mikeinsjc
spending too much on rocks
Member since June 2010
Posts: 329
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Post by mikeinsjc on Nov 15, 2023 14:07:48 GMT -5
I just my removed my latest batch of obsidian from my 900th attempt at polishing, and it looks as lousy as all my previous efforts. I am forced to conclude one or more of the following;
1) I am an idiot (the most likely) 2) All published recipes for tumbling obsidian are written by people who have never used them 3) Pictures you see of beautiful tumbled stones are photoshopped, or, 4) The stones have been sprayed with gloss lacquer, and 5) Apache tears have been planted by demons to deceive rockhounds into thinking they can do this I have tumbled thousands of pounds of material over the years and couldn't be more pleased with my results. When my tumblers see me coming with a load of obsidian, I can hear them smirking. |
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hplcman
spending too much on rocks
Looking forward to my Friday Night Barrel Clean out!
Member since August 2022
Posts: 493
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Post by hplcman on Nov 15, 2023 14:23:56 GMT -5
I'm sorry you have had bad experiences with it! I have only tumbled it once and it was a hunk that I tumbled completely by itself (with a bunch of ceramics) and I like the way it turned out. Granted, it took up a 3-lb barrel for about 3 months to finish it... I'm going to tumble a single hunk of Mahagony obsidian and some smaller pieces of velvet obsidian in the future. We'll see if I had a case of 'beginners luck'.  |
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Post by Pat on Nov 15, 2023 14:45:47 GMT -5
I’m not a tumbler. Someone posted a thread on how to tumble polish obsidian. The thread is in several parts. It pops up every now and then., and I’ve seen it recently.
I hope you find it. Good d luck!
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Post by MsAli on Nov 15, 2023 19:49:59 GMT -5
There is quite a few wonderful threads about obsidian.
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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 Nov 15, 2023 19:53:51 GMT -5
I'm still working on refining my quartz method - next tiger's eye - then obsidian. So, that said, maybe in 5 years or so . . . haha.
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geoff59
spending too much on rocks
Member since October 2022
Posts: 288
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Post by geoff59 on Nov 15, 2023 20:24:33 GMT -5
What is your method, tumblers used, grits, etc? We need the fine details.
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Post by jasoninsd on Nov 15, 2023 22:46:19 GMT -5
mikeinsjc - Mike...I've got no advice for you...but I will admit you made me chuckle with your list. LOL Sorry...but I might agree with you that obsidian is devilish demon dung! LOL
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Post by hummingbirdstones on Nov 15, 2023 23:00:50 GMT -5
I'm sorry you're having such a time getting the obsidian to behave, but your post really made me laugh -- so thank you! I hope you eventually get that nice wet polish on your stones.
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Post by rockjunquie on Nov 15, 2023 23:04:55 GMT -5
I'm sorry you're having such a time getting the obsidian to behave, but your post really made me laugh -- so thank you! I hope you eventually get that nice wet polish on your stones.  |
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jawsjr
starting to shine!
Member since June 2019
Posts: 45
Member is Online
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Post by jawsjr on Nov 16, 2023 10:47:12 GMT -5
Sorry for your frustrations with polishing obsidian. I went through some bad times with it as well, but from the help of this forum, building some of my own equipment, modifying other equipment, doing a heck of a lot of hand work, a lot of trial and error, a lot of note taking so I can stop repeating mistakes, I was able to at least get a shine on it. Still trying to get it better.  |
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hplcman
spending too much on rocks
Looking forward to my Friday Night Barrel Clean out!
Member since August 2022
Posts: 493
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Post by hplcman on Nov 16, 2023 11:38:25 GMT -5
Here's a picture of that hunk I mentioned earlier. I think polished obsidian is absolutely beautiful, and I do hope you persevere with it!  |
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chapslv
having dreams about rocks
Member since June 2020
Posts: 56
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Post by chapslv on Nov 16, 2023 11:44:34 GMT -5
I love your list. My last batch of obsidian had the same results as you experienced. I had a small piece of tumbled aquarium gravel (used as cushion instead of ceramics) that broke and it scratched up the entire batch.
