which ones are better...nodule opal or ''fissure'' opal?

[daniiopal]

I mined these opals a few weeks ago.... i have land with opals( abt10km2 its alittle ranch of sorts n not a mine) and of which this is a new find for me as i usually do this as a hobby and have never actually dug as most are on surface level. The average stone is about 3 carats. The colors are amazing but out of curiousity which is known to be more stable Nodule opal, or those found in seams....?

 

[The Joker]

I know that the Opal from Spencer Idaho is generally more stable than the Opal from Virgin Valley, Nevada. The Opal from Spencer Idaho is normally found in seams in the host rock and the Virgin Valley Opal is displaced organic material ( Opalized limbs, twigs, etc. ) with a higher water content. You can find stable Opal in both locations. I like all Opal, but I like the Virgin Valley Opal best.

Daniiopal: Where is your mine located?

Joker....

 

[daniiopal]

Date: 12/30/2008 10:47:37 AM
Author: The Joker
I know that the Opal from Spencer Idaho is generally more stable than the Opal from Virgin Valley, Nevada. The Opal from Spencer Idaho is normally found in seams in the host rock and the Virgin Valley Opal is displaced organic material ( Opalized limbs, twigs, etc. ) with a higher water content. You can find stable Opal in both locations. I like all Opal, but I like the Virgin Valley Opal best.

Daniiopal: Where is your mine located?

Joker....

Well, when it comes to ethiopian opals, i''m just saying this out of personal percetions, most are found in nodules. These are, for me , quite uncommon. As much as their size is annoyingly small (abt 3-7cts), my god they have some amazing colors. The camera doesn''t do it any justice as much as i would have liked it if you saw what i saw. Well hope the pic posts.....

 

[daniiopal]

Date: 12/30/2008 2:54:29 AM
Author: ma re
I believe you have a better chance of getting an answer to this on www.opalsdownunder.com.au

They have a forum exclusively about opals and many knowledable people on it who specialize in opals. From my point of view (and I''m just a hobbyist in this department) there shouldn''t be much diference if you''re refering to toughness or durability since both are surrounded by boulder, right?

As much as i''m inexperienced myself and since i usually ''mine'' my own opals as a past-time, i don''t have any indepth knowledge of opals. But it just draws me....i love stones whatever the case....but personally i find opals in nodules in boulders(not exactly sure what but its real strong...most say ironstone), nodules in sedimentary rocks, nodules in soil, opal in fissures/seams running in either rock or amazingly enough in sand. Hence my question.... of which i do apologize for not specifying properly....but i just hate it when it cracks on my hands later on. But which of these are stable? For example this stone i found in sand but it didn''t crack for about the 1 year i''ve cut and kept it. Never touched water since a year now also.

 

[rparker1998]

I''d love to be able to mine my own opals! I love that photo. In the words of Napoleon Dynamite "Lucky!"

 

[daniiopal]

These are most common though.....but the flash is ''flashy''.....

 

[daniiopal]

Date: 1/4/2009 5:10:19 PM
Author: rparker1998
I''d love to be able to mine my own opals! I love that photo. In the words of Napoleon Dynamite ''Lucky!''

To be honest the concentration is wow....so the word ''mine'' i''d rather use lightly and as its a hobby digging ain''t fun...but now well i''m actually thinking of selling opals and other stones....or is too much of a hustle and let me enjoy the stones to myself?....hmmmm.....mmmmmmyyyyyyy ppppreeecccious

..hehehehe....

 

[rparker1998]

I love the green flashes and reds and blues and all the pretty colors....going...into.....opal.......shock......LOL

 

[daniiopal]

u gotta love these.... good enough for an amateur

 

[daniiopal]

i just finished them today...
patting maself on the back nowwww

]

 

[Lady_Disdain]

Very nice!

What do you plan on doing with them?

 

[Kismet]

Ooh, very pretty. They''re so sparkly.

 

[mochi]

Oh, they are very pretty!

 

[daniiopal]

thanks all... i just can''t stop taking pictures as i see a new color or smthin new on it at it snap ....

 

[daniiopal]

*...each snap...

 

[daniiopal]

n moooree....

