Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 24, 2022 18:43:36 GMT -5
It has an automatic reversing setting, so you can set it to turn in one direction for awhile & then it stops and reverses direction.
And it will just keep doing that until you just turn it off.
It even came with an extra belt & o-ring.
I love the idea of having a reversing function as I feel the rocks can get into a Repeating Cycle that the reversing action should prevent. Also predicting a short & loud life for that barrel.
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 24, 2022 4:33:52 GMT -5
I have a couple of steps to recover the grit from all of my tumbles.
Here is some Dried slurry starter, ready to use.
What happens if you don't add back in the reclaimed slurry that you collected? What is the difference in your tumbled results? That's where I was going with this thread, "how much value is there really by adding it back in?" I've done it both ways and am questioning the value of adding it. In your process, are you then reducing the amount of fresh grit you add to begin with? If so, by how much, how long are you running the batch for and what is your water level at? At first I thought by adding the reclaimed slurry back into a new tumble, it may reduce the amount of new grit I was using and add to the grinding action. Some say it enhances the tumble, because even though the reclaimed material is not at full size any more, it will still contribute to the grinding. However, I question that theory based on how long most of us let it work? Does it really contribute, or is the new coarser grit really doing the majority of work in the short run? If you omit adding in any new grit and just put back the reclaimed material, then run the batch for an extended amount of time, I think we could expect it to have a somewhat grinding effect on the stones, to a point. When you look at the year-long tumble Rob did, wasn't that the result? However, I don't believe many of us are tumbling our batches for long periods of time, but instead stopping after only one week. Some say the reclaim helps to thicken the slurry quicker, for better grinding action. While I understand that I have to wonder if it really matters how quickly you get to a thicker slurry, if only leaving it run for one week? It sounds to me that most are seeing full slurry coverage on the rocks at the end of one week anyway. To this end I began to experiment. I wanted to reduce the amount of slurry I was seeing in the barrel following a 1 week tumble, using 3 TBS of 80 Sic grit in a 3 LB barrel. My concern with this was that several of my rocks were loosing a considerable amount of mass within that timeframe, and I wanted to find a way to avoid over grinding rocks that were ready for Stage 2 in less than one week of tumbling. Since all my rocks are at a mohs 7 level, I could never tell which ones would grind down the fastest.
My first tumbler was a single 3 pound barrel. I did my weekly cleanouts outside in the yard and there was usable grit being thrown away. This is when I got the idea do build a Cleanout Sink that could recover anything in the slurry that would still be useful for grinding in Stage 1. I had never seen anyone using a cleanout sink purposely built to do cleanouts before, I may have invented it ? The Grit Recovery system worked very well and seemed to be saving any particles smaller than #500 grit, I was very happy with it.
The next tumbler that I got was a QT66, those 6 pound barrels were much better at breaking down the grit but I was still recovering a lot of material in my settlement tank so I kept on drying it out and using it as Slurry Starter.
But your question is asking if it works better and is it worth it ? My answer would be that "I don't Know", I have always done it this way. I even get a little worried if I'm starting to get low on the dried stuff. I can only imagine that it would be better, especially in a 3 pound barrel where you need all the help you can get. Normally I would use 1/4 cup grit in my 6 pound barrels to run Stage 1 tumbles, if I use the slurry starter it will be Added In Addition to the normal grit.
You talk a little about Water and grinding Speed . . . Less water is Faster grinding but more Bruising and possibly more Undercutting. If you got some Tough rocks and you want to take them down fast, then put very little water in there and look for a thick slurry on cleanout day.
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 21, 2022 10:07:51 GMT -5
I have a couple of steps to recover the grit from all of my tumbles. When the slurry comes out of the drain, it goes into a Settlement tank first, before draining into the bucket. Everything that settles in that tank becomes slurry starter after it's been dried out. It will all go back into Stage 1 Course tumbles only. The stuff in the bucket will form a sludge after a day, but it is very fine and easily contaminated. I always get rid of it by swishing it around and pouring it in the corner of the yard.
Here is some Dried slurry starter, ready to use.
