[Rockhounds] Opticon

[Tim]

No, but my oven doesn't go down to 50 degrees (and I suspect yours doesn't
either). You don't want to get the Opticon too hot, but you do want it to
gradually heat and cool so it is absorbed by the rock as much as is possible
(without a vacuum bell, which is the optimal way to apply any lapidary
stabilizer or filler). 250 F is plenty hot. It is completely unnecessary
with solid, stable materials like agate & jasper. They won't crack even if
heated directly to 250 from room temperature. If they do then they are not
good lapidary material to begin with. 

FWIW there are much easier to use fillers and stabilizers on the market;
Opticon is a pretty outdated product (IMO), and it absolutely will yellow
with prolonged exposure to UV. I don't really believe that it ever cures
fully. The UV curing epoxies are especially attractive since they won't cure
until you make them cure, and you can soak them as long as you want at any
temperature that you want with no ill effects. For material that is fairly
porous, the super-thin cyanoacrylates are the way to go. Most every sphere
maker now uses them to fill cracks and harden punky areas in agate, jasper,
etc. Quite a few (me, for instance), heat spheres ground to 220 grit in an
oven to 200-250 F and then completely coat them with cyanoacrylate (don't
try this at home kids); it seems to both seal the porous areas and cracks
and helps speed the 400F grinding and polishing. You couldn't do that with
any epoxy that I know of...

Tim Fisher 
Ore-ROCK-On! 
Email address at http://OreRockOn.com

-----Original Message-----
From: rockhounds-bounces at lists.drizzle.com
[mailto:rockhounds-bounces at lists.drizzle.com] On Behalf Of J Bryan Kramer
Sent: Monday, December 01, 2008 5:33 PM
To: Rockhounds at drizzle.com: A mailing list for rock and gem collectors
Subject: Re: [Rockhounds] Re: grinding specimens for cabs, ...What coating
to keep bri...

I assume those temps are Celsius.

BK

On Mon, Dec 1, 2008 at 20:21, <VevaBailey at aol.com> wrote:

> Hi Kevin,
> Opticon is the best thing to use.
> Use it the way it says on the can, but I was advised by my lapidary
> instructor to add more catalyst than recommended.
> I believe the instructions say to soak over night in the Opticon and then
> remove stones put the excess Opticon into another container and add
> catalyst
> pour over the stones again let set for a while then bake.
> Bake in an oven at 50 degrees and after 30 minutes turn up the temp
another
> 50 degrees, continue this baking method until your reach 250 degrees, bake
> for
>  30 minutes and then start turning down the heat 50 degrees at a time
until
> you  reach your starting point.
> I usually let the stones set over night before trying to work them.
> Charolite is done the same way. And turquoise can be worked that way too.
> It has been 5 years since I used this product but it really worked for me.
> I have a large slice of Charolite that I almost lost due to crumbling but
> managed to salvage most of it by using Opticon.
> If there is anything else I can help you with, let me know.
>
> Veva B.
>
>
>
>
> In a message dated 12/1/2008 4:13:44 P.M. Pacific Standard Time,
> Paintricks at aol.com writes:
>
> Hello,
> I just acquired a cabbing machine and am learning  to work  material.
>  While
> some material is easy to cut and  polish(silica material),  some comes
> apart,
> like Malachite.
> What's a good coating to prep material like this to keep it together
when
> working with smaller or thinner  pieces?
> Thanks,
> Kevin
> **************Life should be easier. So  should your homepage. Try the NEW
> AOL.com.
> (
>
http://www.aol.com/?optin=new-dp&icid=aolcom40vanity&ncid=emlcntaolcom000000
0
> 2)
>
>
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-- 

""It often seems to me that the night is much more alive and richly colored
than the day."

                      Vincent van Gogh
J Bryan Krämer
North Florida, USA
photos at:
http://pbase.com/photoburner


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