April 2021 Meeting Minutes
Minutes of the Meeting of Shenandoah Valley Gem and Mineral Society
Meeting date: April 12. 2021
Intro:
This was a virtual meeting held via Zoom conference. Eleven members joined in our ZOOM meeting and had a great time visiting with each other.
Old Business:
None.
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New Business:
None.
Program Report:
Mike Papst showed us some minerals he had ordered online. They were from North Star Mine, Mammoth, Juab Co, UT and the Eureka Mine, UT.
“Eurekadumpite” (in Greek – I have found it- dump) which were beautiful light blue balls. Tony Nikischer (a club member) was the last author to publish an article about it. Here is the link to photos and info:
https://www.mindat.org/min-39785.html
“Quetzaalcoatlite” (named for the Aztec god - the Plumed Serpent) This was also a light blue with spikes. This is so small it was very hard to describe and a synchrotron (using high-energy photons) was used in IL to study the crystal patterns. Go to this site to see photos:
https://www.mindat.org/min-3343.html
Jack Glenn entertained us with a slide show called “Good Vibrations” about the use of an oscillating flat lap.
He went through the process and gave a few pointers he learned from his experiences:
- Use 4 or less pieces in the pan
- Weights need to cover the entire piece to avoid ‘holidays’ on the edges
- Use pieces of PVC pipe as dividers to keep materials from colliding with each other
- Blue-package plumber’s putty is better than red-packaged plumber’s putty for keeping weights on top of materials in process
- Patience, patience is a must! Depending on the process/type of material it may take from 3-4 hours or 8-24 hours of activity per stage to accomplish the needed degree of smoothness prior to proceeding to the next stage
- Cleaning carefully between each stage (180 - 220 - 400 - 600 mesh grits), pre-polishing (1200 mesh grit) and polishing with Mighty-X (0.3 corundum-based polish) produces a quality product
He showed photos of many pieces he had polished, which included various types of jasper, blue quartz, tiger-eye, mtorolite, Picasso marble, pietersite, reef amethyst, sodalite, & unakite were some that we saw.
Next meeting:
Monthly club meetings are suspended due to the current restrictions on gatherings and non-essential activities. Once these restrictions are lifted, we will resume our meeting schedule.
NOTE: In 2020 and going forward until further notice, we will be starting our meetings at 7:00 pm so we can be finished by 8:30 by request of the library staff. (We will do our usual show and tell after any programs we may have.)
FYI - If Waynesboro City Schools are closed on a meeting day, our meeting will be canceled. The club secretary will try to send out an email ASAP that day, and an announcement will be posted on the club’s Facebook page and web site.
Thanks for your understanding; we want everyone to be safe!
Field Trips: NOTE: All previously announced field trips have been canceled due to the restrictions on travel and non-essential activities. Please do not go to the sites on your own that were sent out.
Doing so may prevent the club from visiting a particular area. Trips must be organized by the club.The club secretary will send information about scheduled/rescheduled trips once they are again feasible.
Looking ahead:
Our next virtual meeting will be Monday May 10, 2021 - see emails from the club secretary for meeting information
Our featured speaker will be Scott Braley, a mineral collector, photographer, and health physicist.
Scott has beautiful pictures of uranium and thorium minerals, which are some of the most colorful of all minerals.
Scott has helped me to improve my mineral photography, and we exchange photos and encouragement.
He can also answer any questions about the safety of radioactive minerals.
So, to see a beautiful presentation, just click on the link below next Monday at 7
See you then,
Michael Pabst, President of SVGMS
After pandemic restrictions are lifted, the lapidary shop will be open the Saturday following a regular meeting and on the second Saturday after that (See Events At A Glance for a calendar view). Leo, Charlie & Jack can assist you. Open from 9 am to noon.
There are several slab saws and trim saws. Keep in mind that safety is a priority, and wear closed toe shoes, safety glasses, with no loose hair or long sleeves. Children must be supervised and closely monitored to insure they are safely using the equipment. Check this page to see what you can learn to do!
If you’d like to present a program, please talk to an officer at a meeting.
Be sure to keep up with our website www.shenandoahvalleyrockclub.org and our Facebook page Shenandoah Valley Gem and Mineral Society for updates and information.
Deborah Grimm, Secretary
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Club Officers and Staff 2016-2021
President – Michael Pabst
Vice President – Leo Cloutier
Show Co-Chairs – Dean Hostetter/Scott Gregory
Educational Outreach -- Deborah Grimm
Secretary/Newsletter -- Deborah Grimm
Field Trip Coordinators - Scott Steele
Co-Treasurers – Scott Gregory/Deborah Grimm
Web Site Coordinator – Jack Glenn
Club web site: shenandoahvalleyrockclub.org
Club Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ShenandoahValleyGemMineralSociety
Club email: svgem-min-club@live.com