ROCK TUMBLING AND POLISHING 101
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 13 ก.ย. 2024
- Join Shadow and me as we explain and demonstrate the rock tumbling and polishing process. We demonstrate Stage 1 using course grain grit, Stage 2 using medium grain grit, and stage 3 using fine grain grit. We demonstrate how to load the barrels with agates, jaspers, and other rocks to tumble. We demonstrate using different size barrels such as the Lortone 3A, Lortone 33B, Lortone 45C, and Lortone QT12. We show the tumbling process in action. We look at rough, pre-tumbled rock; and examine some of the finished product. This is an easy, step by step, tutorial on the rock tumbling and polishing process. Rockhounding, searching for agates, jaspers, gems, etc., is not complete without tumbling and polishing. Check out our other videos on great places to rockhound in Southern Utah. Watch this video to learn how to tumble, polish and shine those rocks up!
#adventuresofshafow #rockhoundingadventures #rockhoundingcamping #rockhounding
So nice of you to show the youngster the ropes ❤
Thanks Colleen!
So nice of you to help out the young guy !! Your collection was so nice to see ! So many beauties 😊
Thank You! I just checked out your channel and it is impressive! I can learn a lot from you!
Thanks for walking viewers through the rock tumbling process. Your careful and thorough explanation made for easy understanding. Of course, the best part was seeing all your polished rocks on display ... so much tumbling time involved with such stunning results. I could spend hours looking at the collection. Oh and I LOVE the rock display table! Great work and am looking forward to more Adventures of Shadow!
Awwww . . . thank you!!!!
Thanks! Like the way to keep the process simple.
Thanks Jey Tex! I am going to make another one and show the last and probably most important stage, stage 4. I just need to do it! Lol.
Most excellent tutorial sir! I love my lortones! That Brian head agate is most excellent! I have the 33b and the 3a and just scored a 45c at the goodwill for $40! Looking forward to tumbling some larger stuff like you! One thing that I've been doing to keep track is Keeping a thorough log in a notebook and simply number my barrels, 1, 2 and 3. Also, adding a cleaning cycle in between stages. I think on my next batch, I'm going to pre-shape them a bit on the flat lap to save some time. Great video!
Thank you for watching and commenting. I checked out your channel and WOW! I can learn a lot from you!!!! Keep up the excellent work!
@@adventuresofshadowdog Thank you!!! I am working on my best stuff yet! Have a bit of a cold but hope to get these rocks cut for the next batches soon!
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Thank You! I visited your channel and it is fascinating!!!
I also subbed your channel.
Nice set up! I'm making a two teer tumbler machine. First row will be for my 3 lb barrels. The second row will be for 6 & 12 lb barrels that I'm going to purchase.
May I ask the spacing width of the bars in the your 12 lb tumbler, center to center? Thanks 😎
So my 12lb Tumbler is the Lortone QT12. I measured the width of the rotating bars, center to center, and it was exactly 5”. I hope this helps you. Thanks for watching and commenting!
@@adventuresofshadowdog It does help. Thanks a bunch for taking the time!
Blessings!
Hi, how long would you recommend doing stages 3 and 4?
Great question. State 1 can be done as long as you want to get the rocks shaped. Sometimes I run rocks through stage 1 twice. The grit eventually loses its ability to wear down the rocks. Typically I would say the grit is worn out after 2-3 weeks.
Stage 2 - one week.
Stage 3 - 5 days
Stage 4 - 5 days, clean and rinse real good. Then run for a few hours with water and a little hand soap chipped from a bar. Rinse real well. Let dry. Polish up a bit further with a soft cloth.
Don’t overdo the run time in stage 4. 5 days max.
I hope this helps!.
Yes it helps so much! Thank you so much!!
I noticed you didn’t show stage 4? I have been tumbling my rocks in stage 4 for a couple of weeks and I still can’t get the that glassy shine when they dry. They look good wet but loose their luster once they dry. I am using stage 4 grit 1200. I cleaned the rocks thoroughly and the drum as well before proceeding with this step. But after 2 weeks still no noticeable improvement. Not sure what I am doing wrong???
Jon, I will do a follow up tutorial and show stage 4. In the meantime, how long are you tumbling in stage 4? Also, how full is the barrel with rocks? Ex: 1/2. My first guess is that you are leaving them in stage 4 too long. Try running them through again for just a couple of days. Then rinse and run again for about 3-4 hours with just water and a a few thin slices off a bar of soap. I’m not sure why, but bar soap is preferable to liquid hand soap. Then rinse again, let them dry, and they should shine.
After they are good and dry, I buff mine a bit with a microfiber cloth. That just makes them shine better.
One more thing. Make sure that there isn’t a rock in the batch that is still kinda rough. Not all rocks get smooth and if one is still rough it can keep the others from polishing.
Oh, and I assume you are polishing silica based rocks? Calcite based will not polish well. You can polish them, but it’s a delicate process.
Back to the barrel and how full. You may need to add ceramic pellets to bring the rocks level back to about 3/4. The rocks lose a lot of size through the tumbling process and by the time you reach stage 4, the rocks might only fill the barrel to about the 1/2 mark or even less. In that case, add some ceramic pellets to bring the level up. This keeps the rocks from tumbling too hard in stage 4.
Let me know if this helps! Remember, you don’t need to leave them in as long is stage 4 as the other stages.
Good luck!!!!
I would also add that not all polish is created equal. If those tips dont improve your results, consider switching to a different brand of 1200 aluminum oxide. I would reccomend Thumlers or Poly Plastics.
@@adventuresofshadowdogso much amazing and helpful info buried in this comment!! Feels like finding a nice rock buried in a shoreline 😊