rrod
having dreams about rocks
Member since December 2020
Posts: 72
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Post by rrod on Feb 12, 2021 22:05:22 GMT -5
Finished up my second ever tumble, this one of a mix of labradorite and salmon feldspar, because I'm a masochist. Talk about getting your a$5 kicked! Lots of ideas to try to do better next round, and will probably put some of this labradorite back at 220 once another load gets going. I didn't really record much in terms of data for this tumble, which is another thing that will change going forward. Onward!
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Post by Garage Rocker on Feb 12, 2021 22:48:15 GMT -5
Well, the good news is that there is some nice flash in that piece of labradorite. The other news is what you probably already know; that is some tough material to tumble. You may have already searched the forum, but there are threads out there on the methods and success (?) people have had tumbling feldspar.
I noticed you are a math guy, are you going to consider the odds or forge ahead with your tumble? Or are you going to come up with a brilliant formula to finally tumble shine some labradorite (I hope)?
Just playing, but I wish you luck!
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Post by jasoninsd on Feb 12, 2021 22:55:59 GMT -5
Rod, you've got way more guts than I do when it comes to tumbling material like this just yet. I really do hope you give this another go. I very seriously applaud your effort for going for it!
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Brian
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2020
Posts: 1,506
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Post by Brian on Feb 13, 2021 7:43:15 GMT -5
All things considered, that turned out pretty well. I bought some labradorite to attempt one day when I’m feeling brave or simply need to remind myself how much I still need to learn.
That piece you pictured by itself is lovely! The great thing about that stuff is that the flash more than makes up for any flaws. I’d be happy to have that one sitting on my desk to admire.
My tumbling notes are a bit excessive but have been very helpful for learning.
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Post by greig on Feb 13, 2021 9:08:42 GMT -5
Feldspar isn't easy to round and polish. Yours turned out well.
Personally, I wouldn't take any back to 220 grit. I am not even sure that I would return them to 500. Instead, if I was unhappy with any of the rocks, I think I would put them back into polish with lots of tumbler media and let them run for a while.
I have some self collected peristerite and bought labradorite that I want to tumble and/or cab soon. I have tumbled self collected white sodium and also pink k-spar a few times and the result looked much like yours. I like the pink. I have some 80lb k-par in my garden that I brought home because they have big books of mica attached. I noticed that some have a flash like moonstone in places, so I might play with more of that rock when the weather warms up.
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,455
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Post by Sabre52 on Feb 13, 2021 9:38:00 GMT -5
Wow, that is a tough tumble! Need a lot of plastic pellets for padding and if you haven't tried it, the expensive tin oxide polish like you'd use for obsidian. Full disclosure, I've tried this a couple of times with amazonite and sunstone and did not get results much better than yours.
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rrod
having dreams about rocks
Member since December 2020
Posts: 72
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Post by rrod on Feb 13, 2021 21:33:58 GMT -5
@garage Rocker: Never tell me the odds! I think I can figure it out, and it’s why I kept back enough labradorite for its own tumble. I think mainly I just need a lot more small media and to play with slurry thickening. jasoninsd : I will give it another go, but first I have to try something else I’ve had lying around: Calcite! It was on the cheap on rockshed and I figure it’s a good trial by fire to test some of my ideas. After that, feldspar should be a snap ^_^ brian : I’m a sucker for color, which is why I also nabbed some larvikite since it also has small bits of flash. I was a bit disappointed in that the flash seemed to decrease as the stones polished. Several of them had a lovely blue that disappeared in the end. greig : Yeah I think I had just too many rocks in there. When I do go back I’ll pick and choose a smaller number for refinishing. The pink grew on me over time. The rough was a bit dull, then it started to lose a good bit of pink in favor of the clear, but in the end it had less chipping than the labradorite and, despite the pics, actually has a great shine and like you said has some white flash that is lovely when hit right. Sabre52 : I’m going to see if some slurry thickening helps in addition to more media, but also just fewer rocks around to hit each other. I figure I’ve got plenty of years to tumble jaspers and agates; might as well give some harder stuff a go.
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Post by Pat on Feb 13, 2021 22:01:17 GMT -5
Re identification: husband calls most rocks “agate”. He is right about half the time. 😁
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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 Feb 14, 2021 1:18:39 GMT -5
I will give it another go, but first I have to try something else I’ve had lying around: Calcite! It was on the cheap on rockshed and I figure it’s a good trial by fire to test some of my ideas. After that, feldspar should be a snap ^_^ Yop, masochist LOL
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lparsons
Cave Dweller
Member since April 2020
Posts: 276
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Post by lparsons on Feb 14, 2021 21:00:11 GMT -5
Both kind are pretty, but I love that labradorite flash. The colors are amazing. I think I’m going to try some soon. From what I’ve heard, it’s not an easy one. Did you do yours in a rotary or vibe, or both? I’ve also heard about ppl using a sugar slurry.
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rrod
having dreams about rocks
Member since December 2020
Posts: 72
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Post by rrod on Feb 14, 2021 22:37:50 GMT -5
Both kind are pretty, but I love that labradorite flash. The colors are amazing. I think I’m going to try some soon. From what I’ve heard, it’s not an easy one. Did you do yours in a rotary or vibe, or both? I’ve also heard about ppl using a sugar slurry. I used a rotary. If I did it again I would use less rock, sub with small media, and add something to thicken the slurry. You can plainly see (especially in the rough) the planes where the rock will happily fracture, so believe them! Edit: I should note, it can take a great shine, but it's hard to appreciate with all the cracks. Worth the effort to find the secret sauce to get it all right:
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