In my successful batches, I tumble everything after Stage 1 in a vibe.
Stage 1 needs to remove all imperfections that might trap grit.
All ceramics and other cushioning media should have been through all the stages before using with obsidian.
Clean out of the barrel is very important. Trapped grit will ruin the load.
I try to get a thicker slurry to help with cushioning. I have seen sugar, Metamucil, etc used to thicken the slurry.
Use a good quality polish.
Good luck!!!
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vance71975
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since September 2022
Posts: 760
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Post by vance71975 on Nov 16, 2023 20:42:21 GMT -5
I just my removed my latest batch of obsidian from my 900th attempt at polishing, and it looks as lousy as all my previous efforts. I am forced to conclude one or more of the following;
1) I am an idiot (the most likely) 2) All published recipes for tumbling obsidian are written by people who have never used them 3) Pictures you see of beautiful tumbled stones are photoshopped, or, 4) The stones have been sprayed with gloss lacquer, and 5) Apache tears have been planted by demons to deceive rockhounds into thinking they can do this I have tumbled thousands of pounds of material over the years and couldn't be more pleased with my results. When my tumblers see me coming with a load of obsidian, I can hear them smirking. I think someone once told me the best way to do it was dry polish on the final stages, but I am not sure. I think Corn cob media was suggested but I could be wrong. |
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dshanpnw
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since December 2020
Posts: 1,158
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Post by dshanpnw on Nov 17, 2023 8:11:26 GMT -5
I just my removed my latest batch of obsidian from my 900th attempt at polishing, and it looks as lousy as all my previous efforts. I am forced to conclude one or more of the following;
1) I am an idiot (the most likely) 2) All published recipes for tumbling obsidian are written by people who have never used them 3) Pictures you see of beautiful tumbled stones are photoshopped, or, 4) The stones have been sprayed with gloss lacquer, and 5) Apache tears have been planted by demons to deceive rockhounds into thinking they can do this I have tumbled thousands of pounds of material over the years and couldn't be more pleased with my results. When my tumblers see me coming with a load of obsidian, I can hear them smirking. I think someone once told me the best way to do it was dry polish on the final stages, but I am not sure. I think Corn cob media was suggested but I could be wrong. I'd like to try the dry polish to see how it works. Nice to see you on here again. Seems it's been a while. |
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dshanpnw
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since December 2020
Posts: 1,158
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Post by dshanpnw on Nov 17, 2023 8:20:31 GMT -5
Here's a picture of that hunk I mentioned earlier. I think polished obsidian is absolutely beautiful, and I do hope you persevere with it! That shape looks really nice for obsidian, and that shine is to die for. |
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stefan
Cave Dweller 
Member since January 2005
Posts: 14,113
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Post by stefan on Nov 17, 2023 17:12:17 GMT -5
Obsidian can be a challenge. There are a few keys to setting up for success.
1- rough stage. The key to remember is just like any rock, if it is not shaped well and as flaw free as possible coming out of rough, its gonna suck in the later stages.
2- time. take it. Just because it is a little softer does not mean it can be rushed. If you check and re-charge every week, then do the same for obsidian. If you run a 3 week polish, run a 3 week polish.
3- Extras- add them. Add an extra step between fine and polish. for obsidian I use a course, medium, fine, pre-polish, and polish, but adding another step between fine and pre-polish can do wonders.
4- Cushions- use them. Cushion that load. I rotary tumble obsidian and use plastic pellets in everything after medium grit (I used to use pellets in medium as well, but it really didn't make a difference)
5- Cross contamination- DON'T! Clean clean clean. Separate barrels for each stage as well as separate cushioning. Even shared grit scoops can carry unwanted grit to the next stage.
6- Burp- Obsidian is gassy, so Burp- those barrels. Mine always goes foamy and foamy slows down the tumbling action, so I always use some borax to help tame the foam (it helps, but is not the end all be all.
