# Gemstone facetting



## KBbottles (Mar 1, 2012)

Wanted to share a slightly different hobby I picked up at a young age.  I've always had a fascination with mineralogy and gemstones so all through 7th and 8th grade I saved all my birthday money and allowances and after a couple years had enough to purchase a facetor machine and basic accessories.  Took a while to teach myself how to use it.  Took a LOT of patience but I have finally been able to master some cuts and different materials.  Every different type of stone requires different angles for maximum brilliance and also requires different polishing agents and materials to securely fasten it to the sticks used to hold the stone in place while being cut.  Here are pictures of a few pieces I have done in the past couple years.  Happy to add some more eventually if you'd like to check them out.  Pictures do not do their brilliance justice as my cameras are just not good enough to really photograph them well. 

 First up is a nice oblong hexagon step cut of Orthoclase Feldspar.  A material in the family of moonstone and a very common mineral but not as often seen in a flawless transparent yellow color.  Enjoy!


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## KBbottles (Mar 1, 2012)

Second pic is a fairly large size emerald cut (step) of the stone Morganite.  Morganite is a light pink color in the Beryl family.  Beryls also include Emerald and Aquamarine.


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## KBbottles (Mar 1, 2012)

Last picture for now is an 8x6 millimeter emerald cut Mexican Fire Opal in stunning bright orange.


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## AntiqueMeds (Mar 1, 2012)

interesting. I see people at the local rock show cutting gems.
 what do you do with them?  Do you find your own raw material?


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## KBbottles (Mar 1, 2012)

I go to a couple of local rock shows a year and try to pick up rough stones for cutting whenever i can.  To me, it's an artform taking a raw stone and transforming it into a brilliant little piece of mathematical beauty! LOL  I have cases of all different stones that I collect and display.  Similar to collecting bottles but they take up so much less room!


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## Dugout (Mar 1, 2012)

You are doing a magnificent job there. That is a cool hobby!


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## RedGinger (Mar 1, 2012)

Really neat.  We have a mineral gem and fossil show every year, up here.  It's a lot of fun.  I have heard you can find garnets in my neck of the woods.  I wonder if it's true.  I'd also like to try my hand at panning for gold.


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## KBbottles (Mar 1, 2012)

Thx everyone for the nice compliments!  

 Red,  i think it is true you can find garnets in your neck of the woods.  I have a book somewhere and some websites i can pull up for you.  Hunting for them would make for a fun day out enjoying nature.  Not sure if they would be gem quality cuttable garnets but they would definitely be in the round naturally faceted crystal form and can look quite beautiful.  Rocks were my very first obsession as a young child []


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## RedGinger (Mar 1, 2012)

Cool.  Any help would be appreciated.  I'd love to get out for a day of looking for gems and rocks.  We have a lot of fun doing stuff like that and just being outdoors with the critters.  It doesn't have to be a top quality garnet; It would just be fun to find one!


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## KBbottles (Mar 1, 2012)

Absolutely!  Just to find them in their natural state would be a thrill!!  Ill see what i can drum up.


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## epackage (Mar 1, 2012)

Interesting Ken, Paterson is famopus for the "New Street Quarry which was partially cut thru for Rt. 80 and for housing. They have examples in the Museum of Natural History and many others all over the USA. Some great stuff came out of there...Including the following...

  Albite
  Analcime
  Anhydrite
  'Apophyllite'
  Apophyllite-(KF)
  Azurite
  Babingtonite
  Baryte
  Calcite
  'Chabazite'
  Chabazite-Ca
  Chalcocite
  Chalcopyrite


  'Chlorite Group'
  Copper
  Datolite
  Dolomite
  Epistilbite
  Galena
  'Gmelinite'
  Greenockite
  Gypsum
 var: Selenite
  Hematite
  'Heulandite'
  Heulandite-Ca
  Laumontite


  Limonite
  Malachite
  Mesolite
  Natrolite
  Opal
 var: Opal-AN
  Pectolite
  Prehnite
  Pumpellyite-(Mg)
  Pyrite
  Pyrolusite
  Quartz
  var: Agate
  var: Amethyst


  Quartz
 var: Milky Quartz
  var: Rock Crystal
  var: Smoky Quartz
  Scolecite
  Siderite
  Stevensite
  'Stilbite'
  Stilbite-Ca
  Thaumasite
  Thomsonite-Ca


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## surfaceone (Mar 1, 2012)

Hey Kenneth,

 Beautiful work, sir! I love colored stones. Thanks for showing us. 

 Do you also make jewelry? Would enjoy seeing some photos of your set up, should you be so inclined.


