jayhkr
noticing nice landscape pebbles
Member since September 2007
Posts: 92
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Post by jayhkr on Sept 7, 2009 21:59:53 GMT -5
Ok this is part 2 of my continuing tumble of my friends apache tears. This is about 7 days into the 120 grit tumble. I used borax for about 4 hours before going into the pre-polish step. You guys were so good to me before, giving me lots of tips I wanted to see if I was on track, slightly off track, or completly off the track and in need of major help. I'm using the advice from a member here (sorry forgot your screen name) that suggested using grit based off the weight of the rock. They suggested 1 pound grit for every 10 pounds rock. Well I had to convert that to grams as I was only using a little more than a half of a pound of rock which translated into about 270 grams of grit. We'll see in about 5 days if the results are better. I'm also using these pictures as a digital diary that I'm keeping on my pc for future reference, but I know a lot of you like looking at pictures so: The slurry - still a little foamy  After 120 grit - Dry   Wet   I really like this one. Mostly clear except for the dark line through the middle  This is how much filler I had to use in order to keep the barrel full. LOTS of plastic bb's.  After the rocks were added  Water and grit added - Too much, too little, or about right?   You guys were such great help last time, I really appreciated it. Anything you can suggest this round is again appreciated! I hope that one day I can post those pretty pictures that we all enjoy daily from everyone! Take care all, till next time. Eddie |
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Post by tkrueger3 on Sept 7, 2009 22:20:06 GMT -5
Looks about right to me. These are the first pics I've seen of the green bb's - they look cool, even if they're just there for the function. From the looks of the rocks, I'd say you're well on track. Keep on truckin!
Tom
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jayhkr
noticing nice landscape pebbles
Member since September 2007
Posts: 92
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Post by jayhkr on Sept 7, 2009 22:53:03 GMT -5
Thanks Tom! I read a post a few years ago of people using these air soft bb's for cushion and thought I would give it a try. Walmart has these super cheap so I have enough for each style batch. I really hope to see a little sheen after the pre-polish is done! 5-7 days will tell!
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rocko
off to a rocking start
Member since August 2009
Posts: 4
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Post by rocko on Sept 8, 2009 4:28:13 GMT -5
Well I had to convert that to grams as I was only using a little more than a half of a pound of rock which translated into about 270 grams of grit. I'm not going to comment on the slurry as I'm a novice myself, but unless that's a typo it seems your conversion might have gone a bit awry. 270 grams is around half a pound, so instead of 1 part grit / 10 parts rock, you would now have 1 part grit / 1 part rock. |
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Post by connrock on Sept 8, 2009 5:35:12 GMT -5
I think you have too much water in the load.It should be under the top layer of rocks not "within" it. What grit are you in now? You say pre-polish but I think you should have at least 4 grit stages before polish. Obsidian is very unforgiving when it's polished.Unlike other rocks you can actually see through it so if it's not polished properly it will look like a window that was gone over with emery cloth. I don't have any photos of obsidian but here's a piece of clear quartz that even though has a lot of imperfections in it can still be seen through. If it were not polished properly it would have a sort of haze to the finish.  connrock Ps:it was me with the weight thing about the grit |
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Post by deb193redux on Sept 8, 2009 8:41:06 GMT -5
Yes, way too much water. That top layer was swimming in water. Water should not even be visible.
I agree about 4 grit stages for softer rock and obsidian. After 120, perhaps 500, than 1200 or 1000g AO or tripoly. Then the polish.
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Post by johnjsgems on Sept 8, 2009 9:09:46 GMT -5
I think part of the confusion is some grit kits call the 500F/600 step "prepolish". More accurately prepolish is the 1200, 1000, or Tripoli Daniel mentions. It looks like too much grit and a little too much water. Everyone has their own idea on water from bottom of top layer to just covering load. Many older books said to fill water so top layer has some rocks sticking out of water. Themore water the more grit you would need.
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jayhkr
noticing nice landscape pebbles
Member since September 2007
Posts: 92
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Post by jayhkr on Sept 8, 2009 9:27:27 GMT -5
Well there's not to much I can do about to much grit, however would taking some water out help or is it to late. It's only been running for about 16 hours or so. The bag I got off ebay said it was pre-polish, I think I threw away the original bag so I don't know what size. But I am planning on buying all sorts of grits from the rock shed later on. As for now, I'm assuming the best thing to do is take out water until I can barely see it? John is right, I was adding water according to a book I got from the library. Thanks to everyone with their continued help. ONEDAY, maybe I can be the one giving help instead of constantly asking for it.
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Post by johnjsgems on Sept 8, 2009 9:44:54 GMT -5
Most of the book instructions and individual variations will work. If too much water it will take longer to break down the grit. Most of the variations worked for someone just faster or slower. The grit steps most commonly used in the U.S. are mixed grade (lower cost) 60/90, 120/220, 500F. A really cheap and good prepolish is Tripoli. The Rock Shed's Al Ox polish works very well and is also low cost.
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