7- other thoughts. Garbage in garbage out,so make sure you have decent quality rough, watch out with ceramics because they can be rough on softer stones, try to remove any chips in the early stages as these can create issues with scratching (I never remove chips in any of my tumblers, except obsidian), try to always keep the barrel 3/4 full of stones (this often means several pause as you build up enough material for a particular cycle). When all else fails, toss it in with a regular load!!!! No seriously- I have had some wonderfully polished obsidian come out with regular mixed loads (stuff I just forgot to separate out).
8- KEEP NOTES. If something falls make sure you have notes on it. My first run of Apache tears was terrible and I could not figure out why. I reviewed my notes on other obsidian tumblers and discovered I had forgotten to use pellets in the 500 grit. I reran them and was amazed out how great they came out.
Good luck!
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rockbrain
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2022
Posts: 3,171
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Post by rockbrain on Nov 17, 2023 18:01:42 GMT -5
Sorry for your issues but enjoyed your post. It sounds like you're already tumbling obsidian by itself but you didn't say for sure. If not a separate run, it should be.
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hplcman
spending too much on rocks
Looking forward to my Friday Night Barrel Clean out!
Member since August 2022
Posts: 493
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Post by hplcman on Nov 17, 2023 19:13:55 GMT -5
Obsidian can be a challenge. There are a few keys to setting up for success. 1- rough stage. The key to remember is just like any rock, if it is not shaped well and as flaw free as possible coming out of rough, its gonna suck in the later stages. 2- time. take it. Just because it is a little softer does not mean it can be rushed. If you check and re-charge every week, then do the same for obsidian. If you run a 3 week polish, run a 3 week polish. 3- Extras- add them. Add an extra step between fine and polish. for obsidian I use a course, medium, fine, pre-polish, and polish, but adding another step between fine and pre-polish can do wonders. 4- Cushions- use them. Cushion that load. I rotary tumble obsidian and use plastic pellets in everything after medium grit (I used to use pellets in medium as well, but it really didn't make a difference) 5- Cross contamination- DON'T! Clean clean clean. Separate barrels for each stage as well as separate cushioning. Even shared grit scoops can carry unwanted grit to the next stage. 6- Burp- Obsidian is gassy, so Burp- those barrels. Mine always goes foamy and foamy slows down the tumbling action, so I always use some borax to help tame the foam (it helps, but is not the end all be all. 7- other thoughts. Garbage in garbage out,so make sure you have decent quality rough, watch out with ceramics because they can be rough on softer stones, try to remove any chips in the early stages as these can create issues with scratching (I never remove chips in any of my tumblers, except obsidian), try to always keep the barrel 3/4 full of stones (this often means several pause as you build up enough material for a particular cycle). When all else fails, toss it in with a regular load!!!! No seriously- I have had some wonderfully polished obsidian come out with regular mixed loads (stuff I just forgot to separate out). 8- KEEP NOTES. If something falls make sure you have notes on it. My first run of Apache tears was terrible and I could not figure out why. I reviewed my notes on other obsidian tumblers and discovered I had forgotten to use pellets in the 500 grit. I reran them and was amazed out how great they came out. Good luck! What a great post! Thanks for taking the time to consolidate all of this information! |
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iamchris
has rocks in the head
Member since June 2023
Posts: 722
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Post by iamchris on Nov 19, 2023 19:01:46 GMT -5
I just took my first ever batch of obsidian out of stage 2 in the Minu Sonic. I guess I kept it too aggressive because half the batch has to go back to stage 1 due to chips.
I can firmly say I'm in the same camp now!
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vance71975
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since September 2022
Posts: 760
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Post by vance71975 on Nov 19, 2023 23:31:43 GMT -5
I think someone once told me the best way to do it was dry polish on the final stages, but I am not sure. I think Corn cob media was suggested but I could be wrong. I'd like to try the dry polish to see how it works. Nice to see you on here again. Seems it's been a while. It has, My girls mom passed away in june and I have been extremely busy helping her since she is disabled with limited use of one leg. So I am really only home to sleep these days and maybe a few hours before bed depending on the list of what needs done that day. |
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