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## KBbottles (Mar 1, 2012)

I knew youd know all about Paterson rocks and minerals!  There have been some absolutely stunning specimens found in Paterson!!!!!


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## KBbottles (Mar 1, 2012)

Hi there, 

 Currently my set up is packed up as I havent cut one in several months since moving but will post some more pictures of my finished stones.   havent ever made any jewelry but have had one of my stones set in a ring for my grandmother once, per her request for a birthday.  its kind of one of those long term hobbies for me that I work on every once in a while.  For me, cutting a stone takes a lot of thought and planning on how best to cut it.  Then the whole process of perfectly glueing/shellacking it securely to brass sticks, rough grinding, pre polishing and polishing, and then transferring it to do the whole opposite side of the stone takes many hours and lots of patience.  Took many years of trial and error to eliminate most of my errors.  Now when i cut i like to experiment with unusual cuts mostly on quartz stones.  Its so rewarding to clean off the finish product and see how much it sparkles.


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## Plumbata (Mar 1, 2012)

I'm very glad that you posted these. Splendid handiwork Ken! Classical piano, lapidary arts, and relic digging; certainly the makings of a wonderfully fulfilling life. Keep at it man; you've got real intellect and skillz. []

 As we have discussed, my dad used to be rather deep into the lapidary arts and crafted some splendid gems.

 I haven't commandeered his equipment yet so I have never done the same, but certainly have made some nice cabochons, prepared fossil specimens, polished glacial fossil cobbles, etc. The patience/preparation level necessary for making faceted gems is honestly beyond my innate capacity for tedium. You do it, and my dad did it, but I would probably go crazy attempting the same myself []

 My favorite stone is the precious opal. I love iridescence and dynamic color in all things; benicia effect glass, iridescent bird feathers, rainbows, etc. Also like fire agate; got some superb specimens at an auction a decade ago for super cheap and want to do something with them someday. Opal is hands-down the favorite though. Delicate, brittle, and requiring care and moisture, but a superb material all-around.

 Anyway, thanks again Ken. I always appreciate your threads or posts.


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## RedGinger (Mar 2, 2012)

How cool to be able to cut stones for jewelry, or whatever!  I bet your grandmother was thrilled!  

 Plumb, here is my horoscope for today, ironically:

 Sagittarius Daily Horoscope
 March 1, 2012 - Information that you retrieve from deep within your psyche might lead to a revelation as to a great way to increase your income, Sagittarius. This could be something you read and forgot, or it might be something you overheard in a restaurant. Whatever it is, look into it carefully, and then if the information seems to be accurate and useful, go for it. These days, fortunes are being made in surprising ways!

 I'll contact you, but I am looking to do some sort of blog type site with my different interests, recipes etc.  

 Sorry to go off topic on your thread, KB.

 Looks like I have the wrong thread.  Oops.


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## RedGinger (Mar 2, 2012)

> ORIGINAL:  Plumbata
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 

 What is Opal like, to work with?  I know it has some negative connotations, but I really like Opals too.  I'll have to post some gems I have from past digs (probably costume jewelry).


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## capsoda (Mar 2, 2012)

Great looking stuff Ken. Beautiful Fire Opal. Let me know when you are set up again. I need some polishing done. My guy passed away two years ago and there are some untrustworthy types doing it around here.

 Opal is a real pain to work with. The smallest amount of heat worked up on them and "POOF" they disappear. They are easy to shape and polish. I have shaped some by hand and polished them for antique jewelry that had odd shapes and sizes.


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## RedGinger (Mar 2, 2012)

Well, I have been inspired by this thread to get out and do some scouting for rocks, gems, fossils, etc. this weekend!  I just hope the bears are not out!


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## KBbottles (Mar 2, 2012)

Hi guys,

 The fire opal was a pain in the butt to cut it!  Most of my stones are attached to the brass dop sticks by heating a very hard shellac to secure it in place.  For fire opal I had to use a very strong glue with absolutely no heating whatsoever and for each little cut I could only hold it in place on the grinding wheels for very short periods at a time.  same for polishing while having plenty of cool water dripping on the wheel.  Opal is some of my favorite stuff too although I haven't cut  much of it.  I'd love to learn how to shape some by hand.  

 -KB


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## KBbottles (Mar 2, 2012)

Red... I believe the garnet localities exist in Delaware County 

*Pennsylvania.*--Almandite garnet crystals are found in a quartzose mica schist about 1.6 km west  of Chelsea in Delaware County. Near the surface the schist is badly weathered and the garnets,  which comprise as much as 75% of the rock locally but average much less, are easily recovered.   Abrasive-grade garnet was produced from this deposit prior to 1900, but no production has been  recorded since the turn of the century.   Small trapezohedral crystals of almandite garnet are scattered through-out a badly decomposed  gneiss near Chester Heights, also in Delaware County. An attempt was made to mine this deposit  years ago by means of a shaft and underground workings. 

