doit4luv
starting to shine!
Member since September 2004
Posts: 43
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Post by doit4luv on Sept 26, 2004 23:42:45 GMT -5
For those who are not aware, I am new to the rock tumbling hobby. I became interested after purchasing a rock tumbling "toy" for my son. I figured if it was available in a form for children, it is probably available in another form for adults and/or professionals. So, I searched and found out about the Lortone tumblers and with you guys' help, found many of the online sites to purchase rough rock. This is how my interest has evolved.
I just finished tumbling a set of mixed rough rock. On some of the rocks, the polish did not occur on some of the sides of the rocks, although the larger surfaces were polished fairly well. I have two questions and sincerely appreciate the help that anyone offers:
1. How come only one surface did not take the polish on some of the rocks? 2. Will the addition of a small amount of gentle powdered detergent to the first and second grind cause a problem with those stages?
James
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MoonStone
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2004
Posts: 202
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Post by MoonStone on Sept 27, 2004 0:05:11 GMT -5
Hello James Some rocks seem to need more time in the first step (coarse) in order to shape better and loose bumps and irregularities that could also cause this problem. If your rocks have bumps or irregularities you could try going back to step 1 (coarse) in order to smooth them well enough for the other steps. If your dull stones have some slight whitish film on them I think you should try burnishing them (clean them and place them in a clean barrel with 1 or 2 tbsp. of powdered Ivory soap and water and tumble them for 3 to 4 days). If you don't have the whitish film on your rocks maybe you should try to go back to the pre-polish stage and see how they turn. I hope that people with more experience that me jump in and give you better ideas. Good Luck!
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Post by rockyraccoon on Sept 27, 2004 0:21:33 GMT -5
james i've had this happen on a couple of kinds of stones and asked the same question. on one stone it was made of 2 materials with one being softer than the other and the softer was undercutting and not polishing. doc knew what was causing the other - it was kind of flat and round and the edges did not polish at all.
kim
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