Lapidary 101 Part 1: How to Use a Slab Saw

[@yehyeh6962]

Thank you. I like the part about about the importance of balancing the clamp. It finally really made since to me.

[@kv919]

I've been collecting rocks for years but I have never truly known true process of making a cab in detail. Thank you for your video and keep em coming!

[@SeanEckelArt]

so glad you've gained something from the videos!! i'm happy to lend my knowledge to any who care :)

[@NickVenture1]

Nice video. Thank you for explaining your craft.

[@p.schaafsma3954]

Nice video, thanks! I have an old lapidary saw that needs to be used so this video will help me get motivated to turn it on.

[@harbor4609]

Just found your video and I really appreciate you taking the time to do this! I’ve just bought an old Highland Park slab saw - the blade is perhaps 16 inches on it. I also bought a bunch of cryscolla rock which I plan to use it on so this video was Extra helpful for me. There aren’t near as many KZbin videos for the lapidary world so again, thank you

[@tinymetaltrees]

Actually, they do still make them like that. I bought a brand new HP14 last year. The company has been purchased but the new owners also bought the original designs. Mine looks very similar to your original, perhaps slightly updated. I highly recommend looking into Highland Park saws if anyone is interested in a brand new one. Highland Park now sells direct to the consumer so you save a lot of money by cutting out the middleman. They also have great customer service in my experience.

[@SeanEckelArt]

Yeah after I said that I kinda regretted saying that, because they do still make them similar. I was just saying mine is prettttty old, got it used from a guy in Texas that refurbishes them. Thank you for clarifying though! and my apologies for the misinformation.

[@electrichellion5946]

A guy I know recently bought half of the company becoming a partner/owner of Highland Park. His is more the rock part not the equipment part of the company.

[@mundodaspedraspreciosas]

I found this machine to cut the stones very interesting.

[@lenastiward8657]

Wow! Those colors! Love your dinosaur machine - how lucky were you to find that work horse! Thank you❤

[@lonniecaravello8678]

Thank you Sean for sharing your knowledge with us!! Can you do a video on Jadeite?. How to polish Jadeite? I happen to have a lot of it in the raw. I dont know how yo cut it either.

[@klcwarchitect]

Good basic stuff. Looking forward to other videos

[@SeanEckelArt]

Thanks Karen! I have a few others posted now, hope you take a look :) :)

[@joannelapointe835]

New to the hobby and looking forward to learning. I need a reliable list of US States to travel and what I will hound for lol

[@just_some_bloke]

Thanks for the vid. Had never seen a slab saw in action before this. I have many tons of jasper on my property so I am about to purchase a new 14inch HP saw. I would love to go bigger but budget won't allow at the moment.

[@electrichellion5946]

Green Machine - Where you located?

[@just_some_bloke]

@@electrichellion5946 Gold coast Australia

[@soysaucekitty]

Any updates?

[@just_some_bloke]

@@soysaucekitty Lol. Too many priorities and not enough cash. I think I will be going for a 20"- 24" now.

[@autumnskyes5633]

I have been picking agates since I was a kid. Since then I was able to collect them in Arizona as well petrified wood...and acquired many rocks in my home state of Minnesota. I have always wanted to learn how people made beautiful pieces out of these raw stones. When I first looked at lapidary equipment I have to say I felt very intimidated by it all and sort of grudgingly accepted that my rocks would live forever in their many buckets and pails. After watching your videos I not only understand the processes and I feel very excited about moving forward . Thank you for taking the time to put your knowledge on video and showing us your skills. I would like to ask you about start up costs and where you eventually bought your equipment. I also noticed tou said you moved your work to the garage. Did you do this for safety reasons? Also, I live in the Northern Wisconsin and I do my craft during winter months. I am concerned about freezing temps and preventing damage to the equipment (and comfort). Can this be done indoors if I work mostly agate? Thanks for your time and again thank you for these videos. I would recommend them to anyone...

[@SeanEckelArt]

Thanks so much for the kind words and encouragement! the initial costs can be steep, but with some of these machines you can find them second hand and they will be much cheaper, but often still in very usable shape. my slab saw i got used for $1200, my trim saw was about $500, and my cabbing machine around $1900. but for me that investment is definitely worth it! i moved my cabbing machine to the garage for safety reasons, and i don't like to work in a dark basement lol. you could do it indoors, just make sure you have good ventilation, the rock dust can permeate your work space, so just make sure to ventilate well and you should be fine. good luck with your lapidary ventures!! :D

[@silenttraveler7192]

Your Welcome, Have a great day!!!

[@silenttraveler7192]

I hope you make some new videos soon I really enjoy watching them.. Good Work. Where are you located?

[@cheryll6726]

Loved this video. Thank you. I noticed however that you did not mention how thick to cut the slabs. I would like to know what you recommend. I have many gem stones that I would like cut and I'm new at this so really appreciate all the help you can give. I have watched other videos and none of them answer the thickness question. Also why would you cut one really thick or really thin?

[@jatkins679]

Newly minted geology lab technician, learning how to use our Lortone LS18 saw.... Please send along any tips! Thanks! Great video, btw!