 Mica schist is a very soft material so you should be able to bring a hammer and chisel if you find some deposits to search for crystals.  Trying to research a specific location.


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## KBbottles (Mar 2, 2012)

Here's a really nice example from Avondale.


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## AntiqueMeds (Mar 2, 2012)

My son (10 yrs) is really into rock collecting. We try to go collecting but there arent a lot of decent places near here.
 You can find garnets just about everywhere its a very common stone (gem quality is a different story). We used to find them at Great Falls gorge near Washington DC.
 I brought back some Queensland opal when I was in Australia. THey had some amazing stuff there.


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## KBbottles (Mar 2, 2012)

If I was in Maryland, I'd be making regular trips to calvert cliffs after storms to find Meg teeth!!


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## bostaurus (Mar 2, 2012)

I had a big chunk of Labradorite with beautiful colors.  I decide to get rid of it about a year ago.  Now I wish I still had it.


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## RedGinger (Mar 2, 2012)

> ORIGINAL:  KBbottles
> 
> If I was in Maryland, I'd be making regular trips to calvert cliffs after storms to find Meg teeth!! Â


 

 Calvert Cliffs is great fun!!  Take your sifter.  You will definitely find things and the chance is always there for some big teeth.  Besides the Megalodon, you can find huge croc teeth and many other fossils.  Be careful to stay in the advised areas, because of landslides.


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## KBbottles (Mar 2, 2012)

I did a three day trip there last summer with my younger brother.  Brought home lots of small teeth and some nice large shell fossils.  Hoping to get back there in the Spring this year.


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## Plumbata (Mar 2, 2012)

Heck yeah, back in the day I went to calvert cliffs many times with my Dad, but it is pretty-well picked over. Pretty much anywhere along the Chesapeake ya can find nice Miocene fossils, but at the cliffs one can find some splendid chesapecten fossils (extinct scallops). Never found huge teeth there, but once I saw these 2 divers emerging from the water with bags full of 2 inch-5 inch teeth. Blew me away. They said that underwater is a huge skull of a porpoise, and 3 foot+ segments of whale ribs, etc. Found other nifty fossils, like crab claws, ray/skate teeth, and the Maryland state fossil shell, whatever it is called.

 I also remember looking up at the cliffs and seeing a gigantic whale vertebra and rib section poking out. Super cool. If I ever get diving gear, I'll be diving for fossils, not bottles. []

 With my dad we also hunted inland localities in PG county, even discovered some undocumented sites, and undocumented fossils at known sites. Hunted in Bowie MD at this splendid cretaceous site; tons of killer teeth of reptiles, sharks, etc. One of our favorite sites was "Piscataway Creek" in PG co, it wasn't super rich in fossils, but when ya found teeth and whatnot they were usually in extraordinary, almost perfect condition (rather than worn and sandblasted like most). Found skate/ray teeth that looked like combs (not worn down like in the bay), a stingray tail spine (super cool), crab claws in wonderful shape, and other cool stuff. At that locality many of the shark teeth were mineralized in this stunning sky-blue color, not black and ugly. Really cool place.


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## Plumbata (Mar 2, 2012)

Ah, one of my favorite aspects of Calvert Cliffs was the bamboo forest. I love bamboo, always have, and that forest ya walk through to get to the shore was surreal. Very peaceful.


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## AntiqueMeds (Mar 2, 2012)

> If I was in Maryland, I'd be making regular trips to calvert cliffs after storms to find Meg teeth!!


 
 I used to hunt all the various marine fossil sites here. There are a lot better beaches than calvert cliffs in MD.
 I thought we were finding good stuff until I took a trip to the Texasgulf phosphate mines down in Aurora NC (Lee Creek). 
 The stuff you find there is on a whole other level. Sort of ruins you for hunting beaches.

 here's a photo of me in the mines way back in '87 []


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## KBbottles (Mar 2, 2012)

Always wanted a Lee Creek experience!  Do they still let people in?


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## Poison_Us (Mar 2, 2012)

I bet your real familiar with JTV!  []  Good place to guy lots from when they have them, just never know what your going to get.  good thing they have such a great return policy.


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## AntiqueMeds (Mar 2, 2012)

> Do they still let people in?


 
  I think they still let groups in but not individuals. 
 Its one of the best sites in the world for marine fossils.
 We formed and instant "club" just to get entry.[]


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## KBbottles (Mar 2, 2012)

That sounds amazing!  Have any trips planned in the near future?


