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Post by pebblesky on Dec 3, 2023 0:37:37 GMT -5
The polished quartz look real to me. Mohs scale of hardness around 7.
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blackgirlrocks
starting to shine!
Member since November 2023
Posts: 49
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Post by blackgirlrocks on Dec 3, 2023 8:32:16 GMT -5
The polished quartz look real to me. Mohs scale of hardness around 7. I saw a thread saying using polished quartz is better for softer stones because ceramics are a 9. |
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Post by velodromed on Dec 3, 2023 9:24:01 GMT -5
velodromed I would say yes. I've seen so many pictures online that look different though.  Thank you! Those are beautiful rocks, I need to put them on my list for ‘someday’. I know my wife and kid would love them for sure. Did I read that right that you ended up with 10 pounds of them? |
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blackgirlrocks
starting to shine!
Member since November 2023
Posts: 49
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Post by blackgirlrocks on Dec 3, 2023 12:02:25 GMT -5
velodromed Yes, it's on clearance at the rockshed for 4@lb. Or 5lbs @9.00. It's B grade, but I wouldn't know the difference.
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Post by velodromed on Dec 3, 2023 14:03:23 GMT -5
velodromed Yes, it's on clearance at the rockshed for 4@lb. Or 5lbs @9.00. It's B grade, but I wouldn't know the difference. lol yeah same here. We go by what we like rather then what the label says. Thanks!! |
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wargrafix
Cave Dweller 
Member since June 2023
Posts: 1,088
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Post by wargrafix on Dec 3, 2023 23:13:34 GMT -5
I love busy rocks with a chunk of clear see through. There is something beautiful about it
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blackgirlrocks
starting to shine!
Member since November 2023
Posts: 49
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Post by blackgirlrocks on Dec 5, 2023 10:29:59 GMT -5
I love busy rocks with a chunk of clear see through. There is something beautiful about it That's how my unakite is. Little windows in a few of them. I'll post when they come out of polish. But that's a little time away. |
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Post by Bob on Dec 5, 2023 16:05:09 GMT -5
The polished quartz look real to me. Mohs scale of hardness around 7. I saw a thread saying using polished quartz is better for softer stones because ceramics are a 9. I've tried 3 sources of ceramics for tumbling: Kingsley North, Rock Shed, and misc. eBay sellers. All are apparently less hard than quartz 7 because they wear away far more quickly than the quartz gravel. The ceramic pieces are expensive too so I no longer buy them. I've probably purchased 200lbs of it in the last 6-7 years. It wears away very quickly in my experience and so I think it's way overrated. |
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Post by HankRocks on Dec 5, 2023 18:19:36 GMT -5
I saw a thread saying using polished quartz is better for softer stones because ceramics are a 9. I've tried 3 sources of ceramics for tumbling: Kingsley North, Rock Shed, and misc. eBay sellers. All are apparently less hard than quartz 7 because they wear away far more quickly than the quartz gravel. The ceramic pieces are expensive too so I no longer buy them. I've probably purchased 200lbs of it in the last 6-7 years. It wears away very quickly in my experience and so I think it's way overrated. Bought 5 pounds of ceramics for a specialty tumble for a friend. Used a little under half to finish the job. I plan on using the remainder to run one batch all the way through the stages. Then I will save all of the through polish ceramics for Vibe polish runs only. That way any wear on them should be very minimal and should last a good long while. I use Pea Gravel as filler/cushioning for everything else, works very well. |
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blackgirlrocks
starting to shine!
Member since November 2023
Posts: 49
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Post by blackgirlrocks on Dec 6, 2023 0:17:40 GMT -5
I've tried 3 sources of ceramics for tumbling: Kingsley North, Rock Shed, and misc. eBay sellers. All are apparently less hard than quartz 7 because they wear away far more quickly than the quartz gravel. The ceramic pieces are expensive too so I no longer buy them. I've probably purchased 200lbs of it in the last 6-7 years. It wears away very quickly in my experience and so I think it's way overrated. Bought 5 pounds of ceramics for a specialty tumble for a friend. Used a little under half to finish the job. I plan on using the remainder to run one batch all the way through the stages. Then I will save all of the through polish ceramics for Vibe polish runs only. That way any wear on them should be very minimal and should last a good long while. I use Pea Gravel as filler/cushioning for everything else, works very well. You know, I was just thinking about this today. I needed more filler to get 80% so I used ceramics. I wondered, if this is a nine, why are so many pieces broken down like a French cut string bean? 🤔 Also my gravel is virtually unchanged and I've been using it in everything from 60/90 to polish. When it does break, it takes forever to smooth over as though it was a jasper. I'm guess I'm not crazy after all. 😁 |
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Post by Starguy on Dec 6, 2023 16:18:00 GMT -5
I understand why ceramics are used. You need lots of smalls for efficient tumbling. Ceramics are expensive though. If you use that money for small agates there will be something attractive when you’re done. Small agates will do the same thing as ceramics. My guess is that the French cut green bean look is how the ceramics are made. The pointy ends reach into rock crevices better during tumbling. My tumbling career spans around 35 years. I have never knowingly had any ceramics in my tumblers.
