# Stone hearts.



## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 24, 2020)

Here is a couple of stone hearts I made out of rocks. The top left is pink and green granite. Still scarred by the grinder step. The bottom left is a fluorescent rock heart past the second step of disc sanded up to 220 grit. It is calcite, willamite and franklinite. It glows green and red under a shortwave UV light. The big one is finished and buffed to a glowing shine. It is a green feldspar with dots of fools gold in it. 
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## J.R. Collector (Jun 24, 2020)

I like your ability to make such awesome stuff Robby. Very cool


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 24, 2020)

Sarasota941 said:


> I like your ability to make such awesome stuff Robby. Very cool


Thanks buddy. It keeps me busy and I have no time to get into trouble. lol! I like carving stone and heck, I have the equipment so I may as well use it.
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## FreeRangeAsparagus (Jun 25, 2020)

Those are so cool! I tried my hand at it last year with some pink granite and a Dremel but those are much better! What kind of tools do you use? I have some stone I need to cut.


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## Mjbottle (Jun 25, 2020)

Cool man! Great craftsmanship! when i first saw them i couldnt help but think of andy from shawshank redemption carving rocks into a chess set lol. does it take you a long time to make one?


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 25, 2020)

FreeRangeAsparagus said:


> Those are so cool! I tried my hand at it last year with some pink granite and a Dremel but those are much better! What kind of tools do you use? I have some stone I need to cut.


4.5 '' grinder with a continuous diamond rim blade. T
Porcelain tile blade basically.
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 25, 2020)

Mjbottle said:


> Cool man! Great craftsmanship! when i first saw them i couldnt help but think of andy from shawshank redemption carving rocks into a chess set lol. does it take you a long time to make one?


Not too long. The polishing step and sanding take the longest. The grinding is the fastest part one hour tops. The hearts go 1 step grind is the top left then step 2 sand is the black red and white on the bottom left then the big one on the right is step 3 polish and done.each heart is at a different finished step.
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 25, 2020)

Mjbottle said:


> Cool man! Great craftsmanship! when i first saw them i couldnt help but think of andy from shawshank redemption carving rocks into a chess set lol. does it take you a long time to make one?


The big heart took some time about 7 hours.   I did it over 3 days so it wasn't bad. 
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 26, 2020)

FreeRangeAsparagus said:


> Those are so cool! I tried my hand at it last year with some pink granite and a Dremel but those are much better! What kind of tools do you use? I have some stone I need to cut.


Grinder with diamond blade. Understand this tool and has seen a lot of action.
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 26, 2020)

They sell diamond cup grinding blades that work well as also. I don't have a picture sorry.


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## Troutmaster08 (Jun 26, 2020)

Do you have a picture of the one under uv light?


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 26, 2020)

Troutmaster08 said:


> Do you have a picture of the one under uv light?


I have two lasers on it in this picture. I need a short wave UV light but they are $250 for anything worth getting. Not only are the rocks expensive but so are the lights. The laser is long wave and does not do this rock justice. The laser makes the rock hot pink and what's cool and all . The rock is bright green and red not pink but I don't have the good light yet. I do have a 25 lb piece of this stuff. Very hot stone.
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 26, 2020)

Photos stink better in person.


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## sandchip (Jun 27, 2020)

Do you clamp your angle grinder and move the rock to shape it, or do you have some way of holding the stone steady while you work it?  Very cool stuff, by the way.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 28, 2020)

sandchip said:


> Do you clamp your angle grinder and move the rock to shape it, or do you have some way of holding the stone steady while you work it?  Very cool stuff, by the way.


