Brian
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2020
Posts: 1,512
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Post by Brian on Jan 9, 2021 14:32:51 GMT -5
Since we are just starting out with our tumbler, I want to make sure we learn the most we can from the mistakes are sure to make. I've read in many places (here, Steve Hart's Modern Rock Tumbling, and elsewhere) that a log book is key to keeping track of tumbles. I have started a simple Excel spreadsheet, but thanks to a great suggestion from NevadaBill, I'm going to switch that over to OneNote so that I can keep my spreadsheet, photos, and whatever other information I've gathered together in one place. My goal is to have different pages for each type of rock, ideas for things to try, records of where I've acquired rocks, and links to threads here so I remember who said what and what was said. And yes, I realize that is probably overkill, but I am really just a big nerd who likes to know how things work and experimenting to see what works or doesn't work, and in general, just learning from my (many) mistakes.  So far, in the spreadsheet, I am planning to include: - Length of tumble (start date and end date)
- Which barrel I'm using
- What is in the barrel (types of rocks and where they came from)
- Type of grit/polish and how much was added
- Anything else that was included in the tumble (slurry thickener, borax, media, etc.)
- Fill levels
- Notes about the run (appearance of rocks, anything unusual, during the tumble, appearance of slurry, gas formation, etc.)
What I would like to know is what other records do you keep and is there anything else that would be helpful to track?
Thanks in advance!
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Post by 1dave on Jan 9, 2021 15:36:18 GMT -5
You need to get to know jamesp! |
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jamesp
Cave Dweller 
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,606
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Post by jamesp on Jan 9, 2021 19:27:26 GMT -5
You need to get to know jamesp! I'm the worst for record keeping Dave. simple: Grind to shape in rotary at high speed, super coarse grit, sticky slurry. Wash well. Move to vibe with sugar 2 days in SiC 500. Wash well. back in vibe with sugar 3 days in AO 220 wash well back in vibe with sugar 1 day in AO 14,000. Works on glass/obsidian with 30% quartz pea gravel. Agate/wood/jasper/coral with no media needed unless polishing big ones. |
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,606
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Post by jamesp on Jan 10, 2021 5:22:42 GMT -5
Nice to have a Lot-O vibe in the arsenal. It can probably polish all the rocks that a 12 pound rotary can shape, maybe even two 12 pound rotaries. It can easily polish down to Mohs 5 glass, maybe softer rocks. Vibes save much time in finishing steps 120-220-500-1000-4000-14,000, not that you will use necessarily use all those steps but they are the 'finishing' steps.
Scales are good to have. 1 pound and 10 pound digitals work well and are cheap.
Tablespoon and cup measuring cups for volume.
An 8 inch mum plant pots work good for holding batches of 5 pounds of rock.
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Brian
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2020
Posts: 1,512
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Post by Brian on Jan 10, 2021 9:29:55 GMT -5
You need to get to know jamesp! [mention]1dave [/mention] , [mention]jamesp [/mention] and I have already discovered that we both went to the same school. It’s a school that tends to attract people of a certain mindset, which may help explain the reason for this thread. 😀 |
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Post by jasoninsd on Jan 10, 2021 10:55:49 GMT -5
You need to get to know jamesp ! [mention]1dave [/mention] , [mention]jamesp [/mention] and I have already discovered that we both went to the same school. It’s a school that tends to attract people of a certain mindset, which may help explain the reason for this thread. 😀 Hey Brian - I've seen a couple times in your posts you've tried to tag someone and it isn't tagging them correctly. If you put your cursor and hover over someone's name, it'll give you the name to tag them with. (Like your name reads Brian, but your tagging name is fuzzyb) - you've got to put a @ before their tagging name - it shows exactly like you should write it out when you hover your cursor over their name... That only works on a PC. When I'm on Tapatalk, your name in all the threads doesn't read as Brian, it reads as fuzzyb...I just know if that, and with regards to a couple people on the forum I just know what to adjust to when tagging people on my mobile. You still have to write it out the same, using the @ before the correct tagging name. I hope this made sense...I know there's a proper term for "tagging name" - but I think you probably know what I mean. LOL |
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Post by HankRocks on Jan 10, 2021 11:24:01 GMT -5
I keep a small whiteboard on the door of the garage(beer) frig to track my tumblers. It's convenient as that's where all the tumblers are. There is a column for each Rotary and Rows for each stage. The only important number entered is the date started. I Don't track anything else. Do not have a column for the UV-18 as 95% of the Polish runs are done in it, and I run those until they are deemed ready by checking a couple selected rocks every day or so. I sometimes vary the coarse grit, 80, 60, 60-90, or 46-70. That all depends on the type of rocks and which way the wind is blowing.  I may note that with the date, and I may not, check the wind!! For me Rock tumbling is an enjoyable hobby not a lab experiment. I do appreciate posts from all the folks who note their processes and their findings as I do work some of them into my own process. Henry |
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Benathema
has rocks in the head
God chased me down and made sure I knew He was real June 20, 2022. I've been on a Divine Mission.
