[Rockhounds] Stone Consolidation

[Tim]

Visit the Starbond website; their cyanoacrylates are consistently excellent
when purchased directly from them. The same cannot be said for Hot Stuff.
Again, serious sphere makers use Starbond exclusively, and it comes in many
different viscosities and sizes. They have largely dropped Hot Stuff for a
number of reasons, old or stale batches being the primary reason. Stale
cyanoacrylates set up in their containers and are worthless after a few
months (i.e., the ten cent tubes of Krazy Glue at Wally's). Eventually even
the quality adhesives like Starbond and Paleobond deteriorate to the point
of being unusable. You can lengthen their useful life by storing them in the
fridge. 

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 Dean Welder
Sent: Saturday, December 06, 2008 5:30 AM
To: rockhounds at lists.drizzle.com
Subject: Re: [Rockhounds] Stone Consolidation

One suggestion: contact John at JS Gems: http://www.jsgemslapidary.com/ and
ask about both his "Hot Stuff" and Starbond. The latter was recommended to
me for crack fill in agates and jaspers by a person who makes
large-slab-display type specimens. My wife has been using both the hot stuff
and starbond in a couple of different pieces of pet wood, agates, and
jaspers all with fairly good luck. Both products are CA-based with different
consistencies (hmm, wrong word but brain is stuck) for different levels of
penetration.

On the rock tumbling hobby forum (from http://www.rocktumblinghobby.com ) I
also read somebody used two-part clear epoxy in an acetone bath to stabilize
chrysocolla (glass jar, half filled with acetone, inject both tubes of
epoxy, stir, place rock in jar, let sit for several days, take out of
acetone and let it dry for several weeks).

Good luck and please report back what you find works (or fails).

Dean



--- On Tue, 12/2/08, Neal Hazen <batsondebelfry at yahoo.com> wrote:

> From: Neal Hazen <batsondebelfry at yahoo.com>
> Subject: [Rockhounds] Stone Consolidation
> To: rockhounds at lists.drizzle.com
> Date: Tuesday, December 2, 2008, 7:39 AM
> I have some Peruvian chrysocolla. As a 5 lb mass, it is
> stable enough. However, it won't slab without crumbling.
> I am looking for specific advice on methods of stabilizing
> this material before I put it in the slab saw. I have washed
> the rock in detergent, then soaked it in acetone to prepare
> it. It's beautiful enough to be worth the cost of
> cyanoacrylate, if that is the best way to go. I am seeking a
> stabilizer that will give a minimum of 15mm penetration. The
> folks who stabilize turquoise seem to have the procedure and
> stabilizer locked down pretty well, but I have been unable
> to find a discussion of their technique. I dislike
> stabilizing any rock intended for making into cabochons, but
> that is the only way this material will ever be anything
> other than a paperweight.
> 
> Neal Hazen
> 
> "A government big enough to give you everything you
> want, is big enough to take away everything you have." 
> 
> Thomas Jefferson
> ---------------
> 'In the first place, we should insist that if the
> immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an American
> and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an
> exact equality with everyone else, for it is an outrage to
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> here, and that is the English language... and we have room
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> American people.' 
> 
> Theodore Roosevelt 1907
> 
> 
>       
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