dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Oct 4, 2023 20:23:34 GMT -5
Thank you! I don't mind flat edges either. When I get a better saw I will definitely cut up stuff for the tumbler! I hope you don't mind a couple of extra thoughts, especially if you go the benchtop tile saw route. Many folks that have used a tile saw most often complain about standing in front of the saw while cutting and getting sprayed with water as the blade turns through the sump. But, the great thing about these table top type saws is that you don't have to stand in front of the saw and get sprayed while pushing a rock through the saw. Stand on the opposite side and PULL the rock through the blade. If you do this, the water in the sump will spray away from you instead of soaking you with water. When I've done this, I didn't even have the need to wear a waterproof apron. Next, I believe a 7 inch tile saw will cleanly a rock that is about 1.5". Don't quote me, but it's somewhere near that...I think...I just can't recall. If you have a larger rock, you can roll the rock as it is cut which pretty much doubles your cutting capacity. Since you're prepping the rocks for tumbling, it won't make a difference if your rolled cut isn't totally clean. You're not doing slabs...you're going to tumble the stuff. Lastly, the biggest problem with inexpensive tile saws is the sump (the basin that holds the water) has a finite capacity. As the blade turns through the basin, the blade picks up water while it is wetted, with the end result being the water level goes down. I wasn't happy with that type of setup, so I looked for a way to allow for water to be added while I did all of my cutting. As such, I came up with this... I found what is called a bulkhead hose fitting which allowed me to attach a hose to the side of the sump. Using a shutoff where I could meter water, I could spray a gentle stream from a hose directly on the blade, and water would continually fill the sump. With this, I never had to stop the saw to add more water for lubrication. Here are a couple photos... Hope this helps a bit more. Good luck. ETA: I can't take credit for this cutting procedure. I learned it from Garage Rocker Thanks! That bulk head hose fitting is a great idea!!. Pulling the rock through the saw from behind is a brilliant idea! I'm usually cutting in 90-100 degree Texas heat, so I just let the water hit me, but I like the idea of the pull from behind method. I may try to pick up a good tile saw??
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dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Oct 4, 2023 20:26:56 GMT -5
Like Hank says, if you have the luxury of using a 14" or larger rock saw it is hard to beat cutting 4 to 10 pound rocks into 3/4 to 1 inch slabs before taking a hammer to your rock. This certainly reduces fractures and gives the hammer man better control. For smaller rocks a tile saw does well. A super nice agate or hunk of pet wood is just to valuable to me to beat on with a hammer when if it is over 3 to 4 pounds in size and awkward to break with a hammer without getting poorly shaped and/or fractured tumbles. Sometimes it is better to order rocks already broken to tumble size if the supplier does a good job making good tumble shapes. The supplier has taken the hit for much of the waste. Or he may send you junk... I'm saving up for a drop saw, but it will be 2-3 months - oh heck that's December . . . dang it - probably 4-5 months before I get a bigger saw. That said I will definitely cut then bash when I have the right saw.
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dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Oct 4, 2023 20:29:09 GMT -5
dillonf if you live near TN I have a rock crusher. Thanks rmf I'm in Texas - so I might not be out your way for rock crushing, but the great smokey mountains are on my bucket list!
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dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Oct 4, 2023 20:36:00 GMT -5
Sometimes I use a saw, sometimes I use a hammer/chisel, and sometimes I just use a hammer. When I hammer and/or chisel, I put the rock on an 8 x 12 x .5 inch steel plate which I tend to place on top of a cut up door mat on the pavement or concrete. Like others have mentioned, I set up some cardboard around my working area to prevent shards from flying around. Having your skin, eyes, ears, and lungs covered helps as well 🙂. Thanks! Yeah, not having the metal plate to place the rocks on was one of my biggest mistakes, because I destroyed every surfaced I used to crush rocks I will try the boxes. I've used a tea towel, but I pretty much destroy one every time I crush ~5-6 pounds of rock.
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Post by aDave on Oct 4, 2023 20:38:23 GMT -5
Thanks! That bulk head hose fitting is a great idea!!. Pulling the rock through the saw from behind is a brilliant idea! I'm usually cutting in 90-100 degree Texas heat, so I just let the water hit me, but I like the idea of the pull from behind method. I may try to pick up a good tile saw?? I am happy with the fitting. Before getting it, I clamped a garden hose to the table top and just trickled water on the saw table top (it ran into the sump), but it was kind of a pain. With the fitting and a garden hose shutoff (with a 90 degree shutoff lever), I just barely crack the shutoff to open a bit, and a very light mist can be generated. The other benefit of a tile saw is the diamond rim of the blade can be used for grinding mild imperfections on rocks. The inherent downfall of a tile saw is they typically run near 2700-3000 RPMs, so you have to somewhat baby and maintain the blade as best you can.
