rainbow obsidian

[jeffp51]

So as not to hijack a thread, I have a question.  In a previous post there was talk of color in rainbow obsidian, and working with the grain or stripes.  My brother recently gave me two 5-gallon buckets of obsidian that he said came from the rainbow mine in California.  Now I am wondering if it has the potential for color in it.  Where does rainbow obsidian come from, normally and how can I tell if I have it? The stuff I work comes out gray and translucent--most obsidian I have seen in the past is pitch black with maybe red streaks or snowflake inclusions in it.  How would you work rainbow obsidian to get the best color?

Just curious.

[Stringman]

You most likely have some rainbow in that bucket. It's hard to tell until you open it up and see what's inside, and it's also hard to determine the orientation. To make matters worse, using percussion to reduce your rock is not the most efficient way to get the color to pop. It seems the guys that saw it are much better at hitting the right angle and then getting the most out of each rock. So, as they say, it's better to be lucky than good. 

[Zuma]

I wish I could help. I have only been lucky to
have knapped a few small pieces. Be interested to see
what others have to say. I'm thinking diagonal
with the flow.
Zuma

[YosemiteBen]

from the previous post on Rainbow obs..... I will try to get some pics tomorrow to explain what I am talking about....

[JoJoDapyro]

You will know. I just got some from Tyke, it is mostly green, with a touch of blue and purple.

I'll text you some photos when I get to my truck at about 6 pm.

[PrimitiveTim]

If he got it from the mine that I was just at then most pieces will not have color in it.  The most important thing is to break it parallel with the stripes and do it in the sun.  When I was getting mine I broke open every piece and made sure there was a color and threw the gray pieces that had no color back.  Now some of the gray stuff will have color in it but I feel like it's the darker gray that has the best color.

[PeteDavis]

It is probably from the Davis Creek mine in NE California. There are a good number of commercial USFS claims there-and personal use is allowed by the agency but at a lower scale than by the miners. I get this stuff from Quinn Street. He sells under "Volcanic Trasures" on Ebay. There is no shortage of this material but, the better grades get slabbed and sold for higher prices or knapped out by the folks that have it. The colorful stuff usually starts at $5 per pound in the lower grades and goes up from there. Happy Knapping-PD

[caveman2533]

yes if you can spall it parallel to the stripes or nearly so. it will show the most color.

[Zuma]

Well Peter,
That rock has to be $5 plus
Zuma
Oh the flakin ain't to bad either

[PeteDavis]

No trick too cheap for the guitarist.

[jeffp51]

I just checked with my brother.  It was from the Davis Creek area in the Warner mountains. I will have to dig through and see if I get lucky--it won't be skill.

[Sparrow]

There is rainbow obsidian at glass buttes also  ' Frank