Thread: I Found It Over There

Yes, that looks very very similar to this stone. I got it completely lapped and dressed it on wet/dry up to 1,000. I found it to be very much like an ark in character in terms of speed. It does however produce an edge that is very shiny. I'm just about to do a test shave from it now.

REPORTING BACK: so the test shave was quite interesting. It was dead keen and shaved quite well but leaned more toward the crisp side than smooth. I guess I would characterize it more like an ark edge than a coti edge But not exactly like either one. I'm going to play with it a little more on a razor I'm more in tune with. This was an imperial extra hollow ground but not one from my rotation. It is one that I was going to send to a member but decided it was not a good one for someone learning to hone. I'll give a more detailed report once I have tested it out more thoroughly, suffice it to say that it is a fine finisher though.

Most Nephrite Jade comes from Western Canada though it can be found in Wyoming. It's the state mineral.

Well if it is nephrite then that answers a question. The guy that gave it to me said that's from Alaska... Or maybe North Carolina. Apparently there is a whole mountain of nephrite near Seward Peninsula.

So, I called the Department of Geological Sciences at UF and they said they can't look at it in person because of covid etc., etc. They had me send pictures in an email which I did. I still have not heard back from them but the woman did say it could take a little while. My jeweler friend has been out of town until tomorrow but I thought I would have him take a look.
Meanwhile, I have played around with it more and found it to differ.greatly depending on how I use it. I tried it with slurry which makes it more aggressive but it is still quite fine that way.

It's hard to tell in this picture, especially with the green background but it makes this fine lime sherbet colored slurry. I tried it with dish soap and plain water, under running water and also with WD-40. In fairness I did not test shave with all the variables aside from small patches dry on my chin which is.my final test. Boy does it shine the edge, more even than the 8k. I didn't go to 12k on this one so I have no comparison with that but I believe even more so
The full shave (after 1k, 6k,8k, progression) was smooth but not buttery like a coti. It is more crisp but not like an ark. I guess somewhere in between but it is very skin friendly.
We'll see what I can find out from my jeweler friend and from UFDGS.

So I took the green mystery rock to my jeweler friend. He said he thinks it is jade...NOT gem quality, he was really clear about that but he took pictures and sent them to his friend who is a geologist. Still waiting to hear back from UF Geology Dept. Oh, I mentioned what the guy that gave it to me said about it being either from Alaska or maybe North Carolina and he said, "I seriously doubt this is from North Carolina, almost certainly Alaska." Stay tuned for more of the mysterious green rock.

Meanwhile in another part of town...




I'm telling you, it's a sickness.

It is a sickness! Let us know when you invest in a wetsaw, You'll be eyeing everything then.

Yea, if it is Nephrite there is none in NC. There's plenty in Alaska. You can find just about everything in Alaska similar to Minas Gerais, Brazil.

By the way Nephrite ain't Jade. That's Jadeite which is true Jade and a totally different mineral. Nephrite looks similar so they call it jade and either sell it as "Jade" or Nephrite Jade. Nephrite is Ca2(Mg, Fe)5Si8O22(OH)2. while Jadeite is Na(Al,Fe3+)Si2O6.

Nephrite is pretty hard stuff similar to quartz in hardness but properties are different.

Oh I have already priced them. At the junk shop they have a 10" dewalt radial arm/chop saw for $125 but no wheel. By the way those are great big chert rocks. This part of Florida is littered with them