SNS

It's that time again, it's time for another Saturday Night Special where we talk about everything rockhounding related.
Thanks for watching!
Be sure to check out my website at currentlyrockhounding.com for tons of additional rockhounding resources and much more!
Did you enjoy this video and find it to be informative? You can help ensure that more videos just like this get made by supporting the project on Patreon. / currentlyrockhounding
#CurrentlyRockhounding

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Lol this posted early. I guess it's more of a Saturday Morning Special.

[@DanFarrar]

I appreciate you keeping the classroom tidy of nincompoops lol

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Ha! Thank you!

[@wolfbadger3548]

Augustus Gloop. Augustus Gloop...

[@bobaloo2012]

It's true that it would have been a lot easier to just spend money to get all your gear, but at least for me it would be far less satisfying. Having that arbor you refurbished gives you a real connection to that piece of equipment, and a story about how you found it, etc. I'm an old guy and used to collect a variety of books. A person could spend their life visiting small book stores all over the world, searching for the books they wanted and have a lifetime of adventure. Today one can just open Amazon and click and have all those books delivered to their door, what's the fun in that?

[@taniakapronczai7652]

I have told you before that my reason for being part of your channel is honesty! I stopped looking at sites with flashy captions about mineral definitions. I have learned so much about lapidary arts and mineral recognition since I started my subscription to this channel. I joined 6 months ago because of how you like to share the knowledge without any predudice. I am learning so many new things from your videos. Rockhounding Patreon project is great! We can see your dedication and hard work! Your determination to ensure that knowledge and passion for this art is spread forth is appreciated 🎉Thank you ❤

[@robbyschannel9258]

Totally agree. I been around for 2 or 3 years now and still love Jared's content. I also won a giveaway once so that was awesome.

[@taniakapronczai7652]

@robbyschannel9258 That's great. I signed up for his patreon project, too. It is a very welcoming community where everyone shows interest in the rocks we find, positive comments on cutting and polishing, lapidary machines, etc. Everyone shows mutual respect, making the friendly competition fun and educational

[@MauriceDay-tc2we]

I enjoy your learning approach to rock hunting. We purchased what we call our creek property 12 years ago in southern Ohio and I have become the biggest collector of pretty rocks. I now have a 10" Hi-Tech rock saw and have started to cut some and they are amazing! I find a lot of churt as well as indian arrow heads, jasper, quarts, banded slate etc.

[@robertguggenbickler1123]

Love your content thanks

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Thank you!

[@sandmaker]

Early or late, it's always great to see and hear you. I have been told my guess at rocks are wrong so many times, I just call everything chalcedony or pretty rock. Hard to argue with that. Keep the goodness coming. Be happy, safe and stay healthy! 😷⚒

[@mrsjohnson1743]

I always like your book recommendations. There are a lot of so-so books out there. The first two in this video are hard to find but it’s great to know about them so I can keep my eyes open.

[@taniakapronczai7652]

I agree with you. Recommending a variety of books adds to the positive traits of his character!

[@kcrazyandie74]

Thank you for keeping your channel here drama free, you are correct when you state that there is enough of that on Facebook and it can stay there 😂 Love that you keep it real, maybe ine day we will bump into eachother at Irvs lol

[@TheRogueRockhound]

In regards to jade/nephrite/serp, Soon as I work it I can tell ya. I'm getting loads better of IDing jade localities now too. Lots out there, better than gold IMO.

[@Mike-br8vb]

I love these SNS's! I love that you're keeping it Nincompoop free😂. I've been struggling with what to make with the material I have, but after checking out your intarsia projects, I've been inspired to try this method. I think some nice wood grain borders ( pet.wood) would be cool to start with. Thanks!🥃🥃

[@taniakapronczai7652]

That would be awesome Mike😀

[@TheRogueRockhound]

3 made me think of Jade most because of the white lines

[@user-jy4kb4wu1k]

This video inspired me to run to the public library. We have a good one. Thanks btw I am natural and of questionable intelligence

[@Brenden061]

I watch frequentlt. Thank you.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Thank you!

