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Post by Sea Faring Wang Dang on Feb 21, 2009 1:29:15 GMT -5
It's cool see the process.
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Post by NatureNut on Feb 23, 2009 20:32:13 GMT -5
Well, after 4 days in 220 Fine Grit, there were a few casualties. Fran called it. They were mostly my local jasper- tends to breakdown and undercut and get pitty.  But, I was glad to see that it wasn't many. Lots of tumble and saw scraps survived.  And, here are my precuts after 4 days in fine grit and a four hour burnish. This pic is taken wet, but all others in this post are taken dry. Wonderstone, Marmelade and Red Jaspers from Randy  Imperial Jasper and Bloodstone from Bejewelme  Some awesome stuff from MichaelJohn, including his purple stone, which, I was happy to see held its own with the rest of this hard stuff.  Lakers fom NorthShoreRocks  Some Crazy Lace, Mozarkite and Graveyard Point Plume Agate from Weeshan  Fancy Bloodstone that I bought from Harry and Inkblot Jasper from StonesThatRock  My local stuff (the harder ones)  And some closeups NSR Laker  My Local Stuff     Mozarkite (looks like the Himalayan Mountains)  Graveyard Point Plume Agate  Crazy Lace  A rock I picked up in Montana last year  Baby Botswana Agate From Bejewelme  Baby Carnelian from Bejewelme  Awesome Stuff from MichaelJohn  Right now, I'm being really patient and tumbling some other stuff in order to keep the bowl full enough, so this batch is on hold for another couple of days before I start prepolish. Prepolish can be a little thinner and provide less cushion than 220 fine grit, so I'll want to make sure the bowl is plenty full so that the stones gently roll and not bash into eachother in my UV-10. Hope you enjoy these. Jo |
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Post by Bejewelme on Feb 24, 2009 0:39:04 GMT -5
WOW Jo:
I am glad you told me to take a look! This tumbling stuff sounds hard, you guys are speaking foreign languages over here!!! With all your grits and numbers and pellets!!! I love a tumbled stone!!! There is nothing prettier than a bowl of stones that just invites you to touch them! The big benefit is you get to enjoy all the rocks at one time when they are done versus me cabbing 300 cabs!! You know who will be begging for a handful!!!
Can't wait to see them!! The look pretty already!
Amber
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Post by NatureNut on Feb 24, 2009 7:20:47 GMT -5
Amber, after the great scraps and little guys you gave me. I owe you more than a handful, more like a bowlfull! LOL. Yours are looking great!
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NorthShore-Rocks
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since December 2008
Posts: 1,004
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Post by NorthShore-Rocks on Feb 24, 2009 9:02:36 GMT -5
It's looking good Jo! I betcha you learned a great deal tumbling a great variety of material too! Thanks for sharing your whole process. You are gonna talk me into getting a vibe yet! LOL! ;D
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Post by NatureNut on Feb 27, 2009 8:16:38 GMT -5
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Post by NatureNut on Mar 6, 2009 7:15:47 GMT -5
I thought I give a quick update. This batch is in a holding pattern right now on account of it's waiting on a brand new extra bowl and polish from The Rock Shed. I've been using the same bowl for all stages for about four months now, and I kept getting grit washing out with the polish, suspecting it's embedded in the sides of my bowl. I knew I'd have to buy one sooner or later, and the price has come down on extra bowls at the moment, which made it a little easier to purchase.
Jo
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Post by frane on Mar 6, 2009 8:36:47 GMT -5
Well Jo,
Everything is looking really nice so far and it is always best to give them a break if need be until the new bowl comes in. It really will make them so much better in the polish!
Fran
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Post by NatureNut on Mar 6, 2009 9:25:16 GMT -5
I should post pics of what they look like now. They're really close. I ran them for 5 days in polish in the old bowl, rinsed, saw some shine, but obviously not finished, saw lots of grit when I rinsed. Refreshed with new polish, ran two more days, rinsed, saw grit come off again, although a little more shine. Did a burnish with a little polish added, rinsed, some shine, but still matte finish. Ugh! Scrubbed bowl each time I rinsed and rinsed REALLY well.
Better to be patient, than come so close and not attain the shine they deserve.
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Post by BuiltonRock on Mar 6, 2009 15:08:30 GMT -5
I have a vibe and only used it once, Thanks for the pics and I may need your advise handed down from Randy to get it going properly.
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Post by NatureNut on Mar 7, 2009 8:57:02 GMT -5
John, You got it! A vibe is a great way to go through the process with tumbles, but does a great job with preshapes. You can do other shapes too, hearts, crosses, animals, etc. You don't get precision domes and crisp edges like hand worked on a cab machine, but sometimes you get surprised at how close you come, and it's a great way to turn out alot of great looking cabs in one batch. Vibes take much more watching and nursing, but once you get the feel of it, you can anticipate when you'll need to add a spritz of water, or rinse and recharge, and what rocks you can run together.
It's also a great way to clean up rocks you have hounded to see what they really look like. A one hour vibe with some borax can show you what you really got there! Jo
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Post by NatureNut on Mar 23, 2009 18:56:58 GMT -5
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NorthShore-Rocks
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since December 2008
Posts: 1,004
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Post by NorthShore-Rocks on Mar 23, 2009 19:07:42 GMT -5
Way to go Jo! Enormous variety and a great shine!!!
It's all about angles photographing the reflections.
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Post by NatureNut on Mar 23, 2009 19:21:45 GMT -5
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Post by Bikerrandy on Mar 23, 2009 19:49:09 GMT -5
Wow, those turned out sweet!! The best way that I've found to capture the shine is to take the pics either outside, in the shade (without the flash) or outside anywhere on an overcast day (without flash) or anywhere else where there's good lighting without "direct" light bouncing off the rocks. But really, in such a short time you've become a pro at alot of stuff. Too cool!!  |
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Post by NatureNut on Mar 23, 2009 20:10:02 GMT -5
Thanks Steve and Randy. Tried to take them in the shade of my deck railing. Overcame ALOT of problems along the way. This success is all thanks to those who are kind enough to teach what they've learned, those brave enough to voice their troubles and ask for help, and everyone encouraging me to go for the gusto! Oh, and to my tenacious nature and to some cool biker guy who was kind enough to coach me through all the bumps in the road! Jo
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Post by Bikerrandy on Mar 23, 2009 20:16:46 GMT -5
Hey, I had dinner on that dining room table in pic # 2!! (and a damn awesome dinner at that!!) ;D
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Post by NatureNut on Mar 23, 2009 20:19:57 GMT -5
Oh yeah! I was wondering where those initials "BR" came from that are carved into the tabletop. LOL.
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Post by Bikerrandy on Mar 23, 2009 21:16:14 GMT -5
Well I cleaned up the wood shavings.
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Post by NatureNut on Mar 23, 2009 21:18:04 GMT -5
But you left a pair of chaps hanging in the closet... funny color for a man though. I kept wondering what all the noise was up in the guest bedroom.
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Yeah! After my new extra bowl arrived from the rock shed, I immediately finished my quartz batch (shown below). Encouraged by its success, I was then able to finish this batch in 4 days in Rockshed AO polish (remember it had been in polish for 6 days in the old bowl). When someone tells you that a dedicated polish bowl is a good idea, believe them. So, without further ado, here's the finished batch...
Nov 15, 2024 17:44:51 GMT -5
Nov 15, 2024 17:44:51 GMT -5
