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Post by broseph82 on Jan 27, 2016 14:04:07 GMT -5
They finished up nice. What do they look like in the rough?
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Jan 27, 2016 16:41:09 GMT -5
Nice looking quartzite James. Lots of folks consider it "junk" rock but I like it. Nice job. Most of it is grey in the vein. Once tumbled down the river it picks up color form the water or clays. S Alabama water stains a nice coral color. Heck, if it has color and no fractures it's welcome to my tumbler. But quartzite does have a label.
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Post by Toad on Jan 27, 2016 22:41:22 GMT -5
Nice - never know how pretty a rock will be until you work it.
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Intheswamp
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Post by Intheswamp on Jan 28, 2016 8:00:49 GMT -5
LOL Ed, you have a vivid imagination. Made it back and was exhausted. Downhill better than up. Jimi is the mule of that group. Tumble away Ed. It is your first load. Better to get some practice before you put the real jewels in there. Well, I went ahead and loaded the rocks back into the MP tumbler yesterday. Pulled a few rocks out for "further inspection", added a few new ones, added a few clods of Alabama red clay (far superior to that imitation Georgia stuff!<g>), and 20tbsp of #80. captbob , I tried something new for measuring the water....I used a McDonald's plastic cup rather than a Hardee's cup, I'm not sure how that will affect things. Let's see, I added one cup full of water...then I tilted the barrel over really far and added some more until I saw some water... I do wonder about the tumbler running at such a slant, though. Seems with reduced water that the high end of the barrel might be a little moisture deprived...BUT, when I open the barrel there is always plenty of slurry covering the rocks so I guess things are working good. Makes me wonder if there isn't some type of an augar-type of movement in the rocks/slurry going on inside the barrel that's moving the rocks from one end to the other. Hmm, I wonder if the local gastroenterologist would loan me one of those little cameras that you swallow.... You know, those little cameras don't appear to be to difficult to "pass", but those flash-cubes have gotta be tough!!!!!
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Jan 28, 2016 8:51:37 GMT -5
Those rocks oughta be rounding off well by now Ed.
if the slurry is mixed well and consistent all is well.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jan 28, 2016 9:35:35 GMT -5
Was this a two step tumble? might have already been mentioned but I did not notice.
Chuck
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Jan 28, 2016 10:40:43 GMT -5
Was this a two step tumble? might have already been mentioned but I did not notice. Chuck Yes Chuck. 14 days in SiC 30. Biggest risk is frosting it in the Viking by not using enough media. All went well. One 5-6 ounce quartz got a few frost dents from piling up to one side of the Viking with bigger agates.
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tkvancil
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Post by tkvancil on Jan 28, 2016 13:25:31 GMT -5
broseph82 and jamesp I'm not one who considers it junk per say. The stuff I've bought always comes out nice or better. It's also one of the few rocks I can find here in Illinois that will polish. Mostly what we have here is purple, whitish, or dull green and opaque. Tends to have quite a few pits though. Some is semi translucent but usually pretty crackled. I think the ride in on the glaciers did them little good. Still always pick it up. Good filler and the ones that come out nice are always prized.
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Jan 28, 2016 14:43:59 GMT -5
broseph82 and jamesp I'm not one who considers it junk per say. The stuff I've bought always comes out nice or better. It's also one of the few rocks I can find here in Illinois that will polish. Mostly what we have here is purple, whitish, or dull green and opaque. Tends to have quite a few pits though. Some is semi translucent but usually pretty crackled. I think the ride in on the glaciers did them little good. Still always pick it up. Good filler and the ones that come out nice are always prized. No problem tk, I know where you are coming from. Got quartzite right out of the vein in a 200 mile radius and more. Most of it duller than a stump. Some of it I rave over more than prized agate though. Have found chip piles in the Tennessee valley Authority lakes in the mountains that can knock your socks off. Back when I hunted arrowheads and before tumbling. Chip piles that native man left behind. And could never find those rascal's source rock, and they left no books behind. Probably from cobbles. Jimi told me about the material in Alabama and it is fine. Used to find chips in green purple blue. Some of it glittered brightly, back when. Crystalline quartz is about it for tumbling around Atlanta unless a 3-4 hour drive is made. So same problem as you have in Illinois. Kinda sucks.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jan 28, 2016 16:01:36 GMT -5
Was this a two step tumble? might have already been mentioned but I did not notice. Chuck Yes Chuck. 14 days in SiC 30. Biggest risk is frosting it in the Viking by not using enough media. All went well. One 5-6 ounce quartz got a few frost dents from piling up to one side of the Viking with bigger agates. So from rough chipped rocks to ready for vibe tumbler only 14 days or just your last run in 30 grit was 14 days? Chuck
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Jan 28, 2016 16:26:30 GMT -5
Yes Chuck. 14 days in SiC 30. Biggest risk is frosting it in the Viking by not using enough media. All went well. One 5-6 ounce quartz got a few frost dents from piling up to one side of the Viking with bigger agates. So from rough chipped rocks to ready for vibe tumbler only 14 days or just your last run in 30 grit was 14 days? Chuck 6-7 weeks, 30 grit changed every week. And yes, last change run for 14 days.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Jan 28, 2016 17:16:13 GMT -5
So from rough chipped rocks to ready for vibe tumbler only 14 days or just your last run in 30 grit was 14 days? Chuck 6-7 weeks, 30 grit changed every week. And yes, last change run for 14 days. That statement eliminates any time savings by going 7 extra days in the 30 but I still see the big labor savings when dealing with a 14 pound vibe load. My point is that I run my 120/220 for two days, 500 for three days and polish for 2 days. That's means I am done polishing before you even get your load into the vibe for your step two. I am sure after my three days in 500 I could skip polish but that would just leave the vibe empty for a couple days so I go ahead and add the .10 cents worth of polish. Have about 30 cabs finishing up in 500 today. Will take a quick photo. Chuck
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herchenx
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Post by herchenx on Jan 28, 2016 17:45:08 GMT -5
those are awesome, I need to get one of them fancy backlights from Coleman.
