'thermalize'

["charles roemer" <sculptrock@zzzzzzzzzzz>]

Hi,

George has covered the subject of jet stick use very well.   I have one and
use it on granite when I want remove tool marks.

The jet stick uses a lot of propane and oxygen gas, it is noisy and scary to
use, and will make the granite hard to polish in the unworked areas.  It is
water cooled and when you use it you splash water on the granite to keep it
cool.  This creates steam which makes it hard to see what your doing.  Plus
you are contending with blowback of hot rock chips.  The whole exercise can
be very tense and offer entertainment and anxiety to your studio neighbors.

But--the results in a large piece are very unique and would be hard to
obtainwith a propane torch.

The stick works by heating up the quartz in the rock.  The crystals expand
and the when you cool it with water they pop off.  It won't work with rock
that does not have quartz.

I wonder how it would work with sandstone?  I have done some sandstone ?

Charlie Roemer   _(585-704-7863)

Stone Carving Studio