mudmaker
off to a rocking start
Member since March 2022
Posts: 3
|
Post by mudmaker on Mar 2, 2022 21:11:32 GMT -5
I wore out the bottom of my 65lbrecently and I am trying to figure out how to patch it and keep using it. It seems like a rubber gasket could work. could you elaborate on what you have done to keep yours tumbling after the bottom wore out?
|
|
catskillrocks
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2008
Posts: 1,270
|
Post by catskillrocks on Mar 5, 2022 18:18:19 GMT -5
I wore out the bottom of my 65lbrecently and I am trying to figure out how to patch it and keep using it. It seems like a rubber gasket could work. could you elaborate on what you have done to keep yours tumbling after the bottom wore out? , hopefully you can help mudmaker out. |
|
|
|
Post by catmandewe on Mar 6, 2022 13:16:33 GMT -5
I cut new ones out of the shower pan liners that tilesetters use in custom made showers, you can usually get a roll of it at home depot for relatively cheaply and can make dozens of gaskets out of one, I have found that two layers sees to work best, the first one will wear out fairly fast, next time I am going to try gluing a couple layers together with contact cement and see if that makes a difference.
Someone mentioned EPDM roofing material, might have to try that too, it might be more apt to hold up to the constant abrading that the material provides.
I ended up with a larger tumbler that does about 200 lbs at a time, and it hasnt broken yet so I havent played with the DP tumbler in a while.
Tony
|
|
|
|
Post by vegasjames on Mar 6, 2022 20:16:17 GMT -5
I have used Goop to repair holes in my rubber barrels. It is like the super glue of silicones. Holds up really well. Drawback, is it is pretty thick and thus hard to apply evenly. Maybe if you can find a solvent that will thin it out first this will make the application easier and more uniform, then allow the solvent to evaporate.
|
|
|
|
Post by Bob on Oct 4, 2023 11:29:29 GMT -5
The owner of Minnesota Lapidary Supply, who I had a good sit down with a few days ago, really discouraged me from buying this barrel. I had planned on buying one this year--just the barrel not the tumbler--to run on the same shaft pair on which I run the Lortone C40 40lb barrel. He said he predicted I would have barrel wear through after only 12 loads! This really shocked me. He said to stay away and just stick with C40 barrels which are really long term proven performers. I was wanting the greater flat to flat distance on that 65lb barrel for even larger rocks, but I guess this has scared me away from trying it. I don't know whether his prediction of wear through was because he knew I tumbled a lot of large rocks or not. I had told him of how I do that and use 50-60 grit as first stage and how some of these large rocks take more than a year. Has anyone ever had wear through on this 65lb plastic barrel? I wanted to share some surprising news on this. Val, the owner of MLS, gave me the name of another guy in the USA who like me likes to tumble large rocks. I had lost this note, and found it a few days ago and called and connected with this guy. He is currently tumbling over 1,000lbs of Lak Sup agates. He owns 3 of these 65lbers and other tumblers too. I told him the story I've quoted. He found this very odd, because some years ago this same man connected him with the prior owner--who was in failing health--of these 3 65lb Diamond Pacific tumblers. He bought them from him and has been running them fine. The largest rock he has tumbled so far is a 37lb piece of jasper that is perfectly polished. Wow, now that's a rock. He said he has not had any wear issues with the barrels! This really conflicts with what I had been warned about. He did say that once he coated the inside of one with epoxy, but he didn't say why, it might have been merely a test of some sort. If the epoxy was brittle at all, it seems it would have been beat out of there during the next load. We will be meeting in person at his place in May, and I hope to find out more firsthand about this conflicting information. I still would like to have a 65lb barrel if it will hold up over time. |
|
dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
|
Post by dillonf on Oct 4, 2023 21:13:06 GMT -5
I'm currently trying to figure out a better method for crushing rock at home. What I learned here is that I just need larger tumblers!!
|
|
chad
off to a rocking start
Member since April 2014
Posts: 8
|
Post by chad on Oct 6, 2023 10:46:34 GMT -5
He said he has not had any wear issues with the barrels! This really conflicts with what I had been warned about. Premature wear of the T/RT barrels is significantly affected by load size. The point of rotation is at the lateral center of the water/load level inside the barrel. If the barrel isn't full enough, the point of rotation may be near the center of the barrel when turned on end, leading to the rotation concentrating on a small area near the center of the base of the barrel, which causes the rocks and abrasive to basically drill through the barrel material. If the level is properly full inside the barrel the water level is more toward the outer edge and spreads the friction across a wider area that will change slightly each load. Doing that will hugely expand the RT barrel material lifespan |
|
|
|
Post by Bob on Oct 6, 2023 15:09:25 GMT -5
He said he has not had any wear issues with the barrels! This really conflicts with what I had been warned about. Premature wear of the T/RT barrels is significantly affected by load size. The point of rotation is at the lateral center of the water/load level inside the barrel. If the barrel isn't full enough, the point of rotation may be near the center of the barrel when turned on end, leading to the rotation concentrating on a small area near the center of the base of the barrel, which causes the rocks and abrasive to basically drill through the barrel material. If the level is properly full inside the barrel the water level is more toward the outer edge and spreads the friction across a wider area that will change slightly each load. Doing that will hugely expand the RT barrel material lifespan What does T/RT refer to? No doubt I'll feel like an idiot after being reminded. |
|
chad
off to a rocking start
Member since April 2014
Posts: 8
|
Post by chad on Oct 6, 2023 15:55:05 GMT -5
Bob just referring to the large DP tumblers, model numbers are ##T or ##RT
|
|
|
|
Post by Bob on Oct 6, 2023 17:56:22 GMT -5
chad, been thinking hard about:
"The point of rotation is at the lateral center of the water/load level inside the barrel. If the barrel isn't full enough, the point of rotation may be near the center of the barrel when turned on end, leading to the rotation concentrating on a small area near the center of the base of the barrel, which causes the rocks and abrasive to basically drill through the barrel material. If the level is properly full inside the barrel the water level is more toward the outer edge and spreads the friction across a wider area that will change slightly each load. Doing that will hugely expand the RT barrel material lifespan"
I think I follow you except for the meaning of "when turned on end". Am I right that if those words were deleted, it doesn't change what you are saying in that sentence?
