Exquisitely polished agates from Michigan Rocks! Atta boy, Rob! Those are some very nice Mexican agates! Technically, you are a few years older than me, but every now and then...we all need an atta boy. 👍🏻
This video is one of my favorites of yours! Gorgeous agates and geode pockets! Also, you are definitely the king of rock tumbling! Absolutely beautiful polishes! 😊
@@MichiganRocks this video was like a triple treat. We got to see the husk tumbled off, the bands and geode pockets inside, plus the polish inside! All in one video! What's not to love! 😊
I wish we had some rocks like that in Nw Illinois, we have lots of limestone, which I have found fossils, flint and I have found lead in some of the lead mines along the Mississippi River. Thanks Rob.
I love your tumbling videos, Rob. I watched a bunch of them over the holidays and ended up buying a Highland Park double 6 lb tumbler based on your reviews. I have a batch of Crazy Lace agates and Botswana agates going in their second week of rough at the moment. We'll see if I have the patience to tumble them until they are perfect like you do though. I'm not sure I can wait that long!
12:15 is sweet. 13:25 is too. 13:45 wow. 14:15 love it. 15:47 pretty nice too. 16:25 nice. What happened to the one that was showing good orange banding in a small outside part? Did it get ground away? Well as with many I have cut you get some good and some not so much but the good ones sure do make it all worth it to me.
I don't know what happened to that orange window. I was wondering the same thing myself. My guess is that it was just a small agate nodule that got completely ground off. Bummer, because I was really hoping the larger part of that rock was full of that color.
Some of these came out beautiful, especially the one at 13:20. I wanted to recommend trying out an ultrasonic cleaner for cleaning out the different stages of grit/polish in the more porous rocks.. it’s an absolute game changer in my opinion! It was able to remove stuck polish in my Bahia and Mexican lace agates that a regular burnish stage just would not remove.
Maybe one of these days I'll give that a try since so many people keep recommending it. I have never felt like it was necessary, but maybe I don't know what I'm missing. I have read that they can sometimes break rocks. Have you had any experience with that?
I’ve never experienced any breaking while cleaning, I think you stand a better chance breaking them in a tumbler which I know we’ve all had happen. But anything is possible and if people say its happened I believe them, I still think the reward outweighs the risk even if it does occasionally break one! They work wonders on rocks with pores/vugs and get into places that other methods just wouldn’t touch
It's somewhat amusing to me that during some of your videos that we have a convergence of thought. You will say the very thing that I'm writing in a post. Then I just delete. Anyway, six inches of snow here in Ramer, TN. Stay warm and safe. Thanks for sharing, those were awesome. David
I have a bunch of Mozambique red skinned agates I was considering doing this to before cutting them. Now after your video I’m definitely going to try it. One tip I’ve discovered to keep grit and ceramic media out of crystal pockets or holes is to fill them with hot glue and then put them through the tumbling process. I discovered this while tumbling Mexican crazy lace agates that had crystal or botryoidal areas I wanted to protect while in the coarser grit stages. Hope this helps. Enjoy your videos. Thanks for the ideas.
I have done that with wax when tumbling beads with large holes. The wax keeps the ceramic media from getting jammed in the holes. Dipping them in hot water after tumbling makes the wax pop right out. Is that how you remove the hot glue?
@@MichiganRocks The hot glue sticks pretty good while tumbling as long as the rock is dry when it's put on. The thing I like about the hot glue it easily comes off with a dental pick when done. I've not had any problems getting the glue off. If the pieces are too big, sometimes the glue will come off of the rock as it's tumbled and banged around. I experimented to see what works best with bigger pieces and what size media I used. Best luck was when using ceramic media.
Very nice agates indeed. These are very much like the agates that I have from the ranches near Alpine TX out where all the cool rocks are. It does take a whole lot of hard work to get those agates looking nice. It typically takes me a few days at the workbench doing the sorting, cutting and grinding before I have enough nice ones for my tumblers.
I had a lot of fun with these. I haven't done a lot with agates like this that are better cut open before tumbling. I have some baby Brazilians that I want to do the same with.
