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[rockjunquie]

Pretty quiet here..... I guess I will get things rolling.
The storms have me back in the shop. I put on my gas mask respirator, body protection and jumped into the Trent Agate today.
40x30x7 mm approx. More realgar than almost any I have ever cut. This is a left-over from some slabs I made a while back for a custom set for a client on the east coast.
Two sided cab with a double tapered girdle. Faces are very low dome.
Bill

The double dome is aesthetically very pleasing, but does it serve any real purpose other than to look good for the collector? Not bashing, just curious. I've never seen one.

Beautiful cab, by the way and great pictures.

[rockjunquie]

There are some really great cabs posted already. The bar is RAISED!!!

[Stonemon]

"The double dome is aesthetically very pleasing, but does it serve any real purpose other than to look good for the collector? Not bashing, just curious. I've never seen one."

Beautiful cab, by the way and great pictures.
[/quote]

The Trent seems to wind up in collections a lot.    I have found that many of my custom orders come with a request for a two sided polish. The material works so well back-lit and I think it helps move light around the sagenite crystals.
It is so rare, I want to do my best to create something of lasting value when I work with it. I do not do many other cabs with a double dome but this stuff is different.
Best, Bill

[gemfeller]

Stonemon, I was completely unaware that Trent contains arsenic when I posted my comments about arsenic with my Bumblebee contest entry.  I hope they weren't interpreted by you or anyone else as being snarky about your very fine entry.  They certainly weren't intended that way: I was just making an attempt at humor.

I'm a strong believer in personal choice in all things.  I was poking a little fun at what I think are overblown concerns about the dangers of cutting occasional stones like malachite, other copper minerals, Bumblebee etc.  But I was speaking only for myself.  If someone has an opposite view I respect that.  Certainly if one is cutting large numbers of potentially dangerous stones protection is essential.  I often think about the fate of poor Congolese who probably are poisoned from making ashtrays and other tourist items from Congo Malachite day in, day out.  But I think we get more arsenic in our EPA-approved drinking water than we do from cutting an occasional Bumblebee cab.   

[Stonemon]

Stonemon, I was completely unaware that Trent contains arsenic when I posted my comments about arsenic with my Bumblebee contest entry.  I hope they weren't interpreted by you or anyone else as being snarky about your very fine entry.  They certainly weren't intended that way: I was just making an attempt at humor.

I'm a strong believer in personal choice in all things.  I was poking a little fun at what I think are overblown concerns about the dangers of cutting occasional stones like malachite, other copper minerals, Bumblebee etc.  But I was speaking only for myself.  If someone has an opposite view I respect that.  Certainly if one is cutting large numbers of potentially dangerous stones protection is essential.  I often think about the fate of poor Congolese who probably are poisoned from making ashtrays and other tourist items from Congo Malachite day in, day out.  But I think we get more arsenic in our EPA-approved drinking water than we do from cutting an occasional Bumblebee cab.

No worries, no offense taken sir!
I often sit down and cut Trent for hours at a time.  I used to cut without protection. I am still here!
There is a lapidary person in Eugene, an hour west of here who said one of her good friends died after a long run of cutting Trent and she would not even touch the stuff.
I may be overly cautious but I believe it was Clint Eastwood who said "dying is no way to make a living"
Arsenic is bad news if you get over-exposed and Trent has a bunch.
One will not kill you. One thousand might! 
Best, Bill

[Orrum]

Arsenic.....Used to treat MS in the old days.  Carefully dosed the patient has a nerve death that stops the pain. Arsenic in most wells that also have slkslinoutvwest. Arsenic common in old days rat poison. Arsenic used in a green dust for tobacco worms and cotton boll wevils. Can't remember the name of it. Also used in commercial tomato production for tomato hornworm. So the spaghetti had arsenic in it, the wster had arsenic in it, the bed sheets snd clothing had it, we smoked it with cigarets. The rats pissed and pooped it all over our grain. Therefore care fully Trent cutting not gonna hurt ya.

[rockjunquie]

"The double dome is aesthetically very pleasing, but does it serve any real purpose other than to look good for the collector? Not bashing, just curious. I've never seen one."

Beautiful cab, by the way and great pictures.

The Trent seems to wind up in collections a lot.    I have found that many of my custom orders come with a request for a two sided polish. The material works so well back-lit and I think it helps move light around the sagenite crystals.
It is so rare, I want to do my best to create something of lasting value when I work with it. I do not do many other cabs with a double dome but this stuff is different.
Best, Bill
[/quote]

Thanks, I was just curious. I've done some Trent, too, but not nearly as nice as yours. 

[Sandsave]

Here we go! Mushroom Rhyolite, it's kinda has hallowed color. This is some of the boot off a recent sphere. I was told it was petrified mushroom but in usual fashion members of the forum corrected me as to being mushroom rhyolite. That's what makes this forum great, someone somewhere knows exactly what each stone is!
This has a couple vugs in it, I had to keep the top a little wider than my preform as I was drilling a hole for my daughter to take with. It's nice material to work with.
I didn't realize how bad the finished picture was until my wife told me to look at it! I must have hit one of the picture modes when I was cropping the photo, my bad
I had my daughter bring it back for another photo.

[ToTheSummit]

OK, i feel obligated to get an entry in this month.  I'm not confident in this one as a decent contest entry, but it goes with the Halloween theme.  It is snowflake obsidian that I collected in Utah.  I call it "The Witches Heart".

I have a love/hate relationship with obsidian.  It is so beautiful when it comes out well, but it is completely unforgiving.  I had to drop back a wheel multiple times while working on this one, even after drying and carefully inspecting between stages.  And still there are imperfections that bug me now.  But it is fun to cut and I have gobs of it to play with.  And it demands a lot of me so my skill will only grow as I work with it.

The slab is here amongst many that I have cut recently.


Preformed, ready to hit the wheels. This ended up being the back side.


Finished cab.  Another reason I struggle with obsidian...photographing it is nearly impossible!!  Every tiny imperfection or speck of dust shows up.

[irockhound]

Wow, some fantastic entries this month!  Tothesummit, was that batch of material from your recent Utah trip?  As for the cab the form on the heart is great! I love that it has such a high dome, it gives it a nice pillow effect and really does well.  I haven't done much cutting this month but just finished a few cabs the other day and took till today to photograph them.

I love Crazy Lace, so many patterns, shapes and colors.  I got my hands on some great noriega and found a stash of Large pieces with the dogtooth patterns in them.  This piece obviously is not from either of those finds but had a sagenite spray in the original slab that I couldn't resist making the focus of the cab.

[Sandsave]

Those last two entry's are really nice, maybe I should have deleted mine instead of reposting lol

[irockhound]

Heck no, all the entries are nice and I like your cab.  I wish all the members would post more.   I picked up quite a bit of the Mushroom Rhyolite a couple years ago when the guy lowered his price to a buck a lb. at Quartzsite.  I still have yet to cut it (shame on me) so it is great to see what it can be.

[Orrum]

It's a battle!!!    WOW what great entries!  I am proud of this forum, it's members have skillz!!!   Now me....I rule where scratches and flat spots are concerned!!! LOL

[Alvin]

have been gone for a while I sure miss these great cabs

[irockhound]

It's a battle!!!    WOW what great entries!  I am proud of this forum, it's members have skillz!!!   Now me....I rule where scratches and flat spots are concerned!!! LOL

Just a side note on the scratches etc.  Years ago I put some cabs into CFMS competition and had several with druzy pockets in them and I got down graded in judging for "pits".  My wife suggested I put in a full case of them and name the display "This case is the pits"