can I polish my own stones?

[Arkteia]

I have plans for many opaque stones which I have. Among them, a nice set of malachite. The stones are well-cut but just need to be polished. Frankly, I do not want to spend money on shipping them to anyone. Is there a way I can do it myself?

Also, a couple of "black star" diopsides that have some minor scratches on them.

 

[VapidLapid]

Are they faceted or cabochon? if they are faceted you will need to have the proper equipment that will cost 3-6 thousand dollars. In addition you will need mad skillz that arent always intuitive and take some time to acquire. if they are cabs and they just need a freshening polish not shaping you can polish them pretty easy. Get some cerium oxide powder or aluminum oxide. Rub some powder into a damp scrap of leather. rub stone on wet powder-charged leather. Helps to have the leather on a hard surface like a granite counter top. If there are deeper scratches you could start with 1500 grit wet/dry sandpaper. wet both sides of the paper so it will stick to the granite counter better and rub, keep the stone moving all over not one spot or you sill cut a sloppy flat. pressure should be light, the grit does the work.

 

[Roger Dery]

Hi Crasru,
Bringing the surface of a gem to a polish is possible even with remedial equipment and even less skill. Though, I can say with some authority that it may try your patience. So if you go in this direction, allow some time to bring the gems to an "acceptable" level of polish. As noted by V.L., may need to pre-polish a surface to get below an existing scratch. Otherwise, may make an individual scratch more obvious.

Generally, there are four types of polishing powders normally used in polishing gem materials. However, they don't all work on all gem species. They are:
Tin Oxide [least used]
Chrome Oxide [very messy]
Cerium Oxide
Aluminum Oxide [most versatile]
*can do an internet search to determine which compound works on which gem type.

There are also some compounds used on metals that also can work on gems - Rouge, Fabulustre, and Zam come to mind. In addition, can also use diamond compound - and some would consider this the most versatile.

For the oxides, consider using what V.L. suggested, a wet piece of leather. Place a small amount of the oxide powder on the wet leather and move it about and back and forth over the surface. Large surfaces normally take a significantly longer period to polish than smaller sections. For your sanity, start with smaller surfaces. I have safely re-polished surfaces wearing an old leather work glove, and this allowed me to put some "elbow grease" into it with my hands. Of course, it helps to stabilize the object being polished.

If you need to pre-polish, using a diamond-media as suggested earlier, keep the surfaces damp and let the diamond do the work. If you happen to be working in the Quartz's, or their derivatives, you may find them tougher to overcome than many other common species. I understand this may seem like an anomaly, but it is tougher than its hardness indicates.

I hope you find this helpful.

 

[mastercutgems]

Hello Crasru;

No problem as many used to rub opals to a very fine polish. As that is the name they sold them under; rubs...

Just a hint that some gems are poisonous such as the copper bearing gems like Malachite; make sure you do not breath the dust if not cutting it in a wet environment; also no cuts on your skin, etc. whereby they may leech into your bloodstream. I do not cut those gems any longer and if I HAD to I would wear a mask...

Just be careful and look at the chemical makeup of the mineral also abalone and a few others can have health risks in cutting...

But if you wanted to cab you can usually find a good used machine cheap also with a faceting machine as well. I will always help anyone with learning as I was self-taught also and it is not rocket science

Enjoy;

Most respectfully;

Dana

 

[chrono]

Crasru,
I’m not sure I would hazard polishing malachite myself due to the toxic dust. Sure, one can wear protective respiratory gear and keep the material wet to minimize the dust but are you willing to risk it?

 

[Largosmom]

You might also see if there is a local gem society or club near you which has equipment and members able to advise and assist. At a local gem show near me, they set up cabbing machines and welcome questions and visits from the public.

Laura

 

[Michael_E]

Crasru,
I’m not sure I would hazard polishing malachite myself due to the toxic dust. Sure, one can wear protective respiratory gear and keep the material wet to minimize the dust but are you willing to risk it?

When I first started rockhounding and cutting stones I joined the local rock and gem club and got lots of pointers from the OLD guys in the club. Old is highlighted because they were in their late seventies then. One of the most disgusting things that they'd do was to lick rock slabs, getting them wet to see what the rocks would look like when polished. I have a clear memory of one old guy telling me, "Don't lick that one, tastes terrible and it'll make you sick", when I had picked up piece of malachite. I assured him that I wasn't going to be licking anything, anytime. Funny thing, they all lived to be well into their nineties and went out climbing around into the hills almost till the end, (and a lot of those guys cut some pretty nasty materials routinely. Cutting these things in water doesn't pose much of a risk....as long as you dispose of the waste properly and don't lick them!

 

[lelser]

Our local lapidary club does not allow ANY malachite to be worked in the shop, and most of the clubs have the same rule. You don't even need cuts to get it into the bloodstream, just working it long enough will get it in through your skin.

We don't work any of the copper-bearing stuff at home, and don't work abalone or mother of pearl, either.

Cheers,

Lisa
www.lisaelser.com

 

[Arkteia]

Thank you all. The material that I was going to polish is malachite. Pre-polished though, I just wanted to give it some luster. I shall not do it at home, or anywhere else. Thank you!