saw the photos, I would not know they were all the same material.
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Post by holajonathan on Jan 20, 2022 13:02:26 GMT -5
I think the rocks should be lower grade for a tumbling contest. Anyone can polish good rocks. It takes experience to polish a turd 😁. Just my opinion In my mind, there is a difference between challenging and low grade. Contest rough should be challenging, and lots of great tumbling material is challenging. Low grade material is not challenging, it's just low grade. The ability to polish a turd seems like a poor criteria upon which to crown a "world champion"! Imagine a baking competition where you are required to use expired ingredients, a singing competition where you must wear a respirator... or consider the difference between polishing a turd, and polishing diarrhea.
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Post by holajonathan on Jan 20, 2022 13:09:05 GMT -5
Got mine today. Going to try not to jinx things by making any comments about how easy or hard or anything else it looks like. Haven't had courage to open the box yet. Need a cold beer first... Did you open the box yet? What is your take on the rocks you received?
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Post by holajonathan on Jan 20, 2022 13:34:38 GMT -5
Upon further reflection:
1. I am going to throw these rocks in the tumbler and see what happens. I hope I am wrong about them. 2. Contacting the contest organizers is pointless. It would be unfair for them to ship more rocks to anyone, and they're not going to change the contest at this point.
3. In the future, I will wait to see what rocks other people receive before I send them my money.
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Post by Bob on Jan 20, 2022 16:21:43 GMT -5
Got mine today. Going to try not to jinx things by making any comments about how easy or hard or anything else it looks like. Haven't had courage to open the box yet. Need a cold beer first... Did you open the box yet? What is your take on the rocks you received? Well, I think some of the criticisms are kind of harsh. Mine resemble the photos more or less. I've finished my first week of rough grind so can see what I have. Am going to take a different approach this time--my 4th or 5th year of the contest. I've always kept all in process, no matter how cruddy. This time of the 23 rocks, I decided to cull out those that just don't loo worth trying and I think there were 9-11 like that--porosity, pinholes, deep fractures, or whatever. Of the remaining, last night I marked for trimming on my saw before continuing. For some reason, I thought this was breaking the rules before, but guess I had a misunderstanding. Well this time, I'm going to trim off all the cruddy areas and dented projections, probably removing almost half the material. Then will put back in rough grind and continue. In past years, things would still be in rough grind for months and I always had trouble getting through later stages before deadline. I hope to not have that race to the end stress this time.
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badrock
starting to shine!
Member since January 2022
Posts: 30
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Post by badrock on Jan 20, 2022 17:01:11 GMT -5
The rules state:
"Applicants are permitted to remove (before or after your rough tumble) spalls, chips, cracks and any other imperfections on a grinding wheel. After this initial cleanup, the rock must be allowed to go through and complete the tumbling process without any further handwork."
Sawing? My understanding is it's not allowed?
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jan 20, 2022 17:23:22 GMT -5
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Post by holajonathan on Jan 20, 2022 17:52:28 GMT -5
The rules state: "Applicants are permitted to remove (before or after your rough tumble) spalls, chips, cracks and any other imperfections on a grinding wheel. After this initial cleanup, the rock must be allowed to go through and complete the tumbling process without any further handwork." Sawing? My understanding is it's not allowed? I don't see any difference between sawing and grinding. If you grind long enough, you've done the equivalent of sawing. Diamond blades are just thin grinding wheels. The bottom line is you can rough shape the rocks with something other than a tumbler, but beyond the rough stage, only tumbling is allowed. At least that's my take on the rules.
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Post by holajonathan on Jan 20, 2022 17:54:42 GMT -5
You weren't kidding when you said they look just like mine. You even got some of that nasty rhyolite. What neither of us got, it seems, are the more colorful and more agate-like pieces that some people seem to have received. I guess we'll see who is better at tumbling green and brown chert with holes and fractures.
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hypodactylus
spending too much on rocks
Member since July 2021
Posts: 434
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Post by hypodactylus on Jan 20, 2022 17:55:03 GMT -5
The rules state: "Applicants are permitted to remove (before or after your rough tumble) spalls, chips, cracks and any other imperfections on a grinding wheel. After this initial cleanup, the rock must be allowed to go through and complete the tumbling process without any further handwork." Sawing? My understanding is it's not allowed? I'm sure sawing (or any other rough removal method) is fine. Sawing with a diamond blade is just grinding with a thin grinder anyway.
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rockbrain
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2022
Posts: 2,491
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Post by rockbrain on Jan 20, 2022 19:50:41 GMT -5
I thought I had sent my entry but found it on the floor of my van this morning. Now I don't know if I want to mail it or not. How long did it take you guys to get your rocks after you mailed the payment?
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