dbotte
off to a rocking start
Member since May 2022
Posts: 18
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Post by dbotte on Jan 22, 2023 16:06:35 GMT -5
So I'm using DP's Vibradry+ for the final polishing Stages of my Agates. After running the stones through Stage Three with 500 AO, I move them onto Stages Four and Five, yes a Fifth Stage. Fourth is Vibradry+ #25,000 and Fifth is #50,000.
After #25k they have a sheen but it's muddled, kinda like a steamed up mirror. The sheen is a little bit more sheen but still foggy.
I know that I'm running each previous Stage appropriately; A week minimum for Stage One (60/90 SiC), four or five days for Stage Two (130/220 SiC), four or five days for Stage Three (500 AO) and then #25k and #50k Vibradry+ for three days each.
If any of y'all that have experience with Vibradry+ could give me an explanation and a fix, would be great!
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jan 22, 2023 16:42:06 GMT -5
What type of tumbler is being used? What made you decide to try the vibradry product? I just have to ask because there's not many folks that use that stuff anymore. I can't remember the last post I have even seen about it. I would actually love to know more about it but I have never heard any rave reviews that have made it worth forking out the money just to try it. 5 steps is really common but going from 500 straight to 25,000 is not common at all. After 500 the common next step is 1000 or 1200. For reference these agates went though standard grit cycles not vibra dry. 46/70, 120/220, 500, 1000 and A/O polish in the 8,000 to 14,000 range. Chuck
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hoolligan1938
spending too much on rocks
Member since January 2022
Posts: 253
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Post by hoolligan1938 on Jan 22, 2023 17:51:02 GMT -5
Chuck - Those are beautiful! Did you use your Lot-o with the new concrete vibe motor? Whose brand of polish are you using?
Jim
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stefan
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2005
Posts: 14,094
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Post by stefan on Jan 24, 2023 17:49:20 GMT -5
I'm guessing you're using a DP sonic tumbler? It is a huge leap going from 500 to 25000. You need to add at least one step between those.
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afterburnt
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since June 2021
Posts: 152
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Post by afterburnt on Jan 25, 2023 17:51:25 GMT -5
I run 60-90 SC in the rotary for as long as needed. I use a Raytech TV-5 for the subsequent stages 120/220 SC 48 hours 500 AO 48 hours 1000 AO (only for certain material) 48 hours Polish 48 hours with excellent results with most material, especially agates. I am not familiar with your machine but you are taking a lot more time, I suppose that somehow could be an issue. All of my grit is from The Rock Shed.
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afterburnt
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since June 2021
Posts: 152
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Post by afterburnt on Jan 25, 2023 20:30:49 GMT -5
I run 60-90 SC in the rotary for as long as needed. I use a Raytech TV-5 for the subsequent stages 120/220 SC 48 hours 500 AO 48 hours 1000 AO (only for certain material) 48 hours Polish 48 hours with excellent results with most material, especially agates. I am not familiar with your machine but you are taking a lot more time, I suppose that somehow could be an issue. All of my grit is from The Rock Shed. Oh, now I see. Nevermind.
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dbotte
off to a rocking start
Member since May 2022
Posts: 18
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Post by dbotte on Feb 5, 2023 15:51:18 GMT -5
What type of tumbler is being used? What made you decide to try the vibradry product? I just have to ask because there's not many folks that use that stuff anymore. I can't remember the last post I have even seen about it. I would actually love to know more about it but I have never heard any rave reviews that have made it worth forking out the money just to try it. 5 steps is really common but going from 500 straight to 25,000 is not common at all. After 500 the common next step is 1000 or 1200. For reference these agates went though standard grit cycles not vibra dry. 46/70, 120/220, 500, 1000 and A/O polish in the 8,000 to 14,000 range. Chuck I deeply apologize for not responding sooner! I'm using an MT-10. But yeah, going from 500 AO to 25k is a big jump! I just assumed you skipped the polishing stage with AO polish and use the Vibradry in place of it. So if I'm understanding correctly, you want to do the AO Polish and THEN use the 25k and 50k Vibradry? Also, those are amazing Agates! What is your process to get them like that? Mine never come out looking like that, even though I'm using Rock Shed's AO.
