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[bgast1]

I have no clue what these are.

[vitzitziltecpatl]

Mozarkite? It comes in a variety of colors and patterns. The first one especially reminds me of some we have.

[bgast1]

Too hard for Mozarkite. Someone else told me Gary Green and when I said that it didn't have green in it he told me that is why it was once called harlequin ribbon. he also said that the other might be Utah Opalite or Polka Dot Agate depending on the hardness. He being Tony Funk.

[vitzitziltecpatl]

Yeah, I can see Polka Dot in the group photo, and going with what Tony thinks is always a good bet.

[bgast1]

Hi Vince, how are you guys doing? I am going to try to salvage some boulder opal today, or soon as I slabbed it up without really knowing what I was doing, so I will either get some pretty Ironstone cabs and if lucky some Opal showing too. I told Frank the other day that I was going to start making an effort at posting in the forum.

Tony is a stand up guy. I am truly blessed to have met him. Not in person, just the internet although I have talked with him on the phone. If I wasn't so socially challenged I probably would call him every time I felt like placing an order. I think that my next order to him will be for flint knappable material. I need to get a turkey roaster first in case I have to heat treat it.

[vitzitziltecpatl]

Hi Bob. We're doing okay. Good luck with the boulder. Unless you can see enough pattern, or layers of opal that run all the way through, there are only two choices. Slab it using the "best guess" method, or spend days randomly grinding surfaces hoping to find more clues. I tend to favor your method.

Just in case you haven't seen this yet, here's a link to Gene [EDIT - had wrong last name] McDevitt's boulder cutting guide:

http://www.koroit.com/koroit.com/Cutting_Boulder_Opal.html

This is (in our opinion) the best info we've ever seen online for cutting boulder.

[iceopals]

McDevitt.  Gene McDevitt.      Really good guy.

[bgast1]

That's the guide I perused that made me think that I was doing it all wrong but maybe I will come out with some nice cabs or maybe carvings.

[MrsWTownsend]

No idea what the stone in the pics is, but I am of the same opinion about Tony.  He and his wife are good people and have always treated me right.

http://idahorockshop.com/

[vitzitziltecpatl]

Thanks Ice! Fired that off during a break from digging out around a leaky irrigation line. I should've checked the name.

Bob. In Gene's guide he says he's sawed into an opal layer more than once, so if he's still sawing you're okay. Just grind, then saw, off some corners and sides trying to find some kind of layer orientation, then slice it up.