wickedpebbles
off to a rocking start
Member since March 2024
Posts: 14
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Post by wickedpebbles on Mar 1, 2024 19:46:57 GMT -5
I was looking to buy a new Lot-O tumbler but could not find one. After talking to a few dealers most were not expecting any more in stock until the end of April at the soonest. I just decided to build my own. It is working great so far. I had a few of the items to build it around the house. I spent around $110 to put it together. Most of cost was Lot-O replacement barrel. I thought it might help someone else who can't wait for them to come back in stock. Will be working on improving it as I go when i have the time. List to all the parts I used are in the text of the video. I will answer any questions i can if you want to build one like it.
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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 Mar 1, 2024 19:51:20 GMT -5
That is awesome!
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wickedpebbles
off to a rocking start
Member since March 2024
Posts: 14
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Post by wickedpebbles on Mar 1, 2024 19:56:17 GMT -5
Thanks. Very happy with the results so far. |
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khara
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2022
Posts: 1,980
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Post by khara on Mar 1, 2024 20:07:11 GMT -5
This is cool!👍👍 It’s crazy it seems the vibrating motor isn’t really bouncing the aluminum bars backs and forth as much as I expected (as far as I could tell) and yet the media inside is really rolling.
I have another thread going on here right now. Trying to figure out if it’s a good idea to get an extra bowl for a UV-18 (the non-heavy-duty version) to do some light rock tumbling, mostly just for small slabs or cab size shapes. Have you tumbled any small slabs in this? Seems this little Lot-O size may be a better option as I wouldn’t have to buy so much media just to get the bowl filled for a few little pieces.
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wickedpebbles
off to a rocking start
Member since March 2024
Posts: 14
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Post by wickedpebbles on Mar 1, 2024 20:28:14 GMT -5
This is cool!👍👍 It’s crazy it seems the vibrating motor isn’t really bouncing the aluminum bars backs and forth as much as I expected (as far as I could tell) and yet the media inside is really rolling. I have another thread going on here right now. Trying to figure out if it’s a good idea to get an extra bowl for a UV-18 (the non-heavy-duty version) to do some light rock tumbling, mostly just for small slabs or cab size shapes. Have you tumbled any small slabs in this? Seems this little Lot-O size may be a better option as I wouldn’t have to buy so much media just to get the bowl filled for a few little pieces. I have only ran mixed rocks so far. The bowl was only half filled. It goes even better when 3/4 full. You can barely see the bars vibrating. I have already submitted a Patent on the design with a different bowl than Lot-O's. |
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Post by southernlakehuronguy on Mar 1, 2024 20:30:49 GMT -5
Awesome ! Thanks for sharing this. I have to ask, is there a reason you chose the 40 watt motor over the 30 watt?
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wickedpebbles
off to a rocking start
Member since March 2024
Posts: 14
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Post by wickedpebbles on Mar 1, 2024 20:33:15 GMT -5
Awesome ! Thanks for sharing this. I have to ask, is there a reason you chose the 40 watt motor over the 30 watt? The 40w motor was only $2 more at the time and i was not sure if I need the extra power. I think the 30w would probably work the same. |
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Post by chris1956 on Mar 1, 2024 21:05:14 GMT -5
Thanks for doing this. I have thought that coming up with something similar to a Lot-O should be doable but figured it would take a lot of experimentation to get the vibration right. But you seem to have nailed it on the first try. I have replaced the original motor on my Lot-O with a similar concrete vibrating motor (I think I used the 30 watt). It has been running for well over a year now without any problems and I did mine without a fan.
One thing I noticed is that the rocks and media in your bowl seem to come up the middle and split two ways. Is it the same when you have a fuller load?