[@dolsen1959do]

Beautiful stone

[@janinebernard5419]

thank-you for this video! It was very helpful

[@SeanEckelArt]

My pleasure!! So glad you enjoyed it and gained something from it 😊

[@stevegibbs4533]

Thanks helpful do you sell any

[@vickiwhite725]

Thank you for introducing me to this!!!

[@indawgwetrust4255]

Nice video. Have you thought about adding any sort of ventilation to remove that dust? I'd worry about asbestos settling and becoming airborne later (i should talk, having an attic full of old vermiculite insulation...)

[@SeanEckelArt]

Thanks! I have my slab saws in a different garage now, but I just always keep the doors open and a fan on to circulate the air. And I also don’t cut enough asbestos materials to make it a real concern

[@russellh9894]

This 3 part series is so good. Do you plan to make more videos?

[@kiotipass]

Your 14" is very well made & video is nicely done! ?? I have for you and I hope I get this right? When setting up the material in the vise to be slabbed ... When you put the material on/at the bottom of the vise for slabbing will that material proceed through the blade without coming in contact with the blade flanges that hold the blade??? or does it have to be taken into consideration for this. Is it possible to slab a long or large piece , if needed, to be slabbed the entire length of the feed?? Hope this helps! Thanks for posting.

[@SeanEckelArt]

you can do larger stones, but only as large as the vice will allow. my saw being a 14" cannot hold pieces too large, lots of full time lapidaries use 18" or 20" saws, even some 36". so my saw definitely cannot cut really large pieces, i usually try to keep the chunks at 10lbs or under, but depending on the size i could do a bit bigger if they fit in the vice. hope that answers your question.

[@dougyorkno1]

Nice! Bur where do i find one of these well built old monsters. Is there anything new that does a decent job?

[@SeanEckelArt]

This one I found in central Texas on Craigslist. There are plenty that are good machines out there today, I just haven’t used them so I can’t vouch for any specific ones.

[@christopherort2889]

Once you have the rough positioned, it's best to slab the whole piece. Less hassle in the end

[@dinhtuhai2908]

Hello Sean, thank you for your video. Could you let me know which machine brand that you use? And can you cut stone that has hardness mohs more than 7 to slab (less than 0.1mm thickness)? THank you very much for your support

[@simeonkessler906]

nice choice on the closing audio and really enjoyed the video. new sub.

[@bobbyt9431]

Reminds me of college. We had one with oil so you didn't need to worry about dust, but what a mess. Where do you get that quality of mineral in that size?

[@iz-maria]

Demasiado ingenioso , entre más uno ve videos más aprende , no soy lapidadora me gusta , por ahora juntando rocas.

[@oneofakind6313]

thanks for the info

[@SeanEckelArt]

You’re very welcome!

[@BlissfulMoonLapidary]

Him: this is my 14" highland Me: they don't make them like that anymore Him: they don't make them like this anymore 🤣

[@davidgonzalez_pena3750]

To my surprise I have been looking for information on a saw that I bought 18 inches that looks like your 14 inch. Do you know anything more about it.

[@nhrockaholic6038]

What is the ideal slab thickness for making cabs? Thanks

[@johnlambert21]

Hey hello where can I buy that tape that you have on your fingers it looks like it works pretty good trying to save my fingers

[@cindisudds7604]

I love your videos!! They are very helpful for my son. He is getting into making his own slabs now and I try to help as he is disabled. Have a question for you. We have a highland park 12 inch saw but am getting saw marks on the slabs. Any suggestions? the carriage seems good and the blade set up right too.

[@SeanEckelArt]

Hmm you’re running it with oil? My gut would say it’s the blade, maybe it’s warped or something..wish I could say for certain, sorry! I’m so glad you and your son have enjoyed the videos! Send my best wishes to him, and I hope he helps keep the exciting art of lapidary alive and well :D

[@abdelkrimlaagad]

good

[@andrewchurch7475]

Hi, Around how thick was the slab you cut in the video. It looks around 3/8" if I had to guess. Have you ever had a slab crack while you are cutting it? How thin of a slab do you think you could cut at the very thinnest. Thanks!

[@SeanEckelArt]

hey andrew! 1/4" is considered the standard and ideal thickness of a slab, this one might be slightly thicker but not much. I have definitely had slabs break, but it's only if there's a pre-existing fracture in the stone, in which case I break the slab on the crack anyways because i'd rather get it over with early instead of have it crack during the cabbing process! You can cut slabs really thin if you want, like 1-2 millimeters..

[@andrewchurch7475]

Oh wow, I think every stone would be a little translucent at 1mm. Have you done any like that before? How would you work that afterwards? Seems like it would be super fragile to do much functional with it. Thanks for the video and info!

[@SouthernOntarioSasquatch]

Thank you!

[@sandygould2698]

Thank you

[@larrykelley1818]

Purchase a very small level and when you place the stone in the vice you can make it level

[@gettonstone5906]

Thanks brother

[@l8nytr]

I have never heard of anyone wedging there rock/jig...is this a common practice? Thanks!