Member since November 2019
Posts: 703
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Post by Benathema on Jan 10, 2021 16:22:36 GMT -5
I have a wall calendar I write on. Barrel label, what stage/grit I added, abbreviation of material that's in it, then for the big stones the week number and mass of the stone.
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Brian
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2020
Posts: 1,512
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Post by Brian on Jan 10, 2021 18:44:13 GMT -5
[mention]1dave [/mention] , [mention]jamesp [/mention] and I have already discovered that we both went to the same school. It’s a school that tends to attract people of a certain mindset, which may help explain the reason for this thread. 😀 Hey Brian - I've seen a couple times in your posts you've tried to tag someone and it isn't tagging them correctly. If you put your cursor and hover over someone's name, it'll give you the name to tag them with. (Like your name reads Brian, but your tagging name is fuzzyb) - you've got to put a @ before their tagging name - it shows exactly like you should write it out when you hover your cursor over their name... That only works on a PC. When I'm on Tapatalk, your name in all the threads doesn't read as Brian, it reads as fuzzyb...I just know if that, and with regards to a couple people on the forum I just know what to adjust to when tagging people on my mobile. You still have to write it out the same, using the @ before the correct tagging name. I hope this made sense...I know there's a proper term for "tagging name" - but I think you probably know what I mean. LOL Thanks, Jason! I didn’t realize the tags weren’t working properly. I’ve never been on a forum that allows for tagging. I use Tapatalk primarily and thought it was tagging when I click on the @ symbol on the bottom which brings up a search for user names. Like I’ve said many times already, I have a lot to learn. 😀 |
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Post by jasoninsd on Jan 10, 2021 18:50:27 GMT -5
Hey Brian - I've seen a couple times in your posts you've tried to tag someone and it isn't tagging them correctly. If you put your cursor and hover over someone's name, it'll give you the name to tag them with. (Like your name reads Brian, but your tagging name is fuzzyb) - you've got to put a @ before their tagging name - it shows exactly like you should write it out when you hover your cursor over their name... That only works on a PC. When I'm on Tapatalk, your name in all the threads doesn't read as Brian, it reads as fuzzyb...I just know if that, and with regards to a couple people on the forum I just know what to adjust to when tagging people on my mobile. You still have to write it out the same, using the @ before the correct tagging name. I hope this made sense...I know there's a proper term for "tagging name" - but I think you probably know what I mean. LOL Thanks, Jason! I didn’t realize the tags weren’t working properly. I’ve never been on a forum that allows for tagging. I use Tapatalk primarily and thought it was tagging when I click on the @ symbol on the bottom which brings up a search for user names. Like I’ve said many times already, I have a lot to learn. 😀 You're more than welcome.  I use Tapatalk a lot. It's how I post pics the easiest. When I hit the @ symbol, it brings up that search feature too...I just arrow back to get out of the search function and then type the name after the @ symbol.  |
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Brian
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2020
Posts: 1,512
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Post by Brian on Jan 10, 2021 19:07:26 GMT -5
I keep a small whiteboard on the door of the garage(beer) frig to track my tumblers. It's convenient as that's where all the tumblers are. There is a column for each Rotary and Rows for each stage. The only important number entered is the date started. I Don't track anything else. Do not have a column for the UV-18 as 95% of the Polish runs are done in it, and I run those until they are deemed ready by checking a couple selected rocks every day or so. I sometimes vary the coarse grit, 80, 60, 60-90, or 46-70. That all depends on the type of rocks and which way the wind is blowing. I may note that with the date, and I may not, check the wind!! For me Rock tumbling is an enjoyable hobby not a lab experiment. I do appreciate posts from all the folks who note their processes and their findings as I do work some of them into my own process. Henry Thanks, Henry! I am definitely guilty of overthinking just about everything I do. My curiosity never seems to stop, which leads to such questions and I get as much joy from the thinking as the doing. And just starting out, there is a lot of downtime between stages, so I have far more time for the thinking at the moment! |