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wickedpebbles
off to a rocking start
Member since March 2024
Posts: 14
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Post by wickedpebbles on Mar 1, 2024 21:36:25 GMT -5
Thanks for doing this. I have thought that coming up with something similar to a Lot-O should be doable but figured it would take a lot of experimentation to get the vibration right. But you seem to have nailed it on the first try. I have replaced the original motor on my Lot-O with a similar concrete vibrating motor (I think I used the 30 watt). It has been running for well over a year now without any problems and I did mine without a fan. One thing I noticed is that the rocks and media in your bowl seem to come up the middle and split two ways. Is it the same when you have a fuller load? Same rock movement when 3/4 full. That is as high as I go to keep the water from splashing out so much. |
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quartz
Cave Dweller 
breakin' rocks in the hot sun
Member since February 2010
Posts: 3,359
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Post by quartz on Mar 1, 2024 23:21:04 GMT -5
I'm impressed, simple, basic and very functional, hard combination to beat.
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NDK
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2009
Posts: 9,440
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Post by NDK on Mar 3, 2024 8:51:30 GMT -5
I agree with Quartz, very nice build! Well done👍
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zebra61
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since January 2024
Posts: 161
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Post by zebra61 on Mar 3, 2024 8:57:09 GMT -5
There's some real ingenuity wickedpebbles!! I love the fact that you built it using so many common parts! Those little Chinese vibrating motors will be flying off the shelves when folks discover this! Bravo!! |
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Post by southernlakehuronguy on Mar 19, 2024 9:31:21 GMT -5
Well I built one! I wasn't happy with the painter bucket design. It was a P.I.T.A. wrapping barrel with the shelf liner material, then I had to cram it in there to get any mediocre rotation. So, back to Lowes with tape measure to find something better. I found a 6" to 4" PVC reducer that has a nice tapered seat that cradles the barrel nicely. First polish run will be done Thursday. Hope this helps anyone.
Image1 Video Image2 |
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Post by rockjunquie on Mar 19, 2024 10:18:02 GMT -5
Well I built one! I wasn't happy with the painter bucket design. It was a P.I.T.A. wrapping barrel with the shelf liner material, then I had to cram it in there to get any mediocre rotation. So, back to Lowes with tape measure to find something better. I found a 6" to 4" PVC reducer that has a nice tapered seat that cradles the barrel nicely. First polish run will be done Thursday. Hope this helps anyone.
Image1 Video Image2Nice! Looks like you got some some good tumbling action.  |
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Post by chris1956 on Mar 19, 2024 11:43:44 GMT -5
I like that better than the bucket.
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Post by southernlakehuronguy on Mar 19, 2024 17:47:21 GMT -5
Well I built one! I wasn't happy with the painter bucket design. It was a P.I.T.A. wrapping barrel with the shelf liner material, then I had to cram it in there to get any mediocre rotation. So, back to Lowes with tape measure to find something better. I found a 6" to 4" PVC reducer that has a nice tapered seat that cradles the barrel nicely. First polish run will be done Thursday. Hope this helps anyone.
Image1 Video Image2Nice! Looks like you got some some good tumbling action. Thanks. I think it could be better. This is all new to me and still have some tweaking to do, it might be the water ratio, It looks like I probably have too much. We'll see how these turn out. |
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Post by Pat on Mar 19, 2024 18:32:57 GMT -5
Not a tumbler, but I admire your clever work.
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Post by southernlakehuronguy on Mar 20, 2024 7:39:03 GMT -5
Not a tumbler, but I admire your clever work. Thanks. To quote Red Green, "If the women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy.” |
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Post by rockjunquie on Mar 20, 2024 8:18:10 GMT -5
Not a tumbler, but I admire your clever work. Thanks. To quote Red Green, "If the women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy.” Love the quote and oh so true. My DH is NOT a handyman, unfortunately, but he does try. Bless his 2 left thumbs. I think he is handsome, too, so it seems to hold true. |
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Post by southernlakehuronguy on Mar 21, 2024 12:24:12 GMT -5
Ok. First image shows another modification. Had to apply downward pressure on the barrel to get a good rotation, video shows that. 2nd image shows finished results. The picture doesn't show their true beauty, it is a really bad photo. I'm happy with the results.
image1 video1 image2 |
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