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## AntiqueMeds (Mar 2, 2012)

I havent been fossil hunting in a good while. I would take the kid but he's more into rocks. He dosent seem to think much of fossils except for dinosaur parts and they are pretty rare in this area.


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## Steve/sewell (Mar 2, 2012)

Matt, we have a company named Inversand located in Sewell Mantua Twp. where I live a mile from my house,this is the last pit available from the cretaceous period.If you are interested I can check out and see if the owners would allow us on there. Your son might enjoy it as well.Here are some links. Unfortunately, the decline of the marl industry has reduced the number of localities where dinosaur fossils may be found. This is the last functioning pit named the Inversand Pit at Sewell, Gloucestor County. A partial skeleton of Hadrosaurus minor, and a number of isolated bones have been found there over the years, including those of a Dryptosaur.

 http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/07/02/us-dinosaurs-newjersey-idUSTRE7610YP20110702

 http://home.comcast.net/~exogyra/DINO.HTM

 http://www.nj.com/gloucester-county/index.ssf/2011/06/mosasaur_found_in_mantua_towns.html


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## myersdiggers1998 (Mar 2, 2012)

Cool thread, once you cut your stones I guess you can say they are one of a kind.I love fossils and minerals also ,I have plenty of herkemer diamonds.


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## KBbottles (Mar 2, 2012)

Hi Steve!  Forgot you were down that way!  There's some good Cretaceous streambeds in monmouth county too.  I've heard inversand fossils to be very brittle but when stuff is found a type of plaster/glue like material is spread over it and then once hardened it is removed and preserved.


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## AntiqueMeds (Mar 2, 2012)

Wow they have a little bit of everything in Jersey dont they


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## Steve/sewell (Mar 2, 2012)

At Inversand the original ground was probably 110 feet above sea level. The deepest pit back there right now has to be 80 to 85 feet deep. It is a very deep pit where you can see very clearly the different life cycle periods we have gone through.  My house sits at about 125 feet above sea level, yet if you dig down about 10 feet you will find small fossilized rocks and other pieces. I know this because I have dug a pond in my rear yard to about an 8 ft depth and encountered this debris there. As they mine the sides of this pit more and more cretaceous age areas are uncovered.The pit is still quite un-dug and this company can probably dig for the next twenty years no problem-


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## epackage (Mar 2, 2012)

> ORIGINAL:  AntiqueMeds
> 
> Wow they have a little bit of everything in Jersey dont they


 Including a Snooki, Lucy the Elephant, Tillie, The Evil Clown of Middletown, The Jersey Devil, Zip the Pinhead, Lumberjack Carpet Guy, Rt. 9 Dinosaur among many others Matt.


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## Steve/sewell (Mar 2, 2012)

The city of Philadelphia was a major academic center of America for much of the 19th century. Many prominent scientists studied the fossils continually being discovered from greensand marl pits across the river. One of the most famous of these was Edward Cope. A student of Leidy in Philadelphia, he became one of the most prominent paleontologists ever.

 In 1863, Cope moved from Philadelphia to Haddonfield, NJ. He lived in the center of town, where the borough hall of Haddonfield now stands. There he was able to study the fossils from the local marl pits, where he made contacts with the marl workers to send him their finds. His life was marked by the fierce rivalry he shared with Othniel Marsh. The 'bone wars' they waged in Wyoming and Colorado are legendary, but their relationship was at first friendly, as Cope shared some of his more prolific localities on a visit by Marsh. The relationship soured, however, when Marsh paid marl workers to send fossils his way, rather than to Cope.

 Perhaps the most spectacular discovery of Cope during his stay in New Jersey was that of a partial skeleton of a carnivorous dinosaur, Laelaps, in a marl pit near Barnsboro, Gloucestor County. Now known as Dryptosaurus, it represented one of the earliest theropods found. Its most distinguishing feature was the presence of dagger-like nine inch claws on its forelimbs.

         Dinoclaw Claw of Dryptosaurus 

 Another unique find was the discovery, in 1929, of the footprints of a large carnivorous dinosaur at Woodbridge, NJ. This represents the only Cretaceous dinosaur footprints east of the Mississippi. The clay was still soft, making removal of the footprints nearly impossible. A single footprint remains, displayed in the Geological Museum of Rutgers.