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Post by 1dave on Jan 11, 2021 8:45:16 GMT -5
You need to get to know jamesp! I'm the worst for record keeping Dave. simple: Grind to shape in rotary at high speed, super coarse grit, sticky slurry. Wash well. Move to vibe with sugar 2 days in SiC 500. Wash well. back in vibe with sugar 3 days in AO 220 wash well back in vibe with sugar 1 day in AO 14,000. Works on glass/obsidian with 30% quartz pea gravel. Agate/wood/jasper/coral with no media needed unless polishing big ones. Ahh but all the thinking and experimenting!  What best size barrel? How big, how small? What best angle? 90, 45, 30., 15, level? What size rocks,? Pre-shape? Mix? What about slurry? pH? Thick, thin? catlitter, clay, sugar, borax? Speed? Time? cleanouts . . . |
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Brian
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2020
Posts: 1,512
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Post by Brian on Jan 11, 2021 9:01:03 GMT -5
I'm the worst for record keeping Dave. simple: Grind to shape in rotary at high speed, super coarse grit, sticky slurry. Wash well. Move to vibe with sugar 2 days in SiC 500. Wash well. back in vibe with sugar 3 days in AO 220 wash well back in vibe with sugar 1 day in AO 14,000. Works on glass/obsidian with 30% quartz pea gravel. Agate/wood/jasper/coral with no media needed unless polishing big ones. Ahh but all the thinking and experimenting! What best size barrel? How big, how small? What best angle? 90, 45, 30., 15, level? What size rocks,? Pre-shape? Mix? What about slurry? Thick, thin? catlitter, clay, sugar, borax? Speed? Time? cleanouts . . . Exactly my problem. Too many variables for an overactive OCD brain like mine... it’s a wonder I can sleep at night. 🤪 Lately I’ve been wondering how the crystal structure of the rocks may impact how they are rounded. |
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Post by 1dave on Jan 11, 2021 9:23:33 GMT -5
Ahh but all the thinking and experimenting! What best size barrel? How big, how small? What best angle? 90, 45, 30., 15, level? What size rocks,? Pre-shape? Mix? What about slurry? Thick, thin? catlitter, clay, sugar, borax? Speed? Time? cleanouts . . . Exactly my problem. Too many variables for an overactive OCD brain like mine... it’s a wonder I can sleep at night. 🤪 Lately I’ve been wondering how the crystal structure of the rocks may impact how they are rounded. And then, what are you going to do with them when they are polished? |
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Post by HankRocks on Jan 11, 2021 9:31:13 GMT -5
Ahh but all the thinking  and experimenting!  What best size barrel? How big, how small? What best angle? 90, 45, 30., 15, level? What size rocks,? Pre-shape? Mix? What about slurry? Thick, thin? catlitter, clay, sugar, borax? Speed? Time? cleanouts . . . Exactly my problem. Too many variables for an overactive OCD brain like mine... it’s a wonder I can sleep at night. 🤪 Lately I’ve been wondering how the crystal structure of the rocks may impact how they are rounded. Well, crystal structure definitely affects the tumble grinding speed. I tumble a good bit of broken Arkansas Quartz Crystals. They grind much quicker than agate or jasper. The crystal structure is the main reason. I can cut flat bottoms on crystals on my Tile Saw almost like cutting butter! as opposed to cutting a similar diameter agate. Unfortunately this crystal structure makes the pieces more susceptible to frosting than Agate or Jasper hence the need for more cushioning(smalls) for a load of Ark Quartz. Almost hate to mention this but here's one more factor for you, if your tumblers are in an un-temp controlled area. My garage is 38 degrees this morning, might warm up to mid 40's if the sun comes out. In the summer months the temp in the garage can reach mid 90's during the day and not going any lower than the mid 80's. That has to be affecting the slurry and the grinding. And no, I do not track the temp!! Believe it or not I can hear the difference in the tumbler sound between July August and say December January. The colder slurry is a bit thicker in the Winter and the rocks move a bit less. |
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Brian
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2020
Posts: 1,512
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Post by Brian on Jan 11, 2021 11:18:20 GMT -5
Exactly my problem. Too many variables for an overactive OCD brain like mine... it’s a wonder I can sleep at night. 🤪 Lately I’ve been wondering how the crystal structure of the rocks may impact how they are rounded. And then, what are you going to do with them when they are polished? I’m sure my kids will find plenty to do with the polished stones. They are quite creative. My wife has already decided who she wants to give polished rocks to as well. I’m going to be lucky to keep much of anything for myself! |
