Stone Carving: Q&A + Gallery...

Hello fellow stoners just quickly popping in to show you a peice from yesterday.A Taniwha

Hey GC, this one is a different piece than we normally see, I Love it! Happy to see you doing more than the same old things as everyone else once in awhile.

BUMP

Hmmmmm seem to have misplaced my camera....so IL describe what I'm halfway through at the moment.Its green and its a tiki.:lol:

aha found it Benz.

What, you LIKE givin me a heart atack? You just Can't go losng your camera when you have carvings to post? :P You were right on tho with your description, Green and tiki. Cool! Looks like another excellent piece of greenwork.
:) :) :)

:lol: my bad Benz cant be going and giving you a heart attack now! you've got too many of those wicked carvings to bring out yet!
here's a progress shot of the tiki after another 2 hours work.Still needs alot more scrubbing and tidying up but its getting there.

Was thinking of red wax for the eyes maybe...

[ Edited by: GreenCarvings 2008-11-05 23:48 ]

I had to go and check the Box just now - thought you'd been around and swiped one of my in-prog works! :wink: Looking good GC, keep it up.

:)

That is AWESOME GC - Love the little green man.

Some nice peices of pounamu there too!

Well done, and keep it up.

KS

Thanks alot Tama and Kiwishaman.I finished the tiki off today.Im pretty happy with the result and finish on it.I finished it off by hand sanding with wet 400 grit sandpaper the a soaking in baby oil.

Morning GC, your tiki turned out Very happy looking and he's just a plain SWEET Looking piece and I'm sure he would look great around Anyone here's neck. I love that you posted some progress shots too as they help us beginners figure out the different steps to get that beautiful finish.
Whats next, I'm Sure those benches are all FULL of stuff going on??? :P

Wow,She's quite around here......One would almost say dead.
Well here's a new tiki for the thread anyway.Nothing special but ,hey, it's something.

[ Edited by: GreenCarvings 2009-02-04 00:16 ]

damn. quite amazing stuff you so with stone. wish i could get half the details with wood that you do. niiiiice.

bd

On 2009-02-04 00:15, GreenCarvings wrote:
Wow,She's quite around here......One would almost say dead.
Well here's a new tiki for the thread anyway.Nothing special but ,hey, it's something.

I might be slowing getting it together again GC; due to start a new thread again soon I reckon..

Nice job on this one mate; dont be too critical of yourself at this stage. I can offer firsthand testimony that your skills will improve with time and practice. For the 1000th time I apologize for still not having been down to catch up with you and Steve, but then again Im not that difficult to find either. PM me if you ever want to come visit (Kumara) and Ill show you pics of my early work (not so many years ago either) and you can see for yourself..

Keep at it!

Thanks Tama and Bd :)
I'll definitely be keen to come visit.Next time I'm heading to Grey or Chch I'll be sure to pop in.
I'll send a PM after dinner.
Cheers.
GC.

[ Edited by: GreenCarvings 2009-02-04 21:17 ]

Right On! Im digging the green candy you are on fire.

The Taniwha is very cool it looks like its a seashell that alive!

Yes Green Carvings, I'm Green with envy at you in that huge Jade shop doing what pleases you the most and doing it Very Well too! Nice to see you posting a bit again, yes it's been quiet around here but it'll get busy again, keep watch and keep bringing these lovelies too!

Hi Stoners
Just thought I'd share a recent score off fleabay. 12" Rock Saw, any of you stoners cast some light on it? it has a vice for gripping the rock but also an automatic feed (Seller said this might need some adjustment)previously owned by the sellers father until his death for preparing rock samples.
My previous Trim Saw (Inland) was ok for reducing slabs but with this I should be able to prepare my own.

Pictures of my Point Carver soon.
Best Regards
Flynny

although I'm not a stoner, I am still fascinated by the technical...waiting for more pictures and explanations, I just hope I'll understand everything. :wink:

Tidy looking slab/trim-saw there Flynny. My trimsaw originally came with a very similar sliding-clamp-type action (until I tore it off in order to maximise bed-space). It will probably have a weight whose function is to keep pulling the rock cradle into the blade; increase the weight and you increase the 'power' of the cut. Let us know how you get on with it.

Hello Stone Carvers . . . I NEED HELP!!!

The first picture shown below is the back side of a toki/thumbstone (backlit) that I recently carved from a piece of rough I purchased on eBay about a year ago. It is a beautiful stone and was listed as "synthetic imperial green jade" by the seller in Thailand. That is about all I know about the stone as it was represented.

When carved, the material handles very much like jade but seems a bit harder that the nephrite jade I have carved in the past. The finished surface cannot be scratched by a hardened steel point but show a slight scratch under moderate to heavy pressure with a carbide point. The fracture is not smooth as is glass or agate but is grainy like jadeite.

