adam5
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 153
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Post by adam5 on Sept 2, 2023 11:36:27 GMT -5
Warts and all: All of these were found locally, except for the dark red one which came from a bag of beach rocks bought at Lowe's and the small jaspers(?). The two rosy quartzs only have a dull shine, perhaps because my TV-5 vibrates a bit too vigorously. And the green rock, which I thought might be epidote, did not polish up at all. Still much to figure out.
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jimmie
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2021
Posts: 233
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Post by jimmie on Sept 2, 2023 12:17:16 GMT -5
Good job!
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Post by velodromed on Sept 2, 2023 12:29:55 GMT -5
Nice job, and don’t stress, you’ll have many subpar shines before you get your system down. Took me nearly a year to figure it out. I do all my course tumbling in rotary tumblers for as long as needed to get the quality and shape I want. I do stages 2-polish in my raytech 5. The action is fairly rough, so for SiC stages I load it down with a combo of smaller aquarium agate and mixed sized ceramics. For AO pre-polish and polish I use a separate bowl, lid and all smaller sized ceramics. Whichever bowl it is, I load it 1/2-3/4ths inch from the top. I also use a minimum amount of grit. Only a tsp or so of 200 range SiC and 3/4s tsp of 500 or 600 SiC. For the pre polish and polish stage I first add 3/4ths tbs of borax, then 1/2 tsp of 1200 or 1500 AO for pre-polish, and 1/4th tsp of .2/3 micron AO. Each of these stages are run 2-3 days. After the course stages in the rotary, I run a cleaning stage for a few hours in the vibe with a few drops of dish soap. I also do this after each SiC stage in the vibe, and twice before moving to pre-polish and between pre-polish and polish stages. Lastly, after the final polish stage cleaning, I run a borax only stage (burnish) for a few hours with 1 tbs borax. I have a batch finishing this afternoon and will post it later. Below is how high I load it…
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Post by chris1956 on Sept 2, 2023 12:46:47 GMT -5
Nice. Quartz can be hard to get a good polish.
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Post by jasoninsd on Sept 2, 2023 23:31:16 GMT -5
Nothing to be disappointed about in that first batch!! Way to go!!
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michiganpebbler
spending too much on rocks
Member since April 2023
Posts: 344
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Post by michiganpebbler on Sept 3, 2023 10:20:39 GMT -5
You did great for your first tumble! It’s takes time to dial it all in, and you’ll get there. Well done!
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adam5
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 153
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Post by adam5 on Sept 3, 2023 13:20:21 GMT -5
Thanks for the encouragement velodromedMy process at the moment is much like yours, only that I go from 500 AO directly to AO polish (from the Rock Shop). I am having trouble with keeping the moisture level right. I am normally gone from home between 5 am and 5 pm and my tumbling area is in my shed. The rocks in the TV-5 tend to be seized up when I get home. I am using weather stripping between the bowl and the lid to help against evaporation, and it has helped. But the rocks still aren't moving much when I get home.
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Post by Starguy on Sept 3, 2023 14:59:27 GMT -5
Nice looking batch. Did you do some rotary tumbling with them too?
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adam5
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 153
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Post by adam5 on Sept 3, 2023 16:06:14 GMT -5
Thanks!
Yes. They started out in Chicago Electric 3 lb barrels for grinding/shaping before going on to the vibratory tumbler.
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Post by velodromed on Sept 3, 2023 17:50:49 GMT -5
Thanks for the encouragement velodromed My process at the moment is much like yours, only that I go from 500 AO directly to AO polish (from the Rock Shop). I am having trouble with keeping the moisture level right. I am normally gone from home between 5 am and 5 pm and my tumbling area is in my shed. The rocks in the TV-5 tend to be seized up when I get home. I am using weather stripping between the bowl and the lid to help against evaporation, and it has helped. But the rocks still aren't moving much when I get home. It’s really bad for the rocks when they seize up dry and all. This is a big reason why I use small amounts of SiC grit, especially if it’s in the 200 range and lower. It’s just easier to control. So that’s why I’ll only use a level teaspoon or less at first. I can add 1/2 a tsp the next day or whenever. I also keep it loaded 1/2” from the top with ceramics and small agate so the rocks don’t vibrate so hard against each other. I’ll add extra water before unmonitored stretches. It’s definitely a juggling act. I don’t use anything between the lid and bowl. I do not tighten the bottom rubber nut as much as recommended, because if you do, it flairs out and prevents the lid from firmly setting on the bowl. I tighten the top rubber nut down pretty firm and spin the lid down tight, to where there’s no vibration. This seals the lid against the bowl and prevents evaporation also.
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adam5
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 153
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Post by adam5 on Sept 11, 2023 20:40:52 GMT -5
I had another go at some of my 1st rocks to make it through polish, as well as some other rocks. Using velodromed's recipes as a guide, I made some adjustments to my use of the RayTech TV-5. I am happy with the results.
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dshanpnw
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since December 2020
Posts: 1,071
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Post by dshanpnw on Sept 12, 2023 6:48:02 GMT -5
Nice 1st batch. I'd say you are definitely off to a very good start. If I see that a some of the stones look like they are not going to shine after the 500 stage I remove them so they don't contaminate the later stages. Thanks for sharing.
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