richardh
spending too much on rocks
Member since June 2016
Posts: 391
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Post by richardh on Sept 12, 2016 21:26:43 GMT -5
Well I have come to realize that I have been putting to many rocks into my tumbler and it has been restricting the action. I loaded the barrel half way and added some small filler beads and left it in stage one for 5 days while I was in Florida. Came back and in 5 days they look better than my first stage one rocks that I had in for almost 2 weeks. So if this is your first tumble and you are reading this thread don't go fill more than 50-60% of the barrel. I made the same mistake early on and I fill my barrel a little more than 60% full but do make sure I can feel and hear everything moving freely before I start them rolling. When I overfilled mine I found that after a week about 80% of my grit was still there and the rocks had barely any wear.
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stonedape
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2016
Posts: 116
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Post by stonedape on Sept 13, 2016 10:48:17 GMT -5
I made the same mistake early on and I fill my barrel a little more than 60% full but do make sure I can feel and hear everything moving freely before I start them rolling. When I overfilled mine I found that after a week about 80% of my grit was still there and the rocks had barely any wear. Exactly. I could hear the rocks in there rolling which is why I thought it was okay but it was barely louder than my tumbler. After I took out a few rocks which I thought may not make the cut and loaded it 50-60% it was a huge difference. I can hear the rocks tumbling ALOT more (especially the first 2 days)...it has lessened now due to them taking shape. I'm so close to going to stage two with some really good stuff...getting antsy!
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stonedape
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2016
Posts: 116
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Post by stonedape on Sept 16, 2016 9:22:28 GMT -5
Well...finally ready to go to Stage 2. It took longer than I thought because I didn't have enough quality rocks and had to do two Stage one tumbles. I am happy it worked out like this because I had more than enough rocks to go to Stage two so I was able to leave some questionable rocks out of the barrel. I'm pleased so far with the results. Obviously all of the rocks are wet. What do ya think? #1 Just a few close ups of ones I like alot #2- Agates #3- I think all of these will be really nice when done. Anyone know the types of stones? #3- All my quartz that I used for filler in my tumbles. Cant see all the details but some are very nice with different colors in them. 4- Non-quartz...no idea what they are but a lot of them are multiple types of minerals in one stone
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richardh
spending too much on rocks
Member since June 2016
Posts: 391
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Post by richardh on Sept 16, 2016 9:37:47 GMT -5
Looking good! I'd be pretty excited if I were you. I really liked the shot with all the Quartz.
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Post by Garage Rocker on Sept 16, 2016 9:47:44 GMT -5
Looking good! I'm not much help on identification, it's not that important to me. I just want know if it tumbles.
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ChicagoDave
has rocks in the head
Member since June 2016
Posts: 720
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Post by ChicagoDave on Sept 17, 2016 7:46:10 GMT -5
I agree, these look good. And I really like the ones shown in picture #3, but can't help identify.
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stonedape
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2016
Posts: 116
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Post by stonedape on Sept 17, 2016 13:38:41 GMT -5
How do you combat the foam? Lots of grit still in it. Sorry it's a link im on my phone hand haven't figured out how to post a pic
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stonedape
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2016
Posts: 116
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Post by stonedape on Sept 18, 2016 10:29:34 GMT -5
You will know you have pressure/foam building up when the bottom of your barrel starts to buldge out.
I found a few threads that discuss the foam issue. Basically I learned than no one is quite sure why sometimes you get foam and sometimes you dont. You can either open the barrel to kinda burp it like a baby to let out the gas (these rocks are my baby) or you can add Borax to each stage without harm. Borax can be found near the laundry detergent at stores.
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stonedape
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2016
Posts: 116
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Post by stonedape on Sept 27, 2016 10:05:44 GMT -5
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Post by Garage Rocker on Sept 27, 2016 10:13:09 GMT -5
Looking good, I think you're going to be pleased when you get done. Your slurry looks fine to me, it will thicken a little over time. Not near as bad, or quickly, as the course stage though.