Hi Rob, Thanks for sharing and the tips along the way. I do have a question not related to this video. I've seen your videos about the National Geographic 3 lb tumbler and I was wondering if you know of a place where I could find a replacement lid gasket? My 3 pound barrel lid had some cuts in it and I've been 'fixing' it with tape to the backside (facing the metal lid) because I can not seem to find a replacement.
I had a similar problem with my first Nat Geo tumbler. In the paperwork, it lists Customer Service in Ashland, OR. I contacted them and they immediately sent me a brand new lid. Unfortunately I no longer have the paperwork to give you their info, but maybe you have yours?? Good Luck!! Brenda
Decisions Decisions I think you were wise to stop at stage one when you did. Judging from the peripheral edges of some of the cut pieces the porosity seems to extend below the surface somewhat. Even though there was no banding I liked the white quartz ones. They reminded me of the frosty winter windows back before we had the double pane insulated glass. I think I would gently use the cab machine to smooth up and polish those ragged edges. Just my option. Awesome agates, Rob !!!
This is a slightly new direction for you Rob. Great way to do something somewhat different!! Next you will be cutting agates for specimens (i.e., no tumbling). :)
OOOO I love them! 🧡 Agates are a fun learning process after you’ve spent so much time with smooth rock! Did a LOT of them over the past few months similar to the way you did - if you can get your hands on a cheap ultrasonic cleaner, that also helps a WHOLE LOT between 500 grit and polish! It really gets the grit out of those little pits and pockets - I usually do 180 second cycles with just warm water and a drop of dish soap.
@MichiganRocks so far I haven’t! I wouldn’t dare use it on things like Labradorite, Opal, Iolite, or any feldspar or material that’s very prone to fracturing apart easy - only quartz, agate, jasper, the more “hardy” minerals. Usually I burnish between every cycle with Borax, and then after 500 grit & burnish I’ll do the 180 second ultrasonic, and another 180 second ultrasonic after polish & burnish. Just warm water and one drop of Dawn dish soap; it surprises me every time how much crud gets left behind even after burnishing!
I'm not 100% sure. I do know it works. I have always thought it just thickened the slurry in a vibratory tumbler, which helps the grit stick to the rocks and therefore be more effective. But a friend of mine did some research and came away thinking that the borax works at a chemical level to make aluminum oxide more effective. I'm not great at chemistry, and I'm not sure which is true. Both ideas could be true too.
Love the quarts (i dont know if u spell it like that, but anywho😂) ❤ All of them turned out really awesome loved that one before first pink one. Cool little spots on it ❤❤❤
I think the purple with the geode pocket is my favorite. I don't mind the quartz, it's pretty on its own, but I do get the disappointment when expecting agate.
@@MichiganRocksPretty much the same. I wish they were more colorful in general but like your batch I had a few superb specimens. They kind of remind me of Calandria agate (from Chihuahua as well). I order quite a bit of rock from JH Kalmore.
It seems kinda odd to tumble a cut geode. I could see tumbling the outside as you did, then cut in half....but polishing the two faces, not tumbling. However, I really kinda like the look of the rounded over geode face...it's pretty neat. I wonder if you could seal the inside crystals with some silicone, let it dry, then tumble it, and then peel the silicone jacket away, exposing the clean, crisp crystals. Either way, it's cool that your experimental nature is inquisitive enough to give her the ole college try and just see what happens :)
I don't see a reason to fill the geode pockets with anything. Other than some ceramics getting stuck in there, tumbling doesn't really harm the crystals.
No, they were very shiny after a second run in the polish stage. I do batches of mixed hardness in the Lot-O tumbler all the time without a problem. The ceramics have a hardness of nine, which is way harder than anything else in the barrel except the grit.
How on earth do you keep track of what steps all your tumblers are on? Reminders on your phone, post-it's, spiral notebook? Impressive! Love the video!
I just check my rotary tumblers on the same day every week, so that's really easy. I have two Lot-O tumblers. I just keep track of the step on a whiteboard.
