Colorado Calcite |
Colorado Calcite |
Dec 21 2015, 06:51 PM
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#1
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Rock Bar! Group: Members Posts: 898 Joined: 9-January 14 From: Denver, CO Member No.: 116,265 |
Here are some pictures of the Calcite finds that Dave and I found this last weekend in southeast Colorado.
Unknown mineral found in a Calcite vein. It it very fragile and made of tiny red cubes. Our best guess is Hematite after Pyrite. -------------------- |
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Dec 21 2015, 09:52 PM
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#2
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Master Mucker! Group: Members Posts: 2,430 Joined: 6-June 13 From: Falcon, CO Member No.: 82,915 |
Love it! I finally hit a big pocket and got a few nice big pieces, but had to leave a few behind... made 2 trips to the truck and was too pooped to make a 3rd run in the dark. That is an amazing spot... wish it wasn't 3 hours away, I'd go back there in a heart beat!
Here is a pic of the little shell fossil plate I got (there are a LOT more of these!) -------------------- Find Colorado Prospector on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/170314493176558
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Dec 21 2015, 10:04 PM
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#3
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Master Mucker! Group: Members Posts: 2,430 Joined: 6-June 13 From: Falcon, CO Member No.: 82,915 |
Here are a few pics of the stuff that was left behind! I did take a couple of y'all's sloppy seconds in my first trip back to the truck, before I hit my pocket.
-------------------- Find Colorado Prospector on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/170314493176558
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Dec 21 2015, 11:51 PM
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#4
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Shovel Buster! Group: Members Posts: 55 Joined: 9-October 15 From: Southern Colorado Member No.: 121,789 |
Awesome finds! I have a few pieces like the white one but not the little cubes. There are pretty clean so looks like just soap and water will do nicely but if you needed to clean them more would you use SIO for any of that? Some of them have that pyrite/hematite and that could get damaged with SIO and you cannot use acid since it will eat the Calcite, right? What do you do for more vigorous cleaning to make em look really nice?
-------------------- "Life's hard. It's harder if you're stupid." "Most opportunity is right before your eyes, you just haven't yet learned how to see it." <Annual Member> |
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Dec 22 2015, 12:53 PM
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#5
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Master Mucker! Group: Members Posts: 2,430 Joined: 6-June 13 From: Falcon, CO Member No.: 82,915 |
Just weighed my pack with my second load in it... 70 pound... plus a bucket with these 2 pieces weighing 46 pounds and a few smaller pieces. I could have done a little surgery and pared them down a bit, but it was dark already and having them still attached to a large chunk of matrix is pretty cool.
Washing them up now with a little soap and water. -------------------- Find Colorado Prospector on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/170314493176558
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Dec 22 2015, 01:10 PM
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#6
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Moderator Group: Members Posts: 4,459 Joined: 25-August 09 From: way on up thar Member No.: 6,983 |
Pretty amazing find you guys, great looking stuff!!
-------------------- /l ,[____], l---L-OlllllllO- ()_) ()_)--o-)_) BLACK SANDS MATTER! Very Happy CP Lifetime Member CP CORE TEAM Referral Code CE213 |
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Dec 22 2015, 02:13 PM
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#7
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Master Mucker! Group: Admin Posts: 7,188 Joined: 7-October 03 From: Colorado Member No.: 4 |
Love the pictures! Definitely some fantastic finds guys!!!
-------------------- Education is the key to the future,
and participation opens the door to opportunity. Discover your prospecting independence & success! ColoradoProspector.com Owner/Webmaster Core team member ♥ |
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Dec 22 2015, 08:12 PM
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#8
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Master Mucker! Group: Members Posts: 2,430 Joined: 6-June 13 From: Falcon, CO Member No.: 82,915 |
Had some macro fun with my finds today... here's a teaser!