Big ones on a board and hand held the other small ones I hold with my left hand. My strong hand. The right hand holds the grinder. I am good for about 4 hours before my hand goes numb. It might be nerve damage setting in. I do a little everyday. Somedays more that others. Depends on how I feel. This is something you really have to want to do. It is loud, dusty as hell so use a good respirator. Dust masks do not work! I have a water polisher that does good but I like a hard felt buffing wheel on a straight grinder. Little water as possible. I could go on for days so we will end this babbling at this point.
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## yacorie (Jun 28, 2020)

If you get serious about this you’re better off with a “low speed” mounting saw with a diamond blade like used to cut rocks and in labs.  Not that expensixe and way safer


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 28, 2020)

yacorie said:


> If you get serious about this you’re better off with a “low speed” mounting saw with a diamond blade like used to cut rocks and in labs.  Not that expensixe and way safer


You mean like a brick saw. My wet saw cuts rock good enough. I don't have space for another tool (toy). I wish I had one of those water cutting machines. They are really cool.
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 28, 2020)

FreeRangeAsparagus said:


> Those are so cool! I tried my hand at it last year with some pink granite and a Dremel but those are much better! What kind of tools do you use? I have some stone I need to cut.


I do use dremel also for fine work.
ROBBYBOBBY64. 













Here is my recreation of the Garfield petroglyph.


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## yacorie (Jun 28, 2020)

Something like this -older ones are cheap and you can find labs with many they would be happy to give away.

I used to use these to cut otoliths and find for aging fish.

seems like it would be a much safer way to do it if you were going to do a lot of cutting rather than using a hand grinder is all.


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## yacorie (Jun 28, 2020)

yacorie said:


> Something like this -older ones are cheap and you can find labs with many they would be happy to give away.
> 
> I used to use these to cut otoliths and find for aging fish.
> 
> seems like it would be a much safer way to do it if you were going to do a lot of cutting rather than using a hand grinder is all.











						L650 - Low Speed Diamond Wheel Saw I - Model 650
					

Low Speed Diamond Wheel Saw for 3" or 4" Wheels The Model L650 Low Speed Diamond Wheel Saw is a compact, multipurpose, precision saw designed to cut a wide variety of materials with minimal subsurface damage. Its' low speed makes it possible to cut fragile materials that would otherwise fracture...




					www.laddresearch.com


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## sandchip (Jun 28, 2020)

ROBBYBOBBY64 said:


> Big ones on a board and hand held the other small ones I hold with my left hand. My strong hand. The right hand holds the grinder. I am good for about 4 hours before my hand goes numb. It might be nerve damage setting in. I do a little everyday. Somedays more that others. Depends on how I feel. This is something you really have to want to do. It is loud, dusty as hell so use a good respirator. Dust masks do not work! I have a water polisher that does good but I like a hard felt buffing wheel on a straight grinder. Little water as possible. I could go on for days so we will end this babbling at this point.
> ROBBYBOBBY64.



I got the job many years ago to change the signage for a large pulp mill, involving making several very large routed cedar signs.  I spent many hours and days hand routing the lettering on approximately 1,000 board feet of 2 x 12s.  I would experience that same tingling numbness.  I figured that it was my body's reaction to the high frequency vibration associated with a high rpm tool like a router, and in your case, grinder.  It would always pass by the next day though, although I was a much younger man back then.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 28, 2020)

sandchip said:


> I got the job many years ago to change the signage for a large pulp mill, involving making several very large routed cedar signs.  I spent many hours and days hand routing the lettering on approximately 1,000 board feet of 2 x 12s.  I would experience that same tingling numbness.  I figured that it was my body's reaction to the high frequency vibration associated with a high rpm tool like a router, and in your case, grinder.  It would always pass by the next day though, although I was a much younger man back then.


Weren't we all!


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 28, 2020)

yacorie said:


> Something like this -older ones are cheap and you can find labs with many they would be happy to give away.
> 
> I used to use these to cut otoliths and find for aging fish.
> 
> seems like it would be a much safer way to do it if you were going to do a lot of cutting rather than using a hand grinder is all.


That could be in my future. Low speed like what rpm? 200? Also it is a belt or blade that does the cutting? 
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 28, 2020)

I sure am glad it is almost over. We can retire and do whatever you want.
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## yacorie (Jun 28, 2020)

Not sure 


ROBBYBOBBY64 said:


> I sure am glad it is almost over. We can retire and do whatever you want.
> ROBBYBOBBY64.


what the RPms are but it’s a diamond blade that cuts


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 29, 2020)

yacorie said:


> Not sure
> 
> what the RPms are but it’s a diamond blade that cuts


I saw the machine I like and thought about the same jemcutter but with the grinding stone it was 1000 grit. I t doesn't cut very deep like a 10" blade like on my saw. Maybe they make one with a larger blade. Anyway, Thanks for the link and info.
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## yacorie (Jun 29, 2020)

ROBBYBOBBY64 said:


> I saw the machine I like and thought about the same jemcutter but with the grinding stone it was 1000 grit. I t doesn't cut very deep like a 10" blade like on my saw. Maybe they make one with a larger blade. Anyway, Thanks for the link and info.
> ROBBYBOBBY64.



