can you tell the difference between lab grown and a naturally formed quartz crystals? How? what are some things to look for?
I would recommend a gem mineral show; there are always many dealers at these shows and many of them have all types of crystals. You can also find them in the area around Hot Springs, Arkansas, where some of the world's finest quartz crystals occur. There are many mines around there where you can hunt your own for a nominal fee. If you want to buy one, they cost anywhere from a dollar to several hundred depending on size, clarity, and freedom from flaws. You can get some nice hand specimens for a few dollars. I hunt my own and have several boxes from the Hot Springs - Mount Ida area in Arkansas.
The alternative, but 100% accurate, answer it's an electronic part made of quartz (sand) depending on the physical dimensions it has resonance at a certain frequency in a watch it would be 32.768 KHz divide by 2 fifteen times to get 1Hz you can get crystals at much higher frequencies, several Megahertz The easiest way to get one is from an old digital watch But some use resonators (SAW devices) Cost is negligible (pence) , but you will pay considerably more for 1 and post and packing (min order 5 pounds) a low frequency crystal will be in a glass tube ...which makes it easy to see (watches will have a small metal tube with two wires emerging from one end) any radio or electronic shops near you or perhaps now you don't want one lol (you'd need an oscilloscope to see it working)
I don't know where you live, but start with the yellow pages. Look for Rock Shops, Spiritual Shops, Gem and Mineral Shows, Geology outlets, even Head Shops and Nature Stores or Museums will have Quartz for sale. Happy Hunting.
quartz crystals??? i have loads at home, some are relativly cheap. i dont know where you live but im from uk and i payed about ?3 which aint much. your best place for them are from museums (they sell alot of them) some high street shops sell them you just have to look in the right ones, oh and some market stalls sell them, you can get these quartz in different colours= white (milky quartz), pink (rose quartz), yellow (citrine) and there is also purple (amethyst), this colour is mainly from iron. hope you find one.