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dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Oct 4, 2023 20:47:14 GMT -5
Thanks! That bulk head hose fitting is a great idea!!. Pulling the rock through the saw from behind is a brilliant idea! I'm usually cutting in 90-100 degree Texas heat, so I just let the water hit me, but I like the idea of the pull from behind method. I may try to pick up a good tile saw?? I am happy with the fitting. Before getting it, I clamped a garden hose to the table top and just trickled water on the saw table top (it ran into the sump), but it was kind of a pain. With the fitting and a garden hose shutoff (with a 90 degree shutoff lever), I just barely crack the shutoff to open a bit, and a very light mist can be generated. The other benefit of a tile saw is the diamond rim of the blade can be used for grinding mild imperfections on rocks. The inherent downfall of a tile saw is they typically run near 2700-3000 RPMs, so you have to somewhat baby and maintain the blade as best you can. That is good to know about the blade speed - I wouldn't have thought of that. Could easily burn through some blades I bet!
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nursetumbler
Cave Dweller
Member since February 2022
Posts: 994
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Post by nursetumbler on Oct 7, 2023 0:04:31 GMT -5
Your proposed gold ore crusher will do just that. I'm pretty sure it will produce powder and very few usable rocks. Hi Tom
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,642
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Post by jamesp on Oct 7, 2023 9:05:30 GMT -5
dillonf Stop shaving, bathing and using deodorant for a month, dress in leather, and watch this guy for his first 3 minutes . His method works great on good agates, jaspers, cherts and obsidian(i.e. perfect tumble stock) when say 4 pounds and larger. Use a copper boper on similar smaller rocks 2 to 4 pounds. Note how he makes a large 'slab' without a saw. Once you have a slab the smaller pieces are much easier to hammer out. Angle of strike and angle of the rock face is key to get thicker chunks instead of thin chips. Note how he uses softer hammers like dense elk antler, some use brass or copper hammers to reduce fracture propagation.
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Post by HankRocks on Oct 7, 2023 9:26:02 GMT -5
jamesp, dillonf, I also notice the knife maker had a selection of larger quartzite pieces to use a "hammers". They obviously work well as quartzite gives up it's surface to the harder rock reducing impact fractures. If I start living, dressing and skipping showers I will have much more time with the rocks in the garage as Diane is not going to let me in the house!!! His hands must be leather!! Henry
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Post by HankRocks on Oct 7, 2023 9:29:36 GMT -5
And some of the rock shapes in the background and the color appears to be the same as the few pieces of English Flint I have from the U.S. east coast and the "Seal" rock I polished. They also have the same coating that quickly tumbles away to reveal the deeper darker color.
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dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Oct 8, 2023 16:43:29 GMT -5
dillonf Stop shaving, bathing and using deodorant for a month, dress in leather, and watch this guy for his first 3 minutes . His method works great on good agates, jaspers, cherts and obsidian(i.e. perfect tumble stock) when say 4 pounds and larger. Use a copper boper on similar smaller rocks 2 to 4 pounds. Note how he makes a large 'slab' without a saw. Once you have a slab the smaller pieces are much easier to hammer out. Angle of strike and angle of the rock face is key to get thicker chunks instead of thin chips. Note how he uses softer hammers like dense elk antler, some use brass or copper hammers to reduce fracture propagation. Wow that is really cool! I have some smaller deer antlers and some old acrylic hammers my father in-law gifted me, but no elk antlers unfortunately! What I really need are a pair of those thick leather chaps!
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dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Oct 8, 2023 16:55:26 GMT -5
jamesp , dillonf , I also notice the knife maker had a selection of larger quartzite pieces to use a "hammers". They obviously work well as quartzite gives up it's surface to the harder rock reducing impact fractures. If I start living, dressing and skipping showers I will have much more time with the rocks in the garage as Diane is not going to let me in the house!!! His hands must be leather!! Henry I think I have a few chunks of quartzite laying around I could try. His strikes must be well placed as I feel I need to use way more force to get breaks with my hammer and chisel. Admittedly though I am no good at "reading the rock" and understanding where to place strikes to maximize cleavage. If I skipped showers I'd be sleeping in the couch and waking up with a sore back! Missus would kick me out of the bedroom.
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ctxtumblebug
having dreams about rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 65
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Post by ctxtumblebug on Oct 8, 2023 23:34:51 GMT -5
My method for getting rocks ready for the tumbler is using an angle grinder with a continuous cut diamond blade. I will dip my rock that I'm cutting and shaping into a bucket of water frequently to keep from wearing the blade out too fast. I get a pack of three good diamond blades for this at Harbor Freight for under twenty dollars. This method also speeds up the Step One tumble time considerably due to the rocks being smoothed out and shaped well with the angle grinder before going into the tumblers.
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Post by liveoak on Dec 31, 2023 17:48:04 GMT -5
I ran across this today & thought it was appropriate for the rock crushing thread & a different method that some here may want to try.
Just a little wiring and soldering is all it would take, and you'd have it going for the New Year.
It's kind of on this concept :
Hope anybody that tries will post pictures, or it didn't happen
Happy New Year Everyone !! Patty
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Post by Starguy on Dec 31, 2023 18:11:54 GMT -5
I want one!
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Post by broseph82 on Jan 7, 2024 12:29:55 GMT -5
Inspiration to build one :
Patty
There are rock crushers out there that don't pulverize into a powder.
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