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Post by cpdad on Apr 14, 2014 18:40:39 GMT -5
o.k. I'm giving up what works for me...first i would like to say there are many recipes here that do result in the same results...once you get your combinations right...and i had to play with combinations also...but hopefully i have narrowed down a little bit for others to start with...this in rotary barrels...maybe someone can work it out for vibes....used this in 1000 grit and polish. and i have to give credit where credit is due...i did not get this right... for me anyway...until after a couple of conversations with Dave (Snowdog). there is only 2 ingredients a product called THICK-IT...can be purchased at most pharmacy's...you can make it any consistancy you like in an 8 ounce cup...i should have took more notes...but i believe i started at HONEY thickness...it took about 12 ounces for a 3 lb barrel...and held it's thickness over the days of polishing...i added grit straight to the THICK-IT ...3 tablespoons during 1000...same for polish....no THICK-IT until after 500 grit. now for 2nd ingredient for...1000 and polish...this is what made the difference in my opinion. shammy rags...just like the ones you detail your car with...really coarse soft cotton rags. cut them into 1/4 by 1" strips...or longer if you like...a lot of them....mix a jar or container of your grit until dissolved...add strips and stir every so often...make the strips soak up the grit...then add the strips to the stage you are in...a minimum of half rock...half shammy....more shammy may even work better all i can say is it has giving me a polish on apache tears and obsidian that rivals anyone's...and i ain't even that good of a polisher ...anyway hope it may help 1 person ....kev.
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quartz
Cave Dweller
breakin' rocks in the hot sun
Member since February 2010
Posts: 3,339
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Post by quartz on Apr 14, 2014 22:23:44 GMT -5
Thanks for the tip, will give the shammy a try, been having a batch of tears keeping us in tears for way too long. Got 'em smooth, but not shiny enough.
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Post by fantastic5 on Apr 15, 2014 9:56:29 GMT -5
Do you think the shammy polish stage would work in a Lot-O vibe? My first (and only) attempt at apache tears ended with a decent polish, but about half show 'knock' marks. I kept a lot of water in the final stages to cushion the stones, but not well enough.
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Post by cpdad on Apr 15, 2014 17:04:46 GMT -5
i do not use a vibe...so just my opinion. anything that will slow down the force of impact can only be a good thing...the THICK-IT will greatly reduce impact force over just water. when the shammy cloth pieces get between the stones they are so flexible and soft they just seem to wrap around the stones...and just kind of let them roll off. something a little harder like leather may let the stone bump into it and bounce backward right into another stone....edging it again...i just basicly slowed everything way down to minimize impact and create a slippery surface with the pre polished shammy's...just my opinion ..play with it ...kev.
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Post by Jugglerguy on Apr 15, 2014 18:18:21 GMT -5
Fantastic5, a member here named TNTMom has a really good recipe for obsidian in a Lot-O. I've tried it and I've seen posts here about others who have used it. We all seem to have good luck with it. Since you have a Lot-O, I'd give it a try. Krystee's Obsidian RecipeCPdad, it's nice to see an alternative obsidian recipes for rotary tumblers. Could you post some pictures of your results?
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Post by cpdad on Apr 15, 2014 19:58:56 GMT -5
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Post by Jugglerguy on Apr 15, 2014 20:11:25 GMT -5
I see the leaves aren't out yet.
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Post by cpdad on Apr 15, 2014 21:32:31 GMT -5
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quartz
Cave Dweller
breakin' rocks in the hot sun
Member since February 2010
Posts: 3,339
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Post by quartz on Apr 15, 2014 21:58:29 GMT -5
What is your preference for polish?
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Post by cpdad on Apr 16, 2014 17:24:37 GMT -5
All polish was A/O from the rock shed...kev.
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meviva
Cave Dweller
Member since July 2013
Posts: 1,474
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Post by meviva on Apr 16, 2014 18:07:18 GMT -5
Thanks for the tips. I have 20 lbs of obsidian that I don't know what to do with. Do you do the 60/90, 120/220 and 500 stages as usual before using the Thick-it? Where do you get the shammy?
