waterboysh
spending too much on rocks
Member since April 2021
Posts: 386
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Post by waterboysh on May 29, 2021 0:04:12 GMT -5
Still fairly new to this. It's possible I don't need to do anything. I've had a 3lb barrel running polish for 1 week now. I was planning on running it for 2. But, I noticed that there was very little sound coming from the barrel (I think I may have added a little to much ceramic media) so I decided to open it up and peek inside. I had added water to just below the level of the rocks and added 6 tbsp of polish (I see a lot of people recommend 3, but the Lortone manual says 6. I may try less in the future and see how it compares). I had also added a small amount of plastic beads, like maybe 1 or 2 tbsp worth.
This is my second batch in polish. I posted pictures of my first batch last week. In that batch, I think there was not quite enough media to sufficiently cushion the rocks and I ended up with a couple of small chips, cracks, and bruises in the polish stage. Thankfully it didn't seem to be enough to ruin the batch. I think I may have overcompensated this time. If I remove all my barrels but the polish barrel, I cannot hear the rocks tumbling at all. When I peeked, I took a couple of rocks out, rinsed them, and then dried them to see how it was coming along. I could tell it was starting to take a polish, but it was only a little shiny. Like halfway between shiny and matte. I did dump out a little bit of the slurry, but the sound didn't really change at all.
I'm wondering if instead of continuing to run it for another week if I should rinse it all out, remove a little bit of the ceramic media, maybe only use 3 tbsp of polish, and start it back for another week. I wish I had taken a couple of pictures (I guess I still can if it would be helpful) of the slurry.
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tumblee
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since March 2021
Posts: 154
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Post by tumblee on May 29, 2021 1:05:21 GMT -5
3 Tb's for the first two stages is what I read and 1.5 for the last two. 3lb bucket. Quiet tumbling seems best. Can't describe the sound other than a smooth quiet roll. Stage 1 is hammering, Need pics with cleanups! First batch here....
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Post by greig on May 29, 2021 18:47:39 GMT -5
Rub one of those dry rocks from polish aggressively on a soft cloth to know if the polish is happening. Burnish will do this (later) too. As for foam, not to worry. It doesn't affect the action unless your barrel starts to gas and needs to be burped. Good luck with your tumble
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ericabelle
spending too much on rocks
Instagram acct: @erica_shoots_everything
Member since April 2021
Posts: 482
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Post by ericabelle on May 29, 2021 19:02:33 GMT -5
Great question about the foam, waterboysh - I also had many rocks with chips and dings from underloading the barrel on my first rotary tumble. Never again! greig , what causes the foam? Is it proteins? I often wash my rocks off before putting them in coarse phase and notice green algae or moss appear. Then I wonder if that is the reason for the foam I sometimes see in coarse phase.
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stefan
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2005
Posts: 14,113
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Post by stefan on May 30, 2021 16:39:53 GMT -5
Foam happens. As greig said as long as it is not expanding the barrel your ok. My hard and fast rule for polish is HALF what the manufactures recommend and make sure the barrel is filled to the top with cushion. Also 3 weeks NO PEEKING!!!! Resist the temptation.
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waterboysh
spending too much on rocks
Member since April 2021
Posts: 386
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Post by waterboysh on May 30, 2021 23:29:59 GMT -5
Okay, well that's good to hear. I was worried because I literally could not hear the rocks moving around in the barrel and I think part of the reason was just how foamy the slurry was. A polish was definitely happening. They weren't wet looking yet, but they had a shine to them that wasn't there before the polish started.
Yeah, I'm thinking in the future I might use 3 TBSP instead of 6. I don't know if I could manage to go 3 weeks... lol. I only have 1 barrel for polish and I'd end up with quite a backlog. Do you notice a big difference between 2 and 3 weeks in polish? When you say filled to the top with cushion, do you mean literally filled up to the top of the barrel? Wouldn't that be to full?
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stefan
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2005
Posts: 14,113
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Post by stefan on May 31, 2021 6:37:37 GMT -5
I mean literally filled to the top. (well as long as the is can still go on and seal lol). HUGE difference between 2 and 3 weeks. I use Aluminium Oxide as a polish and it takes A little longer to "break in". 3 weeks makes the difference.
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Post by greig on May 31, 2021 13:30:39 GMT -5
Great question about the foam, waterboysh - I also had many rocks with chips and dings from underloading the barrel on my first rotary tumble. Never again! greig , what causes the foam? Is it proteins? I often wash my rocks off before putting them in coarse phase and notice green algae or moss appear. Then I wonder if that is the reason for the foam I sometimes see in coarse phase. I usually get foam because there was some leftover soap (foaming agent) from a prior burnish (on the barrel or something in the barrel). There might also be natural phosphorus from the rocks, which would cause foam.
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waterboysh
spending too much on rocks
Member since April 2021
Posts: 386
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Post by waterboysh on May 31, 2021 19:27:17 GMT -5
I mean literally filled to the top. (well as long as the is can still go on and seal lol). HUGE difference between 2 and 3 weeks. I use Aluminium Oxide as a polish and it takes A little longer to "break in". 3 weeks makes the difference. This is the first time I've seen anyone suggest filling the barrel that much. Won't that prevent the tumbling action from occurring? Are you talking about ceramic or plastic?
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tumblee
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since March 2021
Posts: 154
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Post by tumblee on May 31, 2021 21:52:07 GMT -5
I would think you would be tumbling way longer than needed if that full. Trade off for shine? Would love to see some pics stefan.
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