[meteorite-list] To polish or not to polish The Wisconsin Meteorite?

[Meteorites USA]

Hi Warren, List,

I think what Michael was saying is "ANY" sanding on this gorgeous 
brecciated meteorite destroys the brecciated aesthetics and makes the 
big beautiful white clasts all but disappear into the matrix. The 
breccia disappears and the whole sanded surface appears dull and 
unattractive (in my opinion). I too have sliced thousands of stone 
meteorite specimens and have noticed exactly what Michael described. 
Some meteorites, not all, dull very noticeably when sanded in the least 
little bit. It takes experience and a discerning eye to tell which ones 
won't dull and which should be sanded/polished. Polishing is completely 
different and only happens after much sanding. I've sanded hundreds of 
stones through all grits up to polish stage and noticed that most 
brecciated stones lose their "clear and sharp" brecciated edged on the 
first grit! The big clasts just seem to disappear in the dust.

I've tried wet sanding, dry sanding, rotary sanding, vibratory sanding, 
wheel sanding, hand sanding, and they all produce relatively the same 
results. On "very" brecciated stones with not much contrast between 
matrix and the clasts sanding usually dulls the look.

Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder. If you like them that way, 
then by all means, go for it, sand away! I personally won't be...

Regards,
Eric





On 5/15/2010 12:47 PM, Warren Sansoucie wrote:
> Hello List - Michael,
>
> I have to agree. I don't polish any stones. I prefer to lap them down to 3,000 grit and stop. You really do lose a lot of visual just for the sake of a shine when you polish. Plus some people seem to actually alter the look altogether when they overheat the polished face.
>
> That's just how I like it though, I'm sure others have different likes.
>
> Warren Sansoucie
>
>
> ----------------------------------------
>    
>> From: voyagebotanica at hotmail.com
>> To: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
>> Date: Sat, 15 May 2010 13:37:25 -0600
>> Subject: [meteorite-list] To polish or not to polish The Wisconsin Meteorite?
>>
>>
>> Hello,
>> I am starting to see specimens of The Wisconsin Meteorite appear on the market that have been polished. Although, people are free to do as they please, they should not feel obligated to polish these slices just because people expect a meteorite slice to be polished.
>> In the case of this new fall from Wisconsin it is in my opinion that the brecciation, clasts and internal features are best seen in unpolished slices. I have noticed the ones that have been on ebay and that are polished...they have a washed look to them and in some cases all the brecciation has been washed away.
>> It is a fantastic looking meteorite left in an unpolished state.
>> After years of cutting and polishing, I have noticed every meteorite has a place to stop at (when polishing) that works best and to proceed further just because you think you have to go through all the grits is just plain nonsense.
>> Anyway, I believe the Wisconsin specimens are best left unpolished. However, please feel free to prepare them anyway you see fit.
>> Best Wishes
>> Michael Cottingham
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