|
Post by miket on Oct 24, 2018 9:36:00 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by MsAli on Oct 24, 2018 9:40:48 GMT -5
Did you scrub that grit out of the cracks in between each stage? and what stages did you do?
Me personally I would get that grit out and start them over
|
|
|
Post by fernwood on Oct 24, 2018 10:16:50 GMT -5
AO 1200 is basically a pre-polish and not a polish. I use AO 12,000 for polish. As MsAli asked, removing all grit between each stage is a must. I usually do this both by hand and with a 2-24 hour tumble with Borax. All depends on how many rock areas could hold grit from previous stage.
|
|
|
Post by MsAli on Oct 24, 2018 10:39:40 GMT -5
This has been what I'm using Borax in between each stage
80 coarse grit 120-220 grit *add pellets (which I hate) 600 grit 500 Aluminum Oxide Aluminum Oxide Polish which I think is 1200.
|
|
|
Post by aDave on Oct 24, 2018 10:47:19 GMT -5
This has been what I'm using Borax in between each stage 80 coarse grit 120-220 grit *add pellets (which I hate) 600 grit 500 Aluminum Oxide Aluminum Oxide Polish which I think is 1200. Where did you buy your polish? If it came from the Rock Shed, it is 1.5 micron which, if I recall correctly, is 13,000. 1200 would only be considered a pre-polish as fernwood mentioned above.
|
|
|
Post by fernwood on Oct 24, 2018 10:49:50 GMT -5
MsAli why are you going from 600 to 500? To me the lower the number, the coarser the grit. I might be missing something here. I do a 5 step process. 80 grit, 120-220 grit, 600 grit, 1200 AO pre-polish and 12,000 AO polish. I am using a rotary tumbler.
|
|
|
Post by MsAli on Oct 24, 2018 10:55:05 GMT -5
MsAli why are you going from 600 to 500? To me the lower the number, the coarser the grit. I might be missing something here. I do a 5 step process. 80 grit, 120-220 grit, 600 grit, 1200 AO pre-polish and 12,000 AO polish. I am using a rotary tumbler. I might be wrong on the 500 part. I know it is a "pre-polish AO but not sure the # it might be 1200 and the the polish is 12,000 I will have to check when I get home
|
|
|
Post by MsAli on Oct 24, 2018 10:57:54 GMT -5
This has been what I'm using Borax in between each stage 80 coarse grit 120-220 grit *add pellets (which I hate) 600 grit 500 Aluminum Oxide Aluminum Oxide Polish which I think is 1200. Where did you buy your polish? If it came from the Rock Shed, it is 1.5 micron which, if I recall correctly, is 13,000. 1200 would only be considered a pre-polish as fernwood mentioned above. The Rock shed & then the 80 was from Eric I also have a huge box full of grit in bags that I need to separate My dad sent them to me when his friend passed away. Which leads me to ask if grit goes bad? Some of the bags look really old and are not marked as to what they are
|
|
|
Post by fernwood on Oct 24, 2018 11:07:59 GMT -5
When I started this wonderful tumbling adventure, I was using grit from my childhood tumbler. 1970's era. So far, it was better than anything I have recently purchased. The grit/polishes were stored in an area with no climate controls. Just in the box containing the tumbler that was first in an old house and then in a storage unit. I would say that grit/polish does not go bad. Even in containers that are not totally sealed, which are exposed to high/low temps and humidity.
|
|
|
Post by aDave on Oct 24, 2018 11:16:51 GMT -5
MsAli why are you going from 600 to 500? To me the lower the number, the coarser the grit. I might be missing something here. I do a 5 step process. 80 grit, 120-220 grit, 600 grit, 1200 AO pre-polish and 12,000 AO polish. I am using a rotary tumbler. I didn't even notice the 600-500 that Allison mentioned. I just focused on the "polish" size that she mentioned. Nice catch.
|
|
|
Post by miket on Oct 24, 2018 12:02:00 GMT -5
Did you scrub that grit out of the cracks in between each stage? and what stages did you do? Me personally I would get that grit out and start them over I did try to clean them between stages. I did 80, 120/220, 500 then ao1200 with burnishing between each. I saw in another message that the ao1200 was a pre-polish. Guess I need to order some polish today, any suggestions? Since this is my first time I sure do appreciate the help, thanks. I may have to start some over, not all of them have cracks.
