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Post by talkingstones on Jan 19, 2012 7:08:36 GMT -5
Okay, I've started my very first batch of tumbles. It's 3/4 cup of quartz and agate chips with some preformed stuff as well. I'm using the 60/90 which came with the set, a 3X 1.5 Lortone with currently 1 barrel going. The quartz is exceptionally low quality local stuff which I fully expect to turn to gravel and will probably add to my fishtank, but I'm hoping it helps the agates. :-)
Okay...I'm really excited about this!!!
Wish me luck!
Cathy
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Post by rockrookie on Jan 19, 2012 8:31:37 GMT -5
Good luck , Cathy !! have fun !! i hope that they turn out great .
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billg22
spending too much on rocks
Member since November 2011
Posts: 451
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Post by billg22 on Jan 19, 2012 20:29:56 GMT -5
I bought the same tumbler. They did stock it with enough grit, plactic bits and stones to get you going. My idea was to use the unit as kind of an utility player between my other two tumblers. Good luck!
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Post by MyNewHobby on Jan 19, 2012 23:23:03 GMT -5
There is nothing like the sound of someone discovering tumbling and the anticipation that goes with waiting to finish your first batch.
Take lots of pictures!!!
As Always!
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Post by Jack ( Yorkshire) on Jan 20, 2012 3:12:36 GMT -5
Hi Cathy
Watch your Pre formed stuff in 60/90 grit it will wear away the sharp edges quickly ,
I generaly add preforms at the 2nd stage or 3rd stage depending on the sharpnes of the edges I want
Look forward to seeing the final results,
Thanks for sharing your tumble with us,
Jack Yorkshire uk
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Post by talkingstones on Jan 20, 2012 6:01:26 GMT -5
I checked the batch last night. Things looked pretty much the same. I'm not seeing breakage with the quartz, which is surprising because it's not great stuff. Power is going to be a problem with this. We lost power at 8 last night due to a light snow. It came back on in the middle of the night, but we're expecting more snow tonight.
I bought this unit because I wanted something to work with that I could actually fill. I started cutting and grinding over the summer and finally had enough to run a 3/4 cup load now. I like that I'll be able to run all three barrels at the same time...eventually. I also have a dual 6 lber which I'd like to use for cabs if I ever get to the point where I can fill it. I'd like to use this one for little stuff and scraps mainly, but will see how the cabs turn out.
Anyway, gotta go shovel as work is looming... I'll keep you all posted!
Cathy
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Post by paulshiroma on Jan 20, 2012 9:49:37 GMT -5
Pretty exciting, Cathy! Looking forward to seeing your results! Paul
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Post by talkingstones on Jan 20, 2012 19:06:26 GMT -5
OK, it's officially the weekend and I have a question...... Is it okay to post photos of this momentous event on this thread or do I have to go down one topic on the board to post photos as I go....AND can I do multiple photo posts in one thread? Just askin...
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Post by connrock on Jan 21, 2012 9:28:42 GMT -5
I don't think there's any set rules to posting photo's to a specific section and in this case I don't see anything wrong with posting them right here. You can post as many photos as you want in any one posting so fire away!
my 2 cents worth,,,
connrock
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emyhro4048
spending too much on rocks
Member since March 2007
Posts: 396
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Post by emyhro4048 on Jan 21, 2012 17:36:07 GMT -5
Keep it up. Just be patient. Can't hurry the progress or they won't turn out good. Ed M
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keystonecops
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since October 2010
Posts: 957
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Post by keystonecops on Jan 22, 2012 9:35:21 GMT -5
Cathy,yer on a never ending road now. My first tumbler was the 3 1.5, now have a 3# and a 4#. Still keepn my eyes open fer more. Have fun, be patient. Later Clyde
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Post by talkingstones on Jan 22, 2012 21:04:02 GMT -5
Okay! Just completed day 5 stir. I have added no grit, mainly because the guy who sent the "complete kit" from ebay, albeit in 1.5 days because he was over on The Island, seems to have rebagged the grits and gave me just enough grit to do one run without adding anything to it. Anyway, I have some pictures. Looks kind of soupy to me, but is actually much thicker than it was yesterday morning. There's this... And this... And finally, this... So I'm pretty happy with what is happening so far. I have a couple of gneisses in there that could be doing better, but the quartz seems to be doing pretty well. I put the lid back on and may start pulling stuff tomorrow just to see where we're at. Cathy
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Post by connrock on Jan 23, 2012 7:45:31 GMT -5
Your slurry looks a little thin but that may be because you squirted water on the rocks for the photo? It's easy for all of us to give opinions and help if you just leave the rocks "as is" when you open the barrel!
