[Jewelry making - Article 00274] - Re: [Orchid] Restoring finish to opal

[Derek]

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    As word of caution that has not yet been mentioned on polishing opal
    I've cut thousands of them and teach opal cutting. Before you go any
    further you need to find out about the age of the opal. If the
    customer has had this ring for a long time or it's an heirloom,
    polishing it could be rather dangerous. Opal can get unstable when
    it's been cut for more than about 20 years. It will not generally
    crack spontaneously, but polishing it will change the tensions in the
    stone and it might bring on crazing. Trust me, you don't want to be
    responsible for replacing a stone because it's extremely difficult to
    match and can be quite expensive. 

    I'd first find out how old this ring is and if it's old at all
    decline the operation unless the customer understands the risks. In
    that case make sure whatever you do you do let this stone heat up at
    all. Again if it's been cut for even over 10 years the stability with
    polishing could be suspect. 

Derek Levin

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