renie
off to a rocking start
Member since December 2009
Posts: 20
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Post by renie on Apr 11, 2015 22:48:55 GMT -5
Long story short....got a box of rocks at a yard sale and it had a couple bags of what I thought was grit. Yard sale guy said they are black sand for a fish tank. Another guy standing beside me said "Same thing, will work fine." Just wanted to verify that before I make a mess or screw up some rocks.
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Fossilman
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2009
Posts: 20,711
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Post by Fossilman on Apr 12, 2015 8:41:33 GMT -5
I have heard of sand being used in tumblers.....I think it takes a bit longer though with the cycle... Anymore input from the pro's on here? ?
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tkvancil
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2011
Posts: 1,547
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Post by tkvancil on Apr 12, 2015 9:01:07 GMT -5
To the best of my knowledge using sand as tumbling grit is a wash. It won't hurt anything per say but does not shape or grind efficiently. A lot of sand is quartz particles. Quartz being the same hardness as agate or jasper, all around mohs 7 for the most part. Silicon carbide grit is mohs 9 and sharp edged which is why it grinds and shapes rocks.
Black sand is associated with gold, isn't it? Maybe you have some panning material.
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Post by captbob on Apr 12, 2015 9:02:50 GMT -5
no no and no. Won't mess up the rocks, but it won't work. Sand isn't hard enough. Works on a beach, but that is because the rocks "tumble" in the sand longer than you will be alive. Might work with really soft stones like obsidian or fluorite, but why bother? Grit is pretty cheap. The electricity you will use running sand would eclipse any savings from not buying grit many times over.
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,487
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Post by Sabre52 on Apr 12, 2015 9:41:23 GMT -5
What Bob said, Grinding action depends on hardness differential. Sand is about mohs hardness 7 as are jasper and agate. No differential means little or no grinding action except over eons. Silicon carbide is mohs 9-10, much harder than quartz or agate etc, thus good grinding action. If you use sand at mohs 7 with something soft maybe mohs 4 or so like Bob said, the hardness differential would give you at least some grinding action though sand is less tough than SC too so would break down faster...Mel
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grizman
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since July 2011
Posts: 878
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Post by grizman on Apr 12, 2015 16:17:07 GMT -5
Yup, I agree. Sounds like you have a chance making the "real change" with some time panning the black sand.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Member since January 1970
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Apr 12, 2015 20:09:50 GMT -5
Greetings [renie] firstly may i welcome you to RTH Forums, black sand is usually Basalt and you get natural beaches of black sand in most beaches in the Canaries Islands, except Maspalomas beach which was imported from the Sahara desert in North Africa. Please check out my Sticky's below. -- Please click images to open larger images in a new Tab, same with everything that is Underlined! I currently have a 3lb Beach (UK), Lortone QT 12/66 (USA) rotaries & 2x Viking Vibrasonic (Diamond Pacific) (USA) virbrating tumblers, with Silicon Carbide grit F80, F220, F600, F1200, with Tin Oxide (1.0 micron) & Aluminum Oxide (1.0 micron & 0.3 micron) polishes. I hail from (The Barony of Seabegs) Bonnybridge, Stirlingshire, U.K, where aliens (15mb) sometimes come for a visit & about 4 miles west from that monstrosity & 7 miles west of this new monstrosity! Sticky's: their contents are resource information 1#: Vendors worldwide (2mb), 2#: How to use the forum, 3#: How to identify rocks & minerals, 4#: Save money on expensive grits & polishes, 5#: Aussie Lapidary Forum: Rock Tumbling Guide!
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