dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Mar 26, 2022 15:44:30 GMT -5
First off - I am a novice. Second, I am gonna ask this knowing ahead of time it is somewhat a bad question . . . If you tumble 3lbs of store bought rough, on average, how many "Awesome" stones do you end up with at the end of the polish stage? I know, I know - shouldn't even have asked, but I wanna make sure my expectations are in check (realistic). So many grey areas . . .
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nursetumbler
Cave Dweller
Member since February 2022
Posts: 981
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Post by nursetumbler on Mar 26, 2022 16:53:44 GMT -5
If you put in 10 you'll get 10 back out as long as you don't completely grind them away. They will be smaller but still there.
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jimmie
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2021
Posts: 233
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Post by jimmie on Mar 26, 2022 17:31:13 GMT -5
If you end up with 5 lbs , that’s a different story.
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Post by jasoninsd on Mar 26, 2022 22:10:05 GMT -5
First off - I am a novice. Second, I am gonna ask this knowing ahead of time it is somewhat a bad question . . . If you tumble 3lbs of store bought rough, on average, how many "Awesome" stones do you end up with at the end of the polish stage? I know, I know - shouldn't even have asked, but I wanna make sure my expectations are in check (realistic). So many grey areas . . . I think it's a fair question...but I think you also know there's not going to be a viable answer to that question. I think you need to determine the grade of your rough. If it's "high grade", then your yield of finished material considered to be "awesome" is going to be far higher than what you'd get with "low grade" rough. Sometimes you really do get what you pay for...
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quartzilla
Cave Dweller
Member since April 2020
Posts: 1,237
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Post by quartzilla on Mar 27, 2022 9:08:57 GMT -5
The magic of tumbling for me is the surprises. If you have awesome stuff going in you know it will come out great. It’s those sleeper rocks, the ones you toss in there thinking maybe they’re not any good, that come out gorgeous that float my boat. It’s a gamble, that’s for sure, but sometimes you win big!
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SirRoxalot
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since October 2003
Posts: 790
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Post by SirRoxalot on Apr 10, 2022 0:28:00 GMT -5
With enough patience, every one can be a stunner. Simply grind each by hand to remove flaws and perfect the size and shape; sort carefully for perfect color and pattern, and tumble away.
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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 Apr 10, 2022 3:49:26 GMT -5
If you had a 1000lb tumbler and were running some automated factory, like a How it's Made video... And you had some parameter that determined good or bad and a robot would blast the bad ones off the conveyor... We could get a better answer to percentages AND the number of stones.
But... What IS that parameter set to, for you? What qualities are baked into that parameter? It's subjective. These tumblers operate in the realm of physics and material science, but it is still overwhelmingly considered an art form.
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lordsorril
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since April 2020
Posts: 865
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Post by lordsorril on Apr 10, 2022 4:36:05 GMT -5
For me: It depends on the quality of the rough and it becomes pretty obvious which specimens have potential and which do not-early on in the process. If I think the lower quality stones are going to interfere with the better ones: I will divide them into separate barrels. (QT12 lids shown)
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Post by Rockoonz on Apr 10, 2022 11:33:43 GMT -5
Depends on the person and what you have available to tumble. Since our plan when we are back up and running is to run our coarse grit batches in a 40 lb barrel, then distribute out to 15 lb barrels, we will be less picky about the quality of our filler, and we have plans for the "pond rock" anyway. But you asked about 3#, I should read the OP before starting my response. In a small barrel I would try to choose stuff with potential, and when checking after a week not be afraid to replace some and grind on. IMO extra long coarse stage with only one check at a week will yield stuff that looks like stage 2 and can be easily sorted. If stage one reveals a lot of rejects don't be afraid to put it all in a small bucket of water and do another coarse batch to get enough to do a good full tumbling cycle. I like to keep them wet, again for ease of sorting. Pitted and cracked pieces should be rejected as pond rock or aggregate for fancy concrete stuff if you do those things, they tend to scratch the rest of the rocks in subsequent stages. My CDO (OCD only alphabetized like a truly obsessive person would do) takes me that direction, your results may vary. Guess that's why Elizabeth does most of the tumbling and I just handle the heavy barrels for her.
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,559
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Post by jamesp on Apr 10, 2022 12:17:37 GMT -5
Tumbling follows the rule quality in quality out as long as they are hard Mohs 7 rocks. What is quality ? Stones without defects, pits, cracks and concave divots. Store bought may or may not be quality in and may be softer than Mohs 7(Mohs 7 is easiest to polish, some soft rocks don't play the polish game). This is my quality in standard. There is too much time and work in tumbling to not to start with good rocks. Not store bought, I prepped these myself with a lot of effort to make them meet quality in.
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doublebluff
having dreams about rocks
Member since September 2021
Posts: 60
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Post by doublebluff on Apr 10, 2022 18:11:18 GMT -5
Wow. I showed the above pic to my wife and said "and you think I have a rock problem...!"
They look great. Can you tell me the type of rock in pot 6 across and 4 down? Tannish with white edges...
Good stuff!
