Polishing a Big Chunk of Minnesota Jasper
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 7 фев 2025
- Thomas, a Minnesota Rockhound and RUclipsr sent me a big piece of jasper to polish. Thomas's channel can be found at / @99rockhounding
Diamond cup wheels: www.ebay.com/sch/m.html?item=153592065765&_ssn=jonathancmu&_osacat=0&hash=item23c2cceee5%3Ag%3A99wAAOSwMUtdSHvV&_odkw=beast&_from=R40&_trksid=p2046732.m570.l1313&_nkw=beast+cup&_sacat=0
Silicon carbide wheel: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0015YJB0K/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Here are the steps I took to polish this:
I started with my normal, dry angle grinder with a diamond cup wheel. The cup wheel is 50/60 grit. I followed this up with a 16 grit silicon carbide wheel.
Next I moved to a Makita electronic stone polisher. This has a soft backer, so the pads can flex to the shape of the rock. The grits are as follows:
30 grit
50 grit
100 grit
200 grit
400 grit
800 grit
1500 grit
3000 grit
6000 grit
8000 grit
- MERCH -
Buy Michigan Rocks shirts and other merchandise here.
michigan-rocks...
- HIGHLAND PARK LAPIDARY -
Highland Park makes some high quality tools at reasonable prices. I have two of their tumblers. They're the most rugged tumblers I have seen. They also make a wide range of other lapidary tools, including saws, sphere machines, cabbers, etc. They also have the best price on grit that I have found.
I make a commission if you buy something through this link. I doesn't cost you extra.
hplapidary.com...
- KINGSLEY NORTH -
Kingsley North is a lapidary store in Michigan's U.P. They make a great cab machine and sell many other brands too. They have a huge selection of rough rock, tumblers, grit, jewelry supplies etc. at good prices. If you buy using the following link, I make a small commission.
fas.st/t/u7uaxb5V
This is the cabbing machine I use:
fas.st/t/vCjRymKC
- THE ROCK SHED -
I buy a lot of lapidary supplies and rough rock from The Rock Shed. I don't make money from your purchases there, but they have good prices and good service. This is where I buy my finer grits and polish.
rockshed.com
- AMAZON STOREFRONT -
I also have an Amazon storefront. This is where you can find other products you may have seen in my videos. As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases. It doesn't cost you extra.
www.amazon.com/...
- SUBSCRIBE -
On Michigan Rocks you can join me on relaxing rock hunts in picturesque Michigan. I'll also show you how to polish rocks and teach you other lapidary techniques. New videos are posted every Friday and some Tuesdays. Subscribe now so you don't miss any upcoming videos!
www.youtube.com...
- FACEBOOK -
/ michiganrocksrob
If you like my rock hunting videos, I think you'll really like Thomas's channel. ruclips.net/video/TjfUqASineg/видео.html
Thomas's channel is great!
You cracked me up with the safety gear switches. The rock was nice. It almost looked wood grain when you were done. I’ll go check out Thomas’s channel now.
Thomas and I both thought it looked like wood grain too. Nice rock.
Very funny editing, made me laugh with your "going to the grocery store" comment lolol great vid! Thanks guys, alot of fun😁really cool rock, it turned out great
I was hoping that my little joke would be audible through the mask.
Ya, it was great! lol
You did a good thing, brother! As if I needed another reason to like your channel. Great collaboration, and great results!
Thanks, Cristian!
Nice piece, polished great.
I have a yard full of untouched rocks and fossils, can't resist bringing them home (for a few decades or so, lol)
It's delightful when it rains :)
I can see how that could happen!
I like those natural imperfections in rocks. It is beautiful!
@Dawn Hill I agree ! Completely !
That is a beautiful piece of jasper, even unpolihed.
I agree. I liked it both ways.
I really like you are helping others... respect
Thomas got a shiny rock, I got a video. Everyone wins.
Beautiful jasper!
Wow, very cool transformation
“I feel like I’m ready to go to the grocery store now,” - too funny Rob! Nice work on the jasper. I know how long it takes. An 8 min video doesn’t do any justice. You spent a lot of time on that big rock.
Yep, these take hours and the video stuff makes it take a lot longer. I only do a couple of these a summer because I don't want to annoy my neighbors too much with the noise. So far, no one has complained.
Loved the special effects!
Fancy, huh?