Good luck,,
connrock
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herchenx
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2012
Posts: 3,360
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Post by herchenx on Jan 23, 2012 15:59:42 GMT -5
Cathy, my lortone barrels(3x1.5#) look exactly like this, the slurry is not hanging onto the rocks when I open the tumbler.
This was my second go-round on stage 1 60/90, and I cut my water by 1/2 -2/3 since last time I had too much water.
When I felt the stones, it seemed like I just had wet grit, versus a slurry (almost creamy).
I am trying to dial in on the right amounts for these 1.5# barrels but so far I am a little lost.
Following Don's recipe for his 6# tumblers - in my 6# tumblers - is working great though!
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Post by talkingstones on Jan 23, 2012 21:02:15 GMT -5
Hi John,
I haven't added any additional water or grit to this batch. Tonight it looked a little thicker and I will definitely need to pull some by tomorrow. I'm definitely happy with the edging that's happening with the tumbling.... although I think I should have preshaped much more closely. I'm also thinking that maybe extending the time on the larger and coarser pieces might be the best way to go, rather than adding more grit. The way I look at this, I'm really kind of cheating the natural polishing process by a millenium or two, so adding a week or even two still seems like a deal to me. I'm really surprised at how much better this seems to be for the stones than grinding them. I tend to work the stones until they get too hot and thus, they tend to fracture on me. I like that the tumbling eliminates that.
Cathy
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Post by Jack ( Yorkshire) on Jan 24, 2012 3:41:47 GMT -5
Hi Cathy, I actualy add a thickner to my rotary tumbler m Ive use rock dust , grinder dust, dried mud from a former tumble I use wall paper paste granuals this lasts about 2 to 3 days by which time the grit has ground off a bit of mud which takes over giving the goop a thick creamy consistancy which covers the rock,this photo shows the early stage (day 1 ) I have had a run or 2 that didnt "Take" and the grit was all in the bottom over the years , which I put down to to much water and not enough "Seed / mud/goop " Just my experiances Jack Yorkshire uk
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Post by talkingstones on Jan 24, 2012 14:12:31 GMT -5
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Post by Jugglerguy on Jan 24, 2012 16:32:44 GMT -5
I haven't completed my first tumble yet. I just moved to the second stage. From what I've read here, I've gotten the idea that stones with holes or cracks shouldn't be moved to stage two because they can carry grit from stage one and contaminate later stages. Is that right? Should Cathy remove her holey stones?
Rob
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Post by talkingstones on Jan 24, 2012 17:02:31 GMT -5
Hi Rob,
Actually, from what I've read, the answer to your question is resoundingly "Yes!" However, as just about every single one of these stones has either holes or fractures, I'm not sure they will ever reach stage two. I'm actually hoping to have a few usable pieces at the end of this for the bottom of my fishtank, but, I am curious to see what happens with the continued stage 1 by Saturday!!!! (when I will hopefully have at least an idea of when my grown up grits will be arriving from the Rock Shed and I have enough stuff to really mess around with from cutting cabs during my spare time.) After completing stage 1, by the looks of it, I will have maybe three or four stones left to work with, sooooo, cutting is taking priority at this time and I'm going to have to see if I have enough workable stuff by the end of the weekend...but we aren't there yet, so I want to see what else happens in the "Continuation of Stage 1."
Thanks for the post and have you posted pictures yet?
Cathy
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Post by Jugglerguy on Jan 24, 2012 18:13:02 GMT -5
I posted my picture in the pictures section. Maybe they should have gone here, I'm not sure. It's called "First batches of rocks after stage 1". Mine had small dents and cracks until I ran them through stage one again. Now they're all pretty smooth. They're happily rolling along in stage 2. I'm trying to think of a way to convince my wife that I should really have a Lot-O-Tumbler to go with my Lortone.
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