How can I learn more about rocks?

[indigo_rose99]

I have been polishing rocks I have found on our land for a few months now. I have learned a lot about polishing rocks. Here are some of the less obvious lessons.

•  Make sure there enough space in the rock polisher. Occasionally pick up the canister and shake it. It should sound like a glass of iced tea. Rocks that can't move do not become polished.
• Try to put rocks of similar hardness together. This one is tough. I usually do not have enough rocks of the exact same color and lines to fill up a rock canister. And I have no clue how hard most of the rocks are. So I end up just putting rocks together and hoping for the best.
• There are 4 steps in polishing rocks. Do steps 1-3 for 7 days apiece. Do step 4 for 10 days.

What will the rocks look like when they are done?



Some I can guess. I have enough of these dark red-orange rocks to say that the rocks on the right will polish up to look dark and shiny like the rocks on the left.

But what about the rest of the unpolished rocks? They can look like.... many things. Here are a bunch of small rocks after going through all four steps of polishing.



I cannot connect the unpolished rocks to these small polished ones. Ok, yes, I can pick out the quartz, but the rest... ???

I've been searching for a book. Something like "Rocks of Central Texas." I want to be able to answer these two questions:

1. Which rocks have similar hardness so I can put them in the same canister?
2. How can I recognize the unpolished version of rocks for what they will look like when polished?

The books I find when searching want to tell me about the geology of Texas. Or when the rocks were formed. Or their gravity. Bleh. Blurb descriptions might be underselling the practical value of these books, but I have this sinking feeling that my questions will not be answered by them. 

Comments

[reedrover]

https://rocktumbler.com/book.shtml - chapter 6?

[indigo_rose99]

Intriguing....

[livingdeb]

Sorry, I know nothing. The first point makes me think of making popcorn on the stove. Keep shaking it so the unpopped kernels fall back to the bottom of the pan where it's nice and hot.

The last rock identification expert I met worked at the diamond-searching park in Arkansas. (They had mostly jasper.) There is at least one rock shop in town. Good luck!