[@francisgram9548]

pity that you are so correct. Prices are up but then so is shipping (it is never free). Used (or should i say used and neglected) outrageous pricing. Good thing rocks have a long shelf life as i've been searching for a 10+ inch slab saw for years (tired of waiting in line at rock club 1 day only per week) - using a sears 7" portable wet tile saw ($9.99 clearance special). Also bought a sears grinder (think arbor) a closing sale price of 29.99. Still using Inland 3-in-1 flap lap - frustrating but usable and was also over priced (shipping, taxes and duty). Saving factor are the 3lb tumblers from lortone (yard sales), so that is where you and i differ on likability on tumblers. So what to do when waiting for that lovely deal (thinking your lortone 10" saw - yummy) well good thing there is a lot of used woodworking machinery and now a used laser has come on board (rock etching). As for books, yup i collect them too but right now no shelve space cause rocks need to be moved . . . now back to varathaning that 1/8 inch thick laser cut wood box . . . BTW - you're doing great vids

[@Michael-cj4qx]

Great content , love the info on Arbor rebuilding. I'm going crazy over the weird threading done on the arbor I'm working on , it's the simple things that get me

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Thank you! What about the threading?

[@philporter9957]

Congratulations on the incredible number of views. You do an amazing job and deserve to be congratulated.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Thank you!

[@wheretonow3106]

Just found you. Subscribed. Very informative. Thank you.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Welcome! :)

[@aidankeller1717]

Have you read the book by Frank J Daniels about Petrified wood? I think it's called Ancient Forests. I learned a bit more about agate formation in there (albeit the information is from 2006, so some of it is outdated), but I learned that the bands are formed when an accumulation of impurities block the chalcedony crystallization amd then the chalcedony resumes crystallizing, only to be blocked again. This process repeats itself, until the cavity is filled or runs out of "juice", known as silicic acid. Pretty neat stuff for anyone who loves microscopic science.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

I have not read that but its on my reading list now, thank you.

[@aidankeller1717]

@@CurrentlyRockhounding it's loaded w/ high quality photos that look new and not from 2006. It's also full of many technical words that are way over my head and the author doesn't put much effort into dumbing it down to someone who doesn't have a degree in plant science (which ironically is what I'll be going to college for). Overall though, it's a great coffee table book!

[@Shifter5555]

Well said! In general social media is built on nonsense masquerading as blogging, I think we need to go back to forum sites for discussion of things...

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

I 100% agree.

[@patriciamckean4186]

Love that you never stop learning. A plus, you share the knowledge with us. Congratulations on viewers....this just proves that your channel is worthy of my time to watch and learn. Guessing rocks over video...😅. I did guess correctly.

[@spetkovsek57]

I was going to say 1 and 3, but on camera and not holding them to see if they feel waxy it can be difficult.

[@aidankeller1717]

My guess was 1 or 3 was the piece of Jade. To me Jade identification/classification seems as complex as the different types of garnets, although I know more about the former than the latter.

[@TheRogueRockhound]

They can be mixed btw. In the same stone. I see it in the kiwi stuff all the time

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Yeah, it can really get complex.

[@valsummers5330]

Thankyou for highlighting some of my favourite stuff

[@megalotherium]

i freakin love intarsia

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Me to!

[@kzbay1685]

Dan Hurd has a few good recent videos about identifying Jade. If you use a transparent agate for your intarsia, would you need to frame it without a backing so light can show through? Or does all your intarsia work have no solid backside?

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

There's a lot of ways people do that, you don't need to have a backing but it does look nice, you can also put a different color of stone behind the transparent agates but not just the backing so its three layers thick.

[@robertvanfleet6263]

thank you

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Thank you for being here and watching!

[@demetriadavisboyd7060]

I am having problems finding Agates in New Mexico because I am not seeing what the "description" says. So I have no idea what I am looking for. I have found Jasper.

[@VersaiOnline]

Do you have basic milling capabilities? I’m trying to get a lapidary jig made, can I email you my drawings and see if you can make it or advise me how to do it myself please?

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

I'm limited in what I can do with that.

[@maryberger112]

Glad to see you again.

[@ResortDog]

Congrats on the views! The internet is a harsh mistress in its freedom or lack of it. I wasn't given a choice about leaving Facebook and they threw all my years of content after me. Time for the death clean, got arbors LOL.

[@VersaiOnline]

Plenty of non-ai know-it-alls that like to “gotcha” as well, without any experience

[@64puma64]

Don’t think I’ve heard you mention Lanny Ream’s Nephrite Jade of Washington? A good reality check and resource for people with jade fever. I never believe anyone who holds up a rock and says “This is jade,” unless they’ve sent the rock of for analysis. As you said, it’s complicated. And good on ya for curating your comments. It’s up to you to build the kind of community you want to inhabit.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

I do have that book!

