Taking risks with opal: see if the gamble pays off. 

I’m now addicted to watching videos about opals! Fascinating to watch!

would have never thought those 2 gems came off the same stone

I love coming back to your old videos and seeing how you’ve learned so much over the years. I love seeing how much your confidence has grown

I hold my breath everytime you carve 😅 the sound reminds me of the dentist, but this is much better than being at the dentist! Beautiful opal!

I had no idea such a slice was even doable much less a good idea! Good to know next time I'm feeling frisky. Great video m8 I've learned quite a lot from all your videos.

I don’t know why one of your videos popped up on my suggested videos but I am hooked on your content now! Great work sir!

Your a mad man! But in all seriousness amazing work you've got the hands of a neurosurgeon. Both pieces are brilliant, amazing work man.

He actually had a nice full head of hair before cutting this one .

I LOVE your videos. It kills me every time I watch you make a hard decision like that and whittle away good stone for a better final shape. I kinda love the unique character of the “impurities” you’re trying to save, feels like an odd personality of a stone, and part of me wants that fire red to invade the pure emerald tone for a unique cut. Maybe there’s no market for that. No matter what, you are a master to have made a separate stoned out of that. Well done

Woaw sooo lucky I’ve been doing opal lapidary for about 3 years now and know that was not at all easy and very breath taking, thank you Justin for sharing this with us all

Just found you...I'm hooked, love it. My favorite stone.

Great to see a pro at work and a great teacher. Thank mate from Liverpool England!!!

*Chances make champions! Nice job, Justin! I love your channel! Its helped me have a whole new appreciation for opal. I can't believe it took me 37 years to realize how wonderful and beautiful my birth stone, opal, truly is.*

If they haven't been set yet maybe a setting with both . The two opals spent a long time together maybe a little longer wouldn't hurt . My mom was in the jewelry business for 35 plus years and I learned a bit . Opal's and other similar minerals are so beautiful . Been doing a bunch of clean up in and around our office finding lots of forgotten things that I have kept from storage units I bought . Have to bring home things to research or stockpile to sell in lots online . Found some of the raw opal slices but I know there's more . Some of it is black opal and I would like to see what quality it could be . Have some gold ore also , might be enough to make a ring with but I have to find out how to extract it . I'm sure there's a video or two on that . Really enjoy seeing your work on those amazing opals . I'm sure my mom would like to see your videos also .

It's like the Ruby slippers and the Emerald City of Oz.

Wow 🤩. No guts no glory! I’m so glad I found your channel. Going through the old videos is amazing 😻. Can’t get enough Justin. Love all the “guest “ you bring on with you. You look like a fun group of people. I wish we all had a boss like you

I can't believe he had all parts of his fingers after seeing that damn saw.....wow

Opal drinking gamw, drink every time he says color bar

I could barely watch, that's heart attack work all the way through. Well done, I didn't think you'd manage that one

Beautiful work my friend. Beautiful stones.

That was incredible Justin! Cannot wait to see the polished green gem!!

Whew! That was a great job! Good going! Thanks for posting this. 👍

Looks nice. I hope to give this a try one day. thank you

Justin, I am sorta binge watching your older videos because I just recently found your channel, and I love them all.

super lucky you di dnt slice a finger off lol

I've discovered you a couple days ago, I'm completely mesmerized.

I could not quite comprehend what you were attempting until I watched the whole thing. That must be a seriously thin blade.

It looks to me that a Dremel tool would allow for more precise removal than the wheel. But then I don't think I would have the stones to approach that stone.

Best Vogel on the net you voice is soothing and even though the risks is great it gives us rookies courage to take a chance. Thank you .......Paul

Those who comment about his not using safety tools or using such a large saw you have to think about how many years he has been doing this. Since unlike most newer Rock workers that I deal with in my business he does not use breathing safety materials rubber gloves Etc I figure he's been doing this since he was pretty young and it's the feel of it. HE HAS THE TOUCH. Without that touch he wouldn't be able to be as good as he is. This is the sign of experience skill and something innate inside the person. They don't just have trained skill, practice Etc but they have something inside them. It gives them the ability to feel the gem, the stone they are working and find the beauty that's hidden beneath the Dross. I've seen it in people who still do lost wax carving and blow you away with gold work that just amazes and other gem workers who can take a piece of nothing and turn it into something you want to set in a most valued peice of metal work. There are countries that can Force laborers to make piles of what I call Commercial stones but there are very rarely the people like this guy who can cut the stone no one people can see!

I think I only took three breaths through the entire video. Fascinating!

Great job again! Congratulations!

Great result, well done! Glad it didn't crack during cutting.

Love your work Justin,you have the hands of a micro surgeon and the eyes of a hawk.Thanks for the video.

My first ring other than my baby ring was an opal, for my 10th birthday. I love rocks, always have. My Great Grandpa was a Midwest farmer...and rocks (of a larger size) when unearthed with farm equipment can do some damage quickly to expensive machinery. Yet, his love for rocks did not waiver. He would show me his finds, and my rock love was ignited. The opal being one of my favorites to this day. The color and uniqueness is unmatched. Every stone has its own character and beauty! Thank you for sharing. My anxiety as you cut these...you must have nerves of steel!! I had no idea how they were cut until now and oh my, so nerve racking!! I’m glad there are people like you in the world that can bravely bring out the beauty for the rest of us😍

I can feel the stress, my heart definitely moved towards my throat. Nice cut Justin!

Your skill is amazing. Ive always loved opals but never realised the skill needed to cut one as the stone is so thin. Bravo.

Beautiful. God bless you and your talents.

