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DLC GEMS Fire Agate Carving Tutorial

9/19/2014

17 Comments

 

How I carve Fire Agate #dlcgems #fireagate

Picture
Deer Creek Fire agate carved by Don Christensen.

Carving a fire agate allows you to work material that would otherwise be ruined by the cabbing process. Fire agate forms in bytrodial layers and rarely conform to shapes that work well for cabs. The only way to remove all of the dark chalcedony from the fire agate layers without cutting into the fire is through the carving process.

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Tools & Equipment for Carving


  • A flex shaft tool such as a Dremel with flex shaft attachment
  • or a Foredom. I use a Foredom TX.
  • Diamond burs in various shapes, sizes and grits.
  • Diamond paste in grits 325 – 100,000
  • Stiff bristle brushes on a mandrel
  • ¼” Felt wheels on a mandrel
  • 1/8” hard wood dowel from the craft store
Picture
Start with your piece of rough fire agate. If the fire agate has a thick cap of chalcedony on it you’ll want to carefully trim and/or grind it
off as much as possible, being careful not to cut into the fire layers.

Here, I have a small piece of rough that I tumbled for a couple days in 69/90 grit to clean it up.

Picture
Using your flex shaft and coarse diamond bits, grind away the remaining chalcedony to expose the fire layers. Be sure to keep the stone and the diamond bits wet, and keep the pressure light…you’ll just wear out your equipment faster if you try to speed up the cutting by pressing too hard.

If possible leave a thin layer of chalcedony just above the fire layers and then switch to your fine grit diamond bits to remove the rest of the chalcedony, being very careful not to grind into the fire.

In the picture you can see that I’m following the contour of the fire agate layers; carefully exposing the fire but without grinding into the fire itself. The fire layers are extremely thin, so if you hit them you’re likely to grind the color to dust
.

Picture
Continue carving until you have exposed as much color as possible following the contour of the fire layer. 

In this picture you can see the nodules of color being exposed and the dark brown chalcedony removed. The green, yellow and orange color layers didn't go very far in this piece, however there are lots of nice nodules of bronze fire. on the left hand section, you can see a mistake I made, carving too deep and into the color nodules in my attempt to find better colors. This is a pitfall that many carvers fall into. You can see this more clearly as this piece progresses.  Learning to know when to stop cutting is a valuable lesson.

Picture
When you have completed carving out the color with the diamond bits, the next step is to smooth out your carving by removing the cut marks left by the coarse diamond and preparing the stone for polishing. This step can take several hours.

I begin with 325 grit diamond paste working it over the stone with small burs I make out of the 1/8”  hardwood dowels. The picture on the left shows the stone after several hours of working out the cut marks with the diamond paste. To make a bur from the dowel, cut off a 1” length, chuck it up in your hand grip and then file a point on one end using a file.

Picture
At this point you can switch over to your stiff bristle brushes and work 600 grit diamond paste over the stone until the 325 grit’s scratch marks are gone.

Use a new brush for each grit, and wash the stone and your hands between grits with soap and warm water to prevent cross contamination. If you find a stubborn spot or hard to reach area use a wooden bit
with a point shaped to work the area.

Picture
Here's the carving after polishing with 1200 grit diamond paste.  Sometimes  ensuring that you've covered the entire stone after each grit can be difficult, so I use a cover coat as a guide on hard stones with fire agate with no fractures.  Black sharpie marker in this case is a great cover coat. When the black cover coat is gone, I know that I've covered the entire stone and can move on.

Picture
The fire agate is now polished to 3000 grit diamond. At 3000 the colors start to really show off and shine but don't stop here; your fire agate carving deserves the best polish possible.

Picture
Fire agate polished to 8000 grit.

Picture
Fire agate polished to 14,000 grit.

Picture
Fire agate polished to 50,000 grit.

Once your carving has achieved this level of polish, you have a couple of final finishing options.  For instance, you could polish to 100,000 for ultimate shine. Some carvers like to put a final oxide polish using Titanium Oxide, or a very high grade Cerium Oxide, while others will use M-5, or a mix of polishing compounds.

