darrad
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2006
Posts: 1,636
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Post by darrad on Nov 21, 2009 13:33:13 GMT -5
I do not see much on here about them and I have wanted one for some time to polish up t-eggs, geode halves, slabs etc. I know slabs and small eggs will need weight added but that's about it. Any comments/opinions out there about the best ones, how to use them or anything else about them is greatly appreciated. :help:
Thanks in advance, Dave.
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Mudshark
fully equipped rock polisher
Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock. Will Rogers
Member since December 2008
Posts: 1,083
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Post by Mudshark on Nov 21, 2009 15:24:18 GMT -5
Dave,I have the 12 inch Covington and have had no problems with it.If I had more money at the time I bought it I would have got the 16 inch model but I'm getting by fine with this one.They are very easy to use but you need to keep an eye on them so they don't run dry.I use 1 inch slices of different size pvc pipe to go around the slabs so they don't chip and various heavy items for weight secured with double sided tape.There are a lot of different ways to do this and everybody has their own favorite technique.You just need to be careful you don't add too much weight so you don't wear out the plate.They recommend using graded grit but I have had good results using whatever I have for my tumblers.You need to get the slabs completely flat in the grinding stage or you will get an uneven polish.I'm getting ready to run a few slabs so I will try to post pics of the whole sequence.
Mike
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rockhound97058
freely admits to licking rocks
Thundereggs - Oregons Official State Rock!
Member since January 2006
Posts: 760
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Post by rockhound97058 on Nov 21, 2009 19:53:44 GMT -5
I myself run a 20" Lortone unit. I love the lortone as it's a much softer vibration and really does a awesome job polishing. I do not use it for grinding, only polish. Thundereggs are my main specialty and it's the only way to go!
The first thing I did with my lortone is ash can the stock "carpet" if that's what you want to call it. I glued in household carpet and run it with water for a couple days. This creates a wear pattern in the carpet. After that I use Tin Oxide and run everything 24 Hours. Also by placeing a thicker nap carpet, it also helps polish uneven surfaces.
The trick to one of these machines though is all in the sanding. You need to have a specimen sanded very well for this machine to work good. Don't expect it to produce miracles and eliminate any voids.
Be sure to have a dedicated spot as they can be messy - Mine throws polish everywhere lol... So I keep it outside.
I have a Highland Park 20" Vibra-lap as well that came with a recent collection purchase. Great shape machine, however I have not used it once yet! I plugged it in and it runs LOL.
Hope that helps!
Jason
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,463
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Post by Sabre52 on Nov 21, 2009 22:24:47 GMT -5
I've only owned one and that was a Lortone quite some time ago. As I recall the bearings wore out pretty quick, I had a machinist friend repair it and it wore out again fast. *L* Or maybe it wasn't the bearing but something to do with the motor/shaky stuff. Anyway, I only finished a few batches of flats and the thing was shot so I chucked it out and got one of those Richardson high speed sanders and low speed bull wheel type polishers. The sander was messy and threw off too much dangerous dust so I never used that much either *L*......Mel
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rockhound97058
freely admits to licking rocks
Thundereggs - Oregons Official State Rock!
Member since January 2006
Posts: 760
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Post by rockhound97058 on Nov 22, 2009 0:35:01 GMT -5
I've ran my lortone for years and yeah I had to put a bearing in it once... long while back. My most recent mishap was a motor melted down. Lortone does not have motors! So I had to do some creative engineering to get it back running. These machines take a good amount of abuse - The shaking motion is very hard on bearings! Also my vibra-lap at times ran a good week or two straight 24 hrs a day 7 days a week and even in summer temps of 100+. I can't be too upset it broke a time or two.. I would to LOL. Richardson's high speed sander is another most used machine in my shop - I use it for my rough sanding and then to a 3 x 8 expando drum. Yes the Richardsons machine is dusty - but they do have a dust collection option with them. I threw mine away as it was a pain sanding large rocks. So I use the machine with an open door with a fan, and wear a organic vapor cartridge on my respirator. Many people are scared of the Richardson's sander... It's a damn fast machine spinning right in your face and when the paper explodes - Watch out! Ahh heck it's all fun though lol Jason
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Post by johnjsgems on Nov 22, 2009 8:50:22 GMT -5
The Rose lap (Rociprolap) is technically not a vibrating lap since it reciprocates rather than vibrates. Covington recently purchased it from the guy that bought it from Rose. New they are very expensive but if you could locate a used one they last forever and are the fastest (and heaviest) units made.
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riverbendlapidary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2006
Posts: 1,058
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Post by riverbendlapidary on Nov 23, 2009 16:24:53 GMT -5
Yeah, you can't hardly beat the Rose lap.
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rockhound97058
freely admits to licking rocks
Thundereggs - Oregons Official State Rock!
Member since January 2006
Posts: 760
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Post by rockhound97058 on Nov 25, 2009 1:53:38 GMT -5
A buddy of mine called me today and said he talked to Lortone - Hopefully by Feb 2010 they have a new design of a vibra-lap hitting the market. This one has a different motor mount which is so called "user friendly". We'll wait and see what they show us. Hope it's better than their saws!
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Post by Rockoonz on Nov 26, 2009 4:17:34 GMT -5
Lortone is one of the customers where I work, and yes, they are close to a new vibe lap. I have a 20 inch vi-bro-lap. I'm making a "splatter shield" out of acrylic before I use it again.
Lee
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