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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Sept 5, 2017 6:51:14 GMT -5
I have posted before about how I go about doing my weekly clean outs (rinsing) but I do not think I have posted about my stage one inspection process in detail before so here goes. On the left are all of my rocks that came out of 46/70 stage one. This clean out was two 12 pound barrels. I love the plastic trays from the dollar store and use them for lots of things around the rock shop. I know some folks inspect their rocks dry but I prefer to do it wet so the white bowl gets filled with water. The only rocks I usually inspect dry are obsidian and apache tears because flaws show really easy on those dry. Every rock I have rolling in stage one passes through my fingers every week. After inspecting all the rocks these three trays go back in 46/70 These rocks were ready to move onto stage number two These rocks have flaws that will not be improved by tumbling so they will either get ground, cut or chiseled. These rocks were deemed junk. Either too many flaws or just not enough appeal to keep spending time and grit on them. I have a dump pile near my cottage and folks walking by pick through them there. I am not saying this is the best way. Just saying it is my way. Thanks for looking Chuck
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Post by orrum on Sept 5, 2017 7:52:33 GMT -5
Chuck one thing is for sure tumbling has to have a system or else the end profuct is a bear!
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Sept 5, 2017 8:02:29 GMT -5
Chuck one thing is for sure tumbling has to have a system or else the end profuct is a bear! That is why I wanted to show some details about my stage one sorting. If stage one is sorted properly all the rest is piece of cake. 24 pounds takes a solid hour for me to sort. The smaller rocks are the real challenge to look at. If the batch has a bunch of small stuff the sorting takes a lot longer. 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 Sept 5, 2017 8:02:39 GMT -5
This is a great system and is the same thing I do when cleaning out the barrels each week. I checked everything wet and if it was ready to move on, I placed it on a piece of cardboard to dry out. I then gave each of those rocks one final inspection before moving them to the next stage. The "garbage" group got to be bigger as I got more picky about what gets to return to the tumblers.
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Post by orrum on Sept 5, 2017 8:08:16 GMT -5
My system is like Chucks except I only clean out every two months. Usually a lot of them are reday then It cuts way back on grit expense. Of course I have 45 pound rolling so that's s lot of course grit. I do better with 60/90.
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Post by fernwood on Sept 5, 2017 8:28:22 GMT -5
Great plan of attack. Thanks for sharing.
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Fossilman
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2009
Posts: 20,681
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Post by Fossilman on Sept 5, 2017 9:55:29 GMT -5
Funny thing is,I have an area in my yard for my junk tumbles,rocks,etc....Seems the people want to buy those rocks more than my good stock... So its a win win situation.... I guess everyone has a different view on what their seeing when they pick up a rock...(Yes there are many times,that I give them away,also).. Tumbling does take time and patience,you have to be picky on your material.. Thanks for sharing Chuck....
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Sept 5, 2017 9:58:38 GMT -5
This is a great system and is the same thing I do when cleaning out the barrels each week. I checked everything wet and if it was ready to move on, I placed it on a piece of cardboard to dry out. I then gave each of those rocks one final inspection before moving them to the next stage. The "garbage" group got to be bigger as I got more picky about what gets to return to the tumblers. Learning when to pull the plug on rocks takes some time. Pretty much everything goes into my barrels but some only lasts the first week before getting culled. I like your idea of a second look dry. I do my inspection wet because if they look perfect wet and feel smooth all around then that is pretty much how they will look when they are done. Stuff still gets by me all the time but if a polished rock has flaws it just goes back into 46/70 again. No harm no foul. Chuck
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Post by aDave on Sept 5, 2017 14:44:13 GMT -5
I have posted before about how I go about doing my weekly clean outs (rinsing) but I do not think I have posted about my stage one inspection process in detail before so here goes... Great information Chuck. It's neat to see how others go through their process. I am not as detailed as you separation-wise, as I am only rolling 12 lbs of coarse at any one time. Currently, mine goes to the "move" stage, the "rubbish" stage, or back into coarse. I am not using a saw stage yet, but I'm probably about due. Like you, I was/am doing weekly cleanouts and inspecting the rocks while wet. However, I found that I was missing some fixable imperfections, so now I do as 1dave does. I initially inspect wet, and if they look good, they are set aside to dry. After they are dry, I really can ID the imperfections that the water typically hid...mostly small pits and such. Obviously, some rocks will always pit (lot of my self-collected stuff), so this dry inspection gives me a chance to see if I can live with what the rock has given me (and move it along) or if it goes into the trash or coarse again. At the end of the day, though, you're right. Even finished rocks can go back to coarse if need be. Ironically, I have two large Montanas that managed to each throw a chip in one of the last stages, and I missed them. Thinking about throwing them back and starting all over again. If you know where you placed it, I'd love to see a link for your cleanout thread - always looking to see what I can do better or differently. Thanks and regards. Dave
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Post by coloradocliff on Sept 5, 2017 14:50:12 GMT -5
I use much the same method but I think that your system is much more organized. Will get more like this because it seems to be smoother than mine. Thank you and nice pudding stones. Saw that the one larger pudding stone didn't have enough red jasper chips to make the next round. Need to be harder hearted. grin. Also is that a piece of datolite in the picture?