Turned out very well! At 2:06-2:12, the rock looked like the profile of a dog. 👍 Nice video Rob.
It does! I almost never notice things like that.
You are awesome brother what a great project and a wonderful thing to do for a young man starting a new channel. Thanks for setting such a good example. 👍🎯💯🔥😎☮️🌎♾️❤️♻️🙏🤳
I just wanted to see the rock up close!
Looks like a big hunk of petrified wood. 😍
It does, doesn't it?
What an awesome finish.
This is the best thing I've seen so far this week. Super satisfying. Thanks!! I do love jasper....
I just hope it's not the only thing you've watched this week!
Nice job on Thomas's beautiful rock! I really like his channel too. You gave me a good idea with the polishing table. Having pieces of boards screwed on to help keep rock from moving around while you working on it.
Yes, Thomas has a good channel and it all stared with this rock.
Beautiful job...I've started circling the areas that need more care. Thanks for the little tidbit. It helps immensely. I've watched Thomas's RUclips videos.
I like Thomas. He stayed here for a few days to rock hunt with me.
Great job on this rock. What a beautiful specimen. 😍. Your video had me laughing. Very much enjoyed. 🤩
I'm glad you liked it, Stacey.
Nice stone...GREAT results!
Your large puddingstone and large unakite polishing vids are my favorite videos you've uploaded. Just yesterday I was hoping you'd be uploading another large rock polishing video soon and then you go and upload this today! Awesome!
I really need to do some more large rock tumbling videos. That unakite video was really popular. I was thinking of doing a large crazy lace agate.
These videos to shine rocks with sanding and buffers are so interesting. Tumbling is fun but it takes so long. You can shine up a big piece of rock in one day by more intense processes. This rock turned out so well and I'm sure Thomas is going to be thrilled. We always learn so much watching your videos. I belong to a Michigan Rockhounding group on facebook and one member mentioned she's unable to go to most beaches as she's in a wheelchair. I suggested she go to youtube and watch your videos as they are such fun. One guy commented that he liked your videos as well and he thinks of you like the Bob Ross of rockhounding!
I think I read that comment about me being the Bob Ross of rockhounding. Someone else said that too. I'm not quite sure how to take that.
I have gotten quite a few comments from people who are no longer able to get out on beaches to hunt and live vicariously through my videos. I like that they're being used that way.
I'd much rather tumble rocks than polish them this way. It's not very exciting work. I also worry about bothering the neighbors with all the grinder noises. It's true that they only take a day instead of months, but with the tumbler, I don't spend too much time doing much, and my back doesn't hurt when it's over.
That was fun! Enjoyed the Economics lesson the most, “Get some new pads.”
Funny thing is, I have some new coarse pads and I just didn't use them. Next time.
Clever hand off! Always enjoy the creativity and personality you bring to your channel!
That was Thomas's idea, so he gets all the credit. I liked it too.
2:29 "I feel like I'm ready to go to the grocery store". Ha! That was funny right there, you cracked me up. :)
What a great job you did on polishing the rock..... He will be so pleased with it 💕💕👍
Thanks, he was happy with it.
Thank you so much Rob! It looks absolutely amazing. It totally made it worth carrying around all day!!
You’re welcome. I just found this message in my spam folder. I can’t figure out why RUclips thought it was spam though.
Beautiful Jasper and polishing work
Love the woodgrain effect.
Yeah, that's cool, isn't it?
'And now you're ready to go to the grocery store '
I got a good chuckle outta that 😆
I'm glad you're amused.
I love how I can tell just how much fun you have making these.
Weeeee!
Hello, hello Michigan Rocks and 99 Rockhounding, This is a class A video from start to finish. I love the rock handoff, so cool of an idea. That jasper has a lot going on in it, especially the many close lines side that resembles wood grain. Once again, MR has shared an enormously valuable lapidary video using an angle grinder, blocks of wood on the tabletop, and the Makita electronic stone polisher. I'd have to buy those tools but it would increase the possibilities to polishing some larger stones that won't tumble well. Thanks for sharing a great video.
I'm glad you enjoyed the video, Doug. The rock hand off at the beginning was all Thomas's idea. I think it worked out well.
Nice job, what a great piece of jasper, thanks for sharing
Thanks, and you're welcome!
Awesome video, i like the intro, it was different and unique. The jasper looked amazing at the end! All those bands were really cool. 😍🥰😇👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
I thought Thomas did a good job. It was a fun project to do with someone else.