[@valsummers5330]

I pegged it!!!!

[@RockyMountainBear]

"The more I learn, the less I know." I have said those exact words many times in relation to rocks & minerals. I almost think it should be a requirement for websites & media in general to disclose whether they use AI and what section was produced using AI. I have fallen for it a few times, and it sucks. I feel like I have to take an apology tour to tell anyone I may have passed bad information to. Nincompoop is a great word. I haven't heard it since my grandfather passed, but it is still a great word. 😆

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

It hard isn't and sometimes it's easy to be tricked by it.

[@scrubjay93]

"jade-adjacent" rocks 😊

[@blatantmisconception]

It's all nephrite. It's all chalcedony. The rest is like determining the different between a weed and a flower.

[@ocklawahaboyrocks]

Snake eating its tail. That's a great description. Model degradation is one of the aspects of AI evolution that most people are ignoring.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

I wonder if the rate of them degrading will just increase with time.

[@ocklawahaboyrocks]

@@CurrentlyRockhounding I think it depends on the way the model is trained. Chat GPT is trained by indiscriminately scraping the web. I believe they then try to remove some of the worst content. I think that model is doomed to regurgitate junk if nothing is done. If a model is curated a little more rigorously, it might not be as bad.

[@FangBlah]

👍

[@nhrockaholic6038]

Dan Hurd, tests for specific gravity for his good jade. Interesting process.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

That does work in the perfect example that you use for a video, but outside of that you need better identification tools than doing a quick SG test. Just like hardness testing, most people do them incorrectly which produces off results....etc. It's just a complex subject.

[@jaredanderson8571]

Would the Shop Fox W1681 Buffing Assembly be a close replacement for the Lorton MS8 Arbor Assembly?

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

That does look just like it but the arbor shaft is rather long.

[@GeologyDude]

Congrats on 5M views!

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Thank you!

[@kerickwalters2749]

There are those who claim every green colored stone they find is jade... 😅. I have learned for my own peace of mind to just let it go cos I will never convince them otherwise.

[@blatantmisconception]

You guys know a grinder is a dirct driven two wheeled arbor and they can be had pretty cheap. Some of your lapidary gear isn't unique to lapidary work. I cut some stones using my lathe, a shaft and a chinese lapidary blade. It worked...okay. A little more work and it'd be 'good enough.' Need to work out a table and a watering system... and a better place for my lathe. But dammit, it works. Oh bud, when you're looking at motors for your arbor, consider treadmill motors before you plunk money down for a regular old motor. Treadmills can be had for cheap - I've never paid for one. You tear em down for the motors, recycle or repurpose the rest. The tread belts make good non slip surfaces or bench protectors. Treadmill motors are too cheap to over look. I plan on repowering my lathe with one.

[@cliffmiller1021]

Ive learned to be an open mind but hecka sceptical. My first guess was 3 for the way it was cut translucency is apart of the identification process i thought.... So it would have to be thin then i though trick question what if its white jade and nuber four. I locked in four though....sceptic. We live in a society of have what you want now. Online ordering next day or same day delivery. How far in debt are you willing to go. Prices are high. Save for it. Might take a year maybe two. During that time, reflect. If its a passion you find the money and its easy to save, as a hobbie it becomes a bit more challenging to justify. But stick to it and bam more fun. I wish for you all ample rivers and road cuts and free dig sites to visit while you save.

[@davidschaer8974]

Years ago , a study was done where they went asked newly graduated high school student how much they think they knew. The ones that answered, " Oh yeah, I know alot, I'm ready to go find a job and get to work!" , were invaribly the "C" students. The honors students would respond by saying, "I barely know anything!". Being able to look at youself honestly, and not engage in self-deception, is key difference.

[@taniakapronczai7652]

Well spoken❤

[@nunyabizness9216]

Completely irrelevant way to gauge a person's intelligence and potential. There are geniuses working in the service industry and morons with a doctorate. Everybody is unique and if they are happy, so be it.

[@frederickbryant7479]

I know this doesn't have anything to do with your topic. I found a agatized piece of coral that is encased in sand stone how do I remove it?

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

That's a hard one, generally I would suggest doing a test on something first with a mild acid, but it might also dissolve the coral.

