drdrew
noticing nice landscape pebbles
Member since September 2010
Posts: 85
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Post by drdrew on Sept 30, 2010 14:35:54 GMT -5
so got myself a TV-5. only ever had a toy tumbler many years ago....the first few days were a learning experience, with too many soft rocks in the initial batch...made a lot of cement! anyway, slowly culled to the harder rocks and really got the hang of the right "mix" of grit and water and rock sizes to get things moving right. so now i am guessing about 24-48 hrs away from moving onto the next phase. according to the TV-5 instructions, the next phase is 700F grit (supplied). okay i think i can handle that. for 2 days...no prob. then there is some other phase io-something or other (i don't have it in front of me) and then finally the final polish!. so i read through the vibratory instructions here, and i see "burnishing" with borax. is that recommended in my line up somewhere and what does it do exactly? also i have a seperate bowl for the polishing stage. then i started tooking at replacement grit and finding all sorts of other options...not sure what to make of them really though...but at any rate, so far things are looking good! any insights for my particular case? oh, hi and nice to meet you, i'm drew....
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Post by johnjsgems on Sept 30, 2010 14:48:48 GMT -5
Welcome to the forum. I think it is Iolox which I think is a prepolish. When you buy more grit buy 120/220 (if you are in US), 500F, Tripoli, and a good (submicron) aluminum oxide polish. Both Raytech and GyRoc supply 700 grit in their kits but I don't know where you can buy more. 500F is 500 and finer. Next one is 800 and finer so 500F is a mix of from 500 to about 800. As far as burnish, it is just a wash cycle between stages. Your bowls will scratch badly and hold grit in the scratches. The grit breaks down fast in a vibe but a wetter than normal wash cycle will help clean both the rocks and bowl. You can probably use the polish bowl with both polish and the Iolox or tripoli with a burnish between. The other bowl would be strictly for the two grit steps. The Raytech bowls are pretty inexpensive and dedicated bowls would be a good thing.
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drdrew
noticing nice landscape pebbles
Member since September 2010
Posts: 85
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Post by drdrew on Sept 30, 2010 16:15:44 GMT -5
thanks for the reply! so burnish really only before the very last polish stage? and i think it is like iolox maybe, i'll chime in more tomorrow after i re read it...but i don't see it recommended in many of the "recipes" so is it a certain prepolish only for a certain kind of rock? is it safe to use on all rocks? thanks again!
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Post by johnjsgems on Sept 30, 2010 20:46:06 GMT -5
A short burnish between grit stages couldn't hurt. Burnish before and after final polish too. After helps remove any polish residue.
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Post by 150FromFundy on Oct 1, 2010 6:25:43 GMT -5
Burnish bewteen every change of grit size as John said. I have found this makes a huge difference in the quality of the end polish.
Get your rocks and bowl as clean as possible and add fresh water and borax for a burish. Let it run between 12 and 24 hours. When you check the water after the burnish, you should be amazed at how much additional residue came off. If the water is as clean as before the burnish (not likely), then you don't need to complete this extra step.
Darryl.
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drdrew
noticing nice landscape pebbles
Member since September 2010
Posts: 85
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Post by drdrew on Oct 1, 2010 8:37:42 GMT -5
thanks again! so to burnish in the tv-5 i would use more water than usual and how much borax?
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Post by Hard Rock Cafe on Oct 1, 2010 18:57:20 GMT -5
Well, I'm going to make a contrarian contribution: in my UV-18, I burnish only after polish and get a glassy shine. The grit breaks down quickly in a vibe and you'll have mud in no time at all no matter which grit you use.
Chuck
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Post by johnjsgems on Oct 1, 2010 20:25:10 GMT -5
Chuck, the TV-5 has a fairly hard plastic bowl that scratches easily. Grit lodges in the scratches. I would run a 2 hour burnish after every step. More water than usual (picture a wash cycle) and a tablespoon or so of borax or powdered Tide, etc.
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Post by Hard Rock Cafe on Oct 2, 2010 0:06:16 GMT -5
That makes sense. Not all tumblers are created equal.
Chuck
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drdrew
noticing nice landscape pebbles
Member since September 2010
Posts: 85
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Post by drdrew on Oct 4, 2010 10:46:24 GMT -5
okay, burnish went well...did it between the 700F and the iolux. except the extra water made a mess! anyway in the iolux now, my instructions say only 24 hours in the iolux...this sound right to you guys? then will burnish again, then 48 hours in the final polish with a total change after 24 hrs. thats my plan unless i hear differently from you pros. rocks are looking good. OH, what about the teaspoon of sugar in the final polish? good or bad?
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Post by jakesrocks on Oct 4, 2010 10:57:50 GMT -5
Don't use the sugar. Sugar can cause fermentation and gasses, which might blow the lid off your barrel. Been there, done that. Learned the hard way. People used to put oatmeal in their barrels for a thickener too. It only makes a big mess.
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drdrew
noticing nice landscape pebbles
Member since September 2010
Posts: 85
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Post by drdrew on Oct 5, 2010 14:26:08 GMT -5
ugh... i let the iolux dry out somehow and it stuck all over the rocks....burnish for 2 hours got some off...now burnishing overnight last night and all of today till i get home from work. hopefully will have clean clean clean stones to start my polish.
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