bsky4463
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2013
Posts: 1,696
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Post by bsky4463 on Oct 6, 2013 8:45:30 GMT -5
Yesterday I was given a vintage Lorotone oscillating flat lap which needs some TLC. Can anyone point me to a source for balls and springs? When I google it I just get the new product write-ups that say "no more ball and springs..."
Also, I assume that these older units work fine, they are just not the latest and ....
As always, I greatly appreciate your help. Cheers, Andy
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Post by roy on Oct 6, 2013 9:24:50 GMT -5
i got mine from loritone!
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Steve
has rocks in the head
Member since June 2005
Posts: 506
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Post by Steve on Oct 6, 2013 12:32:04 GMT -5
Any suitably sized solid bouncy ball will work for the balls - any toy store. Much cheaper than Lortone and I'm pretty sure that they're the same balls. I bought some balls from Lortone and they came in different colors and looked like someone just picked them up from a local source. If you have an old spring, take it to any good hardware store for a match. But if you insist, you can get them directly from Lortone and also from Kingsley North www.kingsleynorth.com/skshop/product.php?id=87394&catID=137For some reason Kingsley North lists them under tumbler parts.
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Post by Rockoonz on Oct 6, 2013 14:14:53 GMT -5
Kingsley North will probably be less expensive than Lortone, they purposely don't undercut their retailers. If you have some fabrication skills maybe you can just get a set of the rubber links Lortone uses instead of ball and spring on their new polishers. www.lortone.com/laps.htmlLee
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quartz
Cave Dweller
breakin' rocks in the hot sun
Member since February 2010
Posts: 3,341
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Post by quartz on Oct 6, 2013 14:52:01 GMT -5
I bought one w/same problem, got balls at local smallish dept. store and springs at farm supply-hardware store, cheaper than ordering. Mine did have one spring for a matchup. The machine I bought had been sitting for a long time, had to take it apart and lube the motor w/a few drops of oil at each end, ran fine then.
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bsky4463
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2013
Posts: 1,696
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Post by bsky4463 on Oct 6, 2013 21:52:34 GMT -5
Thanks for all the input. I will probably try to source locally. Gonna tear into it in the next week or so. I will take pix and post if it gets interesting. Cheers.
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rykk
spending too much on rocks
Member since September 2011
Posts: 428
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Post by rykk on Oct 9, 2013 1:01:32 GMT -5
There's a seller on Ebay that usually has sets of them. He/she goes by "BUTW". Rick
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riverbendlapidary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2006
Posts: 1,058
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Post by riverbendlapidary on Oct 9, 2013 10:43:23 GMT -5
golf balls work too...
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rykk
spending too much on rocks
Member since September 2011
Posts: 428
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Post by rykk on Oct 11, 2013 22:48:16 GMT -5
I've tried golf balls - made a godawful racket because the Lortone "spinning weight" design tends to have a bit of a of jumping up and down action along with the side to side vibration. Rick
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Post by johnjsgems on Oct 15, 2013 10:13:02 GMT -5
I had an old one that came with tennis balls. I think the "super ball" type balls would work better. The tennis balls flattened out pretty quickly. I would think golf balls would be too hard.
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Post by Hard Rock Cafe on Oct 15, 2013 11:12:02 GMT -5
You might try handballs from a sports store. They look to be about the right size, somewhat hard, but not too hard.
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