mermaiden
off to a rocking start
Member since August 2006
Posts: 20
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Post by mermaiden on Jul 3, 2008 20:50:13 GMT -5
Okay, so this is what I'm tumbling in a vibratory tumbler. (click to enlarge)   These things are tough. What should I be tumbling them in? I've been using Silicon Carbide #80. Granted, I wasted some while goofed up slurry (too much water) when I was just starting (it's nice and creamy now!), but I have gone through my 1lb first container and I'm not seeing a lot of progress yet after ... well, I guess a good day and a half now. I know it might take up to a week. But, I want to be sure I'm using the best thing before I go buying more. |
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mermaiden
off to a rocking start
Member since August 2006
Posts: 20
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Post by mermaiden on Jul 3, 2008 22:09:43 GMT -5
Well, I think I found the answer to my own question over in the 4-phase tumbling info pages. Presuming the ratio is the same for vibe as rotary. "Place 1 and 1/2 heaped tablespoons of 80 Grit into the barrel per 1 and 1/2 LB of rock used. So for a 3LB barrel place 3 heaped tablespoons in. This is a rough guideline - the harder the rock the faster the process is with more grit (only around 1 tablespoon more though) the softer the rock, the less you can use - (again - only around 1 tablespoon less). " My 5 lb barrel is about half full, and I've been using about 4 tbsp of grit to get them coated good as they rotate. Since I'm temporarily out of 80 grit, though, I'll be using "100/120" which came with my "toy" tumbler though. Okay, I guess I just had to think out loud.  (newbies!) Any other advise always appreciated of course, though. |
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Post by johnjsgems on Jul 3, 2008 22:27:00 GMT -5
I read your other post. You said you bought a vibe tumbler to maintain the shape. I'm not sure why you used the 80 grit. I only use coarse (60/90) in a vibe when I have something in matrix like fire agates to remove the matrix. Generally people with vibes start with 120/200, then 500f (or 600). If your bowl is only half full you should fill with ceramic media. And "too much water" is a no-no especially in your Raytech with a thin bowl. If you see any water splashing it's way too much. Vibes are run damp with generally much less grit than rotaries. As slurry forms and the movement slows add drops of water to resume action. There have been many posts here about this.
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mermaiden
off to a rocking start
Member since August 2006
Posts: 20
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Post by mermaiden on Jul 3, 2008 23:49:59 GMT -5
There's so much info and it varies with rocks and hardness and types of tumblers and it's all just confusing when starting out. Thanks for the summary on the grit, this is exactly why I asked. |
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mermaiden
off to a rocking start
Member since August 2006
Posts: 20
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Post by mermaiden on Jul 5, 2008 13:56:40 GMT -5
Okay... question. I understand the purpose of putting filler like the ceramics in the barrel to make tumbling more even. And I see the purpose in rotary tumblers to keep the action rolling. But in a load like this, where all the rocks are various sizes but all round, they are all already constantly touching surface while they tumble around (each others' surfaces). So would I still need the filler with these, and why? (I'm talking pre-polishing here) Trying to learn as I go here... thaks in advance  |
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Post by johnjsgems on Jul 6, 2008 22:04:33 GMT -5
In my experience tumblers work better loaded to 3/4 full. Very light loads let the rocks fall and crash if that makes sense leading to chips and other damage.
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mermaiden
off to a rocking start
Member since August 2006
Posts: 20
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Post by mermaiden on Jul 7, 2008 21:48:30 GMT -5
That does help, a lot, thank you! Now I'm just working on knowing which grit to use when... I had been using this page for info; combining it with what I can learn from everyone else, though. I am beginning to see some definite progress, at least, though. |
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Post by johnjsgems on Jul 8, 2008 9:15:37 GMT -5
The vibe instructions are good but I think you could try with less grit than they call for. I mostly only use the Vibra Dry they mention so I could be wrong. It seems to me in my 2.2 lb tumbler I used about a teaspoon of grit but then again I don't measure. I think it was Jack from England that posted very successful results using very little grit/polish in a vibe.
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mermaiden
off to a rocking start
Member since August 2006
Posts: 20
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Post by mermaiden on Jul 8, 2008 20:30:50 GMT -5
I can already see truth in that, less grit.
And it's funny - with the filler (I had to go with plastic pellets for now, it's what I have), the rocks definitely move around a lot more in the barrel!
I'm making definite visable progress. I can't wait til I can see the red shiny part on the outside though....
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mermaiden
off to a rocking start
Member since August 2006
Posts: 20
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Post by mermaiden on Jul 9, 2008 10:01:06 GMT -5
When *should* I begin to see that part, anyway? This being my first tumble, I am not entirely sure at which stage to expect what just yet.
I've been trying to read up on as much as I can, but there are some questions that just aren't answered... lol.
