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Post by txrockhunter on Nov 17, 2016 9:44:51 GMT -5
I've had some Lot-O ready material stockpiling while I played around with some fire agate. Done playing, so should be finishing a batch weekly for a while. Batch is mostly San Jacintos, but includes chalcedony from AZ and a few from Garage Rocker (no photos....they were claimed before I could snap a shot!). Getting the formula refined......run 120/220 for 48 hours (4 grit cycles), 600 & Borax for 48 hours (2 grit cycles), Pre-polish, a touch of polish, & Borax for 48 hours (no grit change), and then Micro-Alumina from johnjsgems for 48 hours (no grit change). May be a little overkill, but the system works pretty well for me. Might have to run the final 2 stages a day longer if there are a bunch of flats. Thanks for looking...... 1. Some San Jacinto Pet Woods 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. A couple San Jacinto Palm 8. 9. 10. Misc. San Jacinto Conglomerates, Jasper, & Agate 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. Sparkly! Hematite? 16. 17. 18. Chalcedony from Round Mountain, AZ 19. Rhyolite from Deming, NM 20. Misc. Pet Wood from unknown location. Sometimes it's nice to leave some rough spots on Pet Wood. 21. Misc. Agate from an ebay purchase.
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Post by Garage Rocker on Nov 17, 2016 10:03:52 GMT -5
Great batch, Jeremy! I think I could be happy tumbling just those pet wood and palms for a while. That said, I believe number 11 is my favorite and 14 close behind. Keep 'em coming!
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Post by txrockhunter on Nov 17, 2016 10:20:10 GMT -5
Great batch, Jeremy! I think I could be happy tumbling just those pet wood and palms for a while. That said, I believe number 11 is my favorite and 14 close behind. Keep 'em coming! Thanks, Randy! I love the wood and palms, as well! Next batch (coming out tonight) I'll try to snap some photos of your stuff before it disappears! "Keep 'em coming!" - Got the Double Lot-O working overtime. As soon as one barrel is finished the other barrel is ready for polish. Got enough stockpiled to keep that going for a while.... Can't wait for your next batch!!!! Jeremy
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ChicagoDave
has rocks in the head
Member since June 2016
Posts: 720
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Post by ChicagoDave on Nov 17, 2016 10:21:42 GMT -5
When you say "4 grit cycles" over 48 hours are you adding additional grit every 12 hours? And how much 120/220 is being added each time? I have been adding 2 tablespoons and just letting that run for 48 hours with no additions. Curious to hear some more details.
And great batch! Really liking 12, 20 & 21.
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Post by Garage Rocker on Nov 17, 2016 10:51:07 GMT -5
Great batch, Jeremy! I think I could be happy tumbling just those pet wood and palms for a while. That said, I believe number 11 is my favorite and 14 close behind. Keep 'em coming! Thanks, Randy! I love the wood and palms, as well! Next batch (coming out tonight) I'll try to snap some photos of your stuff before it disappears! "Keep 'em coming!" - Got the Double Lot-O working overtime. As soon as one barrel is finished the other barrel is ready for polish. Got enough stockpiled to keep that going for a while.... Can't wait for your next batch!!!! Jeremy Ahh, the luxury of a 40 pound tumbler and a double barrel Lot O.
I've had one done for a while, just getting time to photograph has been the problem. Mostly wood, Montana's and San Jacintos.
ETA: I also only add each grit to the Lot O once. Extra grit didn't hurt your shine and it's not a lot of extra grit we're talking, but you may be making extra work for yourself. Your results speak for themselves though, so do what is working for you.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Nov 17, 2016 11:16:15 GMT -5
Great looking batch. Number 11 is my favorite.
I will not argue with your results either but adding grit during a run would be against my normal thought process. I count on the grit breaking down during each stage so I want my 120/220 to break down and be very close to 500 before I start my 500 stage. Same goes for all the following stages. As stated above though you got good results so no need to change.
