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Thank You, Shaun Shelton, for a Very Informative Program on Cleaning Specimens with an Impressive Array of Minerals Displayed

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Thank You, Shaun Shelton, for a Very Informative Program on Cleaning Specimens with an Impressive Array of Minerals Displayed Volume 57 Number 8 August 1, 2016 From Da Prez: Thank you, Shaun Shelton, for a very informative program on cleaning specimens with an impressive array of minerals displayed. We learned a lot, even who is ready with a short joke once asked! A large group of 11 travelled to Marshall, NC for the month’s field trip to Little Pine Garnet Mine. I believe it was about 6 degrees cooler there at 90 degrees, and even cooler inside the mine, of course. The mine has changed and weathered considerably in the last few years. Digging in the creek bank proved to be the most productive as Steve Smith and Mike Smagner found. At least they gave us a group discount rate. Unless more of the mine is opened up, I don’t know that it will be cost effective as a destination, but always good to get outdoors and find a few specimens. We hope many of you can make it for the Grassy Creek Show and to Crabtree Mine while in the area of Little Switzerland and Spruce Pine. [ The] August meeting will offer a rare look into the history of the club, offered by Joe Maguire [Gary Parker, Ed Deckert, Joyce Patton, Steve Smith, John Hiller, Mary Pendergraph, and others.] See you soon! Keep cool! K B Montgomery Hospitality Report 2016: Next Club Meeting Janet Woodcock August 1, 2016 7:00 PM Jan. 4: Joe Maguire New Garden Friends Feb. 1: Debbie Bechtold 801 New Garden Road, Greensboro, NC March 7: Dawn & Shawn Healy April 4: Debbie Bechtold May 2: Gary Parker Joe Maguire—GGMC History June 6: Mary Pendergraph July 11: Shelton family McCreery Scholarship: $ 1,096.00 Aug. 1: Montgomery Family 2016 Specimen raffle $17.00 Sept. 12: Smith family Oct. 3 Roy Carlson Nov. 7: Adams brothers Next Meeting September 12, 2016 Dec.5, Holiday Dinner Expenses are reimbursed. Please try to keep cost below $50.00 Piedmont Prospector© Volume 57 Number 8 Page 2 August Birthdays: Stephen Westbrook Carol Maguire Kelly Patton Jim Montgomery Dawn Healy Shawn Healy Ron Hammond Peter Moss Visitor & New Member: Fred Patrick Nancy Brenseke 2016 Field Trips 2016 Programs: Jan . none Feb. 27 Night at the Museum– Raleigh Jan. 4 Lapidary DVD part 1—trim saw Daytime scavenger hunt Feb. 1 Gem Trees, Gary Parker March Burgin Quartz, Norwood, NC quarry March Lapidary DVD part 2 April open April 4 Spring Auction May 14 cookout/rock swap, Shelton’s May 2 June 4 show June 6 Lapidary DVD part 3 July 23 Garnet mine / Spruce Pine, NC July 11. Shaun Shelton August Crabtree Emerald Mine, Aug. 1 Joe Maguire, GGMC History Little Switzerland, NC Sept. 12 Sept none Oct. 3 Fall Auction Oct Quarry Nov. 7 Nov none Dec. 5 Holiday dinner; “Dirty-Rotten-Santa” Dec:. 5 Club Holiday Special carry in meal Highlights of the July Meeting by Joyce Patton President, Kathie Montgomery, began the July 2016 meeting by welcoming 28 members and guest Fred Patrick, who later joined the club. Amber Shelton provided refreshments consisting of olive dip, sausage balls, California pasta salad, snicker doodle cookies, fruit bowls and dip, chips and salsa, and soft drinks. New member Nancy Brenseke also contributed a big bowl of watermelon. Thanks, la- dies. Door Prize and Raffle Winners Steve Smith—Fluorite from Hunan Province, China Ron Hammond—Smithsonite from Gila Co., Arizona McCreery Scholarship 50-50 winner—Mary Pendergraph, $21. Club Show Kathie reported that the Farmers’ Market has responded positively to our request and reserved the first Saturday in June for our annual gem and mineral show. This is an ongoing slot. The Market personnel are pleased to have us there. And judging by comments, club members, as well as vendors are thrilled with this site. The show committee will be organized soon so that news of the 2017 show can be sent to national publications in January. Member News Club member Phil Everhart is recovering from quadruple bypass surgery and is now recovering in a regular room. He is doing well and hopes to be at the August meeting. Steve Adams has published a book—The Wizard of Oz as a Parable—an allegory of the spiritual path through life. It is available from Steve or on Amazon for $15. Committees Debbie Bechtold who has been Hospitality Chairman, is moving from Greensboro so Kathie asked for a volunteer. Janet Woodcock agreed to serve in the position. Thank you, Janet. The Piedmont Prospector © Volume 56 Number 8 Page 3 Joe Maguire requested that someone else take stewardship of the 50/50 McCreery Scholarship fund as well as the year-long specimen raffle. Roy Carlson agreed to take over the duties. Thanks, Roy. Program—Mineral