Community
Continued from Page A14
estimates it takes 10 minutes to cut
a slice from a four-inch diameter
piece of rhodonite.

“Its a big difference when it’s a
hard rock. You think it is never
going to get done.”

Pearl explained that different
types of rock have different levels
of hardness. On the MOH scale,
the universal standard for hard-
ness, soapstone has a hardness of 1
to 1.5 and a diamond has a
hardness of 10.

Rhodonite ranges from 5.5 to
6.5 on the MOH scale.

TheReview

Wadnesilay November 27,1991 —

Als?

a ee

Most of the semi-precious
stones — such as agate, amethyst,
jade and jasper — fall between 5
and 7 in hardness. :

A special type of oil is used to
keep the saw blade and stone cool
during the cutting. Despite a spray
guard on the blade, the oil also
tends to cover everything in range,
including Pearl.

“It’s messy and smelly. You get
coated in oil,” Pearl admits. She
usually wears a cap, a mask,
goggles, earmuffs and protective
clothing when slicing rocks.

The finished slice is put in kitty
litter to absorb the oil.

Next, Pearl draws the shape: she
wants to produce on the stone and

READY FOR ROCK, a 14-
inch diamond grit saw.

takes the slice of rock over to the
trim saw.

This six-inch blade is also edged
with diamond grit and cooled with
oil.

The diamond-edged blade will
not cut flesh, only stone, Pearl
notes.

“Tt has to cut something hard. It
won't cut something soft.” But
she is still careful. “Tt will really
gouge your nail.”

The blade only makes straight
cuts so if Pearl wants to cut out an
oval, she cuts an octagonal shape
around the oval.

Then, to finish shaping the

‘Stone, she grinds the excess rock

away on a diamond-grit wheel,

holding the piece in her hands.

Once the stone is shaped and fits
in the setting which Pearl has
chosen, she fixes the stone to a
dop stick using a special heated
Wax similar to sealing wax.

Using six progressively finer
grinding and sanding wheels, she
then shapes and smooths the top of
the stone into a dome.

Although stones can also be
ground flat and polished — just as
they can be cut into a variety of
shapes — the dome finish best
displays the polish.

It is a painstaking process. A
scratch left on the surface of the
stone will mar the final polish.

Continued on Page A16

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