You've caused me to think about something for the first time. I'm in my 10th year of rotary tumbling. Three of my barrels are steel with rubber liners. The others are rubber barrels. No liner or barrels have worn thin enough to need patching EXCEPT for wear in the middle of the ends (barrel bottoms or lid liners), that is, the center of the axis of rotation. The sides of the barrels might have gotten a little thinner, but I can't tell for sure if have or haven't. Having this axis of rotation wear, the drilling you explain, is ideal because it's so easy to patch and doesn't require a new barrel. I fill my barrels 75-80-85% full. I would guess it probably averages 80% most of the time. The area that wears thin enough to need patching is oh maybe only 3-4" in diameter.
Now that you've reminded me of all that, I no longer fear wear on the 65lb DP barrel if it too would occur in the center axis of the ends because it too would be relatively easy to patch.
Thanks for pointing out what in some ways is so obvious that it isn't visible!
|
|
chad
off to a rocking start
Member since April 2014
Posts: 8
|
Post by chad on Oct 7, 2023 18:25:14 GMT -5
I think I follow you except for the meaning of "when turned on end". Am I right that if those words were deleted, it doesn't change what you are saying in that sentence? Yep, on end just meaning when the barrel is on its side in position for rolling. If that results in the water level being near or on the center point it will concentrate the wear more than if the load were more or less than that. Patching works fine as long as you can get a good seal, if the barrel is rubber based you can use vulcanizing compound glue sold for bicycle patch kits, works really well if you also happen to have an old barrel liner of the same material to mate together with the glue. |
|
|
|
Post by Bob on May 29, 2024 13:51:44 GMT -5
The owner of Minnesota Lapidary Supply, who I had a good sit down with a few days ago, really discouraged me from buying this barrel. I had planned on buying one this year--just the barrel not the tumbler--to run on the same shaft pair on which I run the Lortone C40 40lb barrel. He said he predicted I would have barrel wear through after only 12 loads! This really shocked me. He said to stay away and just stick with C40 barrels which are really long term proven performers. I was wanting the greater flat to flat distance on that 65lb barrel for even larger rocks, but I guess this has scared me away from trying it. I don't know whether his prediction of wear through was because he knew I tumbled a lot of large rocks or not. I had told him of how I do that and use 50-60 grit as first stage and how some of these large rocks take more than a year. Has anyone ever had wear through on this 65lb plastic barrel? Here I am 3 years later almost to the day. Val Carver, the owner of MLS, was who told me that. I was with him in his office for a couple of hours and learned a lot about many things from him. He also encouraged me to go to Quartzite, especially the PowWow, which I have done for the last 2 years thanks to his urging and had a great time. He hasn't been there though and I've heard he has health issues. He told me about 2 other guys like me in the USA who like to tumble large rocks. One is in Arizona and has not responded to me. The other is in Minnesota and I was with him last week. I bought a used Pacific 65lb tumbler from him because he has too many and doesn't need so many anymore. He knows Val, and was surprised at what I was told. He showed me how all his barrels are about 15 yrs old and asked me to examine them. None have worn through! I could hardly believe it especially given how thin the sides seem and how lightweight one of these large barrels is empty. I'm back in Oklahoma now and setting one up. So I wanted to post this as a correction to what I had been told in 2021. Apparent these barrels really last. He used a dolly like I've seen people moving barrels of beer off a truck into a bar with. It has a curved back. He lifts the barrel off the tumbler and sits it on the ground right beside it. Then he tilts it into the dolly, easily wheels it outside to a sidewalk in front of his house, then tilts it over and given a step on the sidewalk is able to pour everything in the barrel--slurry and rocks--into something. He was telling me not doing it so I didn't get to see it. So I guess I will have to figure out something similar, or arrange some kind of block and tackle hoist from the ceiling of my garage to lift it onto a workbench. This is going to be a learning process. I might not even run it all the time, but only when I have some very large rocks that won't fit in my Lortone C40. |
|
Maybe you can post some pictures here