I don't sell polished rocks anywhere, but I do sell a few things at a local shop. I sell stone crosses, little turtles, guitar picks, beads that fit Pandora bracelets, heart shaped pendants, other pendants, and Christmas ornaments at that time of year. They don't have an online store, but will work with you if you call or email. They are open Thursday through Saturday. olivetbookandgift.com
It's ok, but if you use ceramic media in the first stage, it's going to wear it out much more quickly. If you use too many small pieces, like ceramics or even small rocks, it really slows down the grinding. You'll notice unused grit at the end of a week of tumbling sometimes. Even if they weren't great rocks, I'd rather use rocks for filler in the first stage. After that, using ceramics is fine.
@@MichiganRocks Which rock saw do you recommend for cutting smallish rocks, similar to the geodes you were tumbling in this video. And thank you for such a wonderful channel and well thought out videos.
Those were fun! Rob, you talked about not filling in the geode to protect it before putting in the tumbler. What do you use to do that? I’ve often put things in the vibratory, and crossed my fingers that druzy details inside won’t be destroyed.
I typically do not fill with anything, but I have filled smaller holes, like in big holed beads, with hot wax. Then I remove the wax by dipping the beads in hot water.
@MichiganRocks When I attended school in London, I was the center of attention everywhere I went. People would immediately look at me and grin the moment that I spoke. They nicknamed me "HeeHaw."
I couldn't help but ponder the crystal pockets, wondering whether they were full of billion-year-old water or billion-year-old air before you cut them open. Probably water, I'm guessing. It's interesting that you bought the carnelians, as I have been looking for a source for a project. But I need them to be translucent, to the point that if you place them on top of the flashlight "bulb" of a smart phone they glow like magma. Are yours translucent?
Yes, they're translucent. I bought a bunch of these when I stopped at Kingsley North this summer. Some are very fractures, but others are pretty good. I'm very happy with them. A large percent have really nice agate banding too. fas.st/t/nHEeBzZ1 (affiliate link)
Too bad they aren't all like the fractured one with great bands! That one looks almost like a Laguna agate, which have great bands and are very expensive. A few of the geode ones were pretty cool as well. If an agate is going to have quartz on the inside, and empty cavity adds a bit of interest.
These weren't quite as colorful as I was hoping, but they were fun to open up, wondering what surprises they might hold. I'm not at all disappointed that I bought a box of mysteries.
![Found Perfect Agate while Wading in Lake Superior [Cutting finds on lapidary saw]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/d3mRFVpS5dc/mqdefault.jpg)
Oh heck yes! Those were beauties! Loved em all but that small pink one and the purple one were amazing!
Exquisitely polished agates from Michigan Rocks!
Atta boy, Rob! Those are some very nice Mexican agates!
Technically, you are a few years older than me, but every now and then...we all need an atta boy.
👍🏻
I'll take an "atta boy" anytime, Mike.
You definitely deserve it, pal!
The black and purple 💜
This video is one of my favorites of yours! Gorgeous agates and geode pockets! Also, you are definitely the king of rock tumbling! Absolutely beautiful polishes! 😊
Thanks, Lisa. I wasn’t really sure if anyone was going to like this one. I felt like it was a little rambling.
@@MichiganRocks this video was like a triple treat. We got to see the husk tumbled off, the bands and geode pockets inside, plus the polish inside! All in one video! What's not to love! 😊
Gorgeous! Thanks for taking the time to make these videos. Always look forward to seeing them.
Loved the one @ 13:13 💜
Loved that with all the pink inside and the small one that was pink 💖Wow, you had a LOT of tumblers👌so many interesting rocks, loved them✌
The black/purple one at 13:13 is my favorite!
Progressing those pieces without being perfectly smooth must have been a pretty tough thing to do!
It was, but I'm trying to be more flexible. It's difficult.
That agate @13:20 is just WOW! Great video and thank you for the entertainment.
13:20 ! Wow that's stunning!
Good stuff sir. Thanks for sharing!
I love the one at 12:05 it looks like flowers under the agate bands!! Stunning! ❤
Isn't that cool?
I liked the purple and green rock best! Thanks!
Very enjoyable video Rob!! I like the something "different!" Keep up the great work!!
I love these agates! They turned out well. Thanks!
Awesome idea! They came out great, even the "duds" have some redeeming qualities.
I suppose, but I'd trade them all in for one more great one.
