I am new to lapidary in every way. I have searched ebay for saws, grinders, polishers and the like, but they are all at the $100.00 dollar mark and above. Even the beginners kits are expensive. Can anyone give me some advise as to how a newbie can get started in this? Thanks.
You should take a look at Richardsons Rock Ranch(just google that to get it.) They make some stuff and are dealers for lapidary machinery.But to answer your question.....Ain't nothing cheap about lapidary.Sometimes you can get lucky on a bid,so keep trying.Alot of the expense is the elecric motors.
I joined a local rock club and now i have three saws three flat laps, tumblers, lots of equipment. Members upgrade and are willing to sell to other members very resonable.
Hi, I am new to lapidary also. I was doing searches on ebay for equipment and came across an all in one machine. It has the trim saw, grinder and flat laps. It is made by a company named Inland Lapidary out of Michigan, however, I bought my machine off of ebay. It is called an All-in-Wonder. I bought mine from ebay ID completeauctionservices and paid $349.00 for it with only $10.00 s/h and that price is actually less expensive than the manufacturer is getting for it. I am disabled and decided to take up a hobby that I would enjoy and could maybe make a few dollars extra doing. Good luck.
Recommend you find your local rockhound 'gem & mineral' club. There are always members who own equipment they no longer use and members who have died. You can get equipment for 25-50 cents on the dollar compared to new pricing.
Many clubs have classes where you can learn how to use the equipment, get the advice of experienced lapidarists and begin to form your opinion about how interested you are in making the hardware investment. You might decide to get different brands, quality or price ranges of equipment after you have a little experience.
Formal classes in lapidary arts are more rare. The best (and cheapest) school is the William Holland School in North Georgia. People come there from all across America every summer. Classes, equipment, meals and lodging is only a few hundred dollars for a week of education. I learned to facet gemstones at William Holland.
Not sure how into this you are I just bought my 9 year old her first rock tumbler at hobby lobby and I know they also have drillers and stuff to go with them. This might be something to get you started and make sure you want to do this. The tumbeler here was $30.00 and the driller was around $20.00. Not sure if this helps. Thanks
Thanks MGraham93. I bought a Lortone 3lb double barrel tumbler here on e-bay and just received my 6" saw four days ago, also on e-bay. Patients and a watchful eye will catch the deals.
Back in the day, all lapidary tools were handmade and alot of them are still around. You can make alot of stuff yourself fairly cheaply. Keep your eye on craigslist and your local club for deals.
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