Specimen Cleaning and Safety by Shaun Shelton Shaun began his discussion with the all-important necessity of safety equipment including safety goggles, nitrile gloves or the longer yellow chemical gloves, and ventilation. He emphasized that unless you have access to a laboratory fume hood, to take your cleaning outside, never in a garage. Home bathroom vents will not be strong enough. Different cleaning processes can give off sulfur compounds with a strong smell while other reactions produce carbon dioxide. As to cleaning processes, that depends completely on the type of mineral, but he mainly dis- cussed cleaning quartz. To remove iron oxide (rust) stains, Shaun recommends using super Iron-Out, a replacement for oxalic acid. However, oxalic acid works well for cleaning Arkansas quartz crystals. He has found super Iron-Out to be safe and efficient and is effective for any silicate. A container of water holding a specimen is sprinkled with the Iron-Out and left for a day or two. If the solution turns yellow, it has lost effectiveness. The used solution can be flushed down the drain except in the case of septic tanks as a strong solution could kill the bacteria. The solution can also be neutralized with a little bak- ing soda before disposal. Sometimes for a difficult stain such as manganese on quartz Shaun will make a solution of 50/50 muriatic acid/water (always add acid to water). The specimen is added then Iron-Out sprinkled on the surface. Bubbles indicate that a sulfur compound is being given off—not pleasant to breathe. A top on the container aids in keeping the solution concentrated. For cleaning Graves mountain rutile crystals in matrix, Shaun uses muriatic acid diluted a little in a Crockpot. Heat outside for several hours and the matrix will dissolve. To clean carbonates Iron-Out works but never use muriatic acid as it will dissolve the carbonates producing carbon dioxide gas. To clean green stains of organic matter such as moss, you can use a 50/50 solution of bleach then a hard bristle brush. Shaun showed examples of the difference between before cleaning and after cleaning. He also had some beautiful specimens of mica crystals from Hiddenite. The mica was dark, but rich in chro- mium that showed green when light was shined through. Our thanks to Shaun for taking time to share great information and samples with us. ************************************************************************************ Ammolite: Geology.com / Contributor: Hobart King Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation Li- cense, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front- Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is included in the section entitled GNU Free Documentation License. What is Ammolite? Gem-quality Ammolite produces a spectacular display of iridescent color when it is observed in reflected light. The colors of an individual stone can run the full range of the visible spectrum or be limited to just one or two colors. The color display can rival fine opal and labradorite in its intensity and beauty. Ammolite is a trade name given to a thin iridescent aragonite shell mate- rial that is found on two species of extinct ammonite fossils (Placenticeras meeki The Piedmont Prospector © Volume 57 Number 8 Page 4 and Placenticeras intercalare). Other less-frequently used trade names for Ammolite are "Calcenite" and "Korite." It is also known simply as "ammonite shell." Ammolite is a rare material. All of the world's commercial production comes from a small area along the St. Mary River in southwestern Alberta, Canada. There, two companies mine Ammolite from thin layers in the Bearpaw Formation where the ammonite fossils are found. Ammolite Gemstones The color-producing shell layer of Ammolite is usually very thin (often less than one millimeter) and attached to a dark gray to brown base of shale or siderite. Exceptional pieces can be cut into gems without stabilization. Most Ammolite is used to produce triplets. These are made by backing the fragile iridescent ma- terial with a thin slab for stability and topping it with a transpar- ent cover for protection. Clear quartz or spinel can be used for the transparent cover. Black shale or another material can be used for the backing. Some Ammolite is made into doublets, which only requires adding a backing or transparent cover as needed. Many stones are impregnated with epoxy for stability. The best stones: 1) produce a vivid display of multiple col- ors; 2) have a strong iridescence that can be observed from a wide range of angles; and, 3) have a pleas- ing pattern of color with minimal interruption by gaps, inclusions or fractures. The highest quality rough is usually cut into freeform shapes to produce gems of maximum carat weight. These are used in designer jewelry.
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