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rockdewd
has rocks in the head
Member since October 2007
Posts: 605
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Post by rockdewd on Jul 9, 2008 12:30:53 GMT -5
Ceramic media can be pricey. You can use marbles, tempered glass shards, etc. I just got a job to repolish 200-300 stones. Some of them are pretty small and would get lost in my media which is a combination of ceramic, tempered glass shards, marbles, and small pieces of polished stone. I went to goodwill and bought heavy glass vases, glass pan lids, microwave turntable glass, etc. I had a good time smashing it all. I put it in a big storage tub and smashed it with a hammer. I would not recommend doing it without a face shield and heavey leather gloves though. Some pieces came back and hit me in the face.
Rick
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Post by akansan on Jul 9, 2008 13:18:04 GMT -5
Shiny red part - does it appear shiny and red when it's wet? What you see when the rocks are wet is what you should see when the stones are completely polished. The stones will generally appear dull pretty much up until the end. In a 4 stage process, here's a brief outline of what to expect at each stage: First stage removes most volume, shaping the stones how you want them. Second stage removes some volume, removing the scratches from the first stage. Very little shaping happens here. Third stage removes scratches from second stage. Depending on the stones involved, you might see a satin shine on the stones after this stage. Fourth stage makes them all pretty. |
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rollingstone
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2009
Posts: 236
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Post by rollingstone on Jul 9, 2008 15:56:36 GMT -5
I hope I'm wrong, but I'm pretty certain that those garnets are not going to turn red/purple. Garnets vary in quality, and some are that rusty purple colour and are very opaque. They will get nice and shiny, but will always be that rusty purple colour and will never get transparent. I did some garnets last year in a rotary tumbler, and here's how they look as rough (photo taken with stones dry):  Here's how they looked after coarse grind, also dry:  And here they are after polishing, also dry:  Here's a link to the original thread, which has more pics and I think where I got the stones and how I tumbled them: forum.rocktumblinghobby.com/index.cgi?board=Pictures&action=display&thread=13834Good luck! -Don |
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Post by johnjsgems on Jul 9, 2008 18:44:01 GMT -5
The almondine garnets I've collected were brown in color not red.
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mermaiden
off to a rocking start
Member since August 2006
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Post by mermaiden on Jul 9, 2008 21:32:08 GMT -5
It all seems so obvious after you hear these things. LOL Thanks all, for the great info. WOW, and the nice pics. That is incredibly helpful to see, and those are quite shiny! SOME of them are red & shiny when wet. The "gem" quality ones, as we were told by Mike (who, incidentally, is in the paper today! +pics) The news guy was there interviewing when I was there last time!  ).   (click to enlarge) I, in my lack of knowledge, figured that maybe the rough outside would "come off" of some of them, hence the tendancy to use the harder grit at first. We took a couple of small ones and cracked them open with a hammer to see what they were when we first encountered them, and one was brown, then another was that reddish-brown clear in there when held up to light, so I had been wondering if at least some of them would become non-brown. Hrrrrm. So far, here they are  |
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mermaiden
off to a rocking start
Member since August 2006
Posts: 20
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Post by mermaiden on Jul 9, 2008 22:31:25 GMT -5
One MORE question. I have been looking everywhere for Ivory soap flakes around here. Or any soap flakes. I have found none. Is there something else I could safely/effectively use for this batch?
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Post by johnjsgems on Jul 10, 2008 8:14:41 GMT -5
I use powdered Tide laundry detergent because I have a big box of it in the garage. Powdered Borax is pretty common also.
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Post by akansan on Jul 10, 2008 9:09:49 GMT -5
I use Borax now (20 Mule Team - laundry department of Wal-Mart), but when I first started I just took a cheese grater to a bar of Ivory. I did not use the cheese grater on food afterward. |
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mermaiden
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Member since August 2006
Posts: 20
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Post by mermaiden on Jul 10, 2008 21:40:22 GMT -5
LOL. Wonderful, thanks. I just so happen to have some borax on hand. I think I'm ready to use, it too. It's hard to tell for certain....
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mermaiden
off to a rocking start
Member since August 2006
Posts: 20
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Post by mermaiden on Jul 17, 2008 11:11:50 GMT -5
Working on getting rid of a little bit of white lines (polish) still left in some cracks (with the borax).... but, my rocks have a shine now... I wish I could post some pics, but they're at home right now, LOL.
I am anxious to get started on a 2nd batch now! What we did was run the whole load through the clarifying screens to separate out the garnets from the all the little junk. My first batch was all the bigger stuff. But..... all that little "junk" has garnets in it still, and actually several gem-quality ones too. I almost wish I would have put it all together for the sake of the barrel's volume, but wanted to tumble a round of only pure garnet rock. Maybe I'll have to save what's left til we go back and get some more.
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(newbies!) Any other advise always appreciated of course, though.
). 