Some nice some duds. Loved the purplish one and the bigger one with the fracture. They all took a great polish.
Some were definitely better than others, but that’s to be expected. It sure was fun anticipating each cut.
The purple one was my favorite 💜
That was pretty cool!! The agate ones were great but some the others were good too. The rocks partially done have an almost Asian look to them.
I don't mind that look at all as long as there's something interesting inside.
Very enjoyable to watch the we process.
That's a neat technique. I like seeing some of the original husk on an agate. Thanks!
Really enjoyed this video. A very pleasant departure from the usual fare. Thank you...
I know, I think I'm getting in a rut. I'm trying to figure out how to get out.
I wish we had some rocks like that in Nw Illinois, we have lots of limestone, which I have found fossils, flint and I have found lead in some of the lead mines along the Mississippi River. Thanks Rob.
I have never even thought about finding lead. Only problem might be a heavy bucket. Oh, and no rock licking.
Good evening, Rob. Happy New Year. Glad to see you again. Perfect choice. Beautiful specimens.
Hi. It's nice to be seen!
I find it sort of strange that so many people know what I look like, but I don't know what hardly any of you look like.
@@MichiganRocks Count your blessings, my friend.
Wow! Can’t even pick a favorite from this batch. So many awesome ones! Like those chocolates with a toy inside 😅
Cracker Jacks actually crossed my mind.
Really like the purple one.
I love your tumbling videos, Rob. I watched a bunch of them over the holidays and ended up buying a Highland Park double 6 lb tumbler based on your reviews. I have a batch of Crazy Lace agates and Botswana agates going in their second week of rough at the moment. We'll see if I have the patience to tumble them until they are perfect like you do though. I'm not sure I can wait that long!
When it comes to tumbling, I don't think anyone can beat the patience of Rob!
I had to resist my patience for these. I really wanted to just keep putting them back in until they were perfectly smooth.
That was a super cool experiment. Loved the mystery behind each one! Can’t say there was one I didn’t like.
12:15 is sweet. 13:25 is too. 13:45 wow. 14:15 love it. 15:47 pretty nice too. 16:25 nice. What happened to the one that was showing good orange banding in a small outside part? Did it get ground away? Well as with many I have cut you get some good and some not so much but the good ones sure do make it all worth it to me.
Sorry for all the time stamps. Lol
I don't know what happened to that orange window. I was wondering the same thing myself. My guess is that it was just a small agate nodule that got completely ground off. Bummer, because I was really hoping the larger part of that rock was full of that color.
Very nice Rob!
13:27 beautiful! My all time favorite
Any way Allison can relocate it home for me 😉😊
I suppose if she steals it from me.
Nice work.
Some of these came out beautiful, especially the one at 13:20. I wanted to recommend trying out an ultrasonic cleaner for cleaning out the different stages of grit/polish in the more porous rocks.. it’s an absolute game changer in my opinion! It was able to remove stuck polish in my Bahia and Mexican lace agates that a regular burnish stage just would not remove.
Maybe one of these days I'll give that a try since so many people keep recommending it. I have never felt like it was necessary, but maybe I don't know what I'm missing. I have read that they can sometimes break rocks. Have you had any experience with that?
I’ve never experienced any breaking while cleaning, I think you stand a better chance breaking them in a tumbler which I know we’ve all had happen. But anything is possible and if people say its happened I believe them, I still think the reward outweighs the risk even if it does occasionally break one! They work wonders on rocks with pores/vugs and get into places that other methods just wouldn’t touch
@@quilliam9335 You've come the closest to convincing me to give one a try. Thanks for the nudge. Can you recommend one?
Nice rocks, Rob. I don't know how you make bad rock look so good. Even the quartz rocks looked great. Thanks for sharing.
The chipped up quartz is going back in the rotary tumbler today. That one didn't look too great.
This was awesome! Thanks brother, appreciate the content. Always so informative
It's somewhat amusing to me that during some of your videos that we have a convergence of thought. You will say the very thing that I'm writing in a post. Then I just delete.
Anyway, six inches of snow here in Ramer, TN. Stay warm and safe. Thanks for sharing, those were awesome.
