huskeric
spending too much on rocks
Member since May 2016
Posts: 353
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Post by huskeric on Nov 7, 2016 11:45:36 GMT -5
...Awfully amazing at polishing!!! I CAN'T BELIEVE NOBODY ON THIS BOARD EVER MENTIONED TO ME HOW AWESOME THIS IS, OR HOW MUCH I SHOULD GET ONE!!! OK, maybe one or two (hundred) of you did, and I'm SO glad I got it. I will post some pics later, but using the recipe card from oregon, I got some beautiful results on some of my beach rocks from San Diego. I also wanted to try a little experiment. I was thinking about buying a second barrel for the Lot-O for stage 1 (and possibly 2), but since they're $50, I thought it couldn't hurt to try a little experiment first. I had a 3lb protein powder tub that was looking for a use, so I gave it a whirl with some larger stones and 120/220 SiC. I ran it when I was very nearby and could check on it in case there was a failure, but it worked very well. It may not be AS effective as the OEM bowl, but a) it works well enough for rough grind, b) the mouth of it is MUCH larger, so if you were looking to tumble something larger, this has about a 6" opening. it is a Syntha-6 whey protein jar, in case you want to check it out for yourself. I was VERY careful to not overload it, because I'm sure that could be done quite easily, and I don't want to ruin my new favorite toy. It was considerably louder than the rubber barrel, especially with the lid off, but honestly it's quieter than my rotary tumbler with a PVC barrel. I would think you could improve the efficacy of this by putting an inverted funnel in there or something like that, but it really does keep things moving.
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Post by Jugglerguy on Nov 7, 2016 11:50:42 GMT -5
I never thought of using something else as the barrel in my Lot-O. Interesting idea.
I have two barrels for mine. One for 120 through 1000 and a separate one for polish. I don't think it is necessary to have one for each stage.
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Post by captbob on Nov 7, 2016 11:54:04 GMT -5
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Post by oregon on Nov 7, 2016 11:57:48 GMT -5
Saw a brand new one of these plungers at a sale for a buck - it actually fits the lotto frame perfectly, (larger rock opening) and a slightly different bowl profile, but thick rubber, and should work just fine... Home depot lists them for $16. Haven't tried it yet.
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huskeric
spending too much on rocks
Member since May 2016
Posts: 353
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Post by huskeric on Nov 7, 2016 12:38:46 GMT -5
That's why this is in "Totally Rock Tumbling" and not "Totally Rock Tumbling Photos." =P I will post pics after a bit.
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richardh
spending too much on rocks
Member since June 2016
Posts: 391
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Post by richardh on Nov 7, 2016 13:56:05 GMT -5
Saw a brand new one of these plungers at a sale for a buck - it actually fits the lotto frame perfectly, (larger rock opening) and a slightly different bowl profile, but thick rubber, and should work just fine... Home depot lists them for $16. Haven't tried it yet. That is too funny !!! What do you use for a lid?
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Post by oregon on Nov 7, 2016 16:37:13 GMT -5
That is too funny !!! What do you use for a lid? Printed one, but there should be plenty of other solutions. I imagine the original design of the lotto bowl might of been inspired by the toilet plunger...
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huskeric
spending too much on rocks
Member since May 2016
Posts: 353
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Post by huskeric on Nov 7, 2016 16:40:52 GMT -5
Alright, here is a pic of the tub I used for rough tumbling... Nothing too exciting, but I wanted to give you an idea of what I was using.
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huskeric
spending too much on rocks
Member since May 2016
Posts: 353
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Post by huskeric on Nov 7, 2016 17:00:54 GMT -5
Here are some of the rocks that came out of the first Lot-O batch. IMG_20161107_150443396 by Eric Irwin, on Flickr The one center bottom, I didn't realize how many colors were in that until I saw this picture. I'm going to try to get that one shined up a bit more. IMG_20161107_150226882 by Eric Irwin, on Flickr These are a bunch of quartz, I believe. They really caught my eye on the beach. IMG_20161107_150106892 by Eric Irwin, on Flickr The one on the top is one that I found in my yard, actually, it is iron or something metallic, because when I cut into it, all I got was rust-colored dust. I didn't expect it to come out so nicely. IMG_20161107_150040992 by Eric Irwin, on Flickr I wish I could take credit for this one, but the big man upstairs did most of the work to shape it, I just put the polish on it. It really reminds me of a bird's egg. IMG_20161107_150001070 by Eric Irwin, on Flickr This one is way cooler in person than in photo. I wish I could bring out the detail in it better. IMG_20161107_145931448 by Eric Irwin, on Flickr This one also, the photo doesn't do justice to. It has mica or something in it, and it sparkles. IMG_20161107_145919683 by Eric Irwin, on Flickr This one is also just beautiful. I don't know what this is but the blue is very pretty, and it has mica or something sparkly in it as well. IMG_20161107_145909357 by Eric Irwin, on Flickr This one, honestly, might be my favorite. It has a yellow cast to it, and it sparkles like crazy as you move it around. I don't know what it is, either. These are some that I ran with some 60/90 SiC for about 12 hours, and then re-ran for another 12 with 120/220. The two middle/bottom ones I would love some help IDing. The one second from the left has such a myriad of beautiful colors, but it is full of vugs, so I think it might be porous all the way through. There is enough of it that will polish up nicely, I think, that I'm not planning to try to grind it down too much more. The baby-blue stone I *think* is probably coral, but honestly, I don't know.
