meviva
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Member since July 2013
Posts: 1,474
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Post by meviva on Jul 17, 2013 13:18:14 GMT -5
Hi, My tumbler just got here from therockshed.com. Very fast shipping, I ordered on Monday. AWESOME!!!! It feels like Christmas This is what I got: QT 66 Lortone Kit which came with a jewelry kit, grit and 10 lbs of medium mixed rock. 1 lb lg ceramic media 1 rotary grit pack I got 2 lbs of each: banded amethyst tigereye Mexican lace lg Mexican lace moss agate mix green tree agate fancy jasper (3 lbs.) crushed prairie agate multi moonstone med Arizona wood Amazonite Picture Jasper Rutilated Quartz Zebra Jasper amethyst crystals bahia agate So now the questions: I don't know where to start. I've read to only tumble rough that has the same hardness together, but there are some exceptions....So did I buy anything that should be tumbled only by itself? Can the tumbler run if we are out of town for a few days? Or is it best to stop it when gone for more than a day? I'm so excited to get started. Here's a pic of what I got.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 17, 2013 13:35:33 GMT -5
wow! what a coool opening order!
have fun!
sorry, I am no help. I am a beginner at tumbling too.
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meviva
Cave Dweller
Member since July 2013
Posts: 1,474
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Post by meviva on Jul 17, 2013 20:59:05 GMT -5
Thanks Shotgunner! I tend to go a little crazy when starting something new. I've already have plans for what to order next.
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cardiobill
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since March 2012
Posts: 881
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Post by cardiobill on Jul 17, 2013 21:22:19 GMT -5
The amazonite, moonstone and probably the tigerstone are softer than the quartz, agates and jaspers. You may get away with mixing these with the others but they may not shine up as well. If you go to the rocksheds site under tumbled rocks they list the MOHs hardness of each. you will probably get the best results by tumbling the ones with about the same MOHs together. You really got a nice tumbler and some great rough. I'm excited for you and can't wait to see the finished product. Good luck, be patient with the first stage, and burnish (tumble for a day with borax and some ivory soap flakes) before you polish and I'm sure you'll be very happy Bill
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Post by Jugglerguy on Jul 17, 2013 22:28:47 GMT -5
You're going to need a lot more grit. The first stage can take months if you want to get all the pits out. The other stages are quicker, but that first one seems to never end! This is a really fun hobby, you're going to enjoy it. Now you need to go find some of your own rocks, or you're going to go broke buying all that rough!
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Post by deb193redux on Jul 17, 2013 22:30:46 GMT -5
I would start with these in course in both barrels
Mexican lace lg Mexican lace moss agate mix fancy jasper (3 lbs.) crushed prairie agate med Arizona wood Picture Jasper
You are going to need more grit. Grit packs never have enough course, and I think they have 3lb barrels in mind. They say 2 batches in a 6lb, so that is only 1 batch in a 6-6.
Also they figure 3-4 weekly recharges in course, but it often takes 8 to 16 weekly course recharges if you want well shaped stones.
Get 5lbs of course and at least 2bs of medium, and maybe a pound of fine.
I would get more ceramic too. Those bags have good rock, but they almost always do not have enough small pieces. People value bigger pieces so they sell it that way - but the most common mistake is not enough small pieces. The small pieces do all the work. More ceramic will help.
After 3-4 weeks, you can put the better shaped ones in one barrel, and put the poorer shaped ones and some fresh rock inthe other barrel.
After 3-4 more weeks, you might be able to start a medium barrel. But it may take another 2 weeks. do not rush. you can set aside rock that is ready for medium each week (while adding fresh) until you have enough to fill a barrel.
if you do not have enough small sizes it will not only slow the grind, but there will be a lot of space between rocks and you will be led to put too much water. The rule about water just to the bottom of the top layer assumes enough small rock. Too much water and grit falls to bottom and slurry does not form.
When you think you have too much small rock and ceramic, put a little bit more.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 18, 2013 7:43:46 GMT -5
Thank you for the good information! I was wondering about the different hardness in my rocks too.
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meviva
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Member since July 2013
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Post by meviva on Jul 18, 2013 9:02:53 GMT -5
cardiobill: Thanks, I went to the website and marked all the bags of rough with the MOHs hardness. I won't be able to get started for a few days but then I will post pictures of my progress.
Juggler Guy: I will definitely order more grit soon. I can't wait to get started.
deb193redux: Thanks for the info. I made a list of the things you suggested and will order soon. I am planning to use one barrel for polish only, I've read that's best for the final product. So I may need to add an extra barrel to that list so I can have a stage one and two going at the same time until I have enough for the polishing barrel.
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Post by sheltie on Jul 18, 2013 10:35:09 GMT -5
To answer your question about leaving the tumbler on if you are gone for a few days. Ours are on all the time. However, just because we are old and cautious we would turn them off if we were planning to be gone more than a day. I would guess that there is nothing wrong leaving them on while you are gone, but we turn off almost everything electric or electronic when we leave for more than a day. Well, that's not true. When we leave for the summer (four months) we leave our A/C and house electric on, but unplug all electronics and turn off the water to the house. Anyway, I think it is more a matter of if you would personally feel comfortable with it or not.
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meviva
Cave Dweller
Member since July 2013
Posts: 1,474
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Post by meviva on Jul 18, 2013 11:09:44 GMT -5
sheltie: That's kind of what I was thinking. Once I get it going and it's in the middle of a step, do I have to clean everything up and start the step over when we get back? Or do I just plug it back in and continue where I left off?
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Post by deb193redux on Jul 18, 2013 11:23:29 GMT -5
just shake well to undo any settling. tumbling will undo this too, but the off-center weight may initially strain the motor.
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Post by sheltie on Jul 18, 2013 12:18:13 GMT -5
Like deb said.
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meviva
Cave Dweller
Member since July 2013
Posts: 1,474
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Post by meviva on Jul 19, 2013 0:48:41 GMT -5
I went to a rock shop on my way out of town and bought 3 more lbs of the course and medium grit. So now I have 5 lbs of each. I also bought 3 lbs each of small assorted agate and pet wood to put in with my other pieces. I'm hoping to go to another rock shop tomorrow to see what I can find.
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