David
And here at my house in Michigan, we only have about an inch.
I have a bunch of Mozambique red skinned agates I was considering doing this to before cutting them. Now after your video I’m definitely going to try it. One tip I’ve discovered to keep grit and ceramic media out of crystal pockets or holes is to fill them with hot glue and then put them through the tumbling process. I discovered this while tumbling Mexican crazy lace agates that had crystal or botryoidal areas I wanted to protect while in the coarser grit stages. Hope this helps. Enjoy your videos. Thanks for the ideas.
I have done that with wax when tumbling beads with large holes. The wax keeps the ceramic media from getting jammed in the holes. Dipping them in hot water after tumbling makes the wax pop right out. Is that how you remove the hot glue?
@@MichiganRocks The hot glue sticks pretty good while tumbling as long as the rock is dry when it's put on. The thing I like about the hot glue it easily comes off with a dental pick when done. I've not had any problems getting the glue off. If the pieces are too big, sometimes the glue will come off of the rock as it's tumbled and banged around. I experimented to see what works best with bigger pieces and what size media I used. Best luck was when using ceramic media.
Nice geode!
Your videos are so good I have a lot of rocks to tumble
Very nice agates indeed. These are very much like the agates that I have from the ranches near Alpine TX out where all the cool rocks are. It does take a whole lot of hard work to get those agates looking nice. It typically takes me a few days at the workbench doing the sorting, cutting and grinding before I have enough nice ones for my tumblers.
I had a lot of fun with these. I haven't done a lot with agates like this that are better cut open before tumbling. I have some baby Brazilians that I want to do the same with.
The third one is nice.
Nice agates Rob! I cut some of these open on my channel a couple weeks ago! I love them!
Now I have to go see how yours compared.
Edit: I think you did better than I did! ua-cam.com/video/BgorKkVedos/v-deo.htmlsi=rbnBxSPF7phfTYAp
Thats awesome
The coarse surface reminds me of the malawi ones
Hi Rob,
Thanks for sharing and the tips along the way.
I do have a question not related to this video.
I've seen your videos about the National Geographic 3 lb tumbler and I was wondering if you know of a place where I could find a replacement lid gasket?
My 3 pound barrel lid had some cuts in it and I've been 'fixing' it with tape to the backside (facing the metal lid) because I can not seem to find a replacement.
I don't know if National Geographic sells any spare parts. I have only used my Nat Geo tumbler three times.
I had a similar problem with my first Nat Geo tumbler. In the paperwork, it lists Customer Service in Ashland, OR. I contacted them and they immediately sent me a brand new lid. Unfortunately I no longer have the paperwork to give you their info, but maybe you have yours?? Good Luck!! Brenda
@@Brenda-sk6ev Thank you for the info. I will look into the paperwork I am sure I still have .... somewhere :-)
@@MichiganRocks Thanks Rob.
Yeah I guess if you have such a nice DIY build tumbler system as yours you do not use the Nat G. Tumbler.
Decisions Decisions I think you were wise to stop at stage one when you did. Judging from the peripheral edges of some of the cut pieces the porosity seems to extend below the surface somewhat. Even though there was no banding I liked the white quartz ones. They reminded me of the frosty winter windows back before we had the double pane insulated glass. I think I would gently use the cab machine to smooth up and polish those ragged edges. Just my option. Awesome agates, Rob !!!
That one that chipped is back in the rotary tumbler. If I round off those edges, I won't have a problem polishing it.
I take that back, the one at 13:31 is my favorite!
Ha! That's a lot of favorites.
This is a slightly new direction for you Rob. Great way to do something somewhat different!! Next you will be cutting agates for specimens (i.e., no tumbling). :)
No tumbling? That doesn't sound like me.
Heck yes those turned out great !
I was pretty happy with them. It was fun being surprised with each cut.
@ That’s definitely true 😊
Good video.
Those and also 🇧🇼Botswanian agates are incredible
The one at 12: 04 is my favorite!
OOOO I love them! 🧡 Agates are a fun learning process after you’ve spent so much time with smooth rock!