THis is a piece I adopted from M&D's discard pile, with the nail head crystals -------------------- Find Colorado Prospector on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/170314493176558
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Dec 22 2015, 08:16 PM
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#9
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Master Mucker! Group: Members Posts: 2,430 Joined: 6-June 13 From: Falcon, CO Member No.: 82,915 |
-------------------- Find Colorado Prospector on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/170314493176558
CP Lifetime Member |
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Dec 22 2015, 11:26 PM
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#10
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Rock Bar! Group: Members Posts: 898 Joined: 9-January 14 From: Denver, CO Member No.: 116,265 |
Awesome finds! I have a few pieces like the white one but not the little cubes. There are pretty clean so looks like just soap and water will do nicely but if you needed to clean them more would you use SIO for any of that? Some of them have that pyrite/hematite and that could get damaged with SIO and you cannot use acid since it will eat the Calcite, right? What do you do for more vigorous cleaning to make em look really nice? Calcite is a carbonate and will not bode well with acids. Soapy water, textile gun or ultrasonic cleaners seem to be effective. -------------------- |
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Dec 23 2015, 12:33 PM
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#11
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Shovel Buster! Group: Members Posts: 55 Joined: 9-October 15 From: Southern Colorado Member No.: 121,789 |
Thanks Mike. Great pictures you guys.
You made me jealous to miss the trip so I went outside of Pueblo Reservoir and collected a good amount of calcite out of about 4 nodules. Two of them were about 2' in diameter and 2 were over 5' in diameter and then I collected some random pieces from some nodules that rolled out of the side of the hill and broke up on the way down. All in all I gave myself back problems but I didnt pick up anything near as good as the ones you guys brought back. That's high quality. -------------------- "Life's hard. It's harder if you're stupid." "Most opportunity is right before your eyes, you just haven't yet learned how to see it." <Annual Member> |
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Dec 23 2015, 12:43 PM
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#12
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Moderator Group: Members Posts: 4,459 Joined: 25-August 09 From: way on up thar Member No.: 6,983 |
Excellent macro shots Crusty! You should submit one of those for the monthly homepage.
-------------------- /l ,[____], l---L-OlllllllO- ()_) ()_)--o-)_) BLACK SANDS MATTER! Very Happy CP Lifetime Member CP CORE TEAM Referral Code CE213 |
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Jan 5 2016, 01:15 AM
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#13
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Rock Bar! Group: Members Posts: 898 Joined: 9-January 14 From: Denver, CO Member No.: 116,265 |
I didn't get many still shots this last trip but I did get an hour of video. I chopped it down to 14 min. Starting with Nate's large Calcite crystal and Jason's Selenite crytsals. Then I show myself opening my birthday present. Most of my birthday was spent picking at nodules that were already picked at and unproductive. After dark I pulled out the headlamp and noticed some shiny crystals that were not calcite and realized they were selenite crystals. I forgot about the nodules and started digging to find the source of selenite which led me right to an untapped nodule. It took all night and next day to dig it out of the hard clay just in time to crack it open.
Calcite and Selenite crystals in Septarian Nodules -------------------- |
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Jan 5 2016, 06:21 AM
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#14
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Master Mucker! Group: Members Posts: 2,430 Joined: 6-June 13 From: Falcon, CO Member No.: 82,915 |
Dude, how could you be so calm when you cracked open that amazing pocket? I'd have been hollering like a crazy man!
Headed back to this location this morning to rockhound for a few more days. Thanks for putting together the awesome video; really shows off the diversity of what we're finding there! And HUGE thanks for doing the research, prospecting the site, and inviting fellow members of the Colorado Prospector Club to dig with you at the location!! -------------------- Find Colorado Prospector on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/170314493176558
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Jan 5 2016, 11:57 AM
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#15
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Rock Bar! Group: Members Posts: 875 Joined: 25-July 14 From: Westminster, CO Member No.: 117,949 |
Really cool guys; thanks for sharing!
-------------------- Lifetime Member
opera non verba "All courses of action are risky, so prudence is not in avoiding danger (it's impossible), but calculating risk and acting decisively. Make mistakes of ambition and not mistakes of sloth. Develop the strength to do bold things, not the strength to suffer." ~Niccolò Machiavelli Ref Code: EM448 |
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