Thanks, Andrea
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Post by pauls on Apr 17, 2014 3:21:43 GMT -5
Andrea, I presume they don't mean the real leather chamois, you can buy them at auto parts shops but horribly expensive. Go to the same shop and you can get imitation ones for only a few dollars, generally come in some sort of tube so you can keep it wet in your car. They are actually pretty good for drying your car after you wash it too.
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Post by cpdad on Apr 17, 2014 17:02:11 GMT -5
yep...inexpensive microfiber cloths...i got mine at harbor freight.
yep standard grit recipe up till 500....but in my opinion you really need to add the step of 1000.
i only used the THICK-IT in 1000 and polish...it may work fine going from 500 to polish with the THICK-IT in just the polish...i did not try that myself....kev
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The Dad_Ohs
fully equipped rock polisher
Take me to your Labradorite!!
Member since September 2012
Posts: 1,860
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Post by The Dad_Ohs on Apr 17, 2014 21:29:59 GMT -5
The best thing about a decent micro fiber shammy is that it has a HUGE amount of absorption in it which is why it works so well in tumbling. you have all your grit and moisture to keep it tumbling locked into the squares.
Theoretically, you can use just the squares and nothing else, especially during polish, if you have enough of them as they are also a perfect material to prevent damage from the pieces hitting each other and getting frosting. I think I may try this in my vibe without any other media and see how it does, the squares would have more than enough grit and water to make it through each stage and possibly eliminate the need to add water for a couple days an by then you may be out of that stage... especially glass in a vibe at the rough stage!!
Any thoughts on that??
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quartz
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breakin' rocks in the hot sun
Member since February 2010
Posts: 3,339
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Post by quartz on Apr 19, 2014 15:22:57 GMT -5
I tried the obsidian sauce recipe the other day, and just kept adding Thickit above the "honey thickness" recipe until now I have 24tsp. in 12oz. of water, and it has once again gone thin, no thicker than milk. The shammy padding [and I used lots of it] is packing up on the walls of the Thumler Model T barrel, and all the obsidian is clicking around in the middle. When I first mixed the Thickit up, it was really thick, but didn't last for me. I don't think bad water is a problem. Might be the rocks are a little bigger than what they should be, they run to about an inch in dia., and fill the barrel about half full, suppose that contributes to the padding packing on the barrel walls. Last night when I mixed in the last tbs. of Thickit, the load got nice and quiet, but this morning it was clicking hard again. Any thoughts are welcome.
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Post by cpdad on Apr 20, 2014 8:30:46 GMT -5
hey quartz...not really sure why you went thin...i never really did...like i said before wish i had kept better notes...a little more detail on the way i did the 3lb barrels.
i loaded cloth and tears and the same with the snowflake in layers.
cloth in bottom..layer of rock..layer of cloth and so on....cloths were pre soaked in dissolved polish before adding to barrel...filled to almost 3/4 full
mixed thick-it in 2 8 ounce cups...fairly thick...filled to top of rocks...poured remaining sauce into plastic container...be sure to put a lid on leftover sauce.
ran barrel for 24 hours...opened barrel and poured into strainer letting sauce drain into container with leftover sauce...set rocks aside then dumped cloth into the sauce...if it needed to be thickened some just i thickened it in container.
then i washed the tears and checked for shine...if not good enough for me...i spooned a little sauce with cloth mixed in it...into bottom of barrel...tears... more sauce and so on.
never used more than 12 tablespoons total i think for a load..had my shine after 3 days...on both the tears and snowflake.
maybe there is a step in there that will help...and im sure i left something out.
after i free my barrels up from the contest thingy...i have a small batch of tears that came out of 1000 ready for polish...hell i might even video each step just for the record..kev.
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quartz
Cave Dweller
breakin' rocks in the hot sun
Member since February 2010
Posts: 3,339
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Post by quartz on Apr 20, 2014 8:52:47 GMT -5
Don't know what's up, just went out for a look, and the padding is all packed up again. The "juice" component is no thicker than water now. I mixed it all up thoroughly about 7 yesterday evening. Maybe I'll run one piece at a time so as not to bang them up.
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