My purchase source for filler rocks for rotary
Feb 15, 2023 11:49:00 GMT -5
quartzilla, pebblesky, and 1 more like this
Post by Bob on Feb 15, 2023 11:49:00 GMT -5
www.ebay.com/itm/154249595075 is my source. I had made a mental note to mention in this forum next time reordering. This seller has been my source for maybe 5-6 years. There are several sizes which I've tried, but the best are labelled as "small" and range from .5-1". They come in 10lb plastic bags in a box. Just ordered another 100lbs. The price used to be $40 for 50lbs, and has gone up 25% which isn't surprising in that time given shipping costs and other costs increases. Given that shipping is free, I think it's a fair deal. This seller I think gets this material from China. Flat rate shipping is used so is simple and easy.
One of the problems with buying bulk smalls like I do, is how much of it is soft crud that is a waste and doesn't help with grinding (even though it does help with cushioning when doing large pieces of touchy material like feldspar). What I used to do, is spread it all out on the table, get out the soft, porous junk and just keep the other which is hard quartz. But I no longer bother and just use it all. The soft stuff is worn away quickly anyway. Having tested quite a few sources, that soft stuff can be up to 50% of the product, especially with sellers who say they just scoop it up from a nearby river gravel bar. Sometimes you can sort of see this in the photo and sometimes not.
What I like about this source is the soft crud is only 10% or so, sometimes up to 25%, less than most I've tried. This porous stuff doesn't weigh much, so at least the shipping charges (embedded in price) are based upon weight not volume. So there is little motivation for a seller to pad good stuff with bad stuff.
Almost every batch of rough grind has some of filler used in it, and when grinding a large rock, say cantaloupe or larger in my 40lb barrel, most of the load will be these smalls and just that one rock. Eventually they just disappear so there is a continual replenishment. I maybe use up 100lbs/year, maybe a bit more.
One trick when reloading a barrel these came out of is to not use the wet ones for the new load, but to use dry ones instead. Then let the wet ones sit around a day or two and dry out. That's because the dry ones will sort of "run" down into the barrel between large rocks quite easily and get where they need to be, but wet ones won't do that as the get hung with each other on the way down.
If the rock size mix clearly needs filler (and not all loads do), don't wait until the barrel is nearly full and just put them on top. I will do some as the barrel is 1/3 full, a bit more 2/3, and sometimes a bit more on top. This helps keep the load evenly distributed and likely to start at the targeted 75-80% full after a few rotations. I keep these in a large bucket right beneath my work area with a scoop in it to make accessing easy and quick.
Lastly, there are some rather pretty rocks here and there in this material. i try to make a habit of always grabbing one pretty one and putting in the next finer stage on each barrel recharge.
One of the problems with buying bulk smalls like I do, is how much of it is soft crud that is a waste and doesn't help with grinding (even though it does help with cushioning when doing large pieces of touchy material like feldspar). What I used to do, is spread it all out on the table, get out the soft, porous junk and just keep the other which is hard quartz. But I no longer bother and just use it all. The soft stuff is worn away quickly anyway. Having tested quite a few sources, that soft stuff can be up to 50% of the product, especially with sellers who say they just scoop it up from a nearby river gravel bar. Sometimes you can sort of see this in the photo and sometimes not.
What I like about this source is the soft crud is only 10% or so, sometimes up to 25%, less than most I've tried. This porous stuff doesn't weigh much, so at least the shipping charges (embedded in price) are based upon weight not volume. So there is little motivation for a seller to pad good stuff with bad stuff.
Almost every batch of rough grind has some of filler used in it, and when grinding a large rock, say cantaloupe or larger in my 40lb barrel, most of the load will be these smalls and just that one rock. Eventually they just disappear so there is a continual replenishment. I maybe use up 100lbs/year, maybe a bit more.
One trick when reloading a barrel these came out of is to not use the wet ones for the new load, but to use dry ones instead. Then let the wet ones sit around a day or two and dry out. That's because the dry ones will sort of "run" down into the barrel between large rocks quite easily and get where they need to be, but wet ones won't do that as the get hung with each other on the way down.
If the rock size mix clearly needs filler (and not all loads do), don't wait until the barrel is nearly full and just put them on top. I will do some as the barrel is 1/3 full, a bit more 2/3, and sometimes a bit more on top. This helps keep the load evenly distributed and likely to start at the targeted 75-80% full after a few rotations. I keep these in a large bucket right beneath my work area with a scoop in it to make accessing easy and quick.
Lastly, there are some rather pretty rocks here and there in this material. i try to make a habit of always grabbing one pretty one and putting in the next finer stage on each barrel recharge.