Video

The sandals lol

I love faceting, but I can not afford any machine yet. I watch every faceting clips on the youtube. Thanks for sharing Sir.

Made a trip to Spectrum just before you (May 2024). Denise and Little Chris are the true gems of that operation. In a Belt run and Full High Grade Pile, my wife and I hauled out 13.3K Carats of rough Sunstones. Some great ones with color, like you and many with Schiller. Thank for sharing. Mike

Nice job! I have done some free hand faceting which is fun but frustrating. I have looked at these inexpensive machines but never purchased one. I have some parts and ideas on building a simple machine and this video has really shed some light on important facets of a build. Thanks for your effort. I am lucky in that my son is and engineer and a whiz machinist.

Went there several years ago, at 4th of July as part of a family vacation. Still sitting on awesome rocks, exactly as we picked them up. Finally looking to learn how to work them.

Great work. Thank you.

Bonk!😅

I have this same machine! It works pretty well for shaping cabochons. The polishing wheels from hytech diamond fit it perfectly. I changed the bearings out for some better ones out of personal preference after i felt how crunchy ones they send with it!

I have a meteorite

Looks awesome! What material is that? Amethyst?

Hmmmm... I have both a small machine shop in the basement as well as a more than passing interest in picking up one of these types of machines. I wonder if there's a market for performing the upgrades for others? I'm on the east coast in CT, so there's no competition for customers.

Nice job i have a question how to lathe a sapphire rod?

Just an excellent video!! Well, done Patrick! You guys got lots of good ones!

Coming from the perspective of a hobbyist, I'm really gunshy about getting a faceting machine because.. rocks are hard. And the materials these machines are made with are cheap dogshit. I currently have my eye on a *really* good looking 9 belt cabbing table for just over $1000. Soon as I find sm1 with a used one or it goes on sale I'm planning to grab it. Cabochons aren't worth as much as proper stones but I'll still be able to bring something to the local market and I won't have spent a bunch of money on junk. I'm no faceter but I am a scientist, and the protractor mast on this thing looks unfit for the noodles that I think it was repurposed from (why else are the moving pieces *brass* of all thigns?) much less gemstones. Thanks for the video! I really appreciate how much effort you went through just to see if it was worth the effort for people looking at this price point!

But, when you're finished, you have bragging rights....at least, and maybe, some purdy stones.

Love those faceted stones?

nice rocks thank you ALL stay safe

NICE

Looks like a riot! Gotta get over there and have a look around.

Very nice Dr. Donohue... quite the bevy of beauties you acquired .

Oh my gosh! Those stones are stunning! And once you cut them,their beauty was exposed! Thank you for sharing!

On my list of things to do. My brother used to go down at least once a year and dig, he and Chris have become friends, had a few chances to dig in hot spots. He hit a jackpot one trip, 1500 carats of nice red sunstone, a few pieces of green, and buckets of yellow. Pretty interesting stuff, besides pretty. Really soft to work with. Great trip for ya!

Beautiful stones!!👍😍👻🌶

Looks like a blast!

Holy moly that first faceted piece is beyond gorgeous. As are the rest you showed off. I really enjoyed getting to see the whole process. How satisfying it must be to find the stone yourself and then make such a beautiful gem. ❤

In the thumbnail it looks like you are collecting them....from the sun. lol. Have you tried midwave 310-320 and shortwave 254 irradiation on them? Supposedly the fluorescence is coming from copper ions (which I honestly wasn't aware was even a thing) which might be interesting to see if there are differences to the 365 light seen here...

Wow what a haul. You got a lot of nice ones it appears and of course the faceted ones you showed are fantastic. I’m really gonna have to get one made for Vicky by you.

looks like a lot of fun!

That is so cool!

Wow, you got some great material from your visit to the mine! That is very helpful information for anyone thinking about going themselves! And you got some huge pieces with color too! Just gorgeous! Thanks Patrick!

So much sun! Beautiful work on those facets. I am continually amazed by the beauty & variety of color & effects I see in sunstones cut by you & Karen.

15:50 awe poor baby.. =( I'm pretty confident everything is just fine but I just gotta ask... is the kiddo ok? Also..Metal stretcher ^_^ haha

Excellent Rockumentary!

Olá tudo bem ? Eu tenho safira Blek star quanto esta custando o quilates dela ?

Great video.

I have been to Steptoe dozens of times over the years with my kids since they were little- hard not to stop when on my way South.

That was an awesome live! I missed the first bit but glad i caught it when i did! I was so sad when those two aqua stones were sold and taken off you etsy, had i known you still had them i would have bought them sooner! But im so happy that i will have them now! Thank you Patrick! Gorgeous stones!

I have a question I have a new poured concrete after a week it got discolored spots from the sand used in materials I believe and I’m asking if this acid will help the discoloration go away and turn the concrete to normal grey color

I really like that you left in the parts that didn’t work out, we can learn so much from that as well. Thanks for making such an easily understandable video.

So many beautiful stones. Worth all the work! I enjoyed sorting vicariously. Thanks!

You got lots of beauties

My friend found a piece of limb cast in Washington with a very small amount of precious opal in it and with all of our opalized wood I have been sure that Washington has precious opal

It would be important to look for and measure the sub-surface damage to compare sawing and grinding. Also why not simply mount a 4-6 inch saw blade on your faceting machine, with a spacer ring?

In case you didn't know where Steptoe Butte is located it is about a 30 mile drive northeast of the town of Dusty.

What about having the block be taller, and you angle the stone down and rather than 3D printed, it's made from a little block of aluminum. You could also add a little stop so every time you loosen it to rotate it some in slides to the same point over and over. I have some ideas to try in the future because of this. Thank you.

That was so cool! To have an idea and be able to translate it to someone that can 3D print it for you, and actually be able to try it out in person! I understand not everyone has that opportunity! But wow! That was so cool! I worked in construction for many years and we would frequently have to make i jig for cutting thing other than just wood. A tile on a tile saw if you have several tiles that say need to be cut at an angle to meet up in a corner. It's easier if you had a jig, all the tiles would be cut perfectly at the same angle. But a big for faceting? That is a really good idea. Not every one needs it but the vast majority will! Cool idea.

I enjoyed this on a number of different levels Dr.Patrick, so thanks for sharing it with all of us.