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Post by miket on Sept 24, 2018 15:21:16 GMT -5
Or should I say giving me pits. This one is amazing, full of pinks, reds, even some yellows. But it has a few pits on the edges- plus one big quartz pit in the center that just sits there, staring at me! I'm giving it one more week, then moving it along.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Sept 24, 2018 19:02:08 GMT -5
Do you have grinding equipment or are you at the mercy of the tumbler? When I have a good rock at that stage with a few flaws still that is when I hit them with a diamond wheel. I do not do that to every rock but I do it to ones that are worth the effort.
Chuck
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Post by miket on Sept 24, 2018 19:10:39 GMT -5
Right now I'm at the mercy of a tumbler.
But a grinder is on my wish list...
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Sept 24, 2018 19:15:56 GMT -5
Right now I'm at the mercy of a tumbler. But a grinder is on my wish list... My trim saw and grinder combo was one of my first tools and has been an essential piece ever since. Each week I trim and grind on about 1 - 1.5 pounds of my tumbles. Chuck
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braat
spending too much on rocks
Member since December 2016
Posts: 350
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Post by braat on Sept 24, 2018 23:52:38 GMT -5
I consider myself a rookie still but I've been tumbling (all rotary) for 2 years and 6 months in I bought a cheapie 7" tile saw because I thought some of the rocks were going to disappear before the pits/flaws wore off. Looking back it was a good move for only 60 bucks. It's part of my weekly cleanout routine now to grind off unwanted stuff and occasionally do some additional shaping ...overall it's speeding up my stage one output for sure. I'm doing more and more rough preforming with it as well. Also very useful for cutting pieces off of larger rocks for a test tumble (as opposed to a big hammer). Anyways just my 2 cents...
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Post by TheRock on Sept 25, 2018 1:21:08 GMT -5
Right now I'm at the mercy of a tumbler. But a grinder is on my wish list... I feel ya man, I have the grinders but I still don' t like it! Sometimes I feel like i'm just going in circles.
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Post by grumpybill on Sept 25, 2018 6:44:58 GMT -5
Right now I'm at the mercy of a tumbler. But a grinder is on my wish list... Put a tile saw ahead of a grinder on your list.
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Post by miket on Sept 25, 2018 11:18:40 GMT -5
I consider myself a rookie still but I've been tumbling (all rotary) for 2 years and 6 months in I bought a cheapie 7" tile saw because I thought some of the rocks were going to disappear before the pits/flaws wore off. Looking back it was a good move for only 60 bucks. It's part of my weekly cleanout routine now to grind off unwanted stuff and occasionally do some additional shaping ...overall it's speeding up my stage one output for sure. I'm doing more and more rough preforming with it as well. Also very useful for cutting pieces off of larger rocks for a test tumble (as opposed to a big hammer). Anyways just my 2 cents... Yeah, I do have a portable tile saw but started these all in the tumbler before I had even heard about doing the shaping first. Now that I'm elbows deep into the tumbling I want to finish these off that way first. I'm stubborn I guess. But from now on I will be shaping, some of the agates in the tumbler have been going for about 2/12 months I think. Thanks for the advice!
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Post by miket on Sept 25, 2018 11:21:40 GMT -5
Right now I'm at the mercy of a tumbler. But a grinder is on my wish list... Put a tile saw ahead of a grinder on your list. I have the tile saw, I've started slicing some preforms while I'm waiting for the tumbler. Any suggestions for a good 7" blade? The agates just chew up the ones that I've purchased! Another issue I have is that the tile saw that I have has a 1" arbor, which kind of limits my options.
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Post by grumpybill on Sept 25, 2018 11:50:21 GMT -5
I'm currently using an Agate Kutter blade, but your 1" arbor presents a problem.
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braat
spending too much on rocks
Member since December 2016
Posts: 350
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Post by braat on Sept 25, 2018 13:16:15 GMT -5
I buy turbo diamond blades whenever they come on sale. I'm not brand specific but I look for turbo blades. I think turbo blades are middle of the road blades as far as cutting vs grinding. In 18 months I've gone through 2 blades... when one side wears down I reverse the blade...I know I'm not supposed to but no issues so far for me. I have no experience with more expensive/higher quality blades so don't how much better they might be...
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Post by miket on Sept 25, 2018 15:08:29 GMT -5
I buy turbo diamond blades whenever they come on sale. I'm not brand specific but I look for turbo blades. I think turbo blades are middle of the road blades as far as cutting vs grinding. In 18 months I've gone through 2 blades... when one side wears down I reverse the blade...I know I'm not supposed to but no issues so far for me. I have no experience with more expensive/higher quality blades so don't how much better they might be... Thanks, I'll have to look those up!
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Post by miket on Sept 25, 2018 15:09:28 GMT -5
I'm currently using an Agate Kutter blade, but your 1" arbor presents a problem. It does indeed. It may come down to just getting another tile saw just so getting blades for it is easier.
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goatgrinder
spending too much on rocks
Make mine a man cave
Member since January 2017
Posts: 368
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Post by goatgrinder on Sept 25, 2018 15:17:37 GMT -5
Jeez, such a tiny little pit. Forget the tile saw and purchase a cheap dremel knockoff with a nice box of diamond burrs and pads for your diamond paste. Fit it all in your pocket.
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Post by TheRock on Sept 26, 2018 3:42:01 GMT -5
WoW a Brad Pitt! Sorry, they talked me down off the ledge tonight, I was fixin to jump! Had to have some fun!
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Post by arghvark on Sept 26, 2018 7:35:37 GMT -5
But from now on I will be shaping, some of the agates in the tumbler have been going for about 2/12 months I think. Thanks for the advice! I feel you man. I don't have a lot of time (read: I'm lazy.) I have a couple wheels but after working a couple handfuls of stuff I just started doing a bit more sorting at the outset, and throwing it all in for a few weeks of stage one. A couple weeks allows me to sort (a lot get culled) so that I only grind the most beauteous pieces after most of the defects have been ground down. Punchline of all this: lots of the hard stuff I find rolls for several months. I'm just now finishing up my first batch of agates and jaspers in the lot-o after a year of rolling. Jeez.
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Post by miket on Sept 26, 2018 9:22:37 GMT -5
But from now on I will be shaping, some of the agates in the tumbler have been going for about 2/12 months I think. Thanks for the advice! I feel you man. I don't have a lot of time (read: I'm lazy.) I have a couple wheels but after working a couple handfuls of stuff I just started doing a bit more sorting at the outset, and throwing it all in for a few weeks of stage one. A couple weeks allows me to sort (a lot get culled) so that I only grind the most beauteous pieces after most of the defects have been ground down. Punchline of all this: lots of the hard stuff I find rolls for several months. I'm just now finishing up my first batch of agates and jaspers in the lot-o after a year of rolling. Jeez. Yep, I've culled also, practicing the catch and release method All I've been collecting around here (well, besides wood) is jasper and agates- I think I'll end up with some really nice tumbles but wow they take a while! Um, excuse me...did you say a year? Yikes!!!
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