 Unfortunately, the decline of the marl industry has reduced the number of localities where dinosaur fossils may be found.
 Perhaps the most spectacular discovery of Cope during his stay in New Jersey was that of a partial skeleton of a carnivorous dinosaur, Laelaps, in a marl pit near Barnsboro, Gloucester County. Now known as Dryptosaurus, it represented one of the earliest theropods found. Its most distinguishing feature was the presence of dagger-like nine inch claws on its forelimbs.This pit is on the other side of my Township in Barnsboro New Jersey.A little history about these pits. First they were the old Marl pits, next they became a Nike Base during the cold war now they are a private Christian academy school. In my township alone I can think of at least 10 Marl pits.


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## Steve/sewell (Mar 2, 2012)

> ORIGINAL:  epackage
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> 
> 
> ...


  How could you leave off the list Underdog Woman  (Suzanne Muldowney ) Jim now there's a real kook. You can tell shes from the Northern part of the state./[8D]


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## epackage (Mar 2, 2012)




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## epackage (Mar 2, 2012)

Matt she's originally from way down Philly way...


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## KBbottles (Mar 2, 2012)

Fantastic info there Steve!!!!  We also have good Eocene, Miocene, and some Oligocene sites as well.  Over the summer I contributed a find to a collection of teeth belonging to possibly a previously unknown species of whale.  NJ has some incredible sites for those serious enough to take the time to research potential localities.  I also keep contact periodically with the NJ state museum, although they are terribly underfunded.


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## KBbottles (Mar 2, 2012)

LOL!!!!!


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## AntiqueMeds (Mar 2, 2012)

> Including a Snooki, Lucy the Elephant, Tillie, The Evil Clown of Middletown, The Jersey Devil, Zip the Pinhead, Lumberjack Carpet Guy, Rt. 9 Dinosaur among many others Matt.


 
 OK now you are scaring me again...


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## epackage (Mar 2, 2012)

Sorry Ken, didn't mean to highjack your thread....[:-]


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## KBbottles (Mar 2, 2012)

[:-] hahaha Jim it's ok!


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## Steve/sewell (Mar 2, 2012)

Under dog woman has put on a little weight the tights are looking a little stuffed!! Didn't Howard Stern discover her Jim? What about Sinatra,Alan Alda Bon Jovi ................Ken Inversand is amazing you can see it from the rear of a target store.There is a township park in Barnsboro called Chestnut ridge park the top of the park is at about 165 feet above sea level The park is located where the marl pits of mrs Winzinger had her family Marl business .Most of the park has had about 50 feet of the earth removed or mined in the 40s 50s and 60s. After any heavy rain you can find tons of fossils along the upper eroded walls of Chestnut Creek which is about 40 feet above sea level.The park is about a mile square of property with a paved bike and jogging course going around the entire perimeter of the property.It is very secluded in the rear and know one bothers you back there so you can search to your hearts content.


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## epackage (Mar 3, 2012)

> ORIGINAL:  Steve/sewell
> 
> Under dog woman has put on a little weight the tights are looking a little stuffed!! Didn't Howard Stern discover her Jim? What about Sinatra,Alan Alda Bon Jovi ................Ken Inversand is amazing you can see it from the rear of a target store.There is a township park in Barnsboro called Chestnut ridge park the top of the park is at about 165 feet above sea level The park is located where the marl pits of mrs Winzinger had her family Marl business .Most of the park has had about 50 feet of the earth removed or mined in the 40s 50s and 60s. After any heavy rain you can find tons of fossils along the upper eroded walls of Chestnut Creek which is about 40 feet above sea level.The park is about a mile square of property with a paved bike and jogging course going around the entire perimeter of the property.It is very secluded in the rear and know one bothers you back there so you can search to your hearts content.


 I believe so on the Stern thing...What the Hell is a Sinatra,Alan Alda Bon Jovi ?!?!?  Sounds like a Wine, an odd anagram and a chocolate desert...[8D]


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## RedGinger (Mar 3, 2012)

I'm wondering what I should be looking for in terms of garnets.  I have a sifter I can take with me.  What else should I be on the lookout for in these parts (NW PA/Southwestern NY)?


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## Plumbata (Mar 3, 2012)

In my experience red, you want to find garnets that are still in the schist matrix (or whatever they form in); sifting for loose garnets in a creekbed will net you weathered, nasty looking degraded ones, or at least at this locality near Silver Spring MD. Tourmaline came outta there too.


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## RedGinger (Mar 3, 2012)

Someday, I'd like to give it a try.  No prospects, no pun intended, in the near future.  If I ever get the chance, I will try your advice.


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## AntiqueMeds (Mar 3, 2012)

We found garnets being wheathered out of the surface of large horizontal rocks.

 The metagreywacke in the potomac river gorge has garnets that look sort of like this ...






 Sometimes you can find larger ones.


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