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Post by 1dave on Sept 5, 2017 17:23:37 GMT -5
I have posted before about how I go about doing my weekly clean outs (rinsing) but I do not think I have posted about my stage one inspection process in detail before so here goes... Great information Chuck. . . . Like you, I was/am doing weekly cleanouts and inspecting the rocks while wet. However, I found that I was missing some fixable imperfections, so now I do as 1dave does. Dave Thanks for the pat on the back, but you have me mixed up with someone else. I haven't tumbled in over 50 years, and don't do much of anything else lately. jamesp? captbob?
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Sept 5, 2017 17:33:56 GMT -5
Great information Chuck. . . . Like you, I was/am doing weekly cleanouts and inspecting the rocks while wet. However, I found that I was missing some fixable imperfections, so now I do as 1dave does. Dave Thanks for the pat on the back, but you have me mixed up with someone else. I haven't tumbled in over 50 years, and don't do much of anything else lately. jamesp? captbob? Looks like that tag was intended for ChicagoDave
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Post by Garage Rocker on Sept 5, 2017 17:56:06 GMT -5
Throw a rock and you hit a Dave around here.
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Post by aDave on Sept 5, 2017 18:01:32 GMT -5
Thanks for the pat on the back, but you have me mixed up with someone else. I haven't tumbled in over 50 years, and don't do much of anything else lately. jamesp ? captbob ? Looks like that tag was intended for ChicagoDave . Aww...crap. It was meant for ChicagoDave. Too many Dave's to worry about here. Between them and you Michigan guys ( Jugglerguy, you, and God knows who else), I've managed to get folks mixed up a couple of times in the last two weeks. I hope it's not a sign of things to come. Sorry to drag you in here 1dave. Thanks to you and Chuck for setting me straight. Dave
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Post by 1dave on Sept 5, 2017 18:02:32 GMT -5
Back in high school there were 5 of us in one classroom so I'm used to it.
I just want the right guy to get the glory.
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Post by Garage Rocker on Sept 5, 2017 18:04:48 GMT -5
I like that system, Chuck, I remember either seeing the earlier thread or just asking you what was your method.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Sept 5, 2017 18:15:39 GMT -5
I like that system, Chuck, I remember either seeing the earlier thread or just asking you what was your method. Seems like the question pops up a lot with newbies, how long does stage one take. Figured this explains a great way to handle stage one. When there is enough rocks to fill a barrel in the ready for stage two tray then that's when you start stage two. This gets more complicated for folks that want to run dedicated batches but for the mixed rock batches it is pretty flawless. Chuck
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Post by Jugglerguy on Sept 5, 2017 18:53:00 GMT -5
I have to admit that after five years of tumbling, I haven't figured out how to throw away rocks. I keep almost everything in the tumbler until it gets smooth or it disappears. I do occasionall throw a rock away, but very occasionally. I tumble a lot of crap. I am going to commit right now that I will do a better job of throwing out more rocks. I don't understand how you inspect wet, Drummond Island Rocks . Do you do it under water, or fresh out of the water? For me, the water sort of smooths over imperfections. I like to inspect freshly dried rocks. I wipe any questionable rocks with a rag. The water stays in the cracks and makes them show up better against the dry surfaces. Obviously bad rocks I sort wet. Whatever you do, it's working.
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goatgrinder
spending too much on rocks
Make mine a man cave
Member since January 2017
Posts: 368
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Post by goatgrinder on Sept 5, 2017 19:04:15 GMT -5
I have to admit that after five years of tumbling, I haven't figured out how to throw away rocks. I keep almost everything in the tumbler until it gets smooth or it disappears. I do occasionall throw a rock away, but very occasionally. I tumble a lot of crap. I am going to commit right now that I will do a better job of throwing out more rocks. I don't understand how you inspect wet, Drummond Island Rocks . Do you do it under water, or fresh out of the water? For me, the water sort of smooths over imperfections. I like to inspect freshly dried rocks. I wipe any questionable rocks with a rag. The water stays in the cracks and makes them show up better against the dry surfaces. Obviously bad rocks I sort wet. Whatever you do, it's working. Nah, just take jamesp's advice about "crap in, crap out" Way less to pick up and way less to throw out.
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Post by aDave on Sept 5, 2017 19:10:40 GMT -5
I have to admit that after five years of tumbling, I haven't figured out how to throw away rocks. I keep almost everything in the tumbler until it gets smooth or it disappears. I do occasionall throw a rock away, but very occasionally. I tumble a lot of crap. I am going to commit right now that I will do a better job of throwing out more rocks. I don't throw away stuff too often, but it does happen every now and then. Most often, I'll just continue to run it. At best, it becomes a "small" in the bunch - at worst, it vanishes. If I have a candidate for the trash heap, I may give it another week or so, just to see if it fixes itself. But, sometimes cracks or crevices become too much of an issue and the rock gets tossed. Most that get thrown away probably weren't the best for tumbling, but that fact doesn't become obvious until it starts to roll. It happens most often with self collected stuff and rocks that I thought I'd take a chance with. Dave
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