BrotherGump
off to a rocking start
Old fisherman.........new rockhound
Member since January 2006
Posts: 18
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Post by BrotherGump on Jan 22, 2006 4:17:57 GMT -5
Hi,
I am bitten bad with the rock-bug. And this in itself is quite a dilemma as I live in a town called Rockport,Texas........which has no rocks! Maybe the town was named this as a place that the ancients imported rocks too?!
Anyway like all newbies.I am really hating the prices on lapidary machines!
So I am going to buy some parts and build my own.
I think I will use PVC pipe and the factory made ends [one cap and one clean-out fitting] and will use at least 10" pipe. Then coating the inside with that truck-bed liner paint.
What size rocks will this type unit handle? Should I build the drum to handle the size [diameter or width] of my largest rock to allow it to tumble all ways in the drum?
My goal is to polish some petrified wood that I found after slabbing them to make pen/desk sets.
I will be able to build the unit with a 1/2 hp motor and 3/4" shafts [2 @ 24" long] for less than $180. Which is less than the $600 that I see in most places.
I will build a few extra drums in case the grit does not clean out well.
Also I would like to know
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cuervo73
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2005
Posts: 185
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Post by cuervo73 on Jan 22, 2006 17:20:58 GMT -5
Hey BroGump, First, welcome to the RTH forum..  About building your own tumbler.. You say you are thinking about using PVC pipe, and it will be 10"... which dimension is the 10"..diameter, right? or length... and so, what is your other dimension? I too am looking at building my next tumbler so I am curious. I want to get some of that bright blue 10"-12" diameter pipe I see construction crews burying for water/sewer lines around town. It seems to come in 12'-15' lengths so I would only need an end-cut of 14"-20" in length.. and I don't know about endcaps for this size stuff either. regards, ed/cuervo |
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BrotherGump
off to a rocking start
Old fisherman.........new rockhound
Member since January 2006
Posts: 18
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Post by BrotherGump on Jan 22, 2006 21:46:55 GMT -5
Hi,
I am thinking 10" diameter and about 10 to 12" long [ which would allow for the end caps]
I think that it would be possible to reduce cost further by making an end plates out of wood even. A simple insert from maybe 1" wood trimmed to fit super tight then screwed thru pipe would work easy on the one end. The other.............. well it would take a little more imagination. This would be sealed further with the truck-bed paint anyway. It would not leak unless possibly actually dropped on the ground in that "OMG" shop accident..LOL
I am thinking the idea would allow polishing of at least 9" peices of stone?
I have parts cost figured for 4 shafts and bearings and pulleys for all that in the figure above but will most likely just start off with the one set of shafts. That would still allow 2 drums to be used at the same time.
And the idea of using that blue stuff is pretty good. Seems they just "lay it around"...... [just kidding and in no way condoning the practise of stealing.LOL]
But it would be pretty easy to find a paice of that I am sure. Yeah in the typical PVC, the ends cost 300% the cost of the pipe!
I think that the cost of most drums of the size we are talking about is well over 100$ if bought from a company [maybe more but the fancy ones are hexagonal too] and that is just a rip-off.
I will see if I can think of anything that will work for the other end of the pipe/drum. That can be done at home without added outside help and cost.
Any idea will be appreciated!
Mike
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BrotherGump
off to a rocking start
Old fisherman.........new rockhound
Member since January 2006
Posts: 18
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Post by BrotherGump on Jan 23, 2006 0:39:39 GMT -5
Brainstorm!
I got it!
Ok one end would be wood insert screwed thru the pipe and waterproofed with the liner paint and sealant when putting it together.
The other could be the exact same configuration.....................along with a small and affordable pvc "clean-out" end fitting centered in it [in a cut-out of course] and again screwed into pipe from inside. I cant find "paint" on this machine so I will wait until I get one made and add a pic.
Mike
The end result would look somewhat like a d-cell battery....LOL
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Post by akansan on Jan 23, 2006 12:05:39 GMT -5
Just to add a bit of information to this little thread - a 3 lb. tumbler barrel is about 6" long and 4" in diameter. It handles rocks 1 in. or less.
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Post by Jack ( Yorkshire) on Jan 24, 2006 7:19:11 GMT -5
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KG1960
has rocks in the head
Member since August 2008
Posts: 512
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Post by KG1960 on Jan 24, 2006 16:13:36 GMT -5
Welcome! Search for "home built". There have been several threads about this subject on this forum.
A concern that comes to mind about your barrels is, can they be cleaned well between stages? That is, can you get all of the grit out before running the next stage with finer grit? It seems a common reason for failure in tumbling is having courser grit carry over into subsequent stages. Having a separate barrel for each stage may alleviate this problem, but that adds expense.
Good luck and I wish you success!
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drupe
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2005
Posts: 1,245
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Post by drupe on Jan 24, 2006 19:36:16 GMT -5
kg1960
Since you are going to the trouble to build your own tumbler, add a few bucks to the cost and make 4 barrels. One for each stage, you'll be glad you did. You should still clean your barrels after each use but you diminish the chance of contamination substantially.
Pete
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BrotherGump
off to a rocking start
Old fisherman.........new rockhound
Member since January 2006
Posts: 18
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Post by BrotherGump on Jan 25, 2006 1:28:26 GMT -5
Amen!
many thanks for info.
I just can not see the prices people charge when rockers find a use for their tools! LOL
everything has it's price sure enough...... but highway robbery is prevalent it seems when lapidary needs are concidered. It is not the middle-man/retailer but rather the manufacturer.
Again.many thanks for the info.
Mike
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Post by Jack ( Yorkshire) on Jan 25, 2006 12:31:05 GMT -5
Hi KG1960,
CLEANING
If you use the plastic end caps you can take them of both ends ,
YES they do carry over IF you dont do this it is nearly imposible to cut dead square and that little bit of out of square is where the grit is going to lodge ,you bet!!
As Pete( above) says , make sure you have 4 or 5 barrels so it dosent matter about contamination as each barrel has its own grade of grit.
Have a good day
Jack
Yorkshire
Uk
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