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 21, 2022 9:45:23 GMT -5
The rock is still sitting on the bench. I ran the saw yesterday, but opted to leave that one for now! LOL Here's a shot of the half that bit me. Teepee Canyon Agate with rare Amethyst in the center (self collected). That jagged edge along the bottom is what got me... Great rock Nice Picture Needs more Blood
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 20, 2022 9:45:33 GMT -5
It's been a week and they polished out wonderfully. There was a barrel BlowOut during PrePolish 1000 AO where everything dried out. They cleaned up pretty good but there is still some evidence of grit stuck in the cracks. Was doing something different this time and did Not use anykind of Media, Plastic or Ceramic. None was used in the whole tumble. Final polish stage had the barrel 80%-90% full and water to just under the top of the rocks with 4 Tablespoons (1/4 cup) #8000 AO polish from the Rock Shed. They ran for 8 Days and came out better than most of my tumbles. I forgot to get a Group Picture but it was a lot of shiny rocks, weighed more than 6 pounds. The first picture here was some of the Lighter colored Quartz which was slightly less fractured. This second picture is some of the darker brown Quartz. it's really neat in-person, because there is Depth to it Plus hundreds of small marble/pea sized smalls coming out of there too. Got another 6 pound barrel started into a Polish Run so we will see some more Hot Yuma rocks finishing out here in a month or so . . .
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 19, 2022 7:25:21 GMT -5
My original thoughts were that the grit would break down finer and finer until I got a polish. Big NOPE on that theory. I have tried to make Shiny rocks using Silicon Carbide, but it does not matter how small the powder is, No Polish will be produced, only a hazy shine.
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 13, 2022 9:01:50 GMT -5
I am just about to finish my first batch of Yuma Rocks since I got back from there a couple of months ago. They are in the final Polish stage and should be finished in a week on Sunday.
Am trying something different this time. I've been using Plastic Beads in all of my polish stages because that is the way I learned to polish and it was working.
Kept hearing from experienced users that claimed that you don't need any Plastic or Ceramic Media to make a great polish, you just need to fill the barrel properly. So, this time my polish stages are running with Rocks Only. Without any Media, a lot more rocks will fit in the barrel, so this batch is the largest polish run that I've ever done.
I use a PrePolish step using #1000 AO for a week. Oddly the barrel had a BlowOut after 4 days. Must have been a lot of pressure because slurry was sprayed everywhere, my first blowout in more than 2 years. It all drained and dried out completely. Tried a few hours cleaning in water but some of the cracks still had a grey filling inside. Now running in #8000 AO polish. Was surprised to have this gas problem because I've been running only these Yuma rocks for a Long Time now without any trouble at all.
Another issue with this Brown Fractured Quartz is that it is fractured. The stuff looks great polished, but there is always a Bad Side that is rough or cracked somehow.
Pictures in a week . . .
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 10, 2022 15:45:00 GMT -5
You can see under my Avatar that I own both of the Lortone Tumblers that you mentioned. I got the 3A first and it took me 3 tries to finally get shiny rocks. But it takes awhile, and you only get a handful of finished stones. after 6 months I ordered the QT66 and I have loved the results that I get from it. My QT66 runs 100% of the time these days. The 3A runs about 25% of the time. It is great for Shells, soft rocks , and small projects. Having been through the path you are describing, I would recommend the Larger Machine first, then the smaller machine if you need it. A 5 Gallon bucket of rocks would take forever in a 3A, but very manageable with a QT66.
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 10, 2022 14:13:48 GMT -5
- Double Extra Good - I think you have a 3 Pound tumbler, it takes awhile for 30 Grit to breakdown in a smaller tumbler but it helps. Will be more of an experiment for you. --- Enjoy --- I don't know how close you have looked around, but I have featured those polished Yuma rocks in the Photo area at the following link . . . forum.rocktumblinghobby.com/thread/94948/polishing-rocks-yuma-arizona
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 8, 2022 18:43:06 GMT -5
Thanks for all the swag Wooferhound , arrived all intact. Love the bumper sticker, I once got called a rocket scientist, I've kinda kept that on hand often when explaining seems to difficult. Some friends will get a great kick out of that. (n*365) + (n/4) days old today, so good timing! Wow , I'm impressed , 2 day shipping from Alabama to Oregon - Enjoy -
They rolled out SLS (Space Launch System) to the launch pad for more tests. They are still claiming they will launch it before August, I don't believe it
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 6, 2022 13:43:48 GMT -5
Thanks go out to everyone who participated in my little game.