If you decide to use a final polishing compound, a felt disk on a mandrel can be used to work the compound over the stone. Be careful not to let the stone get too hot while doing so, or else you'll risk damaging the stone and ruining the finish. Use a file to put an edge on the disk to get into the tight spaces of the carving. felt points are useful as well.


I hope you have enjoyed my fire agate carving tutorial, please leave a comment here or on Facebook and let me know your thoughts.  Every fire agate carver seems to have their own techniques and equipment preferences, and I would be curious to hear about yours.

The information and pictures presented here are the intellectual property of Don Christensen and DLC GEMS LLC.  Do not  publish elsewhere without express written consent.

@2014


17 Comments
Dave
9/19/2014 08:40:31 am

Nice job very informative!

Reply
Don link
9/25/2014 02:31:44 am

Thanks Dave!

Reply
Avis Quinn
9/23/2014 08:42:48 pm

awesome. Thanks for the tutorial!

Reply
Don link
9/24/2014 01:35:23 pm

Glad you liked it, hope you found it informative. I'll be posting another article on fire agate carving soon.

Reply
Tom (connrock) link
10/27/2014 10:35:54 pm

I always wondered how this was done and I can now see that it is a long/difficult process.
Thanks for taking the time to do this tutorial,,,it's a HUGE help!
Tom

Reply
Don link
10/28/2014 07:08:48 am

Thank you Tom, glad you enjoyed the tutorial.

Reply
Agate The Christie
11/3/2014 11:56:44 am

Wow, I did not expect that brown/red turd to turn into that. I have a question. Ive searched agates for a while and Ive seen different grades etc. But this guy I know can get a ridiculous polish on a stone, as in he buys other peoples stones and somehow high polishes them so they let even more light in/out. I heard about 10,000 and cesium powder, even heard some people use plain leather to polish them. I wasnt even aware of the 50,000 or 100,000...

All I know is this guys polish is by far the finest Ive seen and he told me very little, other than "I found out by accident after 30 years of cutting stone." and he wont reveal it. Even my lap guy who said its probably this or that still admired the stone once in front of him. I had an idea he "accidentally" found out by leaving something in a tumbler too long by accident, but maybe im off base? Maybe a slurry of the softer agate that rubs off first?
Also, to polish something do you typically use something harder than the agate or softer?
Before I forget, Holy Hell nice write-up man. Thanks

Reply
Don link
11/4/2014 01:10:03 am

Thank you Christie, I''m glad you enjoyed the fire agate carving tutorial!

Regarding polishing; in my experience the technique used varies from stone to stone depending on the nature of the stone and how it reacts to various methods. Take wonderstone for example, It's a rhyolite that usually doesn't polish to a high degree of shine, but can respond beautifully to a polishing compound called "holy cow" on a leather buff and whetted with a mist of vinegar. Or how about stabilized turquoise which takes a beautiful shine with a metal polish called "Zam" and buffed on a muslin wheel.

Beyond specific compounds, technique has a lot say on how a stone polishes as well. A perfect pre-polish goes a long way to producing that final liquid shine; there can be no scratches from coarser grits left in the stone surface before polishing, or else they will show and detract. In my carving work, I take the stone to as high a pre-polish as possible by polishing through 12 progressive grits of diamond compound before finishing with 100,000 grit. My carving mentor will even take the 100K polished stone one step further with a special grade of cerium oxide that he insists takes the shine one step further. He's also very fond of a product called "M-5" which he uses as a final polish.

Then there's the subtle drag technique where you apply polishing compound such as tin oxide or cerium oxide as a paste to a polishing pad (typically leather) lightly mist the surface of the pad with water and drag the surface of the stone across the pad building up enough friction to dry the polish compound and generate a bit of heat. This is a technique that's all about experience, because too much heat and friction will crack the stone, but I've put beautiful mirror polishes on stones with this technique. (I've also ruined several).

