I appreciate every sale, thank you. They shipped the next morning so you should see them soon. Hope you enjoy them.

I am out of town right now, and the earliest I can retrieve it from my US dropshipper in Sumas is probably Saturday.  The package is slated to arrive there today.
Thank you for such speedy shipping.  This Canadian dwelling US citizen appreciates it.  :)

    I appreciate every sale, thank you. They shipped the next morning so you should see them soon. Hope you enjoy them.

I bought a few cabs from you that you shipped out yesterday.  Since your stuff was already on sale it was a win! 

Found this 7 lb chunk of vein turquoise in an old collection, and was hoping experienced members might recognize its provenance from the pictures and the following information.

- It was acquired sometime before  1990, and likely in the '70s or '80s.

- No signs of pyrite, nor quartz (except _maybe_ some quartz in one layer of matrix). Just light and dark brown matrix.

- No signs of any treatment, smells like earth.

- Light blue and teal veins, also one pale green vein. Surprisingly hard, glass and steel nail do not scratch it, or barely scratch some areas, quartz of course scratches it.

I have an old mark 5 also, when you rotate the unit vertically, as in the drill press function the motor would be above the drill chuck or if you're thinking of it as a spindle above that, so I don't think you'd have any water issues with the motor.  I assume you would be trying to use the flat lap in a chuck that is mounted while the shopsmith is in the lathe configuration.  I doubt water would get to the motor since the diameter of the lap would throw the water and I doubt water would kame it past to the motor.  However the throwing of the water would be all over the arms that the motor slide on and that could introduce rust issues there and also it would be awkward to work the cab standing at the side of the lathe rather than in front like you'd normally use a lap.  Could it work, yeah but I don't think I'd try it with my shopsmith.  You could as easily do a small direct motor mounted lap at only the cost of a motor or an old one out of a washer/dryer and some plywood that you could work up on the shopsmith.

I’m wanting to do some lapidary work but the equipment is so expensive. I was hoping to come up with some diy versions. Several years ago we bought a Shopsmith Mark5 vintage machine from a friend. I thought maybe I could use this for working with rocks as it has a variable speed motor and several different configurations. The only issue would be finding a way to incorporate water without getting the motor wet. It’s an all metal machine circa 1940-something. It still runs great though… it was built to basically last forever and be upgradable. But I could use it similarly to how people use drill presses. Maybe can use as a trim saw with a spindle extension. Maybe a buffer, horizontal flat lap too? I’m just wondering if anyone else has attempted this before. The only thing I found is an old article written in a shopsmith journal posted on their forum (bottom left on the 3rd page… I don’t know how to insert stuff in here yet).
http://vintagemachinery.org/pubs/338/2721.pdf

I have an inherited collection and in it I have a few stumpers. I have been to shows, and clubs.. and yup, no clue. I have a few bits of what everyone has agreed is quartz, but where and when is unknown (I ended up with a collection that was left in a storage shed for like 30 years, prior to that long absence, someone had lovingly collected about 40-50 tonnes of stones. Some of it is inexplicable, I don't know what he was keeping it for... Other pieces have proven he had an amazing eye for stones, no skill whatsoever at making Cabs though ::shakes head::

I have not slabbed any of what everyone has called Tangerine quartz, it is literally the bright almost false colour of tangerine juice.  I have a cruddy saw still so not a lot of slab work thus far, I am still shaping down the ::thinks:: 90 boxes of slabs that were in the collection, including one mostrosity that appears to have been cut on a 40+" blade.. maybe a water jet or a very large band saw, the face is a good meter tall, and about 30cm across... I have not even seen a saw that would pass this beast.. and like i said.. there is just nothing there of interest. It is a mottled red/brown jaspar that aside from the size. is totally unremarkable.

If you want I can dig into the cratres this week and get some pics for ya.

Amanda:
     I cannot help on the job front, but... Tomorrow my store will start a 25% off sale on everything for the month of April. Sales have actually been good, especially on the high end pieces. But, it seemed like time to have a sale and hope to inspire some shoppers with a better price. There will always be nice cabochons for sale in the future so never feel rushed to buy when there are other needs. People like myself will always keep creating, just have to do it.
Have a great spring.

I've been watching your Etsy store...
I have my eyes on a few stones, I just need to free up the funds.  We bought a house and then work decided everyone world wide was getting a 10% pay cut to avoid layoffs.  Money is a touch tight at the moment.

    Well, time to thin the herd and sell off a couple tons of rough. Mostly my Deer Sky picture Jasper from the Owyhee Mountains and Fantasy Plume Agate which I dug in the graveyard Point region. Also, lots of BC Jade. There will also be buckets of a lot of different agates, petrified wood, T-eggs and jaspers. Literally a couple tons of rough. Sale is April 12 thru 14th with Sunday being a blowout day. The less expensive pieces will be piled up for take it all for one price.
   If you are in the area I live in Yamhill, Oregon.
PS:    The good stuff that survives will mostly be sold on E-Bay. I have 19 auctions on ebay to test the waters and do some price checking this week. Auctions end on Tuesday so please take a quick peak if you want to see some of what I sell. Prices for quality materials have looked really strong on ebay this year. I sold a bunch of Idaho Star garnets recently and was pleased with the prices I got.
    Also, is anyone doing anything out there?????  Or is everyone so busy they have not had time to post here lately..