|
|
|
Post by miket on Oct 24, 2018 12:03:35 GMT -5
AO 1200 is basically a pre-polish and not a polish. I use AO 12,000 for polish. As MsAli asked, removing all grit between each stage is a must. I usually do this both by hand and with a 2-24 hour tumble with Borax. All depends on how many rock areas could hold grit from previous stage. I did do a 24-hour burnish but I used Ivory Soap flakes. I think I need to do a better job cleaning some of them. Thanks.
|
|
|
Post by aDave on Oct 24, 2018 12:05:10 GMT -5
Did you scrub that grit out of the cracks in between each stage? and what stages did you do? Me personally I would get that grit out and start them over I did try to clean them between stages. I did 80, 120/220, 500 then ao1200 with burnishing between each. I saw in another message that the ao1200 was a pre-polish. Guess I need to order some polish today, any suggestions? Since this is my first time I sure do appreciate the help, thanks. I may have to start some over, not all of them have cracks. Just order AO polish from the Rock Shed. You'll be GTG.
|
|
|
Post by miket on Oct 24, 2018 12:07:49 GMT -5
I did try to clean them between stages. I did 80, 120/220, 500 then ao1200 with burnishing between each. I saw in another message that the ao1200 was a pre-polish. Guess I need to order some polish today, any suggestions? Since this is my first time I sure do appreciate the help, thanks. I may have to start some over, not all of them have cracks. Just order AO polish from the Rock Shed. You'll be GTG. Thanks, I'm going to do that now. I was under the impression that the 1200 was a polish, not a pre-polish. Another lesson learned.
|
|
|
Post by aDave on Oct 24, 2018 12:13:00 GMT -5
Forgot to add...you won't need much polish in your barrel. I don't know what size tumbler you're using, but for comparison, I only use about 3 tablespoons in a 4 pound barrel. I got there with some good advice, as the recommended amount in the Lortone manual was too much. You'll probably only need to buy a couple pounds for long term use in a rotary. A vibe will use far less.
Lastly, polish can be reused if you're inclined to go through the trouble of saving it. I don't save it-I'm too lazy to try to recover it.
|
|
|
Post by fernwood on Oct 24, 2018 12:45:12 GMT -5
I save all stages of tumbling slurry as a starter for the next batch. Yes, Rock Shed is the go to place for AO polish.
|
|
|
Post by fernwood on Oct 24, 2018 12:46:42 GMT -5
The cleaning between stages is a must. Even after my Borax runs, I still use a soft toothbrush for more cleaning. Also clean out barrels completely. Even a little leftover grit can cause the next stage not to do what it should.
|
|
|
Post by miket on Oct 24, 2018 14:17:36 GMT -5
The cleaning between stages is a must. Even after my Borax runs, I still use a soft toothbrush for more cleaning. Also clean out barrels completely. Even a little leftover grit can cause the next stage not to do what it should. Thank you, I'll be sure to do that next time.
|
|
|
Post by miket on Oct 24, 2018 14:20:23 GMT -5
Forgot to add...you won't need much polish in your barrel. I don't know what size tumbler you're using, but for comparison, I only use about 3 tablespoons in a 4 pound barrel. I got there with some good advice, as the recommended amount in the Lortone manual was too much. You'll probably only need to buy a couple pounds for long term use in a rotary. A vibe will use far less. Lastly, polish can be reused if you're inclined to go through the trouble of saving it. I don't save it-I'm too lazy to try to recover it. I'm using a three pound barrel, was planning on 3 tablespoons. Maybe I'll do a little bit less. I went ahead and ordered a couple of pounds from The Rock Shed. No, I really don't have the time (or energy) to save it at this point in my life Some days I have to clear out even just a few minutes to cut up one rock
|
|
|
Post by johnw on Oct 24, 2018 15:22:09 GMT -5
Hi miket. fernwood hit on a point that has not been covered too much and that is cleaning out the barrel. You can scrub each rock until you can see your face on the surface of the rock, but if you put them all back in a barrel with some of the previous grit still floating around on the sides or neck of the barrel that grit will contaminate the new grit you are using.
The degree of contamination will definitely affect the appearance of the rocks you are tumbling with the new grit or polish
It is essential, if you do not use a different barrel for each grit to avoid contamination, that you do a really thorough job scrubbing and cleaning out the barrel.
I use different barrels for each grit to avoid: a)costly contamination, b) wasted time if you need do over again, and c) disappointment, in that your expectations get shattered when you are really looking forward to seeing some really nice shiny rocks and they turn out dull. You have just been there and I am feeling your frustration.
Perhaps some of the other members can share with you their techniques of cleaning and inspecting the barrels to make sure there is no contamination moving forward.
Just my TCW. Cheers, johnw
|
|