Did a LOT of them over the past few months similar to the way you did - if you can get your hands on a cheap ultrasonic cleaner, that also helps a WHOLE LOT between 500 grit and polish! It really gets the grit out of those little pits and pockets - I usually do 180 second cycles with just warm water and a drop of dish soap.
Have you had any rocks crack in the ultrasonic cleaner? I have heard that can happen.
@MichiganRocks so far I haven’t! I wouldn’t dare use it on things like Labradorite, Opal, Iolite, or any feldspar or material that’s very prone to fracturing apart easy - only quartz, agate, jasper, the more “hardy” minerals. Usually I burnish between every cycle with Borax, and then after 500 grit & burnish I’ll do the 180 second ultrasonic, and another 180 second ultrasonic after polish & burnish. Just warm water and one drop of Dawn dish soap; it surprises me every time how much crud gets left behind even after burnishing!
@@WarszawaScream Thanks. I'm considering getting one.
Hello, I was wondering what the benefit is of using borax in the final polishing stage (I saw it in one of your videos). Thank you !!
I'm not 100% sure. I do know it works. I have always thought it just thickened the slurry in a vibratory tumbler, which helps the grit stick to the rocks and therefore be more effective. But a friend of mine did some research and came away thinking that the borax works at a chemical level to make aluminum oxide more effective. I'm not great at chemistry, and I'm not sure which is true. Both ideas could be true too.
@MichiganRocks good ! Thank you !
@@MichiganRocks Does it also work with a regular rotary tumbler, because I don't have a vibratory tumbler?
Love the quarts (i dont know if u spell it like that, but anywho😂) ❤
All of them turned out really awesome loved that one before first pink one. Cool little spots on it
❤❤❤
I don’t mind a little quartz, but I much prefer agate.
I think the purple with the geode pocket is my favorite. I don't mind the quartz, it's pretty on its own, but I do get the disappointment when expecting agate.
Quartz is super common, agate is not. I like those bands!
I am working with some of this material. I did the exact same thing…tumbled stage 1 a little bit and then cut them.
How did yours compare to mine? I was hoping for more color, but I did really like some of them.
@@MichiganRocksPretty much the same. I wish they were more colorful in general but like your batch I had a few superb specimens. They kind of remind me of Calandria agate (from Chihuahua as well). I order quite a bit of rock from JH Kalmore.
@@roman11469 This was my first order, but I won't hesitate to order again.
A couple of them reminded me of picture agates. Also do you know what mineral deposits besides quartz deposits cause the bands different colors?
Nope, I don't know that. Sorry.
It seems kinda odd to tumble a cut geode. I could see tumbling the outside as you did, then cut in half....but polishing the two faces, not tumbling. However, I really kinda like the look of the rounded over geode face...it's pretty neat. I wonder if you could seal the inside crystals with some silicone, let it dry, then tumble it, and then peel the silicone jacket away, exposing the clean, crisp crystals. Either way, it's cool that your experimental nature is inquisitive enough to give her the ole college try and just see what happens :)
I don't see a reason to fill the geode pockets with anything. Other than some ceramics getting stuck in there, tumbling doesn't really harm the crystals.
The one at 11:20 is nice!
If you want to try something new - Mexican agates that are cut in to random polyhedron shapes with polished flat faces looks fantastic
I might give that a try someday. There are so many things to try out !
9:14 might the saw scraps not be as shiny because they are softer than the agates and got beat up in the tumbler, thus taking away their shine?
No, they were very shiny after a second run in the polish stage. I do batches of mixed hardness in the Lot-O tumbler all the time without a problem. The ceramics have a hardness of nine, which is way harder than anything else in the barrel except the grit.
How on earth do you keep track of what steps all your tumblers are on? Reminders on your phone, post-it's, spiral notebook? Impressive! Love the video!
I just check my rotary tumblers on the same day every week, so that's really easy. I have two Lot-O tumblers. I just keep track of the step on a whiteboard.
I love the video! Do you sell the polished rocks?
I don't sell polished rocks anywhere, but I do sell a few things at a local shop. I sell stone crosses, little turtles, guitar picks, beads that fit Pandora bracelets, heart shaped pendants, other pendants, and Christmas ornaments at that time of year. They don't have an online store, but will work with you if you call or email. They are open Thursday through Saturday. olivetbookandgift.com
Nooooooo, I liked the one you were second guessing on. The one that broke and you cut the back off, it was really nice.