I haven't been able to find any references to "synthetic jade" on the internet other than a reference to a patented process by GE which I don't think would produce material like the rough in the second picture below.

The last picture is a ring recently listed on eBay by a seller in China. It's color is more true to the color of the stone I have than my picture of the toki. It also shows the interior color structure of the stone I have.

I would lik to get more of this material. Can anybody tell me what this material is and suggest a possible wholesale/retail source where it can be purchased? The original piece of rough that I purchasd was about 3x3 inches and 1/2 inch thick, and cost $35US.

Thanks for any help. Pictures follow:

P.S.: The seller from whom I purchased this rough is not very active on eBay and hasn't responded to my email in recent weeks.

On 2009-03-12 13:31, timidtiki wrote:
Hello Stone Carvers . . . I NEED HELP!!!

Me too! I figure a large boxful of the above material would be a great help in figuring out what we're dealing with..

Timid, I recently flipped through a book on gemstones and was surprised to see an entire section devoted to synthetic/man-made gemstones. Virtually any/all naturally occuring gems can be synthesised but I believe in many cases the costs are prohibitive which blows the whole 'cheap alternative' idea (although perhaps higher quality crystals are able to be produced?). The basic principle is pure alchemy; combining just the right ingredients and subjecting to just the right heats/pressures via special furnace/kilns to form boules' or formed crystalline 'stones' of the different materials, which are later cut/faceted to suit their particular structure. *Would you believe I was interrupted before getting to the synthetic jade pages!? Have emailed the owner of the book and arranged to view again next week - we're swapping/borrowing each others books actually; he is newly turned on to the history/art of Easter Island and has been raiding my library.

Will add any info found here..

Flinny, NOW I'm Really Envious, that is an Awesome looking saw, also the Micro motor is adding to my envy! :lol:
Timid, that fau stuff really does look nice and hopefully I'll be digging into a piece next week with some left for the Tama and Paips guys too.

If I can do something this nice with it I'll be happy. Thanks.
Hi Tama! :)

Bump for someone who will be looking for this thread soon.

A note for stone carvers - a source for the "synthetic" jade pictured above:

After again finding and writing to the seller from whom I purchased the "synthetic" jade pictured as the toki/thumbstone (above), I finally received a reply and the seller is again offering this stuff on eBay in slab form about 10 mm thick. The seller's eBay ID is "gemstonemall999" and he is located in Thailand.

I ordered and received some more of this material from him and I really like the color, looks, and handling properties. But it is relatively flawless so you don't see the color variation and character that you get with natural jade. It has been called "synthetic, laboratory, and man-made" jade but I don't know what it really is and I have not found anything about how it is made on the internet

I've sent some of this "jade" to other carvers who post in this thread and perhaps they will know more and post their impression/comments here.

Cheers, timid

[ Edited by: timidtiki 2009-05-25 14:41 ]

[ Edited by: timidtiki 2009-05-25 14:53 ]

Hi all - The is a small (2x3/4 inch) bracelet piece I made from the new batch of "synthetic" jade I just received from the eBay seller mentioned above. Although the material was supposed to be identical to that which I previously purchased, it turned out to be a little bit lighter green. (This piece is also a little bit thinner than the tiki toki thumbstone.) Still, I think it is nice material. I have some red "synthetic" jade ordered and I'll post some pics of it when it arrives. Happy carving, timid

Timid, that Does look lighter and a bit clearer too? Thanks for the piece, I'll do something to it soon.
Can't wait to see the red

One tooth, two tooth . . . red tooth, green tooth . . .

Carved from the synthetic jade (described above) that I got from Thailand. The smaller (red) tooth still needs a hole and will be a pendant. The larger (green) tooth is about 2 inches tall and will be made into a bolo tie.

Ev, Both those pieces look great and the stones are Beautiful Tomorrow I start one and will post it so you can see it.

On 2009-06-30 02:50, timidtiki wrote:
It's looking really good Benz . . . and should take the moko without any problems. Do you have any idea yet on what this material really is? It may be called "synthetic jade" but I cannot find any references to it on the internet. It is definitely harder than nephrite, very tough, and has a consistent grainy fracture like granite when broken . . . it is not glassy or conchoidal in fracture at all. The seller is Thialand isn't talking but he may not know. Any one else out there with ideas on this? There are some more photos of this material (including a red "synthetic jade") on Tama's Stone Carving forum.

Quoted from Ben's thread so as not to hijack it with stone discussion.

