QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 23, 2016 15:12:58 GMT -5
Thanks Drummond Island Rocks looks like I need to run to Home Depot or Lowe's. I'm guessing the wood can only be used once for gluing. Andrea Yes, once the wood is covered in oil, glue will not adhere well to it again so only use each piece once. To save money if you happen to live in one of those few areas of the country where there's still new home construction going on these days, stop by a job site and ask the job foreman if they mind if you have the cut-offs of any 2x's laying around that they were going to be throwing away. If they've been rained on just make sure they have time to dry out well before you use them. Larry C. |
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 22, 2016 16:02:45 GMT -5
A good assortment of small wooden wedges used to stabilize the rocks from slipping
helps a lot.
Larry C.
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 20, 2016 15:31:09 GMT -5
Water pump was mentioned, great example. Pretend impeller on left is saw blade. Shaft sticking out on right is for pulley. Two vertical rectangles in center is cross section of ball bearings. Pressing the bearings and shaft out basically sucks. Can make patient man pick up sledge hammer and go serial.  This might help with the visual. Here is Johnson Brother's photo of the threaded shaft water pump bearing like the Rock Rascal model "J" uses. The shaft is permanently fixed to the bearing.  When mounted in a flange sleeve this type of bearing can be a real pain to extract. A bearing press is about the only safe way to extract them without risking damaging the flange sleeve that they are mounted in. Larry C/ |
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 20, 2016 15:15:06 GMT -5
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 19, 2016 23:10:45 GMT -5
With that saw's age it could have packed bearings, insert bearings, or a water pump bearing with a permanently fixed arbor shaft threaded on the blade end. If you'd like to take the pulley off of the saw arbor and take a photo of the bearing end where the shaft protrudes it might help us determine what type of bearings are in there. If they are sealed insert bearings they should be fairly easy and inexpensive to replace. If it's a water pump bearing similar to what the Rock Rascal model "J" uses then that can be more difficult to find and more expensive.
To replace the water pump style bearing you'd probably have to first locate a generic stock bearing that will fit and then find a machine shop willing to thread the saw end of the shaft for you. A lot of machine shops won't touch that job because the steel on those is so hard they are difficult to cut threads in. One shop told me the threaded shaft type water pump bearings are threaded before the steel is hardened, not after. I once did find a local machine shop that agreed to thread one for me but afterwards said he would never do it again becasue it ruined his cutting bit.
Larry C.
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 18, 2016 14:54:15 GMT -5
I live in North Carolina and have bought and sold many old collections and have yet to run across a used CabKing machine. I don't think that they have been out on the market enough years that there's many used ones coming up for sale. I have had four or five Genies which usually brought in the $700-$800 range after being cleaned up and repaired. The most common issues with used Genies are the air pump gaskets for the water spritzers being dried out and the pump having to be disassembled, cleaned and the gaskets re-oiled or replaced. And the worst is the aluminum arbor sleeve on the right side shaft being oxidized to the point that it is froze onto the steel arbor shaft. These can be a real pain to get off. Two of the units I had, the aluminum sleeve was so badly oxidized to the steal arbor shaft that I had to cut the aluminum sleeve off and replace it with a new one. So those are two things you want to check on when buying a used Genie. Also if it is an older machine that has been sitting idle for a long time check and make sure that the rubber on the Nova wheels hasn't dried out to the point that they have lost their sponginess. If they have then expect to be replacing those wheels before long. And if the machine won't power on it is usually a bad toggle switch or starting capacitor. Both of which are simple to replace. And in addition to Nate's suggestion of building a machine there is also the option of buying an older traditional cabbing arbor and upgrading it with modern wheels which is what I did with an old 8" Highland Park machine. Here is a link to a previous discussion about that. forum.rocktumblinghobby.com/post/797913/threadNote that this prices mentioned in upgrading the new wheels in that previous post was for using 8" wheels. This same machine could have been outfitted with new 6" wheels with the savings of several hundred more dollars and still come out much cheaper than a new Genie and for about the price of what a used Genie with used wheels sells for now. Hope this helps. Larry C. |
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 11, 2016 15:10:06 GMT -5
That's a very cool looking material! The brick red colored conglomerate matrix really compliments the blue Chrysocolla!
