Lapidary lessons, cutting a cabochon 

I was wondering about whether a freezer would work better! Good to know, thank you.

Thanks , i hope it helps .

Thanks very much, i hope you take it up. Most cities have a rock and gem club you can join to learn how.

Hope you made some wonderful things and had some great memories.

Thanks, im glad to hear this and that you now are interested in lapidary. I will be putting up more cabochon videos soon.

Im glad to hear that, good luck to you.

Thanks very much.

Thanks for watching.

Thanks a lot, im glad they help .

Thanks very much, im glad these videos help. I still have days where i didnt get the stone heated enough and have a stone come off the stick.

Would rearview mirror adhesive work better than the wax? Stuff bonds pretty well.

@@timd4414 It probably wood, epoxy works well too, the wax works quickly and can be broken free when your finished easily by putting the whole thing in the freezer for a few minutes, that is the wax advantage i guess.

Thank you, im doing another video on cutting cabochons now.

Thanks for watching, nothing wrong with doing it your way, im sure youve created some pretty stuff. You can do a lot with a flex shaft , dremel or othersise.

thank you

thanks for your comment, im happy with mine with one exception, the rusting started within 6 months of purchasing it. Otherwise it seems to be a good machine.

Brent Knowlton if you don't mind me asking did you buy your machine from Johnson Brothers or Kingsley North

They have a stainless steel version for $100 more than what your machine is, just looked it up in their catalog. $995 with free shipping

Thanks very much, sodalite is one of my favorites.

That does make sense, i do wipe the stone off when i change grits while faceting but ive never seen anyone doing it while cabbing so i didnt.

The different grits don't get into the wheels, that's a wives tale.

hes a wise old man. dont be smart

Thanks very much, sodalite works nicely too and polishes very well.

Where did you get that small burner?

@@buzzsquad4991 i think i was from ebay.

thank you, this is a favorite material of mine to cut and polish.

This is an aluminum scribe.

Hello, the water comes in thru the top of the machine and drips down onto each wheel and is controlled by small valves . There is a water tank sitting above the machine and thru small nylon piping lines is fed to the valves. Gavity pressure is all thats needed. thanks for watching.

i dont think i had to use the flat lap on this one, if i get pieces that are already cut to thickness (slabs) then i dont usually have to smooth it .

Hello, yes this comes only by practice. If your city has a local gem and mineral club, they will have classes and access to the machines.

Bless your heart. Thanks for responding! You are so talented!

sometimes just a good soap and water scrubbing with a toothbrush can work.

Brickstacker, I usually scrape it off with a pocket knife , then any remaining can be removed by soaking it in denatured alcohol . I mostly leave the backs rough. Thanks for watching and your comment.

If you put it in the freezer for 5 minutes they usually pop right off with minimal scraping.

Ive heard about the freezer method for both cabochons and faceting but just never tried it but I think I will . thanks

@@tennpikr74 works great for me.

Yep, I do the same method, leave it in the freezer for ten or twenty minutes then it pops right off without much dop wax left.👍

My cabbing machine has a shaft that is 1" in diameter that runs the length through the machine and the wheels mount on it and are spaced with plastic spacers. i have a video where i repainted the machine, it might show more of this. So they do stack and the end nut holds it all together. Actually im not doing too well selling my pieces, but to be fair i dont put as much time as i should into it. I sell on etsy and i sell one stone or piece about every month. I admire your abilities to be able to cast and machine parts. I would like to acquire a metal cutting lathe some day.

They're abilities I've only recently discovered, thanks to You Tube.

thank you i will do it.

Yes, you can do it by hand , some use both by hand and dopstick together.

Gems by mbk How together? Like dop for steps 5 & 6?

@@andrewgibb8846 Yes, also take a look at black opal directs videos, he shapes by hand then dops to finish and polish the stone.

Yes, that's exactly what I ended up doing. I struggled and struggled in class with dopping and then finally gave up. My teacher at first told me that I had to use it, but I showed him several pieces I was able to finally zoom through by hand (couldn't barely get through one using the dop) and he said, Okay, go for it. I actually like working without the dops, feels much more hands on, especially when I was going through the shaping process. Could just pull off the wheel, examine it with fingertips and right back on the wheel without barely stopping.

This is a lapidary saw called a rock rascal and uses a diamond inpregnated blade. The diamonds are on the edge and must be lubricated with water or oil . The blade runs in a resevoir with the water in it. If taken care of , not abused, the blades can last for years.

I meant there are different polishes and wheels or pads to use to polish . I used a felt wheel with cerium oxide for this stone. I t also can be polished with diamond compound using a canvas pad, Other oxide polishes could [probably used such as be used tin oxide , chrome oxide and so on but io think the cerium ox. does a great job.

You probably needed to spend more time on the 600 wheel.

Thank You Sir!!! I will work on this

yes, i toss them into a container and when i get enough i tumble polish them and can make necklaces, bracelets out of them.

That is so cool! I wish I could get into lapidary stuff.

@@AshHeaven you can, join a club.

It is a table saw but a lapidary saw. it is made just for cutting rock. there is a reservoir with oil or water where the blade runs in it to cool the diamond blade. Ceramic tile cutting saws will also work.

@@tennpikr74 ah okay. Thank you for the reply

I think a good one would be tiger eye.

@@tennpikr74 , Thank you. I've got some rough Lapis lazuli , rough Wello opal and polished Tigers eye but will get some rough.

