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Post by Condor on Feb 23, 2005 16:20:48 GMT -5
This weekend I will be tumbling about seven very large sized rocks ranging from baseball size to about softball size. They are pretty much already rounded off, but I will still begin with coarse grit followed by 60/90, 120/220, 400f, and finally cerium oxide. I will place them in my 40lb tumbler mixed in with the hardest decorative rocks I can find at Home Depot. I plan to leave them anywhere from three to four weeks per stage, and recharge every seven to ten days. Let's hope it works.
Oops. Forot to mention the kind of rocks. They are agates that I have collected at ranches in the Big Bend area and a couple that have I have gotten at rock shows.
Condor
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Post by connrock on Feb 23, 2005 17:33:44 GMT -5
Condor, I've tried to tumble baseball size rocks and they never come out rounded like their smaller versions do. I always end up with concave areas that "do" polish up but I just don't like the looks of them. I hope you have better luck then I do. Keep us posted. Tom
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Post by sandsman1 on Feb 23, 2005 18:06:22 GMT -5
hey condor i never tried any that big but i say go for it hahaha id like to see how they come out
and WOW a 40lb tumbler you must be lovein that hahaha
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phoenix1647
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since March 2013
Posts: 186
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Post by phoenix1647 on Feb 23, 2005 18:22:12 GMT -5
Tumblers are a lot like rock-saws...ya always want a bigger one.... I got 4 of the 3 pounders going right now and wish I had some of the bigger ones already....
Not sure I am ready for a 40 pounder yet....how do you feed something that big...
Pho
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Post by sandsman1 on Feb 23, 2005 18:47:24 GMT -5
with a shovel hahahaha but when its done wowweeee
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Glenn
having dreams about rocks
Member since January 2005
Posts: 55
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Post by Glenn on Feb 23, 2005 21:39:10 GMT -5
Wow!! 40lbs. thats alot of material ! You would have to have the frieght hauling grit to you once a month . I would have to collect all summer to have enough rocks to last the Montana winter ! I have three 4lbs and a33b going that is is too much ,almost . I started putting tape on my barrels to tell me when i start and whats in them to keep me straight. Glenn
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chassroc
Cave Dweller
Rocks are abundant when you have rocktumblinghobby pals
Member since January 2005
Posts: 3,586
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Post by chassroc on Feb 24, 2005 10:42:38 GMT -5
A Jealous sigh..........wow Condor:Material that size can only be found in the western part of this country :PIf the pieces are covered with the white hard patina I've seen on so many large agates, do you remove that first? Are these pieces broken off from larger pieces? Did you do any grinding or pre-shaping? Like Glenn , I also mark my batches; I attach a small note under the top washer of my 3# barrels and I only have 3 of them! Charles
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Post by rockyraccoon on Feb 24, 2005 11:20:47 GMT -5
pics! we want pics of this monster tumbler! that would keep me in a panic if i had to put in 40 lbs at a time to get the tumbler full . kim
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Post by Cher on Feb 24, 2005 11:28:51 GMT -5
I can't even imagine the mess that must be to change and recharge. I've had the two 6-pounders running since Christmas and those make an awful lot of slurry. My buckets are filling up pretty fast since I have to keep the stuff inside until the snow is gone. My guess it's not a tumbler for the basement. ;D ;D
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deepsouth
fully equipped rock polisher
He who rocks last rocks best
Member since January 2004
Posts: 1,256
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Post by deepsouth on Feb 24, 2005 15:19:24 GMT -5
Hi Condor , I have never had a baseball or softball in my hands...could you tell me the diameter of those balls Please?
I do like rolling bigger rocks as well in my tumblers. My 16 pound barrels have a central shaft to secure the lid . This restricts the size of rock I can put in. I have had only 1 rock jammed in sofar. it was more the length then thickness that caused the jamming. Needless to say that that particular load of rocks did not tumble as well as it should have.
Good luck with your load
Jack
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rollingstone
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2009
Posts: 236
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Post by rollingstone on Feb 24, 2005 16:58:30 GMT -5
Jack, here's the size for you.... tennis ball on left, then baseball, then softball on the right. Softball is pretty much like a grapefruit in size.
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Post by Condor on Feb 24, 2005 21:38:19 GMT -5
Deepsouth, the Rollingstone pretty much has it. That's about the size of the rocks. Thanks for the pics RS. I'll post pictures of the tumbler and rocks this weekend before I begin tumbling. I just plan in on putting them in without any cleaning of the rock itself. What I have decided to change is to get some of my earlier smaller rocks which are not the best and place them in the tumbler instead of buying rock at Lowe's. This way I just might get them polished much nicer and rounder. To be continued...
Condor
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Post by GUEST on Feb 25, 2005 4:47:15 GMT -5
Try leaving them in the tumbler for 14 days between recharges--Your grit is breaking diwn at less a rate with the "bigger" rocks..
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Post by Condor on Feb 26, 2005 20:08:22 GMT -5
Here's the pics of the rocks I'll be trying to tumble, and my larger tumbler. I have tumbled small geodes on this tumbler before and they came out well. Hopefully this large geode will come out tumbled. Thanks for the advice Guest. I will go with fourteen days before recharging.
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Post by guest on Feb 27, 2005 3:40:31 GMT -5
saw geodes!!--tumbles rock pieces...
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Post by Al B on Mar 2, 2005 12:49:02 GMT -5
I once heard of a place in Arizona -a rock shop- that was using several "modified" cement mixers to tumble large quantities of rock and that sounds like a perfect way to do larger rocks. Don't know the details of how they were modified but suspect they had to remove those "paddles" inside first. And maybe some sort of lining installed inside or sprayed on?
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stefan
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2005
Posts: 14,095
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Post by stefan on Mar 2, 2005 13:59:25 GMT -5
I saw that also- but I could not find the link- I think they started using it as is!
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Post by Cher on Mar 2, 2005 18:13:45 GMT -5
When my hubby was little his neighbor had an old cement mixer in his garage that he tumbled rocks in. He didn't remember much about it, just that the old man would shovel rocks in to the mixer and that noise was deafening. ;D
Cher
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deepsouth
fully equipped rock polisher
He who rocks last rocks best
Member since January 2004
Posts: 1,256
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Post by deepsouth on Mar 2, 2005 19:10:57 GMT -5
Thanks for the fotos of the balls Rollingstone , I now have a very firm picture of what size those interesting rocks are Why not get that geode cut? Though i don't think I have seen an uncut one that was tumbled. So we keep learning. Good luck with the tumbling Jack
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