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Post by rockpickerforever on May 8, 2018 16:20:23 GMT -5
I finished up the most recent batch of tumbles on Sunday. Besides random rocks from Ocotillo Wells, this batch also included finds from Lavic, Picacho Recreation area, and the area near Cargo Muchacho Mtns (all in CA), plus other stuff from who knows where, lol. These were started in coarse (1 Cup 30 grit SiC) on 2-25-18, with additions of a cup of 30 grit a couple times a week, or whenever the grit was no longer sharp and quit doing its job. When the rocks were sufficiently ground/rounded to my taste, I quit making additions of grit, and just let what was still in the barrel break down to a fine powder over the next two weeks. I did a cleanout on 4-12-18, Gave them a good washing, and made sure there was no coarse grit lurking in cracks. Then I switched to 80 grit (1 cup, only the initial addition) for two more weeks. I credit the quickness of the coarse grind with the additions of grit. I ran these concurrently in my Lortone QT12 and Scott Murray 15 lb. rotary tumblers.
After two weeks of 80 (broken down to about 400 grit consistency by this time), I moved the rocks on to the Gy-roc A (10 lb) on 4-27-18 for finishing. Before starting, and between each step, the rocks went through a wash cycle (water and powdered household detergent) in the Gy-Roc. Also, each grit and polish stage was accompanied by the detergent. I started with 3 rounded TBSP 600 grit Sic, let it run two days, then polished with 3 tsp Cerium Oxide for two more days. A lot of rocks were culled because of cracks and chipping before the polish step. Some went through all the way, and while they took a nice shine, the cracks are considered major blemishes, and detract from the beauty of the rocks, IMHO. You know what they say - Garbage in, garbage out.
Photo of all rocks after being dumped from the rotary tumblers.
Close up. Rocks in lower right from Lavic.
These two are stromatolites. They were not ground well enough for my tastes, so back into a barrel with more rocks in coarse.
A speckled one. Another photo of this one later after it was polished.
Don't recall where this came from, probably a sale somewhere. I broke it along a crack, and also sent it back for more coarse tumbling.
What came out of the vibe on 5-6-18.
Shards of jasper? agate? from Picacho Recreation area. The thin pieces tinkle like glass. American Indians used this fine grained rock to chip into cutting tools.
Jaspers from Lavic
Pretty, but they do tend to be pitty. Need some pre-grinding first. Then again, you can make them worse, lol.
Some pet wood.
Misc.
Gary Green/Larsonite from drocknut (winnings from guess the mileage contest after she went to McDermitt.)
Some oolitic agate from Ocotillo Wells.
An unknown pretty and Bird's Eye Jasper from AZ
Small cutoff of cathedral agate thrown in.
I hate cracks! One on lower right came from the Mojave when we were there on a gold prospecting trip.
From Ocotillo Wells
This one has some small bits of metal in it. Gold? Silver? Something else? Who knows.
More from OW. Some brecchia and conglomerates.
From OW. A lot of rocks found out there have had cracks filled in with Si.
Pitty.
These are mostly corals and fossilized sea life from SoCal desert.
Corals
Bryozoans. They resemble corals in both form and function. They both live within a calcareous skeleton, and have a coronet of tentacles which they use to filter plankton from the water for food. But bryozoans have no family ties to coral in the classification of the living beings.
A couple brightly colored ones (and shiny, too!)
Oolitic agate
A few orange ones
A bubble gum or two.
That's it. Thanks for looking. Jean
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Post by HankRocks on May 8, 2018 16:41:30 GMT -5
Very nice tumbles, they are all good. I would say this batch removes any doubt about using Cerium Oxide as a polishing agent. Of course one cannot discount the process used to get to polish.
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saxplayer
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since March 2018
Posts: 1,327
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Post by saxplayer on May 8, 2018 17:50:27 GMT -5
That bird's eye jasper is very nice!
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Post by fernwood on May 8, 2018 18:12:55 GMT -5
They are all extremely great. Thanks for sharing.
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Post by Jugglerguy on May 8, 2018 18:43:53 GMT -5
You got a great shine on those. I especially like the oolitic ones.
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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 May 8, 2018 22:41:29 GMT -5
Thanks for the show, SO CAL gives up a great variety of really nice rough. You did a good job making them shiney too.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on May 9, 2018 6:52:53 GMT -5
I like the bubblegums the best but those corals are interesting and took a great shine too.
Chuck
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Post by fantastic5 on May 9, 2018 8:28:42 GMT -5
Great batch Jean! Love them all, but the birds eye really stood out as a favorite. Even has a man in the moon kinda face in the top left orb.
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tkvancil
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since September 2011
Posts: 1,546
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Post by tkvancil on May 9, 2018 8:30:25 GMT -5
That's a very nice looking batch. I like too many of them to pick a favorite. Thanks for sharing your process and all the pics.
