Polishing Rough Gems with Sanding

guide

Rough gems discovered deep underground require mechanical processing or surface sanding before they reach pristine, cut condition. Uncut stones mined from deep mineral deposits possess irregular surfaces that conceal their true luster, but applying sanders, sandpaper, or dedicated grinding stones restores them to full utility.

Mining Rough Stones and Mineral Shards

Breaking ore veins throughout deep stone layers yields uncut crystalline rough gems rather than finished minerals:

Mining redstone veins in deepslate or granite produces Rough Cinnabar or smaller Rough Cinnabar Shard fragments.
Diamond deposits embedded in deepslate, smooth basalt, or tuff drop unrefined Rough Diamond or Rough Diamond Shard pieces.
Emerald ore deposits hidden within mountain biomes yield Rough Emerald and Rough Emerald Shard fragments.
Lapis deposits in deepslate, sandstone, or tuff yield Rough Lazurite along with clusters of Rough Lazurite Shard.

Collecting nine matching shards allows you to assemble a whole rough stone on a crafting table. For example, nine Rough Diamond Shard items assemble into one Rough Diamond, while nine Rough Cinnabar Shard items craft into one Rough Cinnabar. Conversely, a full rough gem can be split back into nine individual shards if fine crafting components are needed.

Polishing with Sanding and Sandpaper

The most direct method to refine rough gems into usable treasures is through kinetic sanding or sandpaper polishing:

Sanding one Rough Diamond polishes the stone into one standard Diamond.
Sanding one Rough Emerald refines the rough crystalline exterior into one Emerald.
Sanding one Rough Cinnabar cleans away rocky impurities to produce one pure Cinnabar.
Sanding one Rough Lazurite cleanses the surface to yield one polished Lapis Lazuli.

This sanding conversion can be performed manually with handheld sandpaper strips or automated along kinetic conveyor setups running beneath mechanical sanding devices.

Grinding with the Diamond Grindstone

While softer rough gems like Rough Cinnabar and Rough Lazurite can be smoothed on a conventional wooden grindstone, harder gemstones require an industrial Diamond Grindstone.

In newer editions, craft a Diamond Grindstone by combining one Grindstone with one Diamond Shard in any shapeless crafting grid.
In earlier versions, craft the device using two Rough Diamond Shard items, two Stick items, one Polished Deepslate Slab, and two wooden planks.

Interacting with the Diamond Grindstone while holding Rough Diamond, Rough Emerald, Rough Cinnabar, or Rough Lazurite polishes the gemstone smoothly, transforming the unrefined mineral into its pristine counterpart while consuming minimal durability.