Wonder if you cut those quartz ones in another direction if you would produce a better outcome?
I'm not 100% sure, but I doubt it.
When tumbling rocks in a 2 lb barrel, is it OK to use extra ceramic media instead of new rough rocks to refill the tumbler barrel to 2/3 to 3/4 full?
It's ok, but if you use ceramic media in the first stage, it's going to wear it out much more quickly. If you use too many small pieces, like ceramics or even small rocks, it really slows down the grinding. You'll notice unused grit at the end of a week of tumbling sometimes. Even if they weren't great rocks, I'd rather use rocks for filler in the first stage. After that, using ceramics is fine.
Any idea what they would look like in a rotary tumbler? The pink one and purple are my favorites
I think they'd look the same.
Great. How large of a ‘geode’ cavity can be tumbled with out effecting the crystals?
I'm not sure but I think pretty big.
@@MichiganRocks Which rock saw do you recommend for cutting smallish rocks, similar to the geodes you were tumbling in this video. And thank you for such a wonderful channel and well thought out videos.
@@carolynpeterson510 All of my saws are really old and none are currently produced, so I can't really recommend anything.
Those were fun! Rob, you talked about not filling in the geode to protect it before putting in the tumbler. What do you use to do that?
I’ve often put things in the vibratory, and crossed my fingers that druzy details inside won’t be destroyed.
I typically do not fill with anything, but I have filled smaller holes, like in big holed beads, with hot wax. Then I remove the wax by dipping the beads in hot water.
@ Oh, interesting. That might work on certain rocks. Thanks!
As nice as some of the agates looked, the saw scraps also had some interesting colors.
I tumble a lot of saw scraps. I kind of hate wasting anything, including rocks.
❤
In TN, we say:
Chee-wah-wah
That's not a word I use very often, so I might have mispronounced it. Then again there are quite a few words we probably pronounce differently.
@MichiganRocks When I attended school in London, I was the center of attention everywhere I went. People would immediately look at me and grin the moment that I spoke. They nicknamed me "HeeHaw."
@@davidbendall7919 Ha ha! I remember HeeHaw!
I couldn't help but ponder the crystal pockets, wondering whether they were full of billion-year-old water or billion-year-old air before you cut them open. Probably water, I'm guessing.
It's interesting that you bought the carnelians, as I have been looking for a source for a project. But I need them to be translucent, to the point that if you place them on top of the flashlight "bulb" of a smart phone they glow like magma. Are yours translucent?
Yes, they're translucent. I bought a bunch of these when I stopped at Kingsley North this summer. Some are very fractures, but others are pretty good. I'm very happy with them. A large percent have really nice agate banding too. fas.st/t/nHEeBzZ1 (affiliate link)
Hello
Man, I wish you had a store where I could buy rocks. The internet is flooded with dyed glass. I can't get anything without getting ripped off :(
Too bad they aren't all like the fractured one with great bands! That one looks almost like a Laguna agate, which have great bands and are very expensive. A few of the geode ones were pretty cool as well. If an agate is going to have quartz on the inside, and empty cavity adds a bit of interest.
These weren't quite as colorful as I was hoping, but they were fun to open up, wondering what surprises they might hold. I'm not at all disappointed that I bought a box of mysteries.
Pikachu!
Do you watch Agate Dad...he cuts all the time
Yes, I have hunted rocks with him and done a couple other videos with him.
@MichiganRocks I will watch them you guys Love to find agates!!! You are fun to watch ( being from Michigan) I enjoy your rock hunting adventures!
Why did you cut your dud through the window instead of parallel to the window?
Possibly.
To cut...or not to cut? THAT is the question. Very interesting that tumbling a cut geode yields good results. Not intuitive. Thanks for that.
I struggled with that decision. You guys weren't much help in my moment of need.
@@MichiganRocks We trust your judgement implicitly. You're the maestro.
Well done rob
Did chuck use a flat lap or a cabbing machine?
I think he used a Lot-O.