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Jan 28, 2016 18:27:41 GMT -5
those are awesome, I need to get one of them fancy backlights from Coleman. Frosted white glass may have a nice effect. Is that what Coleman makes ?
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Intheswamp
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Post by Intheswamp on Jan 28, 2016 18:33:44 GMT -5
herchenx said: "those are awesome, I need to get one of them fancy backlights from Coleman."
James replied..."Frosted white glass may have a nice effect. Is that what Coleman makes ?"<chuckle> James, go back and look at your picture showing your setup.
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Jan 28, 2016 18:44:21 GMT -5
Yes, 7 extra days in the 30 grit could be done in 2 days with 220 in the vibe. Enjoy not doing the 220 step though.
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Jan 29, 2016 5:05:51 GMT -5
LOL herchenx John. You nailed me. Thanks for the heads up Intheswamp Ed. I believe John was going to leave me out in the field to bleed out. That is a Coleman bi-linear parabolic tilting light adjustment/combo beer cooler. It also serves as a fine rock tote and boat seat in the duck boat. Nothing bulky goes in the boat unless it is a container that holds rocks.
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herchenx
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Post by herchenx on Jan 29, 2016 10:49:36 GMT -5
That was a fun chuckle, thanks for that Ed and James. Sorry to laugh a bit at your expense there jamespFor those still wondering what is going on here... Boats don't do much good for rocking out here (although there are folks that do hound along the bigger reservoirs in Wyoming and use kayaks, canoes and even power boats to get to remote areas, and of course I've canoed the Cheyenne up in South Dakota looking for Fairburns) We're kicking around the idea of adopting donkeys at some point once we get in and settled at the new place. I was thinking they would be fun to have around, we'd have them lend a hoof for our church living nativity once a year, maybe pull a cart for church picnics - but then I thought "wait a minute, these creatures have helped prospectors for several hundred years" - and now I've got all sorts of gears turning about having help packing stuff out of remote areas.... Not sure if the Coleman will be as helpful there, probably more along the lines of pack saddles: www.outfitterssupply.com/Pack-Saddles/products/37/Plenty of opportunity for misadventures and lots of after-the-fact laughs there, I'm sure.
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Jan 29, 2016 11:26:20 GMT -5
That was a fun chuckle, thanks for that Ed and James. Sorry to laugh a bit at your expense there jamespFor those still wondering what is going on here... Boats don't do much good for rocking out here (although there are folks that do hound along the bigger reservoirs in Wyoming and use kayaks, canoes and even power boats to get to remote areas, and of course I've canoed the Cheyenne up in South Dakota looking for Fairburns) We're kicking around the idea of adopting donkeys at some point once we get in and settled at the new place. I was thinking they would be fun to have around, we'd have them lend a hoof for our church living nativity once a year, maybe pull a cart for church picnics - but then I thought "wait a minute, these creatures have helped prospectors for several hundred years" - and now I've got all sorts of gears turning about having help packing stuff out of remote areas.... Not sure if the Coleman will be as helpful there, probably more along the lines of pack saddles: www.outfitterssupply.com/Pack-Saddles/products/37/Plenty of opportunity for misadventures and lots of after-the-fact laughs there, I'm sure. Perfect execution John. Emmy award goes to you for the day. Ed will likely nurse it to the max. He can be a scoundrel. Ed, are you out there ? The donkey is a long forgotten tool. He can be loaded and pull like no tomorrow. Over the worst of terrain, with second and third sense about loose rocks. He will keep the wild cats and dogs thinking twice about an attack too. How many times do you see no motorized vehicle signs ?? Math is easy on that one. Now if you get one that you can ride (like they take people into the Grand Canyon with) photos of John on a donkey is a must see. No doubt, a tractable donkey would be the way to hunt the steep lands and long hike locations. Please post progress on this addition.
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peachfront
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Post by peachfront on Jan 31, 2016 11:37:38 GMT -5
One thing I envy you guys. Living in southeast Louisiana, there are no creek pebbles. Just mud! Supposedly mud for 30,000 feet down in places...
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