busybeaver
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sockeye
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Reged: 03/31/01
Posts: 91
Loc: Western Washington
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I guess I found jade...so I was told ![[Smile]](images/icons/smile.gif)
Found the rock while on one of the weekend strolls with the wifetobe. Gave it to my friend to slice and he tells me it is Jade!! Whohoo...cool a real find for a rock rookie. ![[Cool]](images/icons/cool.gif)
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Marty
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Plunker
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Chromer
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Reged: 04/01/00
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Loc: Skagit Valley, WA
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Good find Marty.
Jade is the name used to describe either of two hard, dense, usually green gemstones, Jadeite and Nephrite. Both jadestones take a high polish and have been carved into jewelry, ornaments and small sculptures since the beginning of history.
If my memory is correct the variety sometimes found on the beaches in your area is Nephrite and another jade-like stone called Serpentine is quite common there.
Near my area, in the Sauk River near Darrington, the other variety Jadeite can be found with a little effort. The method of choice for locating it is to wade around in the river feeling the rocks with your bare feet. With some practice, the particular smoothness and feel of the Jade, becomes unmistakably recognizable.
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Why are wild fish made of meat?
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busybeaver
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sockeye
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Loc: Western Washington
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Looking forward to seeing how it turned out after slicing.
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Marty
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Maltby
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Native Slab
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Reged: 12/17/00
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Loc: Woodinville, WA, USA
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Good going! A friend of mine found a jade boulder the size of a basketball a few years ago in the Skykomish River and until then I had no idea there was any around. Good eyes on your part Marty. I'll bet some chips would turn out really nice in the polisher.
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busybeaver
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sockeye
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Reged: 03/31/01
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Loc: Western Washington
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Got the slabs back from the saw and they are kind of neat. Great green banding colorations and the gold looks to actually be copper embedded in the mineral. I have seen lots of these rocks over the years and had no idea that they were jade. Will be keeping a sharper eye out now that I know what I am looking at.
Maltby they are so pretty its hard to cut up or break into smaller chunks. My buddy charged me half my rock to slab it. Would have never done it otherwise so it was a good price.
His rock hobby has a entire shop dedicated to it. The slab saw must be a 20 inch blade....huge!!
BTW I had no idea he had that much rock stuff...its like me and fishing gear ![[Eek!]](images/icons/shocked.gif)
I just hope I don't find the rocks in canyons
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Marty
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Maltby
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Native Slab
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Loc: Woodinville, WA, USA
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That's really cool. So once the rock is in a slab, how do they polish it like glass. I have an agate slab and was thinking to use my grinder with a buffing pad and go after it with the various grits I use for the tumbler. What do you think?
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busybeaver
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sockeye
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Posts: 91
Loc: Western Washington
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I think it is possible to do that way on the larger stuff. But the time it would take would be a long. They have vibrating polishers that can do slabs and also slab polishing machines. Not sure how feasible those are for us small time guys. Maybe theres a rock shop nearby that would polish it for a fee. Would be fun to do it all ourselves but some of the equipment prices are shocking in themselves.
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Marty
Welcome to my home ...
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Maltby
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Native Slab
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Loc: Woodinville, WA, USA
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Agreed..
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