[meteorite-list] Info on Polishing Cut Stones?

From: Dennis Miller <astroroks_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu, 17 Mar 2011 10:17:36 -0500
Message-ID: <BAY152-w690BC36FD864CF79E74FBB1B10_at_phx.gbl>

Good Morning All.... "Poor man Method" If you don't want to spend a bundle
on lapidary equipment and you have a durable wrist, I would suggest a good
Silicon-carbide sand paper, a 12X12 marble tile, and a shallow plastic pan.
I buy Norton Black Ice paper from our local Grainger store, use a single tile
from Lowe's, and a small pan I swiped from our kitchen. Place the paper,
tile and a little water in the pan, place your meteorite slice on the paper and
rub like hell... switching hands as one wares out. I start with a 400 grit, then
600, 800 and finish with a 1200. The 4 boxes of 50 sheets of wet paper will
be your biggest expense. But it will last you a lifetime or until you need a
wrist replacement. As a matter of fact I just cut up some NWA 869 that I'll
start polishing as I watch TV tonight, because the process is Quiet and you
can do it in front of the TV in the den.....
Good Luck and Kiss a Leprechaun Today!
Dennis O'Miller

P.S. I use a good marble tile because of it's
     high polish and flat surface...



> Date: Thu, 17 Mar 2011 09:49:08 -0400
> From: meteoritemike at gmail.com
> To: keith at lobstershack.com
> CC: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
> Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Info on Polishing Cut Stones?
>
> Hi Keith,
>
> That clear-coat or "wet" look comes from a high polish, which is
> usually about 800 grit or higher. I can get that wet look by going
> all the way to 1500 grit and then finishing the piece with jeweler's
> rouge. Although, the rouge is not really necessary in most cases to
> get that final slick look.
>
> The quick and easy way to get that kind of polish is to use a powered
> lap polisher. It takes minutes to get that high polish look. Lap
> polishers can be expensive and can cost you a fingertip if you are not
> careful.
>
> The poor-man's way is sandpaper, in progressive grits - 100, 200, 400,
> 600, 800, 1000, 1200, 1500. This is much much slower and requires
> healthy arms and lots of work. Initial expense is much cheaper than a
> powered lap-polisher, but you will eventually spend a small fortune on
> sandpaper over time.
>
> Best regards,
>
> MikeG
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> Mike Gilmer - Galactic Stone & Ironworks Meteorites
>
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>
>
>
> On 3/17/11, Keith Wandry <keith at lobstershack.com> wrote:
> >
> > Are there any reference books or online sources for information on
> > polishing cut pieces?
> > I have some cheap pieces to practice on and am interested in knowing
> > what to use and how some pieces I've seen have a sheen that almost
> > looks like a clear coat on it.
> > Pros? Cons? Etc...
> >
> > Thanks for an enlightenment!
> > Keith
> >
> > Keith Wandry
> > keith at lobstershack.com
> >
> >
> >
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Received on Thu 17 Mar 2011 11:17:36 AM PDT