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vance71975
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since September 2022
Posts: 760
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Post by vance71975 on Feb 5, 2023 16:01:07 GMT -5
What type of tumbler is being used? What made you decide to try the vibradry product? I just have to ask because there's not many folks that use that stuff anymore. I can't remember the last post I have even seen about it. I would actually love to know more about it but I have never heard any rave reviews that have made it worth forking out the money just to try it. 5 steps is really common but going from 500 straight to 25,000 is not common at all. After 500 the common next step is 1000 or 1200. For reference these agates went though standard grit cycles not vibra dry. 46/70, 120/220, 500, 1000 and A/O polish in the 8,000 to 14,000 range. Chuck I deeply apologize for not responding sooner! I'm using an MT-10. But yeah, going from 500 AO to 25k is a big jump! I just assumed you skipped the polishing stage with AO polish and use the Vibradry in place of it. So if I'm understanding correctly, you want to do the AO Polish and THEN use the 25k and 50k Vibradry? Also, those are amazing Agates! What is your process to get them like that? Mine never come out looking like that, even though I'm using Rock Shed's AO. You might want to add an extra step or two in there I would go 500AO, 1000 AO, AO polish from rock shed, then go to your 25k if you think you still need it or you want to use it up, but honestly AO polish from rock shed should give you a mirror shine.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Feb 5, 2023 17:05:59 GMT -5
I deeply apologize for not responding sooner! I'm using an MT-10. But yeah, going from 500 AO to 25k is a big jump! I just assumed you skipped the polishing stage with AO polish and use the Vibradry in place of it. So if I'm understanding correctly, you want to do the AO Polish and THEN use the 25k and 50k Vibradry? Also, those are amazing Agates! What is your process to get them like that? Mine never come out looking like that, even though I'm using Rock Shed's AO. You might want to add an extra step or two in there I would go 500AO, 1000 AO, AO polish from rock shed, then go to your 25k if you think you still need it or you want to use it up, but honestly AO polish from rock shed should give you a mirror shine. Thank you. I have had a mini sonic for several years and I do use it on occasion but I really prefer the lot-o. Here are some links to mini sonic batches I have posted here. All with rockshed A/O as final polish forum.rocktumblinghobby.com/thread/101300/mini-sonic-rocksforum.rocktumblinghobby.com/thread/93978/mt4-mini-sonic-batchforum.rocktumblinghobby.com/thread/90665/mixed-rock-batch-2-25I do not have a tried and true recipe that I always use in the mini sonic but this is my general recipe in the lot-o. I use all the same stages, grits and polish in the mini sonic but have to use more and run longer. Chuck
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dbotte
off to a rocking start
Member since May 2022
Posts: 18
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Post by dbotte on Feb 7, 2023 14:18:27 GMT -5
Thank you so much Chuck! I really appreciate it! So you said before that you get a really good shine just from the 500AO with the Lot-O? I actually noticed that with MichiganRocks' (his name is Rob correct?) rocks as well. Is there really no way to get that result from the 500AO stage in the Mini-Sonic? If that's the case, the Mini-Sonic will NEVER get as good of a final polish as the Lot-O, which would be disappointing. Considering I spent more or less $500 on the MT-10. I just recently added 1000AO to my arsenal and ran a single batch of Agates and other Chalcedony with it. They came out with a slight sheen but NOTHING like your 500AO results in your Lot-O. I still get a good polish from the RS's AO which if I remember correctly they say is roughly 8000 Grit. I also have a shit ton of Raytech's Raybrite A AO I purchased on a whim which they claim is .5 Microns. I've never had any luck with there's though. My thought process was that after using the RS's 3 Micron AO (8000 Grit), that if I put them through a cycle of the Raybrite AO they would come out with an even greater polish. Unless I was doing something wrong, they always came out worse than before. So, now that I kind of know some things about the Vibradry+ and how to use it properly, I'll put a batch of AO polished rocks through the 25k and 50k and see what happens. My anxiety is about through the roof with it though, I hate ruining a batch of my favorite rocks just for an experiment. I will try your recipe though starting with the rotary and then finishing the rest of the stages through the Mini-Sonic and see what results I get.
