Well I got'er done with the Randy's carbide ring tool. Seem to hold up pretty well. then took some final passes with the bowl gouge. I wil post a pic tommorow. Thanks for all the help.
Bob
[OP]
Member
Well I got'er done with the Randy's carbide ring tool. Seem to hold up pretty well. then took some final passes with the bowl gouge. I wil post a pic tommorow. Thanks for all the help.
Bob
Member
There are various scales for "hardness", but the people into rocks use tha Mohs scale. It is 1 -10, with chalk (gypsum) as 1 and a diamond as 10.
tempered steel is about 7-8, turquoise is 5-6, but there are a lot of colorful mineral in the 4-5 range which will work for inlay and have the strength to retiain their finish.
When you call on a lapidary store for stones, make sure you tell them you want a product which has a Mohs rating of less than 5, this will make finishing a lot easier.
good luck.
Member
Bob,
Get yourself a few of those cheap AR-6 or C profile carbide tool bits and round off the corners of the the metal backs as necessary to fit a handle. You can get the C2/C5/C6 carbide that will hold up well against stone. I've turned soapstone and metal with no issues. It is best to use the tools like a scraper to get the best finish with stone. Once yu have the shape you want, just sand as usual...
3/8" AR-6 C6 Bit
http://www.use-enco.com/CGI/INSRIT?P...PARTPG=INLMK32
Main tool bit page...
http://www.use-enco.com/CGI/INPDFF?P...MITEM=383-0035
FYI-The C6 bits are very hard and will chew up a green Sillicon Carbide wheel in a hurry so be prepared. They cannot be shaped with white wheels (DAMHIKT).
Member
I use a lot of turquoise. I buy unstabilized turquoise, so it's not as hard as jeweler's stabilized stone, but it's still stone. I mix it with epoxy and fill voids with it, proud of the wood. I also allow it to harden and cure overnight before I try to finish it because there's less of a chance for tearout. When I have some that needs to be turned down (like on the inside of a piece, and the outside of some bowls and vases), I use an Oland Tool with a 3/16" cutter. The cutters I buy are the kind with 10% carbon, from UseEnco.com. They do require some additional sharpening, but will cut the turquoise better than any other tool I've tried... much better than standard HSS. I wouldn't try my Hunter ring-type cutter on it, because I believe the stone would break the cutter in a heartbeat. It takes a faster speed, and a lighter cut to cut turquoise. But it cuts. Robert is correct when he says using sandpaper will take the wood down faster than the inlay. But care in handling will produce fine results. Keep after it. You'll get it.
Last edited by Allen Neighbors; 07-09-2008 at 8:51 PM.
Allen
The good Lord didn't create anything without a purpose, but mosquitoes come close.
And.... I'm located just 1,075 miles SW of Steve Schlumpf.
Member
Absolutely do not sand malachite. I would avoid working with it altogether.
Joe
Member
Silicon carbide paper will cut it down then use regular sand paper. I got
this info from a turner in calif that uses turquoise inlay on platters. I
haven't tried it yet.
Byron
Member
Just a thought to consider is how brittle carbide is. I’d defiantly go for a small carbide cutter or get some carbide bar stock from Enco or MCS. I’d hate to see a large piece of carbide shatter against the stone because it doesn’t have as much flex as steel.
There is an article here that shows what one guy did with crushed stone.
http://www.woodturningonline.com/Turning/Turning_articles.html
Looks like he power sanded it. - not sure if this fits your situation
Good luck, would love to see the bowl when it’s done and hear how you complete the project.
Who ever figures out how to do this right, please post. I have about 5 lbs of turquoise I'd like to get some use out of.
What you listen to is your business....what you hear is ours.
[OP]
Member
This thread is a few months old. I used my carbide ring tool. I am going to look into those inserts though. Here is a link to the bowl in question I posted http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=83552Originally Posted by Wes Henson
Bob
Member
Bob,
I wouldn't chance my $20-25 Hunter/Monster carbides on stone. Try the carbide cutters and I'm sure you'll be pleased.
I used them on a combination walnut and white solid surface piece that was giving me fits. I couldn't get a smooth cut at the transition from one material to the next until I tried the carbides.
C2 is the softest carbide (least wear resistant) but the most shock resistant while C6 is the hardest (most wear resistant) but most brittle of the bunch. I went for C6 bits and haven't had any problems but they are the hardest to sharpen. C2 carbide is still plenty tough and is easier to sharpen.
Member
I have not used large quantities of turquoise in turnings, but I have used it quite a bit in pens, with CA. I just use sandpaper to grind it down flush with the wood. I usually use 150, but that's because its usually not a large gobb that needs to be sanded. Once it pretty much flush, I continue going through the grits.
Member
I've been doing inlay with turquoise for about 15 years. I use a coffee grinder to crush the stone into varying degrees of coarseness. Turkish grind is my favorite! HA!!!!Who ever figures out how to do this right, please post. I have about 5 lbs of turquoise I'd like to get some use out of.
Wait until the work that you are going to apply the TQ to is dry and in its final form ready for final sanding. I use a dental drill to clean up and under cut the void to be filled with turquoise.....Much the same way as a dentist fills a tooth. Sometimes "body work" is necessary to build walls and fill in areas that will use too much TQ.
After your prep work to the void.....fill the void with dry TQ and level it off. Drip CA onto the TQ. It will penetrate quickly and cure soon enough.....Don't use accelerator immediately so you don't cause the CA to cure too quickly and "foam up".
I usually start with 80gr aluminum oxide ripped from 2 inch shop rolls. Don't cause yourself more work than necessary with the carbide tipped tooling unless you have a real problem here for some reason. If the TQ is reasonably well levelled off and you are using hard dense woods, everything should sand back uniformly.
If you'd like to place larger stones in with your inlay, you may have to do some local hand work. I use an Ingersoll-Rand air grinder with 40gr metal grinding discs for these instances.
There is a thumbnail on my method....I hope it will work for you.
http://www.peppermillguy.com/
BTW.....I hope i'm making sense here. I just had a much longer more detailed post disappear when I previewed my post.....needless to say, I wasn't happy about that and then quickly re-wrote the post.
Member
could you just use a dremel?
14x48 custom 2hp 9gear lathe
9 inch pre 1940 craftsman lathe
36 inch 1914 Sydney bandsaw (BEAST)
Wood in every shelf and nook and cranny,,, seriously too much wood!
Member
Yes...It all depends on how fine of an area/void/crack you intend to inlay with turquoise. I like the dental drill because because of the size and weight of it. A Dremel can be very fatiguing on your hands if you use it for any length of time doing fine work. But, if you aren't trying to clean out very tiny cracks, it may be all that you need.
Contributor
Bob
I would like to work with you on this project. The carbide is in a compression mode which makes it a very effective cutting tool. It all comes down to hardness of the material being cut and the hardness of the cutting tool material. You also need to be aware of the surface footage or RPM of your machine. Everything needs to be married to make the tool an effective cutting tool.
Please call me at 612-718-7926 and together, lets make this a project to work on together.
Mike Hunter
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