Post subject: how do you heat treat tiger eye to make it red?
Posted: Mon Jan 11, 2016 3:12 pm
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Joined: Tue Jul 02, 2013 9:00 am Posts: 1322 Location: Wylie Texas but in Alaska for a while
In another thread someone mentioned that you can take gold tiger eye and make it red with a heat treatment. I have some gold that I would like to try it on. I have a computer controlled burn out furnace. Can anyone give me some guidelines on the ramps, temps and other parameters. (do I need a reducing or reactive atmosphere?)
I believe it's similar to heating agates to turn yellow to red, and works by essentially the same mechanism. So probably around 200c in oxidizing conditions if I recall correctly. I've never tried it myself.
About 40 years ago I heated a golden tiger eye to red. I put it on my mom's range (the old coil type) and slowly raised the temperature until the stone turned red. As I recall I had roughed out the cab and then heated it. I’m not sure how deep the color runs.
Post subject: Re: how do you heat treat tiger eye to make it red?
Posted: Mon Jan 11, 2016 10:51 pm
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Joined: Mon May 26, 2014 9:42 pm Posts: 1033
I have not tried it, but was told (years ago) to bury it in sand and put it in the oven at around 400 degrees for a few hours. The sand was to help it warm up slowly.
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