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Polish
Jan 27, 2005 15:09:31 GMT -5
Post by mrbrett on Jan 27, 2005 15:09:31 GMT -5
Out of all the tumbling stages I struggle with the polish. I use the lortone qt66 and their directions say to use 12 tablespoons of polish. Well, when I use that much it turn into the consisty of gravy. How much should I be using and what should it look like? And because I have been out of the loop for a while is there anything better than tin oxide or cerium oxide that people are using for a better shine.
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Polish
Jan 27, 2005 19:15:43 GMT -5
Post by rockyraccoon on Jan 27, 2005 19:15:43 GMT -5
brett i have a qt66 and i use 1/2 that amount of polish - mine have polished well with this method.
kim
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doit4luv
starting to shine!
Member since September 2004
Posts: 43
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Polish
Jan 27, 2005 20:22:12 GMT -5
Post by doit4luv on Jan 27, 2005 20:22:12 GMT -5
Hey Brett! I understand your concern. The same thing happened to me once. The usual recommendations do not apply to every situation. I think one or two tablesppons per pound of rock is an adequate way to measure the amount of polish that you want to use. But not all rocks need that amount. Most of the time, your barrel is not filled to the rim, so you have to approximate how many pounds of rocks you have ready to enter the polish stage (if you don't weigh them). For example, if your 12-lb barrel is only half-full, then you probably only have six pounds of rock or less. Therefore, you would add about 6 tablespoons of polish and fill with water until the water touches the bottom of the top layer of rocks. In many cases, you can get a great polish with probably 3-5 tbsp. of polish. It depends on what type of rock you are tumbling, too!
I have used aluminum oxide, cerium oxide, and tin oxide for polish. I like aluminum oxide and cerium oxide best. Others may prefer other polishes as we all have our preferences and our varied experiences. But, the polish you use may also depend on the type of rocks you are tumbling. There are other posts on this website that can direct you to information on which polishes are recommended for which rocks. Sorry I don't have that information handy, but trust me, it's on this site.
I hope this has been helpful to you. Don't beat yourself up. There are lots of experienced people here who are willing and ready to walk you through those troubled waters. Have fun! You can always start over, you know!
James
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Polish
Jan 27, 2005 20:39:11 GMT -5
Post by sandsman1 on Jan 27, 2005 20:39:11 GMT -5
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Banjocreek
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since March 2003
Posts: 1,115
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Polish
Jan 27, 2005 20:59:56 GMT -5
Post by Banjocreek on Jan 27, 2005 20:59:56 GMT -5
Brett- Here are some things I ALWAYS do- In my 6 pound tumbler I ALWAYS use Titanium Oxide. I ALWAYS use a little less than 1/2 cup of polish. I ALWAYS run them in 1000 grit for a week first or SISA. I ALWAYS let then at least 5 days. I ALWAYS bring the level of the water to the middle of the top layer of stones. I ALWAYS rinse after the polish cycle and run them at least an hour in 1 tablespoon of Borax, and a half tablespoon of Cascade. I ALWAYS use the same barrel for polish and never anything else.
If after 5-7 days in polish like this I almost ALWAYS have a mirror finish polish. If not, I rinse them and take out the ones that didn't polish like I wanted and run them a week in Tin Oxide. That usually does it. Any help to ya?
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Polish
Jan 28, 2005 1:08:24 GMT -5
Post by BearCreekLapidary on Jan 28, 2005 1:08:24 GMT -5
Hi Brett,
I have a ten pound Gy-Roc tumbler and I only use 2 tablespoons of polish.
It works for me.
John
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stefan
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2005
Posts: 14,113
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Polish
Jan 28, 2005 10:42:04 GMT -5
Post by stefan on Jan 28, 2005 10:42:04 GMT -5
Hey Hope no one minds me jumping in- But you guys are great- Thanks for the info on polish- It is the step that trips me up too- I just got plastic pellets to help cushion my rocks- Do you fill the barrel full of pellets? I usually start with a little better than half full barrell- Well by the polish stage rhere is a little less than half a barrel- So would you just fill er up with pellets?
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Polish
Jan 28, 2005 11:06:06 GMT -5
Post by creativeminded on Jan 28, 2005 11:06:06 GMT -5
I use about a tablespoon per pound, my tumbler can handle about 2.5 to 2.6 pounds of rock and I use 2 tablespoons of grit and polish with great results. I tried using what they recommended 3 T. and wound up with alot of unused grit in the bottom of my tumbler so I just dropped it by one tablespoon and now all the grit is used up. Tami
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Polish
Jan 28, 2005 20:44:19 GMT -5
Post by mrbrett on Jan 28, 2005 20:44:19 GMT -5
So I take it that it should not look like gravy! Another problem is that the edges of my rocks don't polish. I do use a 1000 grit step and they look great at this step but when they finish polish about half of the load is rough around the edges.
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Banjocreek
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since March 2003
Posts: 1,115
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Polish
Jan 28, 2005 21:05:50 GMT -5
Post by Banjocreek on Jan 28, 2005 21:05:50 GMT -5
Brett- The only time I've had rocks that were gray around the edges, was some obsidian (Apache tears) I was polishing. I noticed that it was the bigger ones (about golfball size) that were the ones with the gray edges. I assumed that because of the weight and the fact that Obsidian is brittle, they were bouncing around a bit too agressively since the smaller tears were fine. So I took out all the stones that were the size of a quarter on up and put them back in 500, then 1000, then tin Oxide, and all was well. That is the only time I ever had that problem. It sounds to me that maybe you have a few harder stones in there, beating the others. It doesn't show on the flat sides since two flat sides coming together do not have the force of the edges just like moving you hand through water. You can move it more quickly when you turn your hand to the side and have less resistance than if you try to, clap your hands, i.e. the two flat sides come together with less force. All of this is pure postulation, take it for what it's worth.
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Polish
Jan 30, 2005 0:33:15 GMT -5
Post by Noosh9057 on Jan 30, 2005 0:33:15 GMT -5
Well I use 3 TAB in my 3A. It works great for me.
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