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vance71975
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since September 2022
Posts: 760
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Post by vance71975 on Feb 9, 2023 1:32:23 GMT -5
Thank you so much Chuck! I really appreciate it! So you said before that you get a really good shine just from the 500AO with the Lot-O? I actually noticed that with MichiganRocks' (his name is Rob correct?) rocks as well. Is there really no way to get that result from the 500AO stage in the Mini-Sonic? If that's the case, the Mini-Sonic will NEVER get as good of a final polish as the Lot-O, which would be disappointing. Considering I spent more or less $500 on the MT-10. I just recently added 1000AO to my arsenal and ran a single batch of Agates and other Chalcedony with it. They came out with a slight sheen but NOTHING like your 500AO results in your Lot-O. I still get a good polish from the RS's AO which if I remember correctly they say is roughly 8000 Grit. I also have a shit ton of Raytech's Raybrite A AO I purchased on a whim which they claim is .5 Microns. I've never had any luck with there's though. My thought process was that after using the RS's 3 Micron AO (8000 Grit), that if I put them through a cycle of the Raybrite AO they would come out with an even greater polish. Unless I was doing something wrong, they always came out worse than before. So, now that I kind of know some things about the Vibradry+ and how to use it properly, I'll put a batch of AO polished rocks through the 25k and 50k and see what happens. My anxiety is about through the roof with it though, I hate ruining a batch of my favorite rocks just for an experiment. I will try your recipe though starting with the rotary and then finishing the rest of the stages through the Mini-Sonic and see what results I get. The advantage is, unless they are super tiny rocks, if you "ruin" them, you can always kick them back down to 500 SIC for 2 or 3 days in a vibe tumbler and go back through the standard polish stages and skip what "ruined" them.
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chris1956
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2022
Posts: 1,088
Member is Online
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Post by chris1956 on Feb 9, 2023 12:43:06 GMT -5
Chuck, Thanks for the recipe for tumbling rocks. Your rocks are always superbly polished. At the end you mention you use borax for burnishing and cleaning. Do you use any soap? I was reading the March issue of Rock & Gem and they had an article on tumbling. In the article they said "DO NOT use soap for cleaning." It wasn't clear to me if they were talking about using soap at any step or just at the end. Nor did they say why you shouldn't use soap. I did a search on the forum for soap and scanned posts for about the last six months. Looked like most people use soap at the end with a few saying they didn't see any difference.
Is there anything wrong with using soap between stages to help clean the rocks? I have done this a few times (after an initial rinse with just water) when it was difficult to get all the grit off of the rocks although it is another step that takes time if you put them back in for a short tumble.
Thanks
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Feb 9, 2023 13:20:40 GMT -5
Chuck, Thanks for the recipe for tumbling rocks. Your rocks are always superbly polished. At the end you mention you use borax for burnishing and cleaning. Do you use any soap? I was reading the March issue of Rock & Gem and they had an article on tumbling. In the article they said "DO NOT use soap for cleaning." It wasn't clear to me if they were talking about using soap at any step or just at the end. Nor did they say why you shouldn't use soap. I did a search on the forum for soap and scanned posts for about the last six months. Looked like most people use soap at the end with a few saying they didn't see any difference. Is there anything wrong with using soap between stages to help clean the rocks? I have done this a few times (after an initial rinse with just water) when it was difficult to get all the grit off of the rocks although it is another step that takes time if you put them back in for a short tumble. Thanks First off Borax is a soap/detergent. Secondly I recommend the burnish step more often then I actually do it. I am really recommending it to folks that are having issues or that do not tumble their rocks to perfection and might have polish stuck in crevices after their last stage. I use a vibe tumbler for everything past stage one. For my 500, 1000 and polishing stages I am using borax with the grit during each cycle. At the end of every cycle in the vibe I open the lid and squirt dawn dish soap in the barrel and add a few ounces of water. I let that run like that for 10 minutes before each cleanout. So I guess I do not agree with that article. That is OK though. Ask ten people any question on the internet get ten different answers. Chuck
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