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stonedape
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2016
Posts: 116
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Post by stonedape on Sept 27, 2016 10:21:40 GMT -5
Looking good, I think you're going to be pleased when you get done. Your slurry looks fine to me, it will thicken a little over time. Not near as bad, or quickly, as the course stage though. I kinda just added prepolish (6-7 Tablespoons) and sprayed my spraybottle till I thought it looked good. How do I know when it gets to thick and I need to spray a few sprays? Will the movement slow?
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Post by Garage Rocker on Sept 27, 2016 10:24:03 GMT -5
You will be able to see a difference. And yes, the action slows down. I use the eyeball method also, just go by what looks/feels right.
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Post by captbob on Sept 27, 2016 10:24:31 GMT -5
Looks to be standing water in the lower left corner of vibe photo. (?) If so, that's way too much water.
I'm not a vibe guy, but the one time I used my UV-10 the "slurry" was darker, not so watered down.
Vibe experts can comment.
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Post by Garage Rocker on Sept 27, 2016 10:30:19 GMT -5
If there's standing water, he's right, too much. Just a thin film covering the rocks is ideal. If you get a bit too much water, just run it for a while with the top off and let some evaporate. Given a little time, it will fix itself.
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stonedape
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2016
Posts: 116
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Post by stonedape on Sept 27, 2016 10:59:41 GMT -5
Looks to be standing water in the lower left corner of vibe photo. (?) If so, that's way too much water. I'm not a vibe guy, but the one time I used my UV-10 the "slurry" was darker, not so watered down. Vibe experts can comment. Yeah..there is a little liquid (not even sure it qualifies as liquid as its pretty thick though)
Do I leave it as is and let it evaporate, add a little more prepolish...or I could add some borax (wasn't going to until the final stage)
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stonedape
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2016
Posts: 116
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Post by stonedape on Sept 27, 2016 11:37:08 GMT -5
Ok...I decided to take another look...the polish is like a paste...it sticks and coats everything (bottom of bowl also). I am not sure what texture it is supposed to be....took a pic of the side and bottom. Its not ponding like water would.
Would adding Dawn Dish soap or Borax help at all? I am not familiar with what the slurry should be doing in the polish stage....as of now the rocks and media are coated with a solid coat and the rocks are moving around. Im assuming they get polished from rubbing against one another.
Bottom of the bowl...pastey
Side of bowl
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Sept 27, 2016 11:38:14 GMT -5
Looks too wet to me but hard to tell from photos. If you have your rocks sitting in a bowl of water and then take out hand fulls and place them directly into the vibe bowl that is the amount of water you want to start with. You just add wet rocks and pre-polish then make very small adjustments with a few squirts from the spray bottle to get it just right.
I have not read all the posts in this thread but at what grit stage did you go from the rotary to the vibe?
Chuck
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stonedape
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2016
Posts: 116
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Post by stonedape on Sept 27, 2016 11:42:02 GMT -5
Looks too wet to me but hard to tell from photos. If you have your rocks sitting in a bowl of water and then take out hand fulls and place them directly into the vibe bowl that is the amount of water you want to start with. You just add wet rocks and pre-polish then make very small adjustments with a few squirts from the spray bottle to get it just right. I have not read all the posts in this thread but at what grit stage did you go from the rotary to the vibe? Chuck
This is my first stage in the vibe. I used Thumblers grit that comes in Coarse, Fine Coarse, Prepolish and Polish. I did Coarse and Fine Coarse in the Rotary. I have not idea the grit size. I'm guessing its Silicon Carbide and Aluminum Oxide.
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stonedape
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since July 2016
Posts: 116
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Post by stonedape on Sept 27, 2016 11:43:36 GMT -5
One other quick question....the bowl is only half full. Should I add more media to bring it to 3/4? Thanks for all of your help guys/gals!
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Sept 27, 2016 11:52:09 GMT -5
The kit sizes are most likely something like 60/90, 120/220, 500 and polish
Yes at least 3/4 full. That's why I have a few loto-s instead of one big vibe tumbler. It's nice to be able to run a batch when I only have a few pounds ready instead of having to wait for a massive amount. I run my loto so full that rocks will just about fall out with the lid off. What was your reason for running stage #2 in the rotary? Stage #2 uses less grit in the vibe and takes 2 days instead of 7.
Chuck
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