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Post by Jugglerguy on Apr 4, 2012 17:52:49 GMT -5
I was just in Ishpeming, MI and was given a couple pieces of Kona Dolomite. I know it's a really soft rock, but can it be tumbled? My pieces are about softball sized, so I was planning to just do it on my grinder like I do Petoskey stones. I was just curious about how to tumble it if I end up cutting off some small pieces or when I get more in the future.
I also picked up some gravel sized pieces of Jaspelite. Is there a trick to tumbling that or is it done in the normal way?
As if that's not enough, I also picked up a bunch of unakite on the beach. Some is unakite, and some looks more like plain granite with some green streaks. I've read that unakite undercuts like granite does. I've only finished two loads of tumbled stones, and one was granite. I started it in a rotary and finished it in a vibe and it did undercut somewhat. Other than that, I was happy with the shine. Is unakite better done in a rotary or a vibe or doesn't it matter?
Thanks for the help, Rob
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Apr 4, 2012 20:56:39 GMT -5
Be careful tumbling the kona. I made a couple nice cabs with that a couple weeks ago and put the saw scraps in the tumbler. I just moved those to 500 pre polish today and they were only in 120 for a few days. I skipped 60/90 because we ground off the rough stuff on the wheel first. Those few days in 120 in the rotary removed way more material then I expected but they looked great with no undercutting. Good luck with yours, it's a cool looking local rock. I will try to post some pics of my kona cabs soon in the cabochon area.
Chuck
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Post by Jugglerguy on Apr 4, 2012 21:00:46 GMT -5
Hey Chuck,
I'm not ready to tumble mine yet, if I do it at all. Please post pictures and your methods when you're done. I'll let you finish experimenting before I give it a try. I think my son is most excited about the unakite, so we'll probably do that next.
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Post by roy on Apr 5, 2012 9:19:21 GMT -5
thats funny my wife just got back from southdakota she stop at a rock shop and brought back 20 lbs of the kona not sure what to do with this stuff ? can it be cut in oil ?
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Post by Jugglerguy on Apr 5, 2012 9:29:26 GMT -5
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Post by texaswoodie on Apr 5, 2012 9:48:59 GMT -5
I don't tumble but have made cabs with Kona and I love it!
Curt
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