ajs76
off to a rocking start
Member since November 2020
Posts: 24
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Post by ajs76 on Nov 9, 2020 0:50:16 GMT -5
Hi all
First load of rocks running in my UV10 which is super exciting. I’m having to add water every 3ish hours to keep the action going. (120/220 grit)
If I add some extra water and sleep for 7 or 8 hours I won’t blow up the house right? I assume I’ll come down to some slightly hardened slurry?
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lordsorril
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since April 2020
Posts: 866
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Post by lordsorril on Nov 9, 2020 7:38:00 GMT -5
Hi all First load of rocks running in my UV10 which is super exciting. I’m having to add water every 3ish hours to keep the action going. (120/220 grit) If I add some extra water and sleep for 7 or 8 hours I won’t blow up the house right? I assume I’ll come down to some slightly hardened slurry? I don't have a UV10, but, I do run a UV18 and UV45 consistently. Every 3 hours seems like too much effort. I can understand if you are using SiC and soft rocks or you are attempting to do coarse shaping-then slurry is going to build up fast. If you find that the action of the vibe is not appropriate unless you very precisely balance the water content every few hours then it is possible that you do not have enough smalls in the vibe or you have added too much grit. As it is: I check my UV18 daily, and my UV45 every 8 hours (more frequently with low mohs material). As for what will happen if you just let it run: I've run my UV's without adding enough water and eventually the movement of the rocks will slow down and be relatively glued in place-mixed batches of hardness rocks will start to scratch each other (UV45 will cause stress fractures)--if you are using solid pre-rounded rocks this is no big deal until you get to pre-polish/polish... Note: If the lid pops off and they completely dry out-then you are going to have another set of problems...
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ajs76
off to a rocking start
Member since November 2020
Posts: 24
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Post by ajs76 on Nov 9, 2020 8:47:51 GMT -5
Ok I think I’m being more OCD than required than! I woke up this morning after it ran for 7 hours and it was all still moving so I’m guessing my constant tending isn’t actually required I am guilty of not having enough smalls though I bet (though I have like 3 lbs of ceramic in there). I think I’ll pull the batch today and clean them up to see how it did which should give me a chance to re distribute
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gatorflash1
spending too much on rocks
Active in Delaware Mineralogical Society, Cabchon Grinding and Polishing, 2 Thumlers B's and a UV-18
Member since October 2018
Posts: 375
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Post by gatorflash1 on Nov 10, 2020 8:07:42 GMT -5
Hi all First load of rocks running in my UV10 which is super exciting. I’m having to add water every 3ish hours to keep the action going. (120/220 grit) If I add some extra water and sleep for 7 or 8 hours I won’t blow up the house right? I assume I’ll come down to some slightly hardened slurry? I thought about this with the first use of my UV18. What worked for me was to over water the batch when I went to bed and then check it first thing in the morning to see if the slurry was okay. This worked out well. During the day I'd check it a couple of times and day and tweak (not tweet) as necessary to make sure the slurry was still about the right consistency. rocktumbler.com/thumlers/vibratory-tumbler-guide/One thing I did with my vib was to get some heavier plastic sheeting, I'm thinking about 3mil from a big plastic tarp which is cheap and can be purchased anywhere, cut it into circles that are about two inches wider than the top of the vib lid, stick a center hole in the plastic and use it to keep the slurry from slopping out the top when the slurry is at its most runny consistency. This helped in keeping my bench clean. My vib really gets aggressive and can sling slurry. I learned the hard way at first to never pull the cover off to check when the vib is running.
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ajs76
off to a rocking start
Member since November 2020
Posts: 24
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Post by ajs76 on Nov 12, 2020 0:14:44 GMT -5
I tried your overwatering trick also and it worked well. The next morning wasn’t concrete...just slower.
I definitely need to figure out an anti mess strategy because my wife is going to be displeased when she looks closer at this garage haha
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gatorflash1
spending too much on rocks
Active in Delaware Mineralogical Society, Cabchon Grinding and Polishing, 2 Thumlers B's and a UV-18
Member since October 2018
Posts: 375
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Post by gatorflash1 on Nov 13, 2020 11:24:44 GMT -5
I'm glad my overnight strategy worked for you. Here is another tip.
My "happy wife secret" is to sharpen all the kitchen knives to keep her happy while I'm messing around with the rocks. Then again I worry about my safety. Sharp kitchen knives could cause a lot of damage. Maybe this isn't such a good tip after all.
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