[@SeanEckelArt]

i think it's pretty common, sometimes it's easier than others to get a rock fully stable in your vice, in the position you want it, without any additional support or wedges. but as they say, there's more than one way to skin a cat!

[@robertbradford3461]

Chrysocolla and gem silica are the same thing, and it's not chrysocolla unless it's green from copper, if it's green from nickle its chrysoprase. Chrysocolla is the more expensive of the two. Chrysocolla is usually vivid bright deep blue and or green earth tones due to copper, chrysoprase is usually lighter in color.

[@SkyReapr]

Sorry to sound thirsty, but your are so good looking dude! 🙈

[@lldd11]

cool slab, i have similar material, no machine to slice ((

[@victoryoneable]

Gem quality tiger eye should not contain asbestos. The asbestos should have been completely replaced by quartz. But sometimes they will sell you asbestos that is not completely replaced and it looks very much like tiger eye. So always test your rough by raking a steel point or a piece of quartz across the tiger eye (at right angles to the grain). If it still contains asbestos, it will break apart, but if it is entirely quartz, it will be hard to scratch.

[@SeanEckelArt]

Good input! Thank you for this clarification 👍🏼 I’ve worked with some Marra mamba that still is flaky so I know it’s a bit sketchy to work with lol

[@hillbilly918]

How long did it take to cut ?

[@michaelmoyowachena7127]

How can one get that machine to make slices

[@SVT_9923]

Hello plz price of this machine?

[@Bigrailindad333]

What thickness do you cut the slabs?

[@SeanEckelArt]

I aim for 5-6mm when cutting a slab.

[@jnibasimo7590]

Good

[@martyhinnenkamp1]

Hi, my name is Marty and I have started a channel on here called Marty's Rocks and I'm a lost puppy how do I get on the lapidary channel? Any help would be appreciated. Thank you

[@SeanEckelArt]

Hey Marty! Not exactly sure what lapidary channel you’re speaking of, I just post my videos as educational material and then put lapidary tags and such on them.. I guess some might get put on lapidary playlists or something eventually, but I haven’t had any say in that. Just put appropriate tags and a good description and they should get discovered!

[@bigal7713]

what is that music at the end?

[@meltonmakes]

Are these large saws rare/hard to find?

[@SeanEckelArt]

Not rare, they are expensive if you buy them new though! I found mine refurbished in rural Texas..

[@robertbradford3461]

I get the whole safety thing but working with wet saws in an enclosure eliminates the need for a reapirator

[@SeanEckelArt]

There is plenty of stuff kicked up into the air when cutting stones that I’d rather not inhale, so I will always use a respirator and have seen a few too many cases of old timers with lung and respiratory issues from not taking any precautions over the years that I’d rather be safe than sorry

[@robertbradford3461]

@@SeanEckelArt well different strokes I guess

[@clanrat]

neg pressure mask + beard = no protection Love the rocks but if you're serious about respiratory protection and don't want to shave you need a full-face positive pressure solution.

[@symonrocks9847]

So how do I cut a slab saw.

[@nahuiollincuatroterremoto5770]

like up thanks

[@p4tr1ck18]

Hey! Can I contact you to give you a potential lunar Meteorite? I don't have the equipment to test but have enough rocks to pay dues if any is found.

[@crowwrong284]

What’s this stone？？I English is little.

[@trptrungblogs]

💎⭐⭐💎🇻🇳

[@lemmining3754]

This is a slab saw, The Peice How munch?

[@gcegubbels4734]

I love the beaty stone . If jou have stone you dond uce anny more the slice one líder stone can you send gor ne . I Pay for zending to Holland. Place ket me know if jou hace stone over you dond uce anny more. I by always online i know is a expendsif hobby Bud i love it. Let me know.... I hope you onderstaand my english hahaha

[@monicaramos609]

Send me a stone plz

[@zachtaylor5151]

Bad day?

[@destravlr]

Just chrysocolla, no turquoise.

[@tcoats3447]

Hey can we talk more I have sumthing to ask you

[@mariaortegadezwyssig4705]

bla bla bla

[@getyourbone]

Keep up the great work! Not much out there on lapidary in the youtube world... where are you located?

[@SeanEckelArt]

Thanks!! Yea there's a bit of video out there, but not as much as there could or should be. Hopefully I can help out with that! I'm in Cincinnati Ohio :)

[@-salena-7284]

Cinci.....never would’ve thought. I’m a Colorado native living in Louisville. For a bit I have been trying to cut and smooth with tools that “looked sensible”. As I was trying to find music to cut geodes , here is your video certifying patience is a virtue and be safe. I’m sorry, but this should be a PSA!!! me:THAT geode is so red I wonder if it might combust....hmmm, I’ll let that tile saw cool off and try again. Do you have a shop? You should head down, teach me how not to lose a eye and I guarantee you will fill some classes and make some money. Contact me if you’re interested 🍀🍀🍀

[@yehyeh6962]

Thank you. I like the part about about the importance of balancing the clamp. It finally really made since to me.