harkness
off to a rocking start
Member since October 2023
Posts: 4
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Post by harkness on Oct 13, 2023 13:39:01 GMT -5
I'm new to rock tumbling and currently have no equipment. I'm looking to tumble a batch of very tiny garnetts (some as small as 2mm across) and I'm worried tumbling them will just destroy them or they'll get lost in the slurry. Do you think they are tumblable and if so what equipment/process do you recommend?
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Post by rockjunquie on Oct 13, 2023 15:33:03 GMT -5
I have no idea, but maybe Starguy can help. He's the garnet guy and has tumbled them. |
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Post by Starguy on Oct 13, 2023 15:54:59 GMT -5
harkness . I don’t know how much garnet you have but a small tumbler will probably be best to start with. For sand size garnets, I would tumble them without grit for a week or two. Garnets are hard. They will grind away almost any other impurities. If you use grit, you will need to clean it out occasionally and that will be difficult with such small stones. After letting them roll for a while, you can probably go straight to polish. Chrome oxide is recommended for garnet but it’s very messy to deal with. A pre-polish would help but would add another cleanout. thanks for the tag rockjunquie
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Post by velodromed on Oct 14, 2023 9:01:48 GMT -5
I’m currently tumbling a large prairie agate, pre polish stage, in a 3lb rotary barrel. I filled it a couple inches from the top with small 3-5mm polished garnets I got off Amazon for cushioning. In another week or so I’ll open to see how it’s doing. I’m curious if the garnets survive being tumbled with a 2+lb agate, and I’m hoping they help with the polish stage for these larger rocks I like to tumble. I’ll let you know how they do.
As for a good beginner tumbler…what are your goals and expectations for the hobby? If you just want to experiment with a garnets and see how it goes, get a cheap one off Amazon, or a harbor freight dual tumbler. If you enjoy collecting rocks and are looking at this as a future hobby, then get something quality. Buy once, cry once as they say. There are going to be a lot of sales between now and Christmas, so it’s a good time to be looking.
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harkness
off to a rocking start
Member since October 2023
Posts: 4
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Post by harkness on Oct 21, 2023 21:39:34 GMT -5
Thanks everyone, this was super helpful 😊
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