As far as stabilizing, one option might be to final shape the cabs and then before sanding use the epoxy/acetone soak method. I personally haven't used this method but have seen several posts on turquoise sites of people who do. I copied one such post but have forgotten who the original poster was so my apologies to the OP. But here it is.
"Epoxy type: 330. Two parts, one hardener, one resin. Water Clear Epoxy.
Acetone: One Pint.
Mix both tubes into Acetone, real well. Allow stones to steep for 7-10 days. Swirl brew around about every other day (don't know why, but that's what it says!). Remove and let set for a minimum of one week prior to cutting.
Keep the jar sealed and it will last quite a long time. KEEP IT SEALED! And in an area that's cooler than my back yard during the month of July. Places NOT to keep it; near the water heater or other sources of heat that could emit either sparks or open flames (acetone is very combustable), where the children can find it...
Remove stones from soup. (Kitty litter scooper works good as long as the mouth of the jar is wide enough, and it's not currently being used for it's designed task.) Place extracted stones on a surface that no one's going to mind if it gets a little crudded up (wife's china, DON'T DO IT!). Let dry another week."
The original OP didn't mention this but nearly every other turquoise stabilizing formula I have seen requires drying the stones out well in an oven at around 180 degrees F right before treating to force moisture out so that the resin will be better absorbed.
Larry C.
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 10, 2016 3:15:22 GMT -5
As guesses go - maybe Condor Agate or Piranha Agate?
Larry C.
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 9, 2016 18:26:40 GMT -5
...Thought about renting a trailer (good idea Larry), but I haven't figured out how I'm going to unload at this end, so it may be a day or few before I unload it and I don't want to pay rent on a trailer for multiple days. Spec sheet says that it's almost 900 lbs!  Those trailers have drop-gate ramps. So as long as the casters on the saw are good you should be able to raise the front end of the trailer a little with the trailer jack to tilt the trailer back and then let gravity do most of the work. Put a piece of plywood on the ramp and then roll the saw off and down the ramp. Also might have to put a strip of wood down where the gate/ramp base and trailer floor meet so the wheels don't get stuck there. If the wheels are stiff or have flat spots then you might have to use a come-a-long to pull it off. Once it's off the trailer though you're on your own!  Larry C. |
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 8, 2016 20:52:15 GMT -5
This saw is probably going to weigh over 700lbs. Rather than risking hurting myself or damaging my truck whenever I buy anything heavy anymore I rent one of these 6x12 open Uhaul trailers and put a piece of plywood on the floor so my dolly wheels roll well on it.  Makes unloading very easy. Not every Uhaul dealer has these but most of the larger ones do. And some of the Home Depots rent a smaller version but don't know if they would be long enough for this saw. Larry C. |
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 8, 2016 13:55:30 GMT -5
Should I go ahead and pay with Paypal to make it harder to back out? I doubt the seller would try to back out but even if he did all he would have to do is issue a Pay Pal refund. There would be nothing to stop him if that's the way he wanted to be. But personally I would wait and pay him cash to make sure it's located at an accessible location for loading and that there are no other surprises. But that's just me. Do what you're most comfortable with. Larry C. |
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 8, 2016 13:48:40 GMT -5
Congratulations! I had emailed the seller last week and asked a few questions and this was his response. "...220v, It was used to cut concrete cylinders for the local Florida Department of Transportation. It holds water. We won it in an auction with some other equipment that we were interested in. Filled it with water and no leaks, there is no rust showing on the bottom. On the FDOT description under condition it was listed as good. Lastly yes, we have a fork lift."
So I doubt the seller will be P'd. He didn't need or want it. Just had to buy it with the other lot of State equipment.
I had considered bidding on it but decided not to. It's sort of a long drive from NC and I'm about out of space around here so decided to pass. But it looks like you got a great deal!
Larry C.
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 6, 2016 13:28:13 GMT -5
Back in the 1970s one of the older guys in our local mineral club would slab other folks' rough for them as long as he considered it material worth slabbing. And he would take every third slab for himself. That was fair as that way there was no cherry-picking of the best slabs.
Larry C.