Special Thanks go out to
oregon and ashley for being the winners of the contest
Prize packages have been sent and was promised that they would arrive by Friday.
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 6, 2022 8:09:43 GMT -5
--- You Winner Guys --- oregon and ashley send me a Private Message with your mailing address I have a package waiting for you
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 5, 2022 21:16:13 GMT -5
The Winning Number was
6350 The street number of the maker of the astronaut ice cream
It looks like
oregon wins the Grand Prize - 6306 closest without going over and ashley wins the Second Prize - 6374 actual closest but went over
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 4, 2022 2:10:26 GMT -5
I found a few more items to add to the grand prize package Yes there is more , can you believe it ? Plus I'm putting together a Second Prize for whoever guesses the next closest number regardless of going over. These things will be added to the other items in the Grand Prize. Three Post Cards showing the Rocket Center Iron-on patch showing Scout Day with the SLS rocket Iron-on patch with picture of the Moon Blue Fabric piece showing Space Camp & Aviation Challenge 2 shiny Souvenir Pennies that I smashed in the machine
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 1, 2022 14:08:16 GMT -5
The heavy pieces settle to the bottom. If you remove the barrel from the tumbler and set it ...
Down with the lid on top, everything will settle to the Round side away from the lid - or - Curved side down with the lid on the side. Then everything will settle to the curved side facing downwards
There should be some sludge settling to the bottom when the barrel stops it's motion. You are using an Abrasive to make Mud out of Rocks .
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on Jun 1, 2022 7:10:24 GMT -5
My main problem is I just don’t know what to do after the first run. I now have 7 piles of rocks that have been run through the first stage and one pile that has been through number 2 stage but after reading up on everything, I just don’t know what to do. I have been reading to just keep tumbling the rocks until they are nice and smooth but it seems there will be nothing left of some of them if I try to get out all the holes etc. some even wore down to almost nothing the very first time. I realize now that I should have run similar hardness together but what do you do with all the softer rocks in the first place? If I run all the softer rocks together won’t they still just grind away to tiny pellets? Do I skip the first grit and just go to 2nd grit with softer stones? Almost all of the shaping & grinding happens in Stage 1 then all the rest of the stages are just removing the scratches from stage 1 and polishing. Yes, there is a Lot of size reduction in stage 1 and a little bit in stage 2, but don't worry about the stones getting smaller after that, experiment all you want to.
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on May 30, 2022 18:34:10 GMT -5
I used to work at a place where we sold that astronaut ice cream. THat stuff is So addicting! Thanks for the fun! That Freeze Dried Ice Cream is like a giant Lucky Charms marshmallow Melts in your mouth Looks amazingly like a real ice cream sandwich Extremely Messy, crumbles into zillions of pieces
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on May 29, 2022 18:29:18 GMT -5
Have already found a couple more items to include. Will be looking for more in the next week.
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on May 29, 2022 17:33:53 GMT -5
I am enjoying the Guess the Number games enough to make another one. Working at the US Space & Rocket Center I will gather things that I can send in packages to my friends. Well you are my friends too so here is my version of the guess the Number game.
The prize items are . . . An astronaut Ice Cream sandwich that I got from the Gift shop Black SLS / Artimis sticker Clear Artimis sticker Apollo 16 Capsule Card Apollo Test Rocket Card Bumper sticker that highlights the word 'rock' in the word "rocket" Some rocks that I hounded in Yuma Arizona and polished Some #30 grit that will be used as packing material Plus a few more things that I will find before the contest ends
There is a 4 digit number on the Astronaut Ice Cream that I will be using as the winning number You can provide up to 6 numbers in your guesses, 0000 to 9999 , first correct guess wins.
Anyone that guesses the correct number again will get an Astronaut Ice Cream and some Yuma Rocks. If nobody gets the correct number then the closest to the correct number without going over will be the winner.
Contest to run for 1 week ending Sunday Night June 5th at 9:pm Central Time
--- Good Luck ---
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Wooferhound
Cave Dweller
Lortone QT66 and 3A
Member since December 2016
Posts: 1,423
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Post by Wooferhound on May 29, 2022 6:55:10 GMT -5
1111 2222 3333 4444 5555 6666
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