@@MichiganRocks It turned out AMAZING! 😍🥰😇👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻😍🥰😇👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Gorgeous shine..... expertise...perfected BEAUTY......SOooo GOOD🤗
Thanks, Lindalee!
The swirl's and lines through the stone looks like tree rings and grain pattern very cool rock,nice job Rob...
Yes, it does look like wood in some places. It's a great rock.
You guys are so awesome.... I just love the partnership! LOVE the hand off!
The hand off was Thomas’s idea. I liked it too.
What a nice rock indeed! Deep red colours and the bold lines throughout really set it off. Good collab here!
It was a keeper for sure.
Gorgeous specimen. Nice Work.
This was a great collab. Fun and educational! But of course, you are a teacher 😊
Good luck!
I think the, as you call them soft areas, ad character to it. Looks great. Thank you for sharing.
They do show a contrast between them and the shiny parts.
@@MichiganRocks I started following Thomas as well. Looks interesting.
Great job, Rob. Nice looking jasper.
It's beautiful, Rob
That is such a beautiful rock 😍 love the way it turned out.
It sure is shinier than when I got it.
Fun video. And the rock is so pretty! Love the colors and patterns and textures and the whole sculptural look. Super nice of you to help the kid out. Not just doing it but showing how. Thank you!
He got a polished rock out of the deal and I got a video. Everyone wins!
Amazing transformation!
It polished up nicely. Great job! Be happy, safe and stay healthy 😷⚒
Yeah, it turned out pretty good.
I love that you and @AgateDad are mentoring a young rock hound! The collaboration turned out beautifully too! 💯✅
Thomas doesn't seem to need a lot of mentoring. I think he has this stuff pretty well figured out.
Wow you're becoming quite the actor! 😆
Well that's a stretch.
Great collaboration! We vacay in northern MN so I'll be sure to go check out Thomas too!! If I watch enough of these videos, I might just plug in the tumbler and see what I can do too.
You have a tumbler and it's not plugged in???
@@MichiganRocks bwah ha ha ha!! Right? I need to get all the supplies!
What a drastic change
Great work on the polish, also very cool rock!
It’s beautiful. Great job .
Thanks, Denise!
Nice job! That is much harder than it looks. I've done some larger pieces of petrified wood and also jasper, using similar techniques and you handled the undercutting a LOT better than I thought it would come out (sometimes you don't know when it will end, or get worse). Beautiful lines and layers throughout the jasper and the quartz is a very nice touch.
I think it turned out about as well as could be expected. I knew it wouldn't be perfect so I tried to quit while I was ahead.
A rock handoff that spanned Wisconsin! #RockOn
That was Thomas's idea. I think it turned out pretty well.
Yah!!..quit being so cheap Rob!!!..jk!..what a great video!!..I like how you show each step,so that we get to see the transformation gradually. I know this project took a considerable amount of time,so I appreciate you doing it.. Thomas is lucky to have you do this for him!..I'm going to jump on over to his channel now...have a great weekend!
I saw your comment over on his channel. I think you'll like it. I sure like what I have seen so far.
@@MichiganRocks he's good!!..amazing jasper and agate!!..guys a natural!..and he knows his rock terminology!..awesome!
For a second I was sure I clicked on the wrong video 😆 great content as usual 👌
I thought that would be a fun way to start out, with a little surprise.
Looking good so far
Wow that would look amazing as a table top!
It would be a very small table though.
@@MichiganRocks sure if you only use the one rock.
Awesome video sweet looking rock outcome fantastic awesome job thank u
Thanks!
That was very cool! Thanks for sharing....
Glad you enjoyed it, Dan!
Love the intro! Dude is awesome
Check out his latest video, it's really good.
That turned out really nicem
Nice
Damn you did a awsome job. Looks amazing man!!!!
Thanks, Ivan!
Very cool collaboration!
We had fun doing this together.
@@MichiganRocks cool! :)
Beautiful job wow !
Beautiful stone 😊
Very cool collaboration.
That was the start of Thomas's channel and our friendship. I've been to Minnesota twice to hunt with Thomas and he's been here once.
@MichiganRocks Very cool. I'm an in-betweener, good ole Wisconsin. I just started collecting and tumbling last year. Now, my whole family is a bunch of geology nerds. I've learned a great deal from your videos on how to tumble. You have also helped me identify a lot of what my wife and I collected in MI this summer. We even got to go to Lindberg and sons to collect Kona Dolomite. Thank you for all the great videos and advice!