I think it was ebay , look for alcohol lamp. but if you dont see one there try this: www.kingsleynorth.com

Spasibo za vashi khoroshiye kommentarii, eto mozhet byt 'kropotlivym. Eto trebuyet mnogo praktiki, as nekotorymi materialami trudneye rabotat '. Ya delayu drugoy sposob ogranki dragotsennykh kamney, ogranka graney trebuyet gorazdo boleye obosoblennogo podkhoda i koordinatsii ruk v glaza. YA znayu o vashey strane charoit i deystvitel'no lyublyu yego vneshniy vid, no ya ne smog kupit'i odnogo iz nikh iz-za vysokoy tseny.

@@tennpikr74 Доброго утра! Спасибо за ответ, скоро на работу, вечером я ещё Вам напишу! Хорошего Вам дня и успехов! Мэд.

Hi marty, as far as i know there is no praticular section, you just post anything anywhere.

@@tennpikr74 Yes was just looking and there isn't a lapidary section anymore just blogging and other things. Thank you for the reply

Hi and thanks for watching. Actually its not as bad as it looks. The blade can touch your hands briefly and not cut since it has no teeth in it as a wood saw blade does. ive never cut myself using a lapidary saw. You can get cut if you stay in contact with the blade.

I use an aluminum scribe to draw the outline of the shape on the rough stone.

Thanks very much. This one took around 30 min. or so. If im lucky it could sell for $15 but more likely $10 and if its mounted in jewelry it can be worth more .

www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2380057.m570.l1313&_nkw=gem+templates&_sacat=0

One like this takes around 30 min. total. thanks for watching.

this machine i s called a lapidary grinding machine also known as a cabochon machine. This one is made by the kingsley north company. www.kingsleynorth.com

shukraan lak ya sadiq

around 30 minutes. thanks for watching

@@tennpikr74 So this averages about $5 an hour when you include material and consumable tool costs? How do people make a living doing this. I'm very curious.

@@maxgilbert18 You cant, on average materials such as this sodalite. a lot of sellers get finished cabochons from overseas for just a couple dollars each then they put them into jewelry and sell. Some money can be made on higher end rough such as petersite and others .

@@tennpikr74 That's what I figured. Thanks for the reply. Keep up the good work.

The machines sell for around $400 and up used on ebay, a new one like i use is around $900, then about $50 for supplies.

@@tennpikr74 Gotta sell a lot of cabuchons to pay that off! Oh well, if one enjoys it enough the cost shouldn't matter.

@@timd4414That is true and the market is flooded with cheap overseas cut cabs so there is little to be made.

@@tennpikr74 I see your frustration. They are probably all made in some type of automated process.

Thanks, ive seen them and would like one.

A nail with super glue holds much better. Plus it's much cheaper.

But do you have the control with a metal nail that you with with a wooden stick? Just a thought, especially on the larger cabs being spun.

Isn't it dangerous to get your Fingers so close to the Saw Blades? Or are those Blades more for Grinding through rather than Cutting through?

@@LivingFireShadow the blades are diamond powder mixed into a resin binder I think.

@@charadremur333 Still doesn't say whether I'm going to Cut my Fingers or not '=x Though considering your RU-vid Channel name you're probably hoping for something bad to happen xDDD

@@LivingFireShadow it is like a tile saw not like a table saw, it is not sharp you dont want to touch it but it is not going to cut your finger off

Thanks over under

There is a 100 hard wheel ,260 hard wheel, then 260 soft wheel then 600 and so on.

Hi, no need to be concerned, the blade unlike a wood cutting blade has no real teeth to it. I actually can touch the turning blade momentarily and not be injured at all. the edge is very fine diamond coated , that is what cuts the rock. I sell on etsy but not doing too well as the competition from the foreign cutting factories is fierce. Where as i pay $4 or 5.00 for a rough piece of sodalite, agate, etc. the foreign stones sell for as low as one dollar ea. on ebay, etsy and are finished stones. Lately i have been cutting faceted stones the most. Thanks for commenting.

Brent Knowlton what's your etsy? I'm looking to buy some cabochons!

My etsy store is gemsbymbk. I don't have any loose cabs for sale presently . They are mounted in jewelry, but I will be listing single cabs in a few weeks.

Thank you!

The diamond can't cut soft things such as skin. However they will do a number on finger nails in a hurry.

These only bring between 5 and 10 dollars

Thanks, ill try that. I have some around here.

That just cleans the blade. I use a round aluminum oxide grinding wheel on sintered stuff. It exposes diamond when it's exposing too much brass.

Yes, im learning to use the fingers much more nowdays, thanks for watching.

thanks, ill try that out.

@@tennpikr74 Minnesotalapidarysupply has it. Get the pinkish color because it contains silicone. Then you need a backing pad and a synthetic felt pad which sticks to it. All you need is a few small drops and a few seconds the stone is done. It works great and it won't stain your fingers. Just use soapy water to clean the cab. It's great stuff. Cerium is $25-$30/#. The wheels are expensive too and a waste of money in my opinion. If you do a lot of cabs you can put them in a vibratory tumbler after they're done on 220 grit and save wear and tear on wheels too. I got a 4# lot o vibratory tumbler for about $200, but it will save you money in the long run.

@@funnythingslakesuperioraga3331 thanks very much for all the tips, i dont do many cabs lately but would like to improve my work.

@@tennpikr74 you're welcome. I started out using cerium, the diamond paste really is much better. I use some silicone spray on the synthetic felt pad too. Especially for larger agates. Soapy water will clean it up good.

Sorry, its just my way of doing it, not saying im an expert or i know best.