Tumble polishing is certainly an option; many use a vibe tumbler to put the final polish on their stones. The stones will be pre-polished first and then vibe tumbled with lots of cushion and a fine grit compound for example 1000 grit and let tumble for days - weeks. the 1000 grit will break down finer and finer resulting in a very nice shine indeed if you are willing to wait that long.

Anyway, I hope this helps you a little in your quest to discovering how your friend shines his stones; I hope one day he will be willing to share his knowledge with you.


Reply
sean
11/10/2014 03:24:40 am

Thank you. Sweet tutorial, been sitting on pieces of Slt. Mtn..waiting for my cabbing or carving class to begin..think I'll get some tools and polishing compounds instead of wait!

Reply
Don link
11/10/2014 06:12:43 am

You are very welcome, Sean. All you need to get started is a flex shaft rotary tool, some hard diamond bits, and diamond pastes for polishing. Go slow and look often and you'll do fine!

Reply
Liz
3/5/2015 05:51:54 am

Thank you for this tutorial! I know it is a bit old now, but I have just discovered it, and I've found it to be incredibly informative. Being 23 and a budding jeweler, cutting fire agate by hand has been a hobby of mine, but I struggled until now to find out a good way to polish them.
I can't tell you how much this helped!

Reply
danny
9/22/2015 01:39:47 pm

thank you for the tutorial on fire agate . i found it very interesting .i've seen it tumbled but only carved on the internet and i was wondering how they carve it . i live on the east coast and dont see much of thisin the rough .again thanks million .

Reply
Mike
1/2/2016 02:06:52 pm

Thank you Don. My only experience with fire agate was when I lived in Oregon 30 years ago. I was in awe, these were the bumpy stones with lots of deep blue & purple, and of course the reds, etc.. forget diamonds, I fell in love with fire agate. Thank you for all the very detailed information, you obviously have a passion for these also. When I decide to get into something, I go all the way. I won't buy anything over $40.00 without reading reviews. I'll look into this now that I'm in my early 50's and settled down enough for the patience to polish with so many steps and bit changes. Great work and kudos for such a well laid out site Don.
God bless you, I'll be posting my progress, when I make any.

Reply
Mike Sturma
2/11/2016 12:42:35 am

Thank you for a very informative tutorial. In the Facebook group Fire Agate fans people are always asking how to work these wonderful stones.
You have done a great job presenting this tutorial. I'm sure that it will help a lot of people.

Reply
fatcha brute
6/15/2019 09:42:16 pm

Don, my dog makes thoes every day , but he doesn't polish them , could you explain how he could polish them.

The one that you chose to " CARVE" you should put it in your driveway or in your aquarium. Its not gem anything itsw brown junk, how can you possibly be proud of something like the stones you publish as gemstones.

Reply
KJW
10/12/2019 11:29:37 pm

FATCHA BRUTE

You are a moron. You obviously know nothing about what you are talking about so for God's sakes please do yourself a favor be quiet.

Reply
TS Massage Missouri link
2/4/2021 09:21:24 pm

Thank you for sharing thiis

Reply



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  • Shop
    • Shop on Etsy
  • Portfolio
    • Cuffs and Bracelets
    • Earrings
    • Necklaces and Pendants
    • Rings
    • Special Objects
    • Gem Carvings, Fire Agates and Other Unique Items
    • Wire Wrapped Jewelry
  • Event Schedule
  • About/Contact
  • Blog
    • Math and Mandrels
    • Seven Stars for Seven Daughters
    • A Tale of Two Stones
    • Autumn Leaves In Copper
    • Custom Jewelry for Metal Allergies
    • Forging a Fold Form Leaf Necklace
    • How I carve Fire Agate
  • Jeweler's Reference Charts
    • Bracelet and Bangle Sizing Guide
    • Cuff Sizing Chart
    • Gauge Size Chart
    • Ring Blank Size Chart
    • Unit Weights of Brass and Copper
    • Wire Gauge Chart
    • Material Safety Data Sheets MSDS