Like um Paul? Heck I don’t know where to start. Man you’ve got a good eye for your minerals ! That’s an excellent collection you’ve started. Great photography skills, also. I’m envious!

A really nice chunk of tear! Nice specimen of azurite! That copper in quartz? Is that common? I suppose someone could identify where that originated from. Do you think it native to NH? Its interesting…

Chemistry the bomb! I got a periodic table poster. You got to teach me that crystal growing. That blue is sweet! Great job!

Thanks for posting and contributing

Ed

I don't want to make you mad, so I'm not gonna answer that question . 99.9% of it is the camera - trust me! One of these days I'd like to put together a little area for taking photos of small things with a little tripod, a nice background and some natural lighting.

I'll dig up a couple of those crystal growing links and post them here later today - it's truly not a difficult thing to do and like I said, the absolute best part is that if you don't like your results, you can always redisolve everything and start over until you get the proper temperature, concentration, evaporation rate, purity, time parameters established that give you that excellent result - it's lots of fun.

cubfan wrote:


just a few little tweaks and I'll be growing fabulous crystals.. huh !
E

Here's a decent place to get started Ed - near the bottom are some links to other sections that help with tips and hints as well. Heck, you could even start by just trying to grow some nice sugar crystals - the same theories apply for the most part.

Sorry, forgot the link...

http://chemistry.about.com/od/crystalre ... ulfate.htm

This is what I call Supertition Orange
It real common up there
Its seems mostly to be a quartz aggregate
I haven’t slice one open, yet

but I was wondering about the orange rind ?
is it oxidized iron
or some other type mineral?

Anyone know?

Ed

Hi,

I just joined the group. I believe the white crystals in the Dec. 3, 2010 post are Barite.

The latter post of the orange looking rock appears to be a type of agate, which is mostly a type of massive quartz with some iron staining. The photo seems to have a piece of agate known as jasper in the background, which is another cutting material. The orange piece would need to be cut to better determine if it is surface stainig on a massive-type quartz, or if it is more like an internal coloroing on a chalcedony quartz like fire agate or desert rose type quartz.

Just wanted to help - ive been rockhounding in AZ for 37 years as a hobby, so I might be able to help, or know people who have more knowledge thn me.


Gil

Welcome to DUSA Forums Gil !

Here’s pix of material you may have hounded before.

Fire Agate

I just talk with the person (& took the lousy pix) who own this rings.
Her husband hounded this material in the Saddleback Mountain region 40 years ago.
She thought that was somewhere out by Quartzite.
Later sources say most likely by Tonopah.
Anyway I thought you’d enjoy.

You cut & polish also?

looking forward to more comments & posts!

Ed

honeycomb calcite from Mexico
blue onyx from Argentina
and onyx from Mayor AZ

Beautiful collection roc. Have you ever tried doing any cutting, shaping and polishing of apache tears (black obsidian)?

I may have asked you this once before, but don't recall the answer...

If I ever find the "right" stone to have cut into one of your hearts as a pendant for my wife, would you be willing to do that and of course I'll pay whatever you charge for the service?