Post #294793 by Tamapoutini on Mon, Mar 26, 2007 4:34 PM

On 2007-03-23 11:20, flynny wrote:
Tama OB1
I have a couple of questions for you.
Flower Jade, is this prone to chipping on the rind, does the Jade get more stable the more you work away from the rind and into the greenstuff.
Are there any tips you can give for the bottom of grooves you carve, after carving an initial line with a needle and deepening with wider burrs, quite often the bottom of the groove is uneven. See what I mean on the fin

Lastly, if you are going to attempt a pebble carve and do skitter, is there any way back, likewise if you get chips.
Regards
Flynny Stonescraper

*Sorry for the delay.

Generally speaking, jade does improve the more you head away from the oxidised/rinded outer stone. Some rind is usable but mostly not; it is really just rotten/rusted stone and quite 'chalky'. Flower jade is no more or less prone to chipping than other varieties but each stone is different. Some chip horribly, some behave wonderfully. After a bit of experience you can usually tell what a piece will be like just by looking at it, but then they can often surprise you too - in good or bad ways...

If you go back to the top of pg4 of this thread I gave away a small trade secret that I think answers your question. To achieve a really crisp 'V' cut you can use the burr shown, or for a rounded bottom simply finish with a round-nosed burr; ball or bullet-type. It is pretty hard to get an even finish this way though, its easy to create ripples of undulating depth like you mention. How to rememdy this? Um, try hard to do a good even job. Not much help is it? I struggle with the same problem; Welcome young Jadi...

Re:skittering across a pebble-piece. There is no real way to bluff obvious tool marks off the surface; if its small enough I would just ignore it and cry softly to myself, but if bad enough that it had to be rectified you could either carve into that area & obliterate the mistake or perhaps sandblast the entire surface (which would thereby alter ALL of the original surface in an 'organic' way...)

Hope this helps.

T3-PO :)

EDIT: PS, great shark! The pebble shape & colour really suit this design. Top marks for creativity & 'truth to materials'. Glad someone really 'gets' the idea enough to try it; most who see my pebble pieces dont even understand what the big (little) deal is :lol:

[ Edited by: Tamapoutini 2007-03-26 16:38 ]