Lake Superior Agates

[Rick G]

Nice color on those little gem's I like the tight banding on the third from the top.

[Connan]

thanks, yeah that one has some really tight bands... here is a nice whole nodule I found today. It has just a bit of banding. Not sure if I should cut it or preserve the mystery.

[DARK30]

Nice rock connan. To cut or not to cut...hmmmmmm.

Heres another stash of recent ones..

[Connan]

Nice! Some really beauties there! good hunting... I found a half pounder in the rain today. Don't know if i'd call it an eye agate, but I like the round blue spots.

[TonkaBass]

Thats a cool rock!

[Rick G]

Nice pile D30 Connan, that is an odd looking one, I dont think I have ever seen anything like it.

[DARK30]

Some Easter Agate Action...

[HotPocket]

Nice!

[Rick G]

Nice finds D30. I have a few 5gal pails full of aggies, you must have a few 55gal drums full by now

[DARK30]

I got a few...not all of them are good ones tho. Those good lines are hard to come by.

[Connan]

[chirp]

What do you guys use to polish them with?

[Connan]

I like my Agates natural and prefer to keep most all of them that way. But the few that do get polished are done either by tumbling the whole stone with other agates and a polishing grit, or by face polishing and/or cutting with a grinding and polishing wheel with progressively finer grits

[chirp]

They look great both ways. I'll be looking for them next time I,m up there. Always new they were there just didn't know what they looked like unpolished. Thanks for the pic's.

[gooty]

[gooty]

Dark: That muriatic Acid is mean stuff...whew, lucky to make it out of that one alive! Where the hell do you store that stuff? Its scary!

Also, how do you guys take such great photos of your agates? Tips would be greatly appreciated!

[DARK30]

Ya, those fumes are not good. Be careful and read the warning label. I start out with a quarter bucket of water and add acid until the rocks start to bubble a little (not much). I use a smaller bucket with holes in it to put the rocks in. Soak um for awhile and then dip the smaller one in clean water a few times to rinse. Keep a lid on the acid bucket and label it.

The agates look much better when wet or oiled. Sunlight either morning or evening is the best light for photos. I also use a high intensity desk light and put the agates in a bowl of water. Its hard to get a good angle without a reflection tho.

[Connan]

Yeah that Acid is great for cleaning alloy car wheels as well. It melts stubborn brake dust away like crazy... here is a nice 12 Oz whole nodule found today. Just a tiny bit of banding showing

[Rick G]

Nice one connan Makes me wonder if it's full of quartz or if it's full of white/dark bands on the inside, guess we will never know

[TonkaBass]

NICE!

[DARK30]

Theres somethin in there!

[klee]

Where should one start looking if they want to find agates in duluth? Do you just walk along the shore and sort through them? Are they in the water or edges? How can you tell it's an agate?

[Connan]

Duluth is kinda a tourist spot for agates so everyone searches the beaches for agates. Not to say you wont find them along the beach but they are rare and usually pretty small. The best time is first thing in the morning after a stormy wavy night. Otherwise you can try the rivers around Duluth; search for a ones with lots of rocks and gravel banks. You could also try to get into some gravel pits. South of Duluth in Moose lake there are pits open to the public with a permit. Also just hike around in the woods and try to find gravel outcroppings... How to tell it an agate? Just look through some pages of this thread and pay attention to what the outside looks like. If you see a good one you will know instantly, but others can only have the outer husky showing with dirt on it so spotting them is tricky....

Here are some recent finds from yesterday.

[TonkaBass]

Way to go connan! Putting the smackdown on them!

[chirp]

Nice finds