Chuck
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Post by txrockhunter on Nov 17, 2016 11:28:56 GMT -5
When you say "4 grit cycles" over 48 hours are you adding additional grit every 12 hours? And how much 120/220 is being added each time? I have been adding 2 tablespoons and just letting that run for 48 hours with no additions. Curious to hear some more details. And great batch! Really liking 12, 20 & 21. In the 120/220 stage I rinse the load (not a cleanout) and add 1 Tbsp of grit every 12 hours, so 4 grit cycles. I remember someone saying that grit breaks down by 1/2 every 12 hours, probably jamesp. So in the "rough grind - 120/220 stage", I want to keep the grit fresh to maximize smoothing of rocks before moving to 600 grit stage. I don't find any grit when rinsing, so I am assuming that theory is somewhat correct. I do have a tendency to "man read" directions, so I could have glanced at a post and made an incorrect conclusion....... Let me know your thoughts. BTW....Thanks for the kind words!!
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Post by Jugglerguy on Nov 17, 2016 11:34:58 GMT -5
Great batch. I love the swirl in #5 and 11 and 21 are awesome.
Do you do all stages in the Lot-O? It appears as though you start them in a rotary because they're rounded so nicely, but I don't know why you would run four rounds of 120/220 otherwise. I do mine almost exactly the same way Chuck does his. I run 120/220 for two days, but I don't change or add to the grit in those two days. But, as Chuck said, your method seems to be working fine. Thanks for posting pictures.
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dottyt
spending too much on rocks
Member since July 2016
Posts: 305
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Post by dottyt on Nov 17, 2016 13:08:10 GMT -5
All look great, 11, 20, and 21 are out of the world!
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ChicagoDave
has rocks in the head
Member since June 2016
Posts: 720
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Post by ChicagoDave on Nov 17, 2016 13:50:25 GMT -5
Do you know what kind of rock this is?
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Post by txrockhunter on Nov 17, 2016 13:59:34 GMT -5
Lot-O instructions from The Rock Shed....I guess this is where I pulled my information from. "The Lot-O-Tumbler breaks down the 180-200 grit rather rapidly. Therefore, on the first two days of tumbling, there should be a fair amount of grit placed in the unit. The usual amount is about two tablespoons of silicon carbide. When the agates are washed daily mud and grit will be observed coming out. There should be a small amount of the original grit remaining to insure that the unit is grinding over the full period of time. On the last day of the 180-220 grit, it is best to use a light charge of silicon carbide so that all the grit will break down and the agate will start to polish. This insures that none of the coarse grit is carried over into the next polish." "As the grit breaks down and the excess material is removed from the agate, mud forms inside the barrel. This mud tends to reduce the action of the unit so regular removal is important. The barrel and agate should be washed every 12 hours if possible. In this washing, where the same grit is used, it is sufficient to simply fill the unit with water and swish it around. For a faster roughing the mud and excess material should be removed every 12 hours." Do any of you guys Jugglerguy, Drummond Island Rocks, Garage Rocker, ChicagoDave rinse rocks during the grit cycle? What grit are you using in rotary and how long are are you letting it break down before pulling it out? Do you guys run a load in the rotary and take all the rocks out at the same time, or pull them out individually if they are ready? Just curious...... I run everything in the rotary, either sic 30 or 46/70, depending on the barrel it's going in. 6" PVC Barrels - get 1 cup 30 sic every 2-3 days Lortone Barrels - get (1/8 cup per 2lbs rock) 46/70 once a week (30 sic doesn't seem to work as well in the rubber barrels). Most of the material will run in the rotary for 6 - 10 weeks before it's ready for the lot-o. Got a little system that seems to work, but I'm always looking for a better/easier way to get it done!!! Jeremy
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Nov 17, 2016 14:03:38 GMT -5
I have never rinsed any rocks during my loto grit cycles. Yes the 120/220 gets thick but I check it a few times a day and squirt it with water each time to the action back where I want it. I check my rotaries every week while doing a full clean out and I only pull the rocks that are ready to move on. The rest go back in 46/70 with enough new rough to take the palce of what got pulled. Over the last 5 years I average about 7-10 percent getting pulled out each week which means 40 pounds rolling in the rotaries keep the loto going 100 percent of the time.