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richardh
spending too much on rocks
Member since June 2016
Posts: 391
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Post by richardh on Nov 7, 2016 17:07:57 GMT -5
Nice set. You are making good use of the Lot-o. It just makes me want one even more. Did I read correctly that you used 60-90 grit in the lot-o? I thought 120-220 was the coarsest grit recommended for vibs. Was the coarse grit the reason for using a different barrel (the protein jar)?
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huskeric
spending too much on rocks
Member since May 2016
Posts: 353
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Post by huskeric on Nov 7, 2016 17:18:52 GMT -5
richardh, the 60/90 was exactly why I wanted to use the protein jar. I went with 60/90, just because a few of these pieces were REALLY rough, and I wanted to knock them down as much as I could. I can't say the result would have been different with 120/220, or just faster. The one with the crater in it is really interesting. It was almost entirely the brown color you see on the left side when it started, then the green started coming through after the first course, and even moreso after the second. I am tempted to put that one on the saw just so I can see all of the layers/colors. If not, I might just take a dremel to the side of it to expose the inner layers a bit more.
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richardh
spending too much on rocks
Member since June 2016
Posts: 391
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Post by richardh on Nov 7, 2016 17:25:34 GMT -5
The idea of using 60-90 in a vibe intrigues me. I guess they won't round well but I think they would wear down pretty fast. How much damage did the coarse grit do to the jar?
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Post by MrMike on Nov 7, 2016 18:48:47 GMT -5
Saw a brand new one of these plungers at a sale for a buck - it actually fits the lotto frame perfectly, (larger rock opening) and a slightly different bowl profile, but thick rubber, and should work just fine... Home depot lists them for $16. Haven't tried it yet. Had to read your post again, missed the "brand new" part initially. Good eye, wish I had a LotO.....
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Post by MrMike on Nov 7, 2016 18:50:18 GMT -5
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huskeric
spending too much on rocks
Member since May 2016
Posts: 353
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Post by huskeric on Nov 7, 2016 20:16:31 GMT -5
richardh, virtually no wear through about 36 hours of use. It's PETE plastic, and it was scratched up a bit inside, mostly a band of about 2" which would be right at the top of the load. I was really surprised how well it held up. It's probably a little thicker than the plastic in a peanut butter jar. I am going to watch it pretty closely because if it does start to wear thin, it's going into recycling.
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richardh
spending too much on rocks
Member since June 2016
Posts: 391
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Post by richardh on Nov 7, 2016 22:18:55 GMT -5
That is really interesting that the jar held up so well. I would be very interested in what happens with the rocks when using 60-90 vs 120-220. Please keep us updated on your experimentation.
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ziggy
spending too much on rocks
Member since June 2016
Posts: 483
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Post by ziggy on Nov 8, 2016 0:36:10 GMT -5
IMG_20161107_145919683 by Eric Irwin, on Flickr This one is also just beautiful. I don't know what this is but the blue is very pretty, and it has mica or something sparkly in it as well. IMG_20161107_145909357 by Eric Irwin, on Flickr This one, honestly, might be my favorite. It has a yellow cast to it, and it sparkles like crazy as you move it around. I don't know what it is, either. If I had to guess I would say they are both some form of aventurine.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Member since January 1970
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Nov 8, 2016 1:20:33 GMT -5
richardh, virtually no wear through about 36 hours of use. It's PETE plastic, and it was scratched up a bit inside, mostly a band of about 2" which would be right at the top of the load. I was really surprised how well it held up. It's probably a little thicker than the plastic in a peanut butter jar. I am going to watch it pretty closely because if it does start to wear thin, it's going into recycling. I plan to use those as tumbler barrels. Free and disposable. Keep an eye on them and maybe get a few weeks per jar. Freecycling!
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huskeric
spending too much on rocks
Member since May 2016
Posts: 353
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Post by huskeric on Nov 8, 2016 12:40:02 GMT -5
richardh , virtually no wear through about 36 hours of use. It's PETE plastic, and it was scratched up a bit inside, mostly a band of about 2" which would be right at the top of the load. I was really surprised how well it held up. It's probably a little thicker than the plastic in a peanut butter jar. I am going to watch it pretty closely because if it does start to wear thin, it's going into recycling. I plan to use those as tumbler barrels. Free and disposable. Keep an eye on them and maybe get a few weeks per jar. Freecycling! I like it!!! My only concern is that the lids themselves may not hold up. They seem like they're a more brittle plastic. With them on the vibe, the lid just keeps the noise down and prevents evaporation, but on a rotary, it would take quite a bit more abuse. The size of that protein powder jar would be awesome for larger stones on a 6-lb machine.
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huskeric
spending too much on rocks
Member since May 2016
Posts: 353
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Post by huskeric on Nov 8, 2016 12:41:45 GMT -5
ziggy, as I look at them, and then look online, I think you're right. Now I want to figure out how to plan a work trip back out to San Diego to find more. =)
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