Help with Nat Geo Tumbler Video - FIRST VIDEO DONE (Pg. 5)

My first, and so far only, tumbler is a Dr.Cool Pro, and it is exactly the same as the NG Pro with a different sticker on the front, so I will be very interested in seeing your review of you decide to review the NG Pro.
Mine has been working well so far. It's been going almost non-stop since September 2020. As others have mentioned already, it has 3 speeds, but after watching many tumbling videos on Youtube, I'd say the slowest speed it still quite a bit faster than any other tumbler I have seen. I only use it at the slowest speed.
I have had some pretty decent results, even with the starter selection of rocks they shipped with the tumbler. The instructions that come with the tumbler are overly simplistic (1 week with each of the grits). My take so far is that as long as people take the time to learn tumbling techniques and buy good grits and other supplies like ceramic filler, they can get some pretty decent results with this tumbler.
I definitely plan to graduate to a better tumbler at some point, but for now it serves my hobby needs quite well.

I am looking forward to your review!

Thanks for the tip about this being the same as the Dr. Cool tumbler. I had noticed that too, but kind of forgot about it. I should probably mention that in my video. I'll bet sales went up with the name change.

Did yours come with those foam cubes? I'm still curious about those.

My Nat Geo Pro is supposed to arrive today. It will be at least a month until a video is done, but there will be a video. I expect the first video to end with failed results, but I'll do another video showing how to use it properly.

I had a few rocks breaking up at the lowest speed, but to be fair, they had cracks that would like have split with any tumbler.
You can set the run timer to between 1 - 9 days but it's kind of silly. If I stop it mid-run to check up on the rocks (for example after 2 days) it goes back to the original setting right away. I need instead to just take the barrel off the rollers without stopping it. 

Anyway, I almost feel like it's a conumdrum of waiting until I get better at it before buying a better tumbler, but feeling the tumbler will not let me get much better :-)

An innocent search of "rock tumbler" brings these machines up.
Nat Geo and Harbor Freight are well advertised.

Top 10 tumblers ? Please. Classic case of internet deception. grrr

buyersguide.org/rock-tumbler/t/best?msclkid=6613bf43fa241883e173df69a5887299&m=e&d=c&c=84044044929286&oid=kwd-84044366667116:loc-190&qs=rock%20tumbler&lp=78415&li=&nw=o&nts=1&tdid=8948893

For the good of the rock tumbling hobby a 5 word review seems most appropriate IMO:

"Do not buy this tumbler."

This review is based on so much negative feedback from so many posts on RTH since the Nat Geo was introduced.
Harbor Freight and Nat Geo tumblers both have frustrated many a newbie.

First thing I notice is the Amazon USA price on the yellow machine is $49 USD.  The exact same one on Amazon.ca (Canada) is $130 CDN, plus tax.  Dang rock pirates.  

Some little West Texas rocks tumbled in my 2 pound Nat Geo. First in 60/90 SiC, then in 120/240 SiC. About 3-4 weeks in the Nat Geo tumbler.

After that, 3 days in the Lot-O with 500 AO, and 1 day with sub-micron AO polish. They are pretty shiny. When it comes to the course stage, the little Nat Geo does the same thing as my Thumbler's Model B, or my 3 x 12lb Covington tumbler, or any other rotary tumbler: it rounds them off and wears them down. It is no worse in any way except the capacity. In my case, it has required less maintenance or baby sitting than my big, bad, name-brand tumblers. I have come to enjoy having one or two little tumblers going for batches like this -- a small group or small, delicate rocks that I want to keep separate and keep an eye on.

Hello to all, this is my first post on the forum. My then-8-year-old son received the NatGeo Pro model (2 lb barrel) as a Christmas gift 2 years ago. It has been in constant use since then, and seems to running fine.
This is the only tumbler I have ever owned. Here are some opinions and observations:
It's still running! It has not needed anything, not even a belt replacement (an extra came with the kit). The rubber barrel and lid are high quality. The plastic rollers seem a little cheap, and now have minor grooves worn into them. They have good bearings.
If the barrel is overloaded, the unit will stop and the display shows an error message. This irks me, but I soon learned the max load, and mostly stay within the design limits.
I have no real complaints about the unit itself, with one exception. If the power in your home goes off, even for a second, the unit stops and must be turned back on. That's somewhat annoying since the windy winter storms in my area cause power-flickers a few times a month.
The kit came with an assortment of mixed hardness rocks, and grit packets. We followed the instructions precisely, and as you can guess, disappointment ensued. Of course, one week in stage one is usually not enough. Plus, a mixed hardness load is doomed from the start. Also, not one rock took anything close to a shine. Over the last 2 years I have slowly learned to get great results with agates and petrified wood, so I stick with that. Thanks to the many experts on this forum, my lurking has led to very decent results.
The unit has 3 speeds, and I think they are all probably too fast. I'm thinking of getting a Lortone 45c, for more capacity. I like to tumble some larger specimens, and have even done an oblong agate 4 inches long! I ran it solo for 6 weeks, with sub-1 inch laker agate rubble. Turned out great.
My experience has ultimately been positive but they sure could produce happier customers if they included realistic instructions (so folks would be aware of the need for multiple weeks in course grind). They should also just supply a single variety of easily polished rocks.
Hope this helps someone!