rockywoo
off to a rocking start
Member since February 2021
Posts: 5
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Post by rockywoo on Feb 4, 2021 14:42:18 GMT -5
Hi all,
I am new to rock tumbling after buying the National Geographic professional tumbler as a Christmas gift for my son. I have bought him (or ‘us’ 😁) a range of rough for his birthday, but now it’s arrived I’m not sure how to discern ‘good’ rough, and am becoming slightly obsessed with that elusive glossy finish! We have around 200g each of Botswana agate, labradorite, bronzite, red adventurine, citrine, smoky quartz and fluorite. I can check the hardness of each but I suspect there’s more to combining the right rough than just the mohs! Any advice gratefully received 😊
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,561
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Post by jamesp on Feb 4, 2021 15:46:33 GMT -5
If they are all Mohs 7 you should be OK. Labradorite is a tricky tumble beacause it is a felspar type rock. Fluorite is a very trick tumble. Smoky and citrine quartz can frost in a bigger tumbler, you should be fine running it and the Botswana with the NG unit. I believe red adventurine should also be fine with this mix. If bronzite is quartzite it should also run with this mix. Welcome to the forum rockywoo. To properly shape rocks(step 1) or coarse step it takes a long time to round the edges well. Not possible in 2 weeks. In a small tumbler more like 8 weeks or longer. Many new to the hobby miss this point because the instructions rarely tell it like it is. Good luck.
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rockywoo
off to a rocking start
Member since February 2021
Posts: 5
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Post by rockywoo on Feb 4, 2021 16:43:05 GMT -5
Thank you for your advice jamesp, that’s very helpful. I realise now that the instructions are misleading, and I have since read (on this forum) that the ‘polish’ included in the kit isn’t up to the job, but we have still enjoyed seeing the wonderful changes at each stage. It’s a big learning curve, but we have plenty of patience. Some of the rocks seem more ‘crystalline’ with seams running right through - are those worth putting in? And if there are protrusions do these need to be removed? Or should I not worry about that too much until after the coarse grit? Sorry for the barrage of questions!
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Post by stephan on Feb 4, 2021 17:04:03 GMT -5
Two posts is hardly a barrage. You'll find people here are more than willing to help by answering questions. I have never tumbled, so all that knowledge is theoretical. Welcome to the forum, and I'll be happy to chime in, should you be bitten by the cabbing bug or develop acute jade fever.
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Post by pauls on Feb 4, 2021 19:08:34 GMT -5
Labradorite is a bit softer than the Agates, so you could try putting it in closer to the end of stage 1, Stage 1 could be anything up to several months for some of the tougher agates. Also be aware that Feldspar has perfect cleavage and likes to break in nice flat planes, it's a really nice way of identifying Feldspar but it is a real pain in the tumbler when those cleavage planes let go. Fluorite, nah, forget it, much too soft. You could try a batch of just Fluorite but you would need a lot more experience first, it would need really special treatment.
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