Need A Piece Of Raw Amber Polished

[sweeneyb]

I found a piece of amber a while back when I went to visit my grandma down in Ocala, Fl. I was wondering if anyone had the resources to polish this piece of amber or knows of an easy way?

Edited November 29, 2009 by sweeneyb

[Bear]

To polish rough amber, you start with coarse sandpaper, like 80 - 120 grit to get the general shape. Once you have done that and like the way it is shaped, you go through progressively finer sandpapers. I use 220, then 400, then 600 wet - or dry. I go wet with water.

After you have got it real smooth (professionals call it "pre - polished")with the 600 paper, you use a muslin buff on a rotary shaft tool with a bit of jewelers Tripoli for the polish. Do not go too fast or you will scorch it. Finish with a good paste wax and hand buff with a soft cotton cloth.

After you have done all of this, your rough amber will be polished amber, if it is indeed amber. If it dissolves easily in alcohol it is copal resin instead of amber. Let me know if you need any further assistance on this.

Always wear eye protection, do not breathe the dust. If you make a lot of dust, wear a face filter mask.

[Iskandar]

Can I see the amber from please? Where is the place were found. Florida beach? Each amber or copal have different properties of polishing. Like the amber from North Carolina which is difficult to achieve mirror polished and the New Jersey Amber which is very easy to polished.