EDIT: I always rinse between stages but never during a stage.
Chuck
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Nov 17, 2016 14:08:32 GMT -5
Do you know what kind of rock this is? small picture but it looks like blue tiger eye or "hawkeye" tiger eye. blue and gold are natural colors. red tiger eye is heated to make the color. Chuck
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rodeodan
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since January 2010
Posts: 213
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Post by rodeodan on Nov 17, 2016 14:10:21 GMT -5
Great batch, I love seeing petrified wood
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ChicagoDave
has rocks in the head
Member since June 2016
Posts: 720
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Post by ChicagoDave on Nov 17, 2016 14:10:53 GMT -5
My reply would mimic Chuck's since I got my steps from one of his posts somewhere (I think). Rotary cleaned out each week and "ready" rocks pulled. My only difference is I do give the rocks a quick rinse between grits in the Lot-O.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Nov 17, 2016 14:24:27 GMT -5
My reply would mimic Chuck's since I got my steps from one of his posts somewhere (I think). Rotary cleaned out each week and "ready" rocks pulled. My only difference is I do give the rocks a quick rinse between grits in the Lot-O. Yes rinse between grit stages for sure. At the end of the stage I dump about a half cup of water in and a squirt of dawn dish soap and run it like that for 10 minutes. certain batches like my lakers even get a quick run in borax between every stage. My no rinse comment was in reference to this line. "The barrel and agate should be washed every 12 hours if possible. In this washing, where the same grit is used, it is sufficient to simply fill the unit with water and swish it around. For a faster roughing the mud and excess material should be removed every 12 hours."That is why I said that I just spray to keep them moving during the individual stages. Chuck
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ChicagoDave
has rocks in the head
Member since June 2016
Posts: 720
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Post by ChicagoDave on Nov 17, 2016 14:40:51 GMT -5
So my statement should read "I'm with Chuck"!
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Post by Garage Rocker on Nov 17, 2016 14:57:31 GMT -5
My system leans more toward what Chuck has stated. I don't add grit at any time during each stage run and only add water as the slurry thickens. If I am running a batch of preforms, I will run 120/220 for 36-48 hours, clean out and run 120/220 again for another 36-48. That's only for something that hasn't come directly from the rotary tumbler. I did start out doing cleanouts and grit addition at 24 hours in the Lot O, just like you would in a rotary, but read on here that most do not do a 'cleanout' during a Lot O stage. I stopped after a couple batches and don't see a discernable difference.
Given the instructions from the Rock Shed and your examples above, no reason to change what you are doing if you like your system.
Funny, nobody seems to be able to get the Sic 30 to work in the rubber barrels. You can in your PVC barrel, but not the rubber. Are you using a thickener for your slurry? I can't remember if jamesp has run his Georgia clay with Sic 30 in rubber barrels? Which won't really matter for us that don't have his clay, but I'm just curious.
jamesp I'm already sold on the merits of the colloidal slurry, just didn't know if you had tried in rubber. I know you get tired of the Great Clay Debate, I'm not looking for that.
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Post by txrockhunter on Nov 17, 2016 15:36:33 GMT -5
Do you know what kind of rock this is? small picture but it looks like blue tiger eye or "hawkeye" tiger eye. blue and gold are natural colors. red tiger eye is heated to make the color. Chuck Yep, blue tigers eye. I think I got this from Kingsley....
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Nov 17, 2016 15:40:16 GMT -5
with that much gold in the mix maybe variegated tiger eye. This is a tumbled cab of it I had on Etsy awhile back Chuck
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