[Jewelry making - Article 00909] - Re: [Orchid] Re-finishing the surface of the opal

[Don Rogers]

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    Linda, the answer depends on the opal, and the bezel.  Generally,
    you will not be able to get a good polish near the bezel.  If the
    stone is set like an inlay, and you can remove some metal in the
    process of re-cutting and polishing the opal, then you have an easy
    task.  However, if removing any of the metal will damage the
    structure of the setting, then you must remove the stone before
    trying to polish it.  A check here is to lay a straight edge across
    the stone and the bezel.  If there is any light showing at the
    junction, you will have a re-polish problem, and the stone should be
    removed to re-polish it.  If you have a border that has a continuous
    surface between the opal and the metal, then you can sand out the
    scratches and then polish out the stone and the metal.  Sand out the
    scratches using a 600 grit wheel with a lot of water.  when the
    scratches are gone. then polish out the stone and the metal on a
    leather disk with Linde-A.  Keep it very wet and polish out the
    stone quickly.  After the stone is polished, the metal will need
    only a quick touch with rouge to finish it. 

    To remove the stone, a common jack knife is one of the best tools. 
    Work at the bezel and apply pressure away from the stone, IE pull
    the metal away, don't try to pry it away using the stone as a
    fulcrum.  Any pressure on the stone will fracture it.  A boulder or
    doublet is especially prone to damage here.  Once the bezel is
    pulled back, it is time to see if the stone was set in epoxy or
    other adhesive.  Also it is important at this point to determine if
    the stone is a boulder or a doublet.  If it is a boulder, a bath
    over night in MEK or Attack is in order to make sure there is no
    adhesive to inhibit the removal of the stone from the setting.  If
    you suspect that the stone is a doublet,  you have a problem.  The
    MEK or Attack will also attack the bond between the opal and the
    backing of the doublet.  If the surface of the stone is very flat,
    then it is most likely to be a doublet.  It it is very uneven, It is
    most likely to be a boulder solid.  It is the grey area that causes
    the problem. 

    In any case, once the opal is removed, the standard re-cut,
    re-polish techniques can be used.  Just be very careful when
    resetting the stone to have minimal polishing left to do near the
    stone or you could be back in a viscous loop of damaging the stone
    while polishing the metal and trying to correct the damage. 

    Don 
 

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