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Win
spending too much on rocks
Member since June 2017
Posts: 336
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Post by Win on May 9, 2018 8:44:37 GMT -5
WOW! Great results and thanks for the write up on your method.
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Post by drocknut on May 9, 2018 9:04:09 GMT -5
Nice batch of tumbles Jean. Glad you got a nice piece of Gary Green from the contest.
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Post by rockpickerforever on May 9, 2018 10:03:42 GMT -5
Very nice tumbles, they are all good. I would say this batch removes any doubt about using Cerium Oxide as a polishing agent. Of course one cannot discount the process used to get to polish.
Thanks Hank. While the process is important, the CO is the finishing touch! Although I went to 80 grit after the 30 in this batch, the previous batch went straight from (finely broken down) 30 grit to 400 in the vibe. I keep changing it up just a little.
That bird's eye jasper is very nice! Thank you! That came from AZ one year when we went to Quartzsite. We had gone on a field trip with their rock club. The location is south of Q 20 or 30 miles down AZ SR95, behind the Border Patrol inspection station. That is one of the better patterned pieces, and took a decent shine as well. You got a great shine on those. I especially like the oolitic ones. Thanks, Rob. The oolitic material is not real common (at least I haven't found a lot of it) out in OW. I did pick up a couple chunks at the silent auction the end of April for a couple bucks.
May get a couple small slabs and tumble the rest.
They are all extremely great. Thanks for sharing. Thank you, Beth. You are most welcome! I like the bubblegums the best but those corals are interesting and took a great shine too. Chuck I have to say the corals and other fossils are my faves. But the bubblegums are mrrockpickers. It is hot in the desert right now, forecast to be 107 today. But supposed to be in the low 80s by Saturday. Maybe I can talk him into a day trip for more bubblegums! Thanks for the show, SO CAL gives up a great variety of really nice rough. You did a good job making them shiney too. You're welcome, Larry. I think you and Carol, of all people enjoy my little trips and rock photos the most. I was real happy with the shine, too. Now, if I can just be a little more selective and leave the cracked and pitted ones in the desert!
Great batch Jean! Love them all, but the birds eye really stood out as a favorite. Even has a man in the moon kinda face in the top left orb.
Thanks, Ann. Yes, I see the man in the moon! This birdseye is not as colorful as a lot I've seen, but color isn't everything. This has some differential hardnesses in it, but it didn't undercut too much, and got more than a satin shine.
That's a very nice looking batch. I like too many of them to pick a favorite. Thanks for sharing your process and all the pics.
Thanks, Ken. Sharing the secret formula and showing off rocks is what RTH is about. Glad you enjoyed!
WOW! Great results and thanks for the write up on your method. Thanks, and you are welcome! Nice batch of tumbles Jean. Glad you got a nice piece of Gary Green from the contest. Thanks, Diane. Yes I got a fine bunch of rocks from you in the guess the mileage contest.
Speaking of, no one has picked your "old" truck mileage correctly yet, are you going to let us have another pick? Give us some clues? LOL.
What I showed are only the ones that have made it through polish in the vibe. With two rotary tumblers (12 and 15 lb capacities, theoretically), and a 10 lb capacity vibe, you can see why I can be selective with what moves on. Probably most of the ones culled need some spot attention on a grinder, or tickling with a Dremel, and them more tumbling in rough before they can visit the vibe. But a few can go into the vibe as soon as I find some others from previous batches at the same stage. So more to come!
Thanks everyone for your kind comments. Jean
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Post by aDave on May 9, 2018 14:10:16 GMT -5
Nice, Jean rockpickerforever. As you know, I'm a fan of Lavic, as the results can be amazing...as well as frustrating. It's always nice to come out with some winners. Everything else is also very nice.
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Post by rockpickerforever on May 9, 2018 14:23:10 GMT -5
Nice, Jean rockpickerforever . As you know, I'm a fan of Lavic, as the results can be amazing...as well as frustrating. It's always nice to come out with some winners. Everything else is also very nice. Thanks, Dave. They were a lot of fun. I still have more from the rotary tumblers that wouldn't fit in the vibe (ten lbs of shit in a 5 lb bag?), just need to find some from previous batches that were left in the same stage, and get them moving in the vibe.
So more to come!
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,168
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Post by jamesp on May 9, 2018 18:56:07 GMT -5
Great tumbles Jean. Nice big batch of a wide variety.
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Post by rockpickerforever on May 9, 2018 23:40:25 GMT -5
Great tumbles Jean. Nice big batch of a wide variety. Thank you, James. After all this time, I am still learning!
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Post by nowyo on May 10, 2018 18:45:26 GMT -5
Great stuff, Jean. Like them all.
Russ
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NRG
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2018
Posts: 1,630
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Post by NRG on May 10, 2018 18:58:35 GMT -5
Bravo!
Free rocks make people happy!
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