@@whygowegabusch120 Can you believe how cheap Kona is when you get it at the source?
@MichiganRocks It is crazy! We got lucky that the Ishpeming gem and mineral show was happening while we were on our trip, so we went on their field trip to the quarry. We definitely plan on going back.
Turned out really nice.
Thanks!
Cracks in rocks seem to eat up the flexible diamond sanding pads. I think the cracks grab and rip off bits of the rubbery matrix material that holds the diamonds. A lighter touch can help, but it takes long enough when applying pressure. A firmer pad holder also seems to help them last a long longer, although I understand the benefit of the softer, more flexible pad holder. I think that's why you see them wear the way yours did -- with the outside being worn out before the inside. With a soft pad holder the outside is particularly flexible, and when the disc bends to get into a cracks it rips off the rubbery material on the face of the disc even more quickly.
I got the soft backer when I was doing stone bowls. It really helps to get in the concave part better. I also tend to use the outside of the wheel more, so that's my fault. You're probably right about the cracks pulling off those little rubber bits. I have gone through more of the 30 grit pads just like I go through more coarse grit in the tumbler. The other ones last quite awhile.
Fantastic
Awesome job!!!
Thanks!
Nice work!
Thanks!
I love It’s so smooth and shiny cool
That was the objective. Mission accomplished.
Great job
whatta beauty , nice work Rob......I hope to send you something from Ca someday
Robert J.
I almost always turn down offers of rocks. I'd never be able to do something with all of them. It's really nice that a lot of people offer though.
@@MichiganRocks yeah well there ya go then
I was super confused at the beginning of this video. But, man, that's a pretty rock!
I can understand why.
I'm just getting into this. When I attempt to polish a rough jasper or pet wood, I can never get the surfaces completely polished. most of it is perfect, but there's what seems to be small, very shollow indents that don't get polished. I use a dremel but smaller rocks. 50,80,120,240,380,480,600,800,1000,2000 grit.
maybe it's too hot, or I'm unaware just unaware of the correct procedure lol.
ty for reading lol✌🏽
I have never polished a rock with a Dremel, so if that's part of the problem, I can't really help you. I do know that some rocks have parts that are softer than other parts. Soft rocks can be hard to polish. You might just be working with rocks of varying hardness.
Another problem might be that you're not spending enough time with the 50 grit and leaving behind some spots that are slightly concave. Concave areas are going to be either missed by the polishing pads, or will get less pressure if they're only slightly indented.
@@MichiganRocks ty that is helpful
I've been eyeballing grinders. I will check out your Amazon Store. Thanks.
That wet grinder is kind of expensive, but it has worked well for me.
Настоящий мастер своего дела. 👍👍👍
Спасибо!
Word of advice for those silicon carbide grinding stones. DO NOT EVER get them wet or drop them. If either happens throw them away. The water will rust the hub and cause a hairline fracture. And dropping will also fracture it. Also I NEVER spin any of them over 4,000 rpm.
They also work great to dress diamond blades. Get both spinning and grind the leading edge of the blade with the wheel. It will make the blade like new again!
Thanks for the tips, Aaron.
GREAT VIDEO HAHA the grocery store :)
That's just what came to mind for some reason.
Lastly on your store front on Amazon I don’t see a link on the section for polishing big rocks to the diamond blade that you used on the Makita, the very first one. Thanks again for all your help. I have learned so much from watching your videos. I have purchased some very large agates, Jasper, simply because I can’t find them in my region. And I wanna try polishing them the way you did in this video. I don’t think I can put them in the vibrating Tumblr or my barrel. I think grinding would be the best way to do it and maybe even finishing them off in the barrel if you think that would be worth it or go to the 8000 grit like you did in this video. I’m talking about 6 to 7 pound samples. Any thoughts?
I use a Harbor Freight wheel on the first grinder. www.harborfreight.com/4-12-in-diamond-turbo-cup-wheel-61419.html
I think you'll have fun with your project. Big chunks of jasper should polish well.
That sure looks like a piece of mahogany wood !!! I’ve never had a good understanding of how to identify Jasper. Maybe sometime you could give a demonstration. Is red the only kind that’s found in Lake Huron and Michigan?
