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Post by spiceman on Feb 11, 2016 23:39:18 GMT -5
I've seen lots of pics of finished rocks... Tumbled. Nice rounded edges but some rocks you find have sharp edges. Should you grind the edges round or just run them longer in stage 1?
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Post by manofglass on Feb 12, 2016 2:22:20 GMT -5
NOTE TO FORUM ANSWER THIS MAN'S QUESTION'S PLEASE HE IS NEW TO THE FORUM AND JUST WANT'S TO LEARN SO HELP HIM OUT
walt
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Post by Jugglerguy on Feb 12, 2016 6:30:24 GMT -5
You can do it either way. I ususally just tumble them. It takes a long time to remove all the holes in most rocks and the sharp edges get removed in the process. Most of my rocks spend at least a month in the first stage and many take several months. It's not a two week process as the owners manual will usually suggest.
If you decide to pre-grind both the holes and the sharp edges, you can speed up the first stage a lot. That comes at the expense of your grinding wheel and your time spent on each rock.
The rocks that I do pre-grind are end cuts from my saw. The tapered edges don't seem to ever round off and keep chipping as they get thinner. I usually just cut the thin edges off on my saw rather than grinding them.
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,159
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Post by jamesp on Feb 12, 2016 7:32:16 GMT -5
I grind some rocks before tumbling. Certainly. It is not required but it can make the coarse grind go quicker. Or remove defects that would take a long time to grind off in the tumbler. Many coarse shape cabs and then tumble finish them. Or coarse shape a rock into a square or round shape and then tumble. If you prefer not to have sharp edges they may be ground down first. Saws, cab machines, lappers are commonly used.
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Intheswamp
Cave Dweller
Member since September 2015
Posts: 1,910
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Post by Intheswamp on Feb 12, 2016 8:17:44 GMT -5
Nice avatar, James.
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indiana
spending too much on rocks
Member since October 2015
Posts: 285
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Post by indiana on Feb 12, 2016 11:06:54 GMT -5
I don't. After I got a few batches done, I got more patient about just letting them tumble till they were ready.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Feb 12, 2016 11:42:55 GMT -5
There are no rules for this question. If you have a grinder and feel like grinding some go for it. I run around 36-40 pounds in stage one at all times so hand grinding is not something that gets done on most rocks. I do pick out a few special rocks each week that will benefit from a a little grinding and hand work those. Basically if after the first few weeks a rock looks really good except for a couple deep blemishes then I will hand grind those out to avoid over tumbling the rest of the rock. They are your rocks so do what ever you are comfortable with.
Chuck
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tkvancil
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2011
Posts: 1,546
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Post by tkvancil on Feb 12, 2016 16:22:40 GMT -5
spiceman as the others have said it is a preference. Pre-grinding is not a necessity to rid a rock of rough edges. The rough edges are usually the first thing to go when you start a tumble. After 1 week in a coarse grit the rock will retain it's overall shape. There likely won't be a sharp edge left on any rock. The rougher, sharper more blockish rocks will take far longer to completely round off than one that is already near round. Grit and a tumbler will do the job given enough time. Ignore the tumblers instructions where it says to run the coarse for one week. Based on your question I'm assuming you want your rocks well rounded. That being the case I would count on anywhere from 3 weeks to 3 months in coarse. Patience is a tumblers best friend.
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Post by 150FromFundy on Feb 12, 2016 16:29:40 GMT -5
I usually tumble off the rough edges, rather than grind. If I'm tumbling crushed rock (gravel) the outer layer tends to be chipped, fractured and blemished, so I want to remove that to get down to solid rock. If I'm tumbling saw cut material (slices), I want to remove all the outer rind (or weathered/oxidized layer) to get down to solid rock. It's more economical to grind in a tumbler with grit than it is to grid with diamond wheels, or disks. Unless you are in a big rush, let the tumblers do the work.
As Drummond Island Rocks says, "There are no rules for this question." There sure are a lot of opinions though!
Darryl.
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