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Post by lonewolfrockhound on Mar 3, 2007 10:54:14 GMT -5
Is 6 months normal for belt life? I load my barrels 5/8 full but I use alot of different sized rocks so I'm sure I have near total volume fill for that 5/8. They seem heavy and my belts just don't last on my Lortone 33B.
Should I weigh the barrels before putting them on? What if I really have 4 lbs in each barrel.
One barrel rolls fine...add the other and it bogs down.
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Post by akansan on Mar 3, 2007 23:33:49 GMT -5
You might try lightly sanding the belt if you haven't already. They goop up and cause it to slip a little.
The only time I've actually had to change my belts is when they break completely. Otherwise, just normal maintenance keeps them running smoothly.
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Post by lonewolfrockhound on Mar 4, 2007 11:23:15 GMT -5
Ok....cleaned the nasty thing up. Replaced the plastic bushings, cleaned all the dust off the fan blades, squirted WD-40 into the motor shaft and tightened the belt up.
Running like a champ again!
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Post by lonewolfrockhound on Mar 7, 2007 19:14:58 GMT -5
Ok! Great news for me. The maintanence I did on the 33b is working like a charm. i have 6 pounds of rough tumbling in it and it's churnin' and burnin'. But, the really good news is that Shawn has sent the 6 lb Lortone and boy! It has a REAL motor on it I noticed! Woohoo! So, here's my game plan and if somebody doesn't mind, a comment or teo would be appreciated for I really want to get as much productive tumble per unit as possible. My rock situation.I tumble Woodward ranch agates. That's all. i can't buy all the rocks most all of you do. you're in a different league than me. All Woodward ranch agates are hard as rocks (I always say that  ) I can't get quartz to scratch it even at all most of the time. it seems the oxidized reddish mess that surrounds the bisquits are probably about a 6 on Moh's scale....lol It just takes forever to get them smooth even after "prepping" them with a trim saw and grinder. So, my plan is this: New 6 lb tumbler exclusively for rough grind all the time. I'll check it weekly and "move along" those that are ready and then replace with more rough and keep the 6 pounder rolling. The 33b, having two barrels, offers me the ability to take those stones out of rough grind and proceeding with the finer stages. This sounds reasonable doesn't it? or no? Thanks for any input you may so graciously drop on me. |
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller 
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,494
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Post by Sabre52 on Mar 7, 2007 22:17:34 GMT -5
lonewolf: That's about the same technique I use. I use my QT12 and one QT66 barrel for coarse grinding as that's what takes all the time. Then, each time I change them to add more grit, I move all the properly ground stones into a bin or into the other 6# barrel on the 66. From FG I go into a bin until I have enough to move to PP and so on. I have a dedicated 33B for each of the prepolish and final polish stages. That way, with my big tumblers constantly keeping the 33B's fed, I can tumble steadily with no breaks 24/7 and have polished lots coming out every few weeks all year......mel
PS: QT12's and 66's with the larger motors, seem to be real workhorses . 33B's are hothouse flowers and seem to require almost constant tweaking, tuning, cleaning, realigning etc. Man, I wish Lortone would put a QT12 motor on their 33B's!
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Post by lonewolfrockhound on Mar 8, 2007 16:02:41 GMT -5
Yeah, I like the idea of seperate bins to keep the stages in order. Thanks for the feedback mel!
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Post by lonewolfrockhound on Mar 8, 2007 16:06:24 GMT -5
Man, I wish Lortone would put a QT12 motor on their 33B's! Agreed! I mean, 6 lbs is 6 lbs right? Why would turning 6 lbs in one barrel require less guts than two 3lb barrels? All I know is I've got a bigger motor on my little water fountain pump than on the 33b! |
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) I can't get quartz to scratch it even at all most of the time. it seems the oxidized reddish mess that surrounds the bisquits are probably about a 6 on Moh's scale....lol It just takes forever to get them smooth even after "prepping" them with a trim saw and grinder.