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 5, 2016 23:15:29 GMT -5
There are a couple of Gem and Mineral Clubs in the north Atlanta area. The Cobb County Club offers gem cutting classes and more info can be found here: www.cobbcountymineral.org/And the Georgia Mineral Society in Norcross has their own workshop too. www.gamineral.org/Larry C. |
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 5, 2016 16:10:39 GMT -5
GREAT timing for this thread, as I'm nearing completion of a rebuild on an old LS-12. Thanks for the info Quailriver! You're welcome! And if it helps here is a scan of the entire Instruction sheet if anyone wants to copy it down for later.  Larry C. |
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 5, 2016 16:01:49 GMT -5
Quailriver Thanks for the information. I just finished the adjustment and it worked fine. Where did you find that anyway. I've looked all over and couldn't find anything to help me out. Thank you again. jrock Happy to be of service! The instructions came along with a replacement arbor I had ordered from Lortone for an LS-10 saw. Larry C. |
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QuailRiver
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 5, 2016 13:26:00 GMT -5
Spectacular Plume!
Larry C.
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 5, 2016 0:10:17 GMT -5
I have a lortone Ls 12 slab saw that doesn't cut true. I can't figure out how to make any adjustments to square it up. Has anyone ever had to adjust their saw and if so what do l need to do?
From Lortone's SAW ARBOR SHAFT REPLACEMENT AND BLADE ALIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS for Lortone's 10" and 12" saws. The blade alignment portion begins with step #9 so that is the step I begin showing here:  It should be noted however that the instructions are not complete. There have been a few sub-steps left out of steps #12 & #13's instructions. And they are as follows: Step 12-b. Experience a sudden and unexpected bout of phantom Tourette Syndrome. Step 12-c. Spastically throw wrench across room and scare the crap out of the cat. Step 12-d. Retrieve wrench and start the whole process over. Step 12-e. Experience a second bout of phantom Tourette Syndrome. Step 12-f. Curse the unknown, unnamed person who designed this saw. Step 13-b. As an after thought wish that you had gone ahead and replaced the bearings while you were at it, and pray that you don't have to do this procedure again any time soon! Hope this helps! Larry C. |
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QuailRiver
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Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 3, 2016 1:39:47 GMT -5
Hey Larry u live in a deciduous rain forest!!! LOL That's what Mark/Marinedad calls that area! You ever hound the Beast Rock in Uwharrie national forest? It's a black ryolite that ancient man knapped. It's tough, ugly, and difficult to knapp but it's all that's available. I live just a few miles from the Uwharrie River and the upper end of the Uwharrie Mountain range. I know the chert?/rhyolite? you're speaking of and in my youth collected local artifacts made from it but have not been to the original deposit which if I remember correctly is near Morrow Mountain - about an hour southwest from here. You're right that it was ugly and tough as was most of our local knapping materials. The stone age in this area of NC would have been a rough existence for sure! Larry C. |
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Aug 2, 2016 21:18:10 GMT -5
Larry, I was there just a few months ago. The llanite deposit is still right by the road on Hwy 16 by Babyhead. Lots of beautiful solid stuff there but how you get into it is another question. Very solid "huge" blocks with nary a crack to get a chisel into. I don't know how the Hwy dept folks would feel about taking a heavy sledge to it and possibly blowing shards out into traffic either as it is right on the roadside. Don't know if there is a regulation about that or not. I know in some places, like Oregon, roadside collecting is a no no in some areas. Sure is pretty material, though very tough too. I broke the handle right off a heavy sledge there years ago. The only loose stuff is mainly weathered and porous but the dike itself is solid as all get out with lots of nice blue in it....Mel I'm glad to learn that the deposit isn't played out yet! I've always thought Llanite was a really cool rock and have enjoyed slabbing it! I've seen some beautiful spheres cut from it too. I've had about a 7-8 pound chunk (one of the last from my stash) of it sitting in line on my deck rail waiting for it's turn in the saw shop for a few weeks now. We lost a couple of shade trees last year that provided some afternoon cover for the saw building and without them the heat along with our piedmont Carolina humidity has made it insufferable out there until about 7:00 pm each evening which doesn't leave much slabbing time before dark. I'm starting to "jones" from lack of slabbing time! September can't get here soon enough! Larry C. |
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