I'm not the guy to help you with that. I just know that it's red and has conchoidal fracturing. I read up on the difference between jasper and chert once and it is very confusing. A big part of the problem is that geologists and lapidaries use different vocabulary. This one was banded iron formation, I think. That's another good way for me to identify it. As far as I know, we only have red jasper in Michigan, but I could be totally wrong about that.
Hi Rob. May I ask....I’ve got a 4 1/2 day time frame to hunt. Coming from Ohio. Did superior last year. Would u be so kind to recommend a destination given the workable travel time that I have? Very grateful and hooked on your channel! Sandra
Is it possible to polish even more (after the 8k) with a buffing wheel an micro aluminum polish?
Rock looks so much like wood.
I'm sure that it would be possible to get a better shine. I don't really have a big buffing wheel to try it.
Rob, have you thought about epoxy filling the depressions, and re-polishing?
Nope. That might be a good idea, but I haven't tried anything like that.
I like those depressions ! Finished it looks like a miniature cliff with little cave dwellings in the side .. I think they add to the charm .. : ]
Nice stones
Thanks so much for the replies. I guess I didn’t see a reply to my question about how long this project took. How long did it take for you to do each grind? Just wanted to get a feel about budgeting time period was just over a few weeks. I was just in a single day?
I can't remember exactly, but I'd say around four or five hours for a rock this size. One like this is a one day project.
Also what about when you get to the 6000 and 8000 grits putting the rock in a large barrel Tumblr with polish to finish it off for shine? Or is that redundant when you get to the 6 to 8000 grit pad
Sure, you could to that. I have done more puddingstones like this than other rocks. Puddingstones tend to undercut in the tumbler and do better with the polishing pads. For that reason, I wouldn't move a puddingstone to a tumbler. But if you have a nice, solid rock that tumbles well and a barrel big enough to hold it, it's a great idea. I did that with a big chunk of unakite. I actually only did a little grinding on that one and the rest was done in a tumbler. Here's the video: ruclips.net/video/4eX-IcZtZfU/видео.html
Is the black banded iron? Really nice.
Yeah, I think so.
God I love jasper!
So for example, is this kind of stone actually having some price? It looks gorgeous, thanks!!
I'm not sure if you're asking if it's for sale or how much it's worth. It's not for sale, I just polished this for Thomas. I don't know what it's worth, but I don't think it would be worth very much.
@@MichiganRocks Well, anyways sir, it looks gorgeous! Since i’ve seen so many videos of yours, jumping to another question. I’ve found rock, which i dont know how to find exact name. Color is dark orange, and its shiny crystal. Found it on one island near coast and just took couple of bigger pieces from that huge rock that is beneith the ground. Ofcourse covered it back so no one sees it.
Would you be nice and give me any contact mail or anything so i could send you some photos of it, to help me out to identify it and let me know if i could or should not do rock tumbling with it?
Kind regards sir, much respect for what you’re doing. Nicholas
Hey Nicholas, I'm not very good at rock identification, especially if the rocks are not from my area. If you want, you can send me a picture on Instagram and I'll take a look at it. The address is in the description of this video.
@@MichiganRocks I did sent you photos on instagram sir. Kind regards!
Subbed to your friends new channel😃
Thanks. He's off to a good start.
😎👍
Good job fromlao
Hello Again! I seemed to always refer back to your videos when I want to try something new or educate myself more LOL! When you were polishing Thomas' stone, and other large stones you have polished, I noticed you have some cut 2 x 4s on a piece of plywood to hold the rock in place when you are using the grinder. Do you have premade holes in the base as well as the pieces of wood to secure them? Or your configuration for the boards depends on the size of the rock you are polishing, and just add or remove pieces of wood depending on the size? Thank you in advance, and as always, thank you for your videos, they help me become a better rock artist(?) rockhound (?) or just someone who likes to find and polish rocks 😁
Often, I just leave them in the same place and just do the best I can with them. But sometimes I just remove the screws and reposition the boards so the rock fits between them better and screw them back down. There's nothing very special about that set up, it's just a bunch of scrap wood.
@@MichiganRocks Thank you! I've been refreshing my memory on how you did all your big rocks. Thank you again for your knowledge and sharing it with us 😁
Excelente la piedra 👍 hola cómo están saludo
Nice work on the shoutout at the end 🎉is this price of polished Jasper worth anything ? How much would you sell it for ?😊
I gave this back to Thomas. I doubt that it's for sale.