fosldog
off to a rocking start
Member since November 2008
Posts: 13 
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Post by fosldog on Apr 1, 2009 8:59:40 GMT -5
I have some larger petrified wood rounds about 4 to 5 inches in diameter.
I was wondering if anybody has tumbled such big pieces.
I thought that if I could do this, then flat lap the ends, it might be a pretty interesting looking specimien.
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Post by johnjsgems on Apr 1, 2009 9:17:57 GMT -5
If they are rounds, I'd polish the ends and leave the outer surfaces as is. In my opinion the outer surface is a nice fossil specimen. The ends which are broken anyway are fair game. I think it makes a more interesting display piece especially if the round has bark/detailing. Just my opinion.
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Post by stonesthatrock on Apr 1, 2009 9:35:21 GMT -5
i would also just polish the ends. They look really neat with the bark left of the sides.
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MikeS
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since January 2009
Posts: 1,081
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Post by MikeS on Apr 1, 2009 18:46:02 GMT -5
I second that...
Pieces that big can be tumbled, but they tend to smash smaller pieces of material in the tumber...
If you have your heart set on tumbling it, I'd recommend slabbing it and tumbling the slabs...either that or cut one end off and put it in a vibe with already coarse tumbled material you don't mind if it gets scratched...that will polish the end nicely, I've done that with good sucess in the past...
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181lizard
Cave Dweller 
Still lurking :)
Member since December 2005
Posts: 2,171
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Post by 181lizard on Apr 1, 2009 18:56:13 GMT -5
I've tumbled some pieces about the size of an egg & they can be real nice but...smaller items they're tumbled with tend to get beat up!
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fosldog
off to a rocking start
Member since November 2008
Posts: 13
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Post by fosldog on Apr 1, 2009 19:41:19 GMT -5
As suggested from earlier posts, I usually just lap the ends or make slabs out of my pet wood finds.
I was thinking that If I tumbled the large rounds, it would smooth out the exterior and really accentuate the grain so it would look like a big limbcast with wood grain.
I wouldnt care about the smaller filler items, as they would become pretty much toast in the long run.
Maybe roughing it out on a wet belt sander for starter then do the finer polishes in the tumbler?
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MikeS
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since January 2009
Posts: 1,081
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Post by MikeS on Apr 2, 2009 8:21:57 GMT -5
yeah...if the wood has a lot of texture on the outside it will take a very long time to tumble it smooth...
I tumble polish larger pieces of wiggins fork opalized wood sometimes, but many of the ones I choose for this have already been worn smooth on the outside by years and years of being in a creek. The pieces that do still have texture can still be tumbled, it all depends on how much texture you want to leave on the outside of the wood. In most cases it's nearly impossible to remove it all down to a smooth finish unless you leave it in the tumbler for a very, very long time....
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Post by Condor on Apr 2, 2009 19:12:54 GMT -5
I've tumlbed larger pieces like that and have been happy with the results. It does take awhile, but if you like large tumbled pieces it might be worth it. I know I would do it.
Condor
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rockhead2u
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Enjoying God's blessings today while living with Jesus in hope of tomorrow.
Member since May 2009
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Post by rockhead2u on May 7, 2009 1:48:44 GMT -5
Tumbling larger pieces of material require a larger size tumbler. For that I use a home made tumbler barrel made of a 5 gallon plastic pail.
I can put one larger piece - the size of a large grapefruit - along with an assortment of other sizes of material and get a good polish on all the pieces.
When I sell at shows and have a large piece like this to sell, I am always asked how I am able to polish such a large rock.
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