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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 Dec 6, 2023 17:01:51 GMT -5
I understand why ceramics are used. You need lots of smalls for efficient tumbling. Ceramics are expensive though. If you use that money for small agates there will be something attractive when you’re done. Small agates will do the same thing as ceramics. My guess is that the French cut green bean look is how the ceramics are made. The pointy ends reach into rock crevices better during tumbling. My tumbling career spans around 35 years. I have never knowingly had any ceramics in my tumblers. I bought a bunch of small and medium sized ceramics when I first started with this hobby and, as I use them up, would like to move on to something more cost effective. I love the idea of tumbling small agates instead of the ceramics!! I sometimes use beach gravel that I scoop up into ziplock bags. What small agates would you recommend? Is there a small agate supplier I should check out?  |
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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 Dec 6, 2023 20:06:47 GMT -5
dillonf The lighting is bad but its polished. It may not be a real rock at all.  I was thinking the quartz might be too hard for the Rhodonite and unakite, and may be causing the issues you were experiencing with polishing. But if Bob, Hank and starguy say it's good to use I'd trust them. They have way more experience than me (and get better results than me). I also haven't used pea gravel or quartz as filler. I've just started using carnelian, and Bahia agate as filler with mixed results. I used it with coprolite - and that didn't work great - but it works really well with prairie agate (which is notoriously hard). Looks like you ended up with some good results! Cheers! |
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Post by Starguy on Dec 6, 2023 22:44:01 GMT -5
blackgirlrocks A lot of online rock retailers offer rocks in small, medium or large sizes. I’ve purchased small agates from Kingsley North, and from the Rock Shed. eBay can be a good source too. I kind of shoot for 50 or so pieces per pound for filler. The downside is it takes forever to sort small, pretty rocks during cleanouts. Ceramics would be easy to sort.
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blackgirlrocks
starting to shine!
Member since November 2023
Posts: 49
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Post by blackgirlrocks on Dec 10, 2023 9:16:39 GMT -5
blackgirlrocks A lot of online rock retailers offer rocks in small, medium or large sizes. I’ve purchased small agates from Kingsley North, and from the Rock Shed. eBay can be a good source too. I kind of shoot for 50 or so pieces per pound for filler. The downside is it takes forever to sort small, pretty rocks during cleanouts. Ceramics would be easy to sort. Should I order the mixed rock -mini. It says 1/8" to 1/4" but says it will not tumble. From rockshed. Is this the filler? The mixed rock-medium is 3/4"-1 1/2". |
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Post by Starguy on Dec 11, 2023 0:03:10 GMT -5
blackgirlrocks A lot of online rock retailers offer rocks in small, medium or large sizes. I’ve purchased small agates from Kingsley North, and from the Rock Shed. eBay can be a good source too. I kind of shoot for 50 or so pieces per pound for filler. The downside is it takes forever to sort small, pretty rocks during cleanouts. Ceramics would be easy to sort. Should I order the mixed rock -mini. It says 1/8" to 1/4" but says it will not tumble. From rockshed. Is this the filler? The mixed rock-medium is 3/4"-1 1/2". That’s about the right size for good filler. The trick is to find something that looks nice when it’s done. I tumble a lot of agates so I’m always looking for small ones. Small agates work with most other rocks but may not work with some tender rocks. |
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blackgirlrocks
starting to shine!
Member since November 2023
Posts: 49
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Post by blackgirlrocks on Feb 11, 2024 10:32:01 GMT -5
dillonf thank you thank you thank you. Between you and many other forum tips, I AM DONE!! As usual the lights suck, but here they are.  
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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 Feb 11, 2024 11:46:33 GMT -5
Those look nice! Great job  |
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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 Feb 11, 2024 11:51:20 GMT -5
Amazing shine on an apparently difficult rock to polish!! Good work!
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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 Feb 11, 2024 15:26:51 GMT -5
They look great. Got a nice shine on those!
Excellent job.
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