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Brian
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2020
Posts: 1,512
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Post by Brian on Jan 11, 2021 11:30:21 GMT -5
Exactly my problem. Too many variables for an overactive OCD brain like mine... it’s a wonder I can sleep at night. 🤪 Lately I’ve been wondering how the crystal structure of the rocks may impact how they are rounded. Well, crystal structure definitely affects the tumble grinding speed. I tumble a good bit of broken Arkansas Quartz Crystals. They grind much quicker than agate or jasper. The crystal structure is the main reason. I can cut flat bottoms on crystals on my Tile Saw almost like cutting butter! as opposed to cutting a similar diameter agate. Unfortunately this crystal structure makes the pieces more susceptible to frosting than Agate or Jasper hence the need for more cushioning(smalls) for a load of Ark Quartz. Almost hate to mention this but here's one more factor for you, if your tumblers are in an un-temp controlled area. My garage is 38 degrees this morning, might warm up to mid 40's if the sun comes out. In the summer months the temp in the garage can reach mid 90's during the day and not going any lower than the mid 80's. That has to be affecting the slurry and the grinding. And no, I do not track the temp!! Believe it or not I can hear the difference in the tumbler sound between July August and say December January. The colder slurry is a bit thicker in the Winter and the rocks move a bit less. Thank goodness the tumbler is in a temperature controlled basement. One less thing to worry about! 😀 I had my kids learning about crystal structures over the weekend. I have them some crystals and had them searching through some books to find crystals with the same form. Then we cracked some geodes open to see what types of crystals we would find. I find it fascinating that some crystalline materials can even be tumbled! |
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Post by parfive on Jan 11, 2021 12:45:11 GMT -5
Thank goodness the tumbler is in a temperature controlled basement. One less thing to worry about! 😀 Why? What makes you think they’re happy down there? They’ve lived outside all their lives and I happen to know they like a change of seasons.  |
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NevadaBill
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since January 2019
Posts: 1,332
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Post by NevadaBill on Jan 12, 2021 13:21:50 GMT -5
Since we are just starting out with our tumbler, I want to make sure we learn the most we can from the mistakes are sure to make. I've read in many places (here, Steve Hart's Modern Rock Tumbling, and elsewhere) that a log book is key to keeping track of tumbles. I have started a simple Excel spreadsheet, but thanks to a great suggestion from NevadaBill , I'm going to switch that over to OneNote so that I can keep my spreadsheet, photos, and whatever ....
You will find what works best for you. No doubt about it.
I like OneNote for storing comments, articles, and pictures for all things that might be able to help me with my rock tumbling hobby. A great deal of that content comes from the RTH. I have gleaned a great deal more here than I actually put in to practice.
But I am an analyst and a scientist. Many say that I over-analyze stuff actually.
So in addition to compiling all of my notes in one place, I keep records on all of my tumblers in a separate (spreadsheet actually) as well.
So I actually do both... With the Excel though I don't have pictures or other folks advice on tumbling. That is all done within OneNote.
Yes you can create tables in OneNote, and reproduce much of what Excel can do within OneNote as well. But I keep a lot of notes.
I just find it easiest to keep track of progress on many hobbies or efforts within Excel. When copy/paste from other sources, pictures, links, or other fancy stuff is not needed, then Excel just gets it done for me. |
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Prov
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since March 2020
Posts: 116
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Post by Prov on Jan 12, 2021 14:43:41 GMT -5
A man after my own heart.
That said, I usually don't get into Excel too hard on most of my hobbies, unless I'm trying to track something specific. For now, my mental checklist has worked well with tumbling.
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I may note that with the date, and I may not, check the wind!!
and experimenting! 