I’m not sure about a 10 inch blade because you may be getting up into tile saw size.  We used to use 6” blades I know but that might be the limit which is a good point.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jun 30, 2020)

The chuck in the center of the blade shallows your depth of any cut. Even a ten inch bade can only cut a good 4 inches deep. With a grinder you cut multiple grooves next to each other then chisel them out. It is real quick and relatively safe with a good respirator. I love stone.
ROBBYBOBBY64. 
This is my next project.


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## willong (Jul 1, 2020)

ROBBYBOBBY64 said:


> Here is a couple of stone hearts I made out of rocks. The top left is pink and green granite. Still scarred by the grinder step. The bottom left is a fluorescent rock heart past the second step of disc sanded up to 220 grit. It is calcite, willamite and franklinite. It glows green and red under a shortwave UV light. The big one is finished and buffed to a glowing shine. It is a green feldspar with dots of fools gold in it.
> ROBBYBOBBY64. View attachment 209161



You achieved a nice polish on that finished one. Do you finish the final stages with some type of polishing compound? 

Could you take a picture under UV light of the smallest one and post the photo here please?

Geology is a subject I'd certainly like to know more about; but there are too many fascinating subjects in the world for the time we are permitted here.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jul 1, 2020)

willong said:


> You achieved a nice polish on that finished one. Do you finish the final stages with some type of polishing compound?
> 
> Could you take a picture under UV light of the smallest one and post the photo here please?
> 
> Geology is a subject I'd certainly like to know more about; but there are too many fascinating subjects in the world for the time we are permitted here.


I used marble polish in is mostly aluminum oxide powder.  The best thing about aluminum oxide powder is that the more  you use the more it becomes finer of a grit. I use a hard buffing pad on a wet grinder. Use as little water as you can without the powder drying out and caking up on the stone. 
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jul 1, 2020)

You can use a hard felt polishing tool in a drill. Put in a tub and polish it that way. With polishing powder of course. 
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jul 1, 2020)

willong said:


> You achieved a nice polish on that finished one. Do you finish the final stages with some type of polishing compound?
> 
> Could you take a picture under UV light of the smallest one and post the photo here please?
> 
> Geology is a subject I'd certainly like to know more about; but there are too many fascinating subjects in the world for the time we are permitted here.


There is a picture of the fluorescent one under UV light. It is on the second page of this post. It is hard to take a picture and get the color right with the UV light. 
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## willong (Jul 2, 2020)

ROBBYBOBBY64 said:


> There is a picture of the fluorescent one under UV light. It is on the second page of this post. It is hard to take a picture and get the color right with the UV light.
> ROBBYBOBBY64.


Thanks Robby.


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## rich (Jul 2, 2020)

Please tell us of the heavy ventilation you use, as I see no slurry marks on the grinder.  Would really enjoy seeing your work for many more years!


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jul 2, 2020)

rich said:


> Please tell us of the heavy ventilation you use, as I see no slurry marks on the grinder.  Would really enjoy seeing your work for many more years!


During inclimate weather I have a rigid air filtration system I grind right in front of. I also use a good respirator, not a dust mask. They do not stop the fine dust particles. In good weather I still use a respirator but no filtration system.  I have tons of stuff I have carved over the years. I give away some as gifts. I am amazed how long people hold on to them. 
ROBBYBOBBY64.


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## Palani (Jul 3, 2020)

Do you sale them and how much?


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## ROBBYBOBBY64 (Jul 5, 2020)

Palani said:


> Do you sale them and how much?


I never have sold any of my carvings. I just give them away as gifts. 
ROBBYBOBBY64


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