E, this may be the answer you're looking for:

Title:
Jadeite and its production
United States Patent 6908674

Abstract:
A jadeite material has a thickness in excess of about 1.0 mm and CIELAB indices of L*>42, a*+6. The grain size of the jadeite material is less than about 30 microns and is an equiaxed grain structure. The jadeite material has an optical transmission peak between 500 and 565 nm with an I/IO optical transmission ratio of over 40%. The first step in making the jadeite material is to wrap a glass block, convertible by HP/HT into jadeite and having a nominal composition of NaAlSi2O6, with a graphite or refractive metal sheet. The wrapped glass block is placed in an HP/HT apparatus, rapidly heated, and subjected therein to a pressure in excess of about 3 GPa and a temperature in excess of about 1000° C. for a time adequate to convert the glass block into jadeite. The jadeite material then is cooled and the pressure subsequently released.

HP/HT would be High Pressure/High Temperature I assume. Although I didn't carve it to the extent Ben has, it was obvious to me even with my limited experience of the stuff that it is trying to look and behave like Burmese jadeite, and it seems they've done a pretty good job (I found the above by searching for "simulated jadeite"). Interestingly, my first thought upon seeing the piece I got with it's "natural" skin was that it looked like glass, and in fact it felt that way when worked until I ground away the outer surface. I like using it too and I'll share more when I've spent more time with it....

So far my personal experiences carving the Synthetic Jade are mixed. I am totally unfamiliar with the technical terms in describing working properties of any stone or jade so all I have are my feelings.
I Like it because it seems to work well and readily takes decent detail. More on that after today. When you drop it or tap it with a piece of steel, it goes more "Twunk" instead of the nice ringing "plink" heard from jade, but I'm not making pianos so no big deal. There are impurities of strange stuff, the black dots and splashes seem almost to be like a greasy substance.
I don't know which batch this came from but it is the thicker more fluorescent apple green colored one. The little cracks or faults are just that and fall off readily when put to the test. The blotchy look given when back-lit is pretty ugly and I don't know yet if it is from this particular piece or not. it does tend to chip off the edges when using heavier grits, so care should be taken there with speed and pressure.

Hope this helps?

That Mottled look of the stone Backlit seems to show me why it is difficult getting fine lines to go straight or fair. Those little changes in the color seem to relate to hard and soft spot in the material to some extent. lso it may explain the rough looking surface I'm getting, though I have yet to try and polish the surface yet

These shots are with the piece soaking in mineral oil as it is far from finished yet.
I really would be interested in seeing Paipo and Tama pieces in this stuff and hearing on their experiences with it as well. Guys?
I Love the pieces you did timid.

great site thanks for all the help and ideas

-I'm a long time lisener 1st time caller-

maybe someone out there may know.
Is Easter Island like Hawaii in the way you should not bring home the stones ?
Or does Madame Pele's rath reach far and wide through out the Pacific Islands.
My next trip is to the great megaliths home and I may get a few beach stones for carving.

thanks

[ Edited by: AncientAtomic 2009-07-02 11:42 ]

I've never been there But I hear the Eaaster Islanders are a bit protective of all the remaining stones on the Island, but You never know, it's best to ask when you arrive as I'm sure they will have a list of rules when you arrive.
When you find out for sure, let us know so we don't screw up? Thanks for the great question.

About a week ago the following post was made at Benzart's carving thread relative to the "synthetic jade" discussed above. I quote "These carvings are great! But, I'd be careful with this "Synthetic Jade." It looks a lot like dyed serpentine, particularly if it can be scratched with a steel needle. Bowenite is a slightly harder form of serpentine but still easier to carve. Don't expose synthetic jade to even a little sunlight, as the dye inside the stone will yellow to an awful color. Most of these dyed pieces discolor on their own within 10 years or so. There is no stable dye for jade, even if its polymer-injected."

I still don't know what this material really is but it is definitely not serpentine - it is much too hard. With respect to fading on exposure to sunlight, I've had a piece outside in direct sunlight (except at night or when it was cloudy) for 4 days now. There is no apparent fading yet. I'll run this test for another 2-3 weeks and report the results again here.

If anyone one thinks they have to equipment to undertake definitive tests that will identify this material, please let me know. I'll be glad to send them a piece for their testing and carving pleasure.

There appears to be a lot of inexpensive "jewelry" being sold by some non-US ebay sellers who call this material imperial jade. I've purchased a couple of cheap pieces and confirmed this.

[ Edited by: timidtiki 2009-07-06 17:01 ]

Interesting stuff timid. After this piece I don't think I can take the time to carve it as I will feel strange trying to sell a piece carved in Synthetic, Faux or Fake jade. Why bother when it is just as easy to carve the real stuff. I would like to hear from buyers how they would feel about a carving of Synthetic jade. Would you pass on it or expect it at a lower price?
By the way, I need sharper burs which I have on the way before I can finish this guy, then I may decide to finally keep one, I dunno!
Cheers

Any new news on the synthetic jade front?