 

[daniiopal]

okay now this is when i got carried away....

 

[tyty333]

Since you have so many, I think you should share them with your good friends on PS

.
(well, they are my birthstone!)

 

[daniiopal]

Date: 2/19/2009 8:32:31 AM
Author: Lady_Disdain
Very nice!


What do you plan on doing with them?

Date: 2/19/2009 8:32:31 AM
Author: Lady_Disdain
Very nice!


What do you plan on doing with them?

Never had any luck selling them and setting all of them is definitely going to be expensive...
i still have abt another kilo or two i intend to cut since these didn''t turn out as bad as i had expected... its a great way to pass time though...
you got me stuck actually... hummmmmmmmmm.....

 

[daniiopal]

Date: 2/19/2009 11:31:17 AM
Author: tyty333
Since you have so many, I think you should share them with your good friends on PS

.

(well, they are my birthstone!)

since i''m in a great mood today why not?
you get the shipping but u definitely know it aint the best of my work u''ll b getting...

 

[tlh]

Thanks for posting. Opals are my birthstone, and I love to see all the fire and colors!

 

[daniiopal]

Date: 2/19/2009 12:31:59 PM
Author: tlh
Thanks for posting. Opals are my birthstone, and I love to see all the fire and colors!

I appreciate someone is appreciating them... as all my friends n family r sick of hearing nor seeing any opals... i''m too obsessive i guess... c''on its opals u know....hehe

this is undeniably my baby....
i cut this about three months ago when i first got my machine when i didn''t know how to cut cabochons

... just wanted to keep the size and free formed it...
this ''mistake'' is still ma baby....

I hope to have some more opals to post by the end of this week if i get my 1200 grit on time...

 

[that_someone_special]

So.. I was thinking.. perhaps you just wanna give me one? I''ll appreciate it

 

[Lady_Disdain]

 

[daniiopal]

I posted my mailing address but found out it happened to b against regulations.
Sad huh...?

 

[daniiopal]

Can anyone recommend a good template to use? i got one of those hard plastic ones which chip n crack worse than any of my opals... i got a big stone abt 5 cms in diameter, is there any for that size too?

 

[T L]

Why don''t you start an ebay store?

 

[arjunajane]

Date: 2/20/2009 11:29:58 PM
Author: tourmaline_lover
Why don''t you start an ebay store?

I agree - I was on ebay recently looking to buy opals, and your opals are certainly nicer than some of the stuff on there!

 

[daniiopal]

Date: 2/20/2009 11:41:50 PM
Author: arjunajane

Date: 2/20/2009 11:29:58 PM

Author: tourmaline_lover

Why don''t you start an ebay store?

I agree - I was on ebay recently looking to buy opals, and your opals are certainly nicer than some of the stuff on there!

thanks arjunajane n t_lover...

i''m weak to compliments on my opals

...

i do have over a hundred or so pieces by now.... and rough is, well, unlimited....
sadly i have a slow connection, n my full time profession doesn''t allow me to follow up on bids on a regular basis...
somehow i make time for cutting opals everyday though

...
besides i have no idea on valuing opals, nor any in depth knowhow of the business practices, i don''t even own a scale or even a loop...i just got passion

....

i once tried selling some beautiful rough a few years back in atlanta. almost the same in color with the rough pictured above but bigger; 2-3 grams each. my calling price was 1usd a gram, which i think was a more than a fair price for such beauties.... i mine personally with no machinery so whats profitable for me is whats enough... but i flew back home hugely disappointed but since i was there for other business i guessed it was that i didn''t dedicate myself enough to finding the right people/market.... the few i met and those that took some samples for ''lab'' tests never mailed me nor contacted me in any way which was really discouraging since they were the ones that hyped me up more than i already was n left me to dry in a way...

i have about a year off till a new project site of my other business finishes... so i intend to cut a lot, lot more this time round too....and you are right i should consider doing something abt them... let me know your thoughts on the how tos...

 

[daniiopal]

and another batch i finished today well last night but welll....... patting my self on the back again!!!

the whole stone turns pink in the morning sunlight... crazy red tho... i have to take some more nicer pics to give it justice...