Results 1 to 11 of 11

Thread: Marble Suppliers

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Greenbush, MI
    Posts
    39

    Marble Suppliers

    Hello everyone,

    Looking for marble tile suppliers?


    Thanks,

    Greg

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    Owego, NY
    Posts
    733
    laserbits.com has some black marble tiles.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Greenbush, MI
    Posts
    39

    marble suppliers

    Dave,

    Thanks, I know about them. I was trying to find a different supplier.

    Greg

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jul 2005
    Location
    Sammamish, WA
    Posts
    7,630

    Marble Suppliers

    Both Lowe's and H Depot either have them at times or can order them, $10 for 12x12. Also available off the shelf at the tile stores, with names like "Tile Town", "Tiles for Less" etc. pretty much still 12x12 only.



    Sammamish, WA

    Epilog Legend 24TT 45W, had a sign business for 17 years, now just doing laser work on the side.

    "One only needs two tools in life: WD-40 to make things go, and duct tape to make them stop." G. Weilacher

    "The handyman's secret weapon - Duct Tape" R. Green

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2004
    Location
    York, PA.
    Posts
    50
    Lasersketch specializes in laserable marble and other items as well. I have found that their regular black marble engraves gray and doesn't show the whites very well, but their Hard marble works quite well.
    http://www.lasersketch.com/

    Last year I ordered a skid of 12x12 black marble tiles from Color Stone International. Their tiles do not have polished edges, but they do engrave quite well. Some folks here at The Creek have had probems with receiving damaged tiles from Color Stone, but the skid I ordered from them last year was fine. They do have a minimum order amount at Color Stone.
    http://www.color-stone.com/

    I have also talked to a Rep. from Stone Locator. They sell pure black marble tiles, but I haven't tried any of their marble yet. If anyone else has tried their marble, please let us know how it worked.
    http://www.stonelocator.com/

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Hayes, Virginia
    Posts
    864
    Just thought I would throw in my two cents worth on Color Stone and Stone Locator.

    Keith and I ordered marble tiles from Color Stone. We had decided to sell marble tiles cut to order to laser engravers. The first batch we received was pretty nice. We were getting lots of requests for tiles and things were going well. The next batch we received, only half of that shipment was what we considered usable. A lot of the corners were chipped and some of the surfaces of the marble had pits in them. I called and talked to them and they were willing to take the tiles back but I had to ship them at my expense. Unfortunately, I was not willing to shell out any more money to ship the tiles back since I had paid for 100 sq. feet to begin with. I told them we would no longer be doing business with them and I really don't think they cared.

    I then ordered 100 sq feet of marble tiles from Stone locators. I talked at length to one of the sales people who assured me that I would get excellent quality tiles from them and if I wasn't happy with the quality that I could send them back at their expense. Needless to say, we were less than thrilled with our order. The tiles were chipped, scratched and some had veining in them. These were supposed to be pure black marble tiles. Out of the 100 sq. feet we came up with 10 usable 12 x 12 tiles. I called them and told them about our problem and they had me ship them some samples of what we had received via Fed Ex. They paid for the shipping and I waited to hear from them. After a few weeks of not hearing anything I tried calling and emailing the sales rep and was finally able to get a response from him. He told me his boss said the tiles were acceptable and that if we were not happy with them we could return them at our expense plus a restocking fee. Needless to say we are now out of the marble tile business as we could not provide our laser engravers with a quality product.

    You would think that when you spend a large amount of money on a product a company would try to make sure you are satisfied with their products. My experience with both of these companies has been less than satisfactory. All I can say is "buyer beware".

    Jackie

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Greenbush, MI
    Posts
    39

    Marble tile suppliers

    Hi Jackie,

    Thank you very much for your very informative reply to my question. I guess unless I can get lucky and find quality stuff at Home Depot or Lowes or pay more from someone else, then maybe marble portraits, aren't the way to go.

    I do like how Laser Tile engraves photo's though, but I'm not real happy with them either. My first shipment had some chipped tile. We called them and e-mail them and have yet to get replacements from them either. What happened to Customer Service?


    Thanks again,

    Greg Sloan

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Gloucester, VA
    Posts
    1,996
    It's just a sad, sad state of affairs. Especially since we had such a great process for shaping, cutting, and production, with a particular attention to edge quality, coating (for bright white prints), and usability "out of the package".
    _Aaron_
    SawmillCreek Administrator

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jul 2005
    Location
    Sammamish, WA
    Posts
    7,630

    Marble Suppliers

    Unless they are on the shelf at HD or Lowes you could have the same issues that Jackie faced. When they special order you have to take a chance on what you'll get. Last batch I got was $10 each for 12x12 (but at least I don't have to pay tax with my resale #) from a commercial tile store that has open boxes to pick and choose from, both marble and granite. I spoke to a stone working place in our complex that does kitchen counters and the like about scraps, but they only use 3/4" or thicker and rarely handle solid black. Apparently not that popular except for lasering.



    Sammamish, WA

    Epilog Legend 24TT 45W, had a sign business for 17 years, now just doing laser work on the side.

    "One only needs two tools in life: WD-40 to make things go, and duct tape to make them stop." G. Weilacher

    "The handyman's secret weapon - Duct Tape" R. Green

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Anaheim, California
    Posts
    6,903
    Quote Originally Posted by Aaron Koehl
    It's just a sad, sad state of affairs. Especially since we had such a great process for shaping, cutting, and production, with a particular attention to edge quality, coating (for bright white prints), and usability "out of the package".
    Is that coating a trade secret or something "DIY" that you could share with the rest of us?
    Yoga class makes me feel like a total stud, mostly because I'm about as flexible as a 2x4.
    "Design"? Possibly. "Intelligent"? Sure doesn't look like it from this angle.
    We used to be hunter gatherers. Now we're shopper borrowers.
    The three most important words in the English language: "Front Towards Enemy".
    The world makes a lot more sense when you remember that Butthead was the smart one.
    You can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much ammo.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Hayes, Virginia
    Posts
    864
    Lee,

    I believe Keith will be making an annoucement on the secret coating later today.

    Jackie

Similar Threads

  1. Photos on Marble w/ Mercury 25 watt
    By Debra Thayer in forum Laser Engraving General Topics
    Replies: 12
    Last Post: 07-22-2006, 12:27 AM
  2. Coating for finished engravings on black marble
    By Dave Strickler in forum Laser Engraving General Topics
    Replies: 7
    Last Post: 01-11-2006, 6:44 PM
  3. China black marble source
    By Jerry Allen in forum Laser Engraving General Topics
    Replies: 40
    Last Post: 09-08-2005, 5:07 PM
  4. New member in Tennessee - Marble help
    By Hale Reider in forum Laser Engraving General Topics
    Replies: 15
    Last Post: 03-10-2005, 11:00 PM
  5. trouble with black marble
    By Shaddy Dedmore in forum Laser Engraving General Topics
    Replies: 7
    Last Post: 03-06-2005, 1:47 AM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •