jimgsmith
starting to shine!
Member since September 2022
Posts: 37
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Post by jimgsmith on Oct 23, 2022 21:08:07 GMT -5
jimgsmith Get your lot o back up and running yet?! I did just today. The new springs are installed and I adjusted the dowel for maximum action. But I'm still not thrilled with the results. When I only have wet rocks and ceramics, the movement is good. Then I add grit and it slows way down. I wait a bit for everything to settle, then give it a few squirts of water. It speeds up for a minute but then slows right down again. I must have tried this too many times as I can now see there is standing water at the bottom. This is for stage 2, where I only use 2 tbsp of 120/220 SiC, so maybe I need to add some soap or borax to make things more slippery? I'm not really sure at this point. Was going to experiment a bit and see. I think the Lot-o is probably still doing the job as the rocks are vibrating and moving, just not at all like the videos I have seen. I guess I need to find what works for mine.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Member since January 1970
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Oct 23, 2022 21:28:57 GMT -5
jimgsmith Get your lot o back up and running yet?! I did just today. The new springs are installed and I adjusted the dowel for maximum action. But I'm still not thrilled with the results. When I only have wet rocks and ceramics, the movement is good. Then I add grit and it slows way down. I wait a bit for everything to settle, then give it a few squirts of water. It speeds up for a minute but then slows right down again. I must have tried this too many times as I can now see there is standing water at the bottom. This is for stage 2, where I only use 2 tbsp of 120/220 SiC, so maybe I need to add some soap or borax to make things more slippery? I'm not really sure at this point. Was going to experiment a bit and see. I think the Lot-o is probably still doing the job as the rocks are vibrating and moving, just not at all like the videos I have seen. I guess I need to find what works for mine. Can I make a suggestion? Try using 1 Teaspoon of 120/220. It will look like it won’t be enough but it will. Give it about an hour or so and it will create a nice slurry. Also add a Tablespoon of borax to each stage. Give it a few sprays of water as needed when it looks like the slurry is getting dry. If you give it a go let me know how it works.
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jimgsmith
starting to shine!
Member since September 2022
Posts: 37
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Post by jimgsmith on Oct 23, 2022 21:53:21 GMT -5
I did just today. The new springs are installed and I adjusted the dowel for maximum action. But I'm still not thrilled with the results. When I only have wet rocks and ceramics, the movement is good. Then I add grit and it slows way down. I wait a bit for everything to settle, then give it a few squirts of water. It speeds up for a minute but then slows right down again. I must have tried this too many times as I can now see there is standing water at the bottom. This is for stage 2, where I only use 2 tbsp of 120/220 SiC, so maybe I need to add some soap or borax to make things more slippery? I'm not really sure at this point. Was going to experiment a bit and see. I think the Lot-o is probably still doing the job as the rocks are vibrating and moving, just not at all like the videos I have seen. I guess I need to find what works for mine. Can I make a suggestion? Try using 1 Teaspoon of 120/220. It will look like it won’t be enough but it will. Give it about an hour or so and it will create a nice slurry. Also add a Tablespoon of borax to each stage. Give it a few sprays of water as needed when it looks like the slurry is getting dry. If you give it a go let me know how it works. That sounds like a good idea. I'll try it. My lot-o seems to be doing something strange though. It moves well when I first plug it in, then it just shakes all the smalls and ceramics to the bottom and the larger stones to the top, then everything stops moving and just sits there vibrating. Does this mean anything?
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Member since January 1970
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Post by Deleted on Oct 23, 2022 22:11:53 GMT -5
jimgsmithHaven’t had that happen. How full are you feeling it?
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jimgsmith
starting to shine!
Member since September 2022
Posts: 37
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Post by jimgsmith on Oct 23, 2022 22:14:15 GMT -5
jimgsmith Haven’t had that happen. How full are you feeling it? Good question. I thought it was full enough, but now that its settled a bit its probably a little lower than it could be. Does that matter?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 24, 2022 8:31:42 GMT -5
jimgsmithI’m not the most experienced and have not have that issue before but I would imagine that it could be a weight issue with whats in the barrel. I also just remember your on one block with the holes right? I think it could be an issue with how much weight your lot o is sitting on too. It’s supposed to be a 40lb block. Not sure if a hollow block is 40lbs?
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Post by susand24224 on Oct 24, 2022 15:41:10 GMT -5
I'm real late to this, but I'll give it a shot in case you are still having problems. I agree with the poster who said that the size of the rocks and fullness may be your problem. Also, it is *very* full, so along with the large rocks, that could be a problem. In the video you posted your rocks are too dry to get good action--I found that daily I had to put about a TBS of additional water in for the action to continue. (I'm in a dry climate, though--you may need less.) As for the ceramic shapes, I have never had a problem, but the gentleman who instructed me on the use of the Lotto when I started did. On the other hand, I have never used ceramic shapes in a Lotto to create small rocks--only to complete the load and cushion. The rule of thumb (for me) was no more than three large rocks to a 3 lb barrel, whether it is a vibe or a rotary.
From the looks of the slurry, something is happening, it just can't turn the load.
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jimgsmith
starting to shine!
Member since September 2022
Posts: 37
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Post by jimgsmith on Oct 24, 2022 16:37:51 GMT -5
Well, I think the problem may be solved (crosses fingers while knocking on wood). Its been a long and winding road, so in the event it is of some use to others, here is what I did: 1. Tried the Lot-O right out of the box, using the standard recipe of wet rocks, no standing water and 2 tablespoons of 120/220 SiC. Rocks did not move well at all. 2. Moved the dowel closer to the barrel as I have seen others do, but I didn't have the tumbler running while I did it, so I'm not sure if I put it in the best spot. 3. Tried the Lot-O again, with wet rocks, no standing water and 2 tablespoons of 120/220 SiC. Rocks still did not move well at all. 4. Removed the Lot-O from the base to tune the dowel with the unit running, and I found that 3 springs were broken and a fourth one was cracked. I'm not sure when this happened, but I suspect the springs were at least cracked when I got the tumbler and may have broken when I was removing the unit from the base. All the cracks/breaks were at the point where the hole is drilled for the bolt that attaches the spring to the tumbler. Ordered a new set of springs and replaced all 6 of them. 5. With the new springs installed, I re-tuned the dowel with the tumbler running 6. Removed both fans from the tumbler and made a mark on the outside where the weight is so I can check that they are aligned more easily 7. Tried the Lot-O again, with wet rocks, no standing water and 2 tablespoons of 120/220 SiC. Rocks still did not move well at all. At this point I am hitting peak frustration and considering throwing the Lot-O out the window. 8. Cleaned everything up and loaded only wet rocks, with no standing water and no grit, and let that run for an hour. Good movement. Ok, now we're getting somewhere. 9. Removed the rocks, cleaned them again (some slurry had developed) and reloaded the barrel with 70% rocks and 30% ceramic media (still no grit) and re-ran for an hour. Still good movement. Optimism is starting to trickle in. 10. Added 1 teaspoon of 120/220 SiC and let it run for an hour and a half. Still good movement. 11. Now I am going to monitor it for a little while and probably try to add another teaspoon of grit, just to make sure there is enough to last 2-3 days. The rocks are covered in slurry, but its a pretty thin coating. So, I think there were a few problems that contributed to my woes. 1. The springs were most likely at least cracked and some may have been broken when I got the machine. 2. The dowel definitely needed to be tuned...this made a big difference. 3. The fans need to be aligned. Not sure if they were aligned right out of the box or not, as I just removed them, marked them and re-installed. Even with all of this done, though, the Lot-O still does not like 2 tablespoons of 120/220 SiC. I even tried adding water a squirt at a time for a full day to see if it would loosen things up, but it never did. It just went from gummed up to rock soup and never got the movement I was looking for. At the suggestion of ashley I reduced the grit to 1 teaspoon and Bazinga! I still want to have a little more grit in there, but at least I now know I can get it to work.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 24, 2022 20:39:42 GMT -5
jimgsmithThat’s so awesome its working for you!! I’m really excited for you! keep us posted on how it goes, looking forward to seeing some finished rocks in a week or so!
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jimgsmith
starting to shine!
Member since September 2022
Posts: 37
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Post by jimgsmith on Oct 24, 2022 20:50:14 GMT -5
jimgsmithThat’s so awesome its working for you!! I’m really excited for you! keep us posted on how it goes, looking forward to seeing some finished rocks in a week or so! ashley Thank YOU!! You had the magic answer! And now that it has been running for 6 hours, the rocks are covered in a nice slurry so I don’t think I need to add more grit after all. You rock!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 24, 2022 21:02:21 GMT -5
jimgsmithYou’re very welcome! it takes a bit to become a nice slurry but 1 tsp really does work perfectly. If after a day or two (if you even go that long in 120/220) it’s chattering again it’s probably because the ceramics have became a clump. I dump the barrel in my mesh strainer and run some water in the barrel, swish it around to clean the barrel a little bit then dump it over the rocks and swirl that around to wet the rocks and ceramics better, then put it back and finish the run. (Don’t clean them off or add any grit, just wet them to make them not as globby and sticky)
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Post by broseph82 on Oct 24, 2022 21:24:31 GMT -5
jimgsmith What does your base of block look like? How much weight and how many blocks? Its glued to a single cement block, which has a half-inch piece of foam under it (for noise), and is sitting on a wooden floor. Your rocks are too big and odd shapes. Also, where are the ceramic pieces at?
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waterboysh
spending too much on rocks
Member since April 2021
Posts: 369
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Post by waterboysh on Oct 25, 2022 8:35:38 GMT -5
A lot of people use 2 Tbsp of 120/220 and I just was never able to get that to work. It would bog down and movement would stop after a while. This was even after moving my dowel. I switched to only using 1 Tbsp and it was much better. I've also got some graded 220 grit that I will start using soon instead of 120/220 and I think that should help too.
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jimgsmith
starting to shine!
Member since September 2022
Posts: 37
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Post by jimgsmith on Oct 25, 2022 8:48:51 GMT -5
A lot of people use 2 Tbsp of 120/220 and I just was never able to get that to work. It would bog down and movement would stop after a while. This was even after moving my dowel. I switched to only using 1 Tbsp and it was much better. I've also got some graded 220 grit that I will start using soon instead of 120/220 and I think that should help too. Ya, I don’t understand how some Lot-O’s can handle 2 Tbsp and some can’t. I’ve literally done everything imaginable to make it work but it just bogs down. If this batch turns out well then I will consider it a win as I save on grit.
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