[@frederickbryant7479]

@@CurrentlyRockhounding I did try using white vinegar

[@douglas3806]

Instead of re cutting slabs, why don't you just make the border pieces thicker?

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

That is something that can be done, but I would prefer to work on getting them all thinner.

[@douglas3806]

I've never done that style of rock work so I didn't know if it was a stipulation of the art form or just personal preference. It does make sense to use thinner material so you can make more. It just seems re cutting would be a b**ch lol

[@valsummers5330]

I made my choice based on the texture of the sample As well as the opacity However still 50% luck

[@spetkovsek57]

Intarsia does not have to have a backing plate, you can use your 1/4 inch slabs without having to cut them thinner. So if an Agate has to be transparent/translucent, what is a Quartz crystal? What about "Agates" that are crystalline Quartz that has grown together to form a solid? There is no one answer to these questions. It's not a binary question of right and wrong people. Like Jarred says, read a book (more than once)!

[@VersaiOnline]

I think quartz is more obvious cuz its macrocrystalline, it's usually pretty clear where the cryptocrystalline features and massive quartz are separated. Then again, there are so many varieties of quartz, it can get tricky. QuartzPage is a good example of the few quality knowledge databases online today. Calcite, too, is far from simple in my opinion.

[@ICutRocks]

"The price of getting into lapidary is soul crushing..." Thats why most of my stuff is home made and... terrible. I decided "Hey, I'll do a lapidary channel!" and... if I want to upgrade I need another $2000-3000. (Edit: I fall under some of that "clickbaity" stuff you don't like, but that's because there's very few niches left in this space. So instead of trying to come off as a credible expert, I'm just a dude having fun with cutting rocks. I specifically say over and over that I don't know anything about rocks. I just cut them.)

[@ICutRocks]

Also I was going to say 1, and 3 for the Jade test. I need to get better at it because I have /some/ confirmed jade at my place, but telling the difference between that and Serpentine is tough.

[@aidankeller1717]

​@@ICutRocks the difference between Jade and Serpentine is a lot more clear than the difference between Jade and Nephrite, since Jade is basically Nephrite that's been "baked" for much longer and at higher temperatures. At least that's what I've learned so far.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

All I can say is that there is always room for honest real content and you gotta produce what you want more of in this world.

[@ICutRocks]

@@CurrentlyRockhounding Appreciate it. I guess I want more laughs and more rocks to cut :D

[@lithicbeads]

@@aidankeller1717 That is not the case.Get the Lanny Ream jade book at the very least.

[@NewZealandRocksDownunder]

Specific gravity will tell you if it's serp 2.2 - 2.9 or nephrite Jade 2.9-3.02 or semi nephrite

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

That is very much so an oversimplification of it and doesn't consider many factors, one of which I brought up in this video which is contact zones and the fact that were talking about a metamorphic rock here.

[@NewZealandRocksDownunder]

@@CurrentlyRockhounding I don't think it is oversimplification at all. The reason being is here in NZ Nephrite Jade is a treasured stone by the Maori people and in recent times unscrupulous sellers have been passing serpentine off as Nephrite. The only definitive test to differentiate between the two for the average Joe is the specific gravity test. It is probably more through ignorance than outright deception on the part of the seller who assumes a green nephrite looking rock is nephrite which as you have pointed out is not the case. There's highly scientific test equipment that can identify the makeup of rocks but for the average person the cost of having a beach found pebble tested at a place that can test it is beyond most and stays in the realm of the big commercial guys.

[@dmatherly7]

Your two agate and jasper titles are impossible to purchase...Not on Amazon or Ebay..Abebooks has only one copy of each from a book dealer in the Netherlands..One is $27 + $27 shipping..the other is $55 + $27 shipping...If you know of a USA location to purchase please let me know..

[@dmatherly7]

I have now found a select few lapidary shops that have one or both of the titles..Very expensive but available..

[@dmatherly7]

Just ordered Genesis and Classification of Agates and Jaspers from Rock Tumbler..thanks for the info on this book..I'm a retired geologist/geophysicist but that doesn't mean I know everything about all rocks...Far from it..

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

Very expensive is subjective. I think you will be very happy with them if you get them.

[@CurrentlyRockhounding]

You will love them.

[@nhrockaholic6038]

3

[@JouleEon]

I tune in for your interesting content. Not interested in unsolicited third-party comments, from people who think rocks in their head makes them a geologist. 🤨