[Rockhounds] Another cleaning question

[Stu Schmitt]

I put a small pices of solution quartz with a lot of cookeite on it in a 
batch of crystals I heated in oxalic acid.  The acid turned the cookeite in 
to mush.  I suppose there is a better geological term than mush, but that's 
what it looked like to me.  Don't do it!  Might try Ironout overnight.

With appreciation & gratitude,
Stuart Schmitt
Clear Creek Crystal Mine
www.arcrystalmine.com
60 Mary's Eagle Trail
Mount Ida, AR 71957
(870) 867-2443
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Kreigh Tomaszewski" <Kreigh at tomaszewski.net>
To: "Rockhounds at drizzle.com: A mailing list for rock and gem collectors" 
<rockhounds at lists.drizzle.com>
Sent: Friday, December 07, 2007 11:30 PM
Subject: Re: [Rockhounds] Another cleaning question


> Stu Schmitt wrote:
>>
>> I know how to clean bulk quartz crystals using oxalic or muratic acid. 
>> Will
>> the same process work on Jeffrey quarry solution quartz with cookeite on
>> it....or will the acid remove the cookeite?  Your recommendations will be
>> appreciated.
>>
>> With appreciation & gratitude,
>> Stuart Schmitt
>> Clear Creek Crystal Mine
>> www.arcrystalmine.com
>> 60 Mary's Eagle Trail
>> Mount Ida, AR 71957
>> (870) 867-2443
>>
>
> Stu,
>
> Rummage thru what you collected/acquired for a small chunk that probably
> is leaverite or damaged and give it a try. The bulk process scales down
> to using a few drops of acid on an obscure spot so the damage is minimal
> if it doesn't work as expected.
>
> I have several purchased specimens of solution quartz from the Jeffrey
> Quarry that were obviously cleaned. None of them show any sign of
> cookeite. My guess is that the traditional cleaning methods for quartz
> will remove the cookeite.
>
> I also have a specimen of quartz with cookeite from the Huaron Mines in
> Peru that also appears to have been cleaned. I suspect the cleaning was
> interrupted, leaving beautiful quartz points sticking out of the
> remaining cookeite and quartz core. The secret may be small batches and
> timing.
>
> Hope this helps. Let us know how it comes out.
>
> Kreigh