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Post by cpdad on Nov 1, 2006 21:08:45 GMT -5
just wondering can you finish a peice with a dremel?...i have a lot of peices that are ready for 120..but would really like to finish 1 or 2 of them quickly.
can you take a dremel and finish a few peices using a leather pad...or using felt bobs?...they do have flat backs...i need to finish just the top side.
i can make a paste from my grit...or i can get diamond paste.....its just a time factor involved....any thoughts.
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spikeict
fully equipped rock polisher
Alba gu bra! In Promptu
Member since November 2006
Posts: 1,413
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Post by spikeict on Nov 1, 2006 21:43:40 GMT -5
Can I go one step further? (I seem to be a bit of thread killer CPDAD hope I don't ruin it for you) What about doing the whole thing with a Dremmel? Earlier today I ordered 50 grit diamond tools for mine, already have sanding drums which don't give the grit size but am guessing 500, they are giving a very smooth surface.
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Post by LCARS on Nov 1, 2006 22:07:27 GMT -5
Didn't you see the pic in my malachite thread of the piece I finished with the Dremel? Well, here it is again: Granted, it IS a softer stone but the same principal applied to a harder stone would suggest that it would just take longer.
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Post by akansan on Nov 2, 2006 0:39:50 GMT -5
I asked this question a while back when I saw you could get different grit diamond bits for the Dremels. The (almost) unanimous response was that it was absolutely possible, but that it would also take a while to do the whole piece that way (as opposed to the time it would take with a cabbing machine).
I think it was Stoner who posted the tip on how to make a leather polish attachment for the Dremel. I think I would personally take the stone to at least 500 before I started playing with the Dremel.
You could also follow LadyT's recent adventures and use just lots of regular sand paper on those few pieces to get to the polish stage and then just polish with the Dremel...
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Post by stoner on Nov 2, 2006 2:06:07 GMT -5
The biggest problem in finishing stones from the tumbler is the irregular shape. In a tumbler, the action of the tumble hits every spot on the stone. Using a Dremel, it's difficult to cover the entire stone with each of the successive grits, and you'll have spots that will have to be fixed. If you do get it to the polish stage, check the Tips section, I did post a tip on making a leather disc for use in a Dremel.
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Post by LCARS on Nov 2, 2006 2:29:31 GMT -5
I would love to get some diamond bits for my Dremel but I can't seem to find any plavce around here that carries them. I'm assuming you'd have to get them third party since I don't recall ever seeing any diamond bits in their OEM catalog. I'm afraid that the head bearing is wearing out on it too and it's probably not going to last much longer so i'm using it sparingly
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spikeict
fully equipped rock polisher
Alba gu bra! In Promptu
Member since November 2006
Posts: 1,413
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Post by spikeict on Nov 2, 2006 9:34:06 GMT -5
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Post by deb193 on Nov 2, 2006 10:09:08 GMT -5
Lowes has a few diamond Dremel brand bits. I use a tapered one about 1.2mm. It is strong and lasts a while, but the hole is closer to 2mm if hand held. ALso the bit is $10. You can get thiner bits that wear out quicker, but are like 25 bits for $15 in straight, or a couple bucks each if spiral.
Kevin - If you are thinking about the Dremel because of the time factor, it is time to get a vibe unit. I know you are real busy right now and don;thave a lot of time to sit with the Dremel. You could move a few stones through fine and polish in a matter of days with a vibe unit.
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Post by cpdad on Nov 2, 2006 13:06:58 GMT -5
thanks everybody for the tips and suggestions....ya maybe its time for a vibe...i mainly just thought about the dremel because during 16 and 18 hour days at work....there are times that im not needed for 45 minutes or so and i could be polishing something...might as well get for polishing..hahahahahaha
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181lizard
Cave Dweller
Still lurking :)
Member since December 2005
Posts: 2,171
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Post by 181lizard on Nov 2, 2006 14:00:12 GMT -5
Hey all...I just recieved a 50 pc. of 40 grit diamond burr & wheel set from widgetsupply.com and a 6 pc. diamond drill bit set. The big set was 23.97 & the bits were 2.97. Someone here told me about them in another thread, so that's where I went. Only took 2 days to get them too & now I can't wait to give them a try!
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SirRoxalot
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since October 2003
Posts: 790
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Post by SirRoxalot on Nov 2, 2006 15:12:56 GMT -5
You can certainly finish your tumbled stones by hand. A friend agreed to demo tumbling to his scout group, but didn't quite appreciate the time involved to get them to a finished state. He ended up hand polishing the batch with fine sandpaper and elbow grease.
Lots of things are hand ground and polished, like turquoise nuggets and fire agate; dremel tools are great for such work. More efficient to use the last couple of wheels of a cabbing unit to finish them up, but a dremel will do the job. Polishing units are a cinch to make; motor, arbor, disc, pulleys, a belt, polish compound and water on a felt pad and you're good to go.
Sir Roxalot
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spikeict
fully equipped rock polisher
Alba gu bra! In Promptu
Member since November 2006
Posts: 1,413
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Post by spikeict on Nov 5, 2006 23:00:06 GMT -5
I tried my new 50 grit dremels today, they worked like a dream for shaping a domed tear drop in Obsidian, I removed a lot of stone to get it there as that was not what my original idea was but wanted to do after I got started. My problem has been the polishing. I bought all five polishing compounds that home depot had, that ended with jewelers rouge, did each step first using the small felt pads then the larger one's. It did not work, and I ended up puttting it in a batch of 500 I had going. Does anyone have suggestions?
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Post by akansan on Nov 5, 2006 23:48:16 GMT -5
Did you do any stages to the stone after the 50 grit?
If it's already been through the other stages to remove the scratches the 50 grit would leave, I'd get some of your regular polish you use for tumbling and just use that on a cloth.
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spikeict
fully equipped rock polisher
Alba gu bra! In Promptu
Member since November 2006
Posts: 1,413
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Post by spikeict on Nov 6, 2006 0:06:57 GMT -5
Yes, sorry forgot to mention. I used a diamond sanding drum that I think is 500 (no grit size on package) as it smooths out very well. Then started the compounds, even started over when I changed felt pads.
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