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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jul 23, 2014 14:13:27 GMT -5
Ok, so who else is entered into in the 2014 World rock tumbling competition this year? I thought maybe some of you that are not in it might like to see the rough we were given to start with this year. At first glance I was a little horrified by the quality of the 3 pounds of rough (especially at at an entry cost of $40). These are photo's taken the day we go the rough back on March 21. We now have stage one done on the handful of probable contenders and should be heading to the loto this week. I do not think I will be showing my hand by posting any photos of finished rocks till after the deadline to submit the rocks so you will have to wait a bit for those. Brazilian agate rough that was crushed by machine Thanks for looking Chuck
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Post by Hard Rock Cafe on Jul 23, 2014 14:54:37 GMT -5
Ouch. Some of that rough looks like it will best be used as a tool for polishing the better pieces. Hope they're finishing better than they're starting!
Chuck
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jul 23, 2014 14:57:58 GMT -5
Ouch. Some of that rough looks like it will best be used as a tool for polishing the better pieces. Hope they're finishing better than they're starting! Chuck luckily this year they changed the rules and we are sending in our 5 best rocks instead of our best 1/2 pound. Chuck
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panamark
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,343
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Post by panamark on Jul 24, 2014 11:46:33 GMT -5
Chuck, since you have experience in competition I have a question for you. In a "tumbling competition" what tools other than a tumbler are allowed? I would imagine a saw would be ok and of course a hammer&chisel if you really want to. But what else? I was a bit surprised that in our informal competition a while ago some people used grinders, wheels, etc. And my quandary is "at what point does it go from tumbling to more of a lapidary polishing contest?" Taken to an extreme someone could use wheels down to 1400 or lower, then drop them in a polisher for a couple hours. So I wonder how the officials in the "World Championship" address this besides the simple honor system?
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jul 24, 2014 11:59:19 GMT -5
Chuck, since you have experience in competition I have a question for you. In a "tumbling competition" what tools other than a tumbler are allowed? I would imagine a saw would be ok and of course a hammer&chisel if you really want to. But what else? I was a bit surprised that in our informal competition a while ago some people used grinders, wheels, etc. And my quandary is "at what point does it go from tumbling to more of a lapidary polishing contest?" Taken to an extreme someone could use wheels down to 1400 or lower, then drop them in a polisher for a couple hours. So I wonder how the officials in the "World Championship" address this besides the simple honor system? Good question Mark. This contest is a little different when it comes to the rules. A saw is never mentioned in the rules but I always go for a natural looking shape so I would not want saw flats on my entries. A grinding wheel can be used in the rough stage but then the rocks must be tumbled from that point on. This contest is judged in two phases. The first phase is a panel of folks from the rock club that host the contest. They actually look over all the entries for on technical merit and even go under magnification to make sure the rocks are tumbled and not finished on wheels. During this stage of judging they pick what they feel are the top five entries. Those top five are then taken to rock and gem show and put behind glass where everyone that walks by gets to cast a vote on which rocks look the best. So you have to try to send in rocks that you think will impress two different kinds of judging. You mentioned the possibility of running the rocks through ever wheel of a cabbing machine but I know for a fact that on uneven natural shaped rocks I can get better results going through all the grits of the tumbler then I could if I tried to finish them on the Genie. Last year was our first year trying it and we snagged first place. I have some pretty serious contenders for this year if I don't screw them up in the lot-o, LOL. Chuck
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panamark
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,343
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Post by panamark on Jul 24, 2014 12:48:50 GMT -5
Oh, so you want the finished shapes somewhat uneven then? I personally definitely prefer this as it leaves character, but I notice that a lot of people seem to strive for VERY round finished rocks.
Good luck on the competition. I am very confident that you can win. As long as the rocks don't pull some big surprise at the final stages.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jul 24, 2014 13:04:21 GMT -5
Oh, so you want the finished shapes somewhat uneven then? I personally definitely prefer this as it leaves character, but I notice that a lot of people seem to strive for VERY round finished rocks. Good luck on the competition. I am very confident that you can win. As long as the rocks don't pull some big surprise at the final stages. Thanks Mark. I am nervous now. I completely zoned out on the due date and now I only have one shot in the lot-o before I have to send them in. I wanted to have enough time to run them twice if needed but these things spent 16 weeks in 46/70 and that was with grinding major flaws off with the diamond wheels. started with three pounds and have less then one pound left. Chuck
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swiper
having dreams about rocks
Member since June 2014
Posts: 64
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Post by swiper on Jul 24, 2014 21:24:07 GMT -5
Good luck and look forward to seeing the end result.
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junglejim
spending too much on rocks
Member since January 2014
Posts: 344
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Post by junglejim on Jul 24, 2014 22:07:21 GMT -5
It must be really hard material, 16 weeks in 46/70 after grinding. I bet it shines up really well. Good luck with the contest.
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panamark
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,343
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Post by panamark on Jul 24, 2014 22:48:14 GMT -5
these things spent 16 weeks in 46/70 Yikes, that is some serious roughing out!!!
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jul 25, 2014 15:20:07 GMT -5
Wow. Am I the only one from the group entered this year or what? I guess that could be a good thing Chuck
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