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lparsons
Cave Dweller
Member since April 2020
Posts: 276
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Post by lparsons on Apr 10, 2022 20:05:26 GMT -5
For best results (imo) you should 1. Buy from a reputable source to ensure consistent quality.(I like rockshed) 2. Be aware that some rocks are more difficult to tumble and choose accordingly. 3. Follow instructions given by the tumbling gods here on this site.🤣 4. Last, but not least, (and the hardest part for me) 🤣is to be patient because sometimes it can take a considerable amount of time. However, the results are well worth it all and is why this hobby is so habit forming!🤣🤣🤣
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dshanpnw
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since December 2020
Posts: 1,071
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Post by dshanpnw on Apr 11, 2022 18:41:15 GMT -5
Hello dillonf, this isn't a bad question at all. I have been tumbling for about a year and half and I do prep my rough before tumbling, but even then the results are not always "awesome",awesome being gem quality, no defects or some acceptable defects, I'd say somewhere in the neighborhood of 50%, sometimes worse. I like what quartzilla stated, the rocks you don't expect to be anything special sometimes are the stunners, and vice versa, the ones with high expectations a lot of times turn out to be the ones that are duds. I learned not to expect too much when buying rough either online or at a shop. My luck lately is about 50% of what I buy turns out to be good. Thanks for asking the question.
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dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Apr 11, 2022 19:45:17 GMT -5
Thanks! I really like this idea. For me: It depends on the quality of the rough and it becomes pretty obvious which specimens have potential and which do not-early on in the process. If I think the lower quality stones are going to interfere with the better ones: I will divide them into separate barrels. (QT12 lids shown)
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dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Apr 11, 2022 19:48:31 GMT -5
Thanks - yeah I think I have been starting out with too little rough - there was no real point in pulling stuff out, and I didn't have anything to replace it with. I am going to try and start out with more rough, so I can do this. Depends on the person and what you have available to tumble. Since our plan when we are back up and running is to run our coarse grit batches in a 40 lb barrel, then distribute out to 15 lb barrels, we will be less picky about the quality of our filler, and we have plans for the "pond rock" anyway. But you asked about 3#, I should read the OP before starting my response. In a small barrel I would try to choose stuff with potential, and when checking after a week not be afraid to replace some and grind on. IMO extra long coarse stage with only one check at a week will yield stuff that looks like stage 2 and can be easily sorted. If stage one reveals a lot of rejects don't be afraid to put it all in a small bucket of water and do another coarse batch to get enough to do a good full tumbling cycle. I like to keep them wet, again for ease of sorting. Pitted and cracked pieces should be rejected as pond rock or aggregate for fancy concrete stuff if you do those things, they tend to scratch the rest of the rocks in subsequent stages. My CDO (OCD only alphabetized like a truly obsessive person would do) takes me that direction, your results may vary. Guess that's why Elizabeth does most of the tumbling and I just handle the heavy barrels for her.
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dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Apr 11, 2022 19:53:24 GMT -5
Wow - those are awesome looking rocks!. Right now I don't have any other tools to prep rocks. All I have is tumblers, but I can definitely see the benefit of hand prepping rocks before the tumbler! I'll get there eventually! Thanks for the advice/inspiration! Tumbling follows the rule quality in quality out as long as they are hard Mohs 7 rocks. What is quality ? Stones without defects, pits, cracks and concave divots. Store bought may or may not be quality in and may be softer than Mohs 7(Mohs 7 is easiest to polish, some soft rocks don't play the polish game). This is my quality in standard. There is too much time and work in tumbling to not to start with good rocks. Not store bought, I prepped these myself with a lot of effort to make them meet quality in.
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dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Apr 11, 2022 19:55:33 GMT -5
Yes, I struggle with keeping the rocks in stage 1 as long as necessary - especially when they get small! I am learning to fight the urge to move them forward when not ready! Thanks. For best results (imo) you should 1. Buy from a reputable source to ensure consistent quality.(I like rockshed) 2. Be aware that some rocks are more difficult to tumble and choose accordingly. 3. Follow instructions given by the tumbling gods here on this site.🤣 4. Last, but not least, (and the hardest part for me) 🤣is to be patient because sometimes it can take a considerable amount of time. However, the results are well worth it all and is why this hobby is so habit forming!🤣🤣🤣
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dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
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Post by dillonf on Apr 11, 2022 19:59:13 GMT -5
Thank you! That is great info, and helps me feel like I am not doing as bad as I think sometimes. I'm not to the point where I'm prepping stuff first, but I think that is a natural progression, and will probably save $$$ on course grit! Thanks again. Hello dillonf, this isn't a bad question at all. I have been tumbling for about a year and half and I do prep my rough before tumbling, but even then the results are not always "awesome",awesome being gem quality, no defects or some acceptable defects, I'd say somewhere in the neighborhood of 50%, sometimes worse. I like what quartzilla stated, the rocks you don't expect to be anything special sometimes are the stunners, and vice versa, the ones with high expectations a lot of times turn out to be the ones that are duds. I learned not to expect too much when buying rough either online or at a shop. My luck lately is about 50% of what I buy turns out to be good. Thanks for asking the question.
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,559
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Post by jamesp on Jun 19, 2022 23:46:32 GMT -5
Wow. I showed the above pic to my wife and said "and you think I have a rock problem...!" They look great. Can you tell me the type of rock in pot 6 across and 4 down? Tannish with white edges... Good stuff! Little late answering, sorry about that. All those are fossilized corals from Tampa to Valdosta. The one you pointed out is from Pasco County and 5 miles north of Zephyr Hills Florida in a little creek at a highway bridge crossing. Tons of it there.
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steelheader
having dreams about rocks
Member since September 2021
Posts: 50
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Post by steelheader on Jun 20, 2022 4:46:54 GMT -5
I also find certain stones have a stronger surprise factor than others. Botswana agates and bahia agates from Rock Shed do it for me. Ive been wowed more from those than any other - I am very new to tumbling.
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