nutotumbling
off to a rocking start
Member since November 2009
Posts: 3
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Post by nutotumbling on Nov 24, 2009 15:57:05 GMT -5
:Just read something about the Chicago Elec Vibrating Tumbler - my hubby just purchased this from HF and I want to use it for ROCK timbling. Everything I am reading on the forum states since this is a DRY tumbler that it should NOT be used for rocks....that it is for jewelry, casings, etc. Does anybody know what happens if you use it for rocks??? Or should we simple return it and get a decent one that is for rocks.....thx
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Post by Toad on Nov 24, 2009 16:09:04 GMT -5
I don't know if they have a wet vibrating tumbler or not, but their reputation on this board isn't very good. Plus if you will be tumbling rough rocks as opposed to pre-forms/cabachons you will need a rotary for the first stage.
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rockdewd
has rocks in the head
Member since October 2007
Posts: 605
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Post by rockdewd on Nov 24, 2009 17:07:13 GMT -5
I had a Central Electric vibe for a while and for the most part it gave me average performance. It was an experiment to see what kind of vibe tumbler they made.
Here are some notes:
Cheap bowl. The indentations are wear points and wear out quickly. On the upside they are cheap to replace and you can buy extras to keep special tumbling mixes like walnut shells with different polishes and corn cob, etc.
I needed to adjust the weight because it vibrated too violently. I ground 1/8 or an inch off the end of the counter weight and that smoothed things out.
The motor and base for the most part are well made. I used it as my backup vibe and it ran for about a year before the bearings went out on it. I just tossed it after that.
So for occasional use the CE vibe is OK. If you are going to do some serious tumbling it won't hold up. I prefer Ultra-vibes.
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nutotumbling
off to a rocking start
Member since November 2009
Posts: 3
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Post by nutotumbling on Nov 24, 2009 17:21:25 GMT -5
Did you dry tumble then? How did your stones turn out?
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Post by Bikerrandy on Nov 24, 2009 17:40:32 GMT -5
I've never heard of dry tumbling stones. I have a Thumblers UV-10 (Ultra vibe) tumbler, best tumbler that I've ever used. Vibratory rock tumblers are wet tumblers, dry tumblers are for rings, brass powder casings, nuts and bolts......
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rockdewd
has rocks in the head
Member since October 2007
Posts: 605
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Post by rockdewd on Nov 24, 2009 17:43:23 GMT -5
I used the CE tumbler wet. Well moist actually. Only enough to keep the grit sticking to the stones. Check out Bikerrandy's thread on vibe tumbling...
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nutotumbling
off to a rocking start
Member since November 2009
Posts: 3
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Post by nutotumbling on Nov 24, 2009 18:07:00 GMT -5
Thanks Randy...I did read your thread and it was full of information. I think we will return the vib and get the UV3 or UV10 - we are newbees so the UV3 would probably work for us as far as capacity.
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Post by johnjsgems on Nov 25, 2009 0:02:02 GMT -5
Diamond Pacific makes a great product for dry tumbling called "Vibra Dry". It starts at 600 grit and goes all the way to 100,000 so is more of a pre-polish/polish media. That said, every tumbler with the CE name is basically a low cost, low quality, throw away.
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88pathoffroad
spending too much on rocks
Oregon ROCKS!
Member since August 2008
Posts: 305
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Post by 88pathoffroad on Nov 27, 2009 20:56:59 GMT -5
I got one of the 5-lb (?) blue-bowled HFT dry vibe tumblers and sealed it up for wet use. It lasted about 2 months before the motor locked up. Could have been some of the leaky polish or just plain getting wet, but it didn't last long. Worked OK for polishing, nothing spectacular.
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