vance71975
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Post by vance71975 on Sept 10, 2022 13:17:00 GMT -5
I am using Graded 80 SiC right now in my Tumble Bee tumbler with a 4lbs barrel, total weight in the barrel is 5.75 lbs. Is it normal for Rocks to go from very rough to nearly completely smooth in 24 hours? Its these rocks below, and they were ROUGH rough, and now basically completly smooth. Gougues and nicks have not been ground out but all the rough edges are smooth now. I was gonna do 7 days as per the instructions that came with the tumbler but honestly, I dont think I would have much rock left in 7 days at this point. Below is the pics of the rocks as the started. Please advise, cause I dont know if I should Pull them and go on to stage two just so I dont loose 75% of the rock by the end of the week. Im not really worried about the gouges, as they will be wire wrapped and those gouges will just leave a place for the wire to lay.
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lordsorril
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Post by lordsorril on Sept 10, 2022 13:36:32 GMT -5
Your 80 SiC will be breaking down over time, the majority of the shaping will be in the first 48 hrs as the SiC degrades, and then diminishing returns over time.
Based on your requirements: I would check the barrels regularly since your goal is not to grind them round.
If you want to keep the shape: I recommend starting with Aluminum Oxide (#120), in bulk it is cheaper than SiC and will just take off the edges without costing you much mass.
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vance71975
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Post by vance71975 on Sept 10, 2022 13:41:16 GMT -5
Your 80 SiC will be breaking down over time, the majority of the shaping will be in the first 48 hrs as the SiC degrades, and then diminishing returns over time. Based on your requirements: I would check the barrels regularly since your goal is not to grind them round. If you want to keep the shape: I recommend starting with Aluminum Oxide (#120), in bulk it is cheaper than SiC and will just take off the edges without costing you much mass. Awesome thanks man! Im tryin to decide if I should pull them since the rough is knocked off already? I might let them go 1 more day that will be 48 hours, but im honestly kind worried that if I do they will be over ground and much smaller than I want.
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stefan
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Post by stefan on Sept 10, 2022 13:56:52 GMT -5
Just my humble opinion here so take it with a grain of salt. Those rocks are not even close to being done. like was stated most of the grinding is done in the first 48 hours, but there is a lot of subtle changes that still occur after that. I honestly think if you move them on you will be disappointed with the finished rock. After course stage there is very little (like probably less the 5%) removal of material. THe stages after course grind are basically removing the scratches left by the previous steps.
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vance71975
freely admits to licking rocks
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Post by vance71975 on Sept 10, 2022 14:00:56 GMT -5
Just my humble opinion here so take it with a grain of salt. Those rocks are not even close to being done. like was stated most of the grinding is done in the first 48 hours, but there is a lot of subtle changes that still occur after that. I honestly think if you move them on you will be disappointed with the finished rock. After course stage there is very little (like probably less the 5%) removal of material. THe stages after course grind are basically removing the scratches left by the previous steps. Oh no man that is a photo of them BEFORE they went in the tumbler, they look totally different now 24 hrs later.
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rockbrain
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Post by rockbrain on Sept 10, 2022 16:26:54 GMT -5
Tumbling doesn't require a set amount of time. You leave your rocks in the stage, tell they're done and then move on. If you have very hard rocks they can take months and stage one. If you have very soft rocks, there's some that you can't even put in the regular stage one grit because they'll be gone in a few hours. You probably have some soft rocks. If they're ready to move on to second stage, move them on to second stage. Some people like more natural tumbles, some like the rocks flawless with no pits or cracks. Run stage 1 till you get the rock to where you like it then go to stage 2.
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vance71975
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Post by vance71975 on Sept 10, 2022 17:24:27 GMT -5
Tumbling doesn't require a set amount of time. You leave your rocks in the stage, tell they're done and then move on. If you have very hard rocks they can take months and stage one. If you have very soft rocks, there's some that you can't even put in the regular stage one grit because they'll be gone in a few hours. You probably have some soft rocks. If they're ready to move on to second stage, move them on to second stage. Some people like more natural tumbles, some like the rocks flawless with no pits or cracks. Run stage 1 till you get the rock to where you like it then go to stage 2. everything in right now, to the best of my knowledge is quartz and quartzite. Correct me if I am wrong but both should be around 7 or higer hardness right? Honestly, I think stage 1 will likely be done by tommorow. But thank you, you confirmed what i was thinking. The book that came with my tumbler said 7 days for stage one, and honestly I dont think there would be much left of the rocks after 7 days
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Post by pebblesky on Sept 10, 2022 17:28:29 GMT -5
Just my humble opinion here so take it with a grain of salt. Those rocks are not even close to being done. like was stated most of the grinding is done in the first 48 hours, but there is a lot of subtle changes that still occur after that. I honestly think if you move them on you will be disappointed with the finished rock. After course stage there is very little (like probably less the 5%) removal of material. THe stages after course grind are basically removing the scratches left by the previous steps. Oh no man that is a photo of them BEFORE they went in the tumbler, they look totally different now 24 hrs later. Do you have a picture AFTER?
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vance71975
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Post by vance71975 on Sept 10, 2022 18:06:23 GMT -5
Oh no man that is a photo of them BEFORE they went in the tumbler, they look totally different now 24 hrs later. Do you have a picture AFTER? Not yet, they are still rolling
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vance71975
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Post by vance71975 on Sept 11, 2022 12:29:10 GMT -5
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