Well done Justin,trust your hands & instincts..beautiful crystal green black & great cabochon color.wow,i was really hoping you were not going to have a shot after 3/4way through of opposite end cut...you had to keep the cut going,,great wheel & i noticed myself doing fine cuts,sometimes the least amount of water.you had it just right...

Amazing! Very impressive - glad it worked out so well. Even from watching alone, I got super-nervous :D Thanks for sharing, stay brave and much luck in the future, too \m/

I found you by accident and now I’m addicted 🤩 thank you Justin ⭐️ you are making me fall in love with Opals ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜🖤💖

Thanks for posting and taking the incredibly risky move to slice it off, I'm pretty sure I could ever do something so nerve wracking! Prouda you son!😁👍💯

7:28 That sign on the side of the cutter....It looks like "Probably Made In Australia"!! I really hope that IS what it says, because that would sum up Aussie humour!

You did so good...well done!

Amazing, way to go! The pucker factor was very high on that one lol

This is quite an mesmerizing cutting on this stone. I’ve been binge watching all your videos and I’m surprised I didn’t see this one! I’ve never seen anything like this before. Ive learned so much from all your videos and after I get back to work I might buy a wheel and some supplies and buy some rough opal to start the hobby as well! Thanks so, much keep up the great work and PS your video quality has gone up tremendously compared to this 3 year old video haha

I was sitting at the edge of my chair.....!

Beautiful! Even if you sacrificed some of the blue green. That top was amazing and well worth saving. Opal is such a mysterious and beautiful stone. The best in the world IMO. Nothing else compares in color.

amazing videos.Love you brother for your craftsmenship and beautiful opals

my heart was in my throat.. wow..great video!

It is very beautiful and fascinating with its color

I loved it so much , I had to watch it again!

Fantastic! Amazed us by cutting and curving it into two seperate pieces...

Damn impressive Dustin! Your digits, that close to, that whirling wheel of dismemberment, made my sphincky clench harder than a soulless diamond. 😆

I Think this time Justin the gamble paid off, sometimes the opal dictates the way too go.well done sir.

i have a opal very similar but with a little more red, there is no one in my area that deals with opals, i'm looking for a idea on price what would be your best guess in the ones you have in the video? much appreciated love your work !

That little one sure had a pretty array of colours 💝

Can you make a video talking about how to start up your own opal career and what to buy?

Hopefully the opal gods are on your side today mate. Good luck and believe in yourself, you can do it mate.

Hey Justin...just curious what did you do with that small piece of red after you removed it?....nice cut by the way....

Stunning green!

opal look gives me nostalgia feeling of happiness

That was a perfect cut bud very nice

I love these videos, thank you 💜

Wonderful, I like watching your vids very much. It is how you take a rough stone and make somthing so beautiful from it. Very satisfying to watch!

I'm amazed you still have all of your fingers after watching you do this.

Silly question time. With the need to slice that "top" layer off, and the proximity to fingers. Would using a Dob stick on the layer to be removed be a good idea? Point being to get fingers away from the blade and to also give a bit better look at where the cut is going.

What brand/type/thickness blades do you like to use for this kind of work? (Love that saw setup!)

I Don't Understand why you still not get more then 100K subs man. your Vids are so professional Keep it up Love from Pakistan

Well done matey. Next time you might think you can pull it of then you might not. Life works like that.

That's a whole carreer's worth of experience right there.

it is so nice that you have all of your fingers

How much does a rough opal like that worth? Does not having colour in the middle reduces it's value?

Question: In approximately 1986. My husband and I came to Australia and did some tours. Went to lightening ridge. Bought a small bag of “boulder opal”. They were ready for mounting. And after all these years still in a small plastic bag. I am wondering if there is any value in them ? Dorothy Fry. In Fort Worth Texas (NRH)

Nicely done!

Now that's gorgeous!!

...and you still have all 10! Amazing.

What cc of sandpaper do i use to make a nice great polish?

The reddish stone is lovely.

Should consider selling them together. Offering pics of the two coming from one stone. 👍🏼

Hey thanks for making such informative videos. I was wondering if you could make a video on the kinds of settings best benefiting opal stones? Or would one take the same approach as other gemstones? If you could explain a little bit, please and thanks again. The Lone Comic TM

I am so fascinated with opals. Their beauty is captivating.

Your my favourite surgeon, damn ! Your good !

That was amazing work.

Nice results.👍 With today's rock analysis equipment, could a piece of opal be 3D scanned for internal structure and know exactly where the best cut is? Could it reveal hidden internal gems? Potential for CNC cutter accuracy.

just watched the whole video and saw that you did exactly what i was thinking and said in the previous comment

Weird edge of your seat action.....but I was totally holding my breath

Wow that's beautiful!

how much for a raw piece like that?

very interesting and impressive work

One video just wasn't enough today so decided to watch this Gem (Pun Intended) wow did this video have my nerves going!

The smaller stones’ colour is beautiful

This gemstone is my very favorite in the whole wide world!! Maybe I will be lucky enough to have one someday!!

I would love to learn how to do this work.

I take pleasure in watching youre videos, cutting these beautiful stones with youre skill, you seem like a nice man, i wish you well.

Sir, It may well be my own hearing, but even with the volume all the way to 100%, I was still having difficulty hearing you, but what beautiful work you do!! Stunning! I am envious. Simply beautiful.

I have a couple of lights just like his, Ott Lights. You can buy them from JoAnnes, watch for huge sales.

Can't believe you don't use a wooden vice grip on a platform to hold the stone and you're using bare hands. For most people that's too risky.

You are a artist 👌🏼👌🏼

I love the way you say "eye-pull"