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Post by Jugglerguy on Feb 15, 2019 17:51:13 GMT -5
I just posted a new video follow up to the video where I cut out a deer head shape. In this video, I show how I use the Lot-O tumbler to polish them. It might be useful for someone new to the Lot-O.
Here's the video where I cut out the deer head shape in case you missed it.:
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Post by aDave on Feb 15, 2019 18:21:52 GMT -5
Thanks for sharing Rob Jugglerguy. I'm taking notes. IF you were to simply do a load of rocks, do you fill about half full and load the ceramics like you did on this, or would your ratios change at all? I'm looking for a particular fill level of rocks for which topping off with ceramics would give you the right ratio. If you happen to do just a straight "rock polishing with a Lot-O," I'd personally like to see brief shots of what each stage looks like with good slurry development. It was pretty clear here with the 120/220 stage, but it would be nice to see the slurries at all stages...especially for new users of the machine who are still trying to dial it in. Thanks.
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Post by Jugglerguy on Feb 15, 2019 18:29:45 GMT -5
Thanks for sharing Rob Jugglerguy. I'm taking notes. IF you were to simply do a load of rocks, do you fill about half full and load the ceramics like you did on this, or would your ratios change at all? I'm looking for a particular fill level of rocks for which topping off with ceramics would give you the right ratio. If you happen to do just a straight "rock polishing with a Lot-O," I'd personally like to see brief shots of what each stage looks like with good slurry development. It was pretty clear here with the 120/220 stage, but it would be nice to see the slurries at all stages...especially for new users of the machine who are still trying to dial it in. Thanks. I’d fill the Lot-O to about 70% and then top off with ceramics. It’s not an exact thing at all. I’m working on another video of tumbling crazy lace agate, but it will be a couple months before the rocks are done. I will try to remember to get shots of the slurry at each stage, although it doesn’t really matter. You just wet the rocks and put in the borax and grit. I don’t worry about he slurry at all after that unless it looks a little dry. I guess I worry more about the moisture than slurry development. That takes care of itself.
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ivan
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since March 2014
Posts: 165
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Post by ivan on Feb 15, 2019 23:25:57 GMT -5
Excellent videos. Very well done! Thanks very much for sharing your procedures. A question, if you will? Just a thought? Would it be suitable to use the variable size ceramic material only for the fill/cushioning material to make up the required load in all stages? Instead of using/or adding other tumbled rock particles/pieces in the load? IV
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NevadaBill
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since January 2019
Posts: 1,332
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Post by NevadaBill on Feb 16, 2019 0:42:43 GMT -5
I really learned a lot from this video.
Also, wow, I need to book a trip to the Great Lakes area soon. Those are really nice looking rocks!
Thanks for posting. Vote for Sticky!
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Post by Jugglerguy on Feb 16, 2019 5:27:05 GMT -5
Excellent videos. Very well done! Thanks very much for sharing your procedures. A question, if you will? Just a thought? Would it be suitable to use the variable size ceramic material only for the fill/cushioning material to make up the required load in all stages? Instead of using/or adding other tumbled rock particles/pieces in the load? IV I use ceramic in all stages in the Lot-O. I don’t use them in the first stage of my rotaries because they’d get worn away too quickly. In the rotary, I just do the first stage and add more rock as needed. Of course these shaped rocks didn’t go in a rotary, but the other rocks had been through a rotary tumbler.
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Post by gmitch067 on Feb 16, 2019 8:29:52 GMT -5
JugglerguyVERY informative and well done video Rob. I am relatively new to using the Lot-O and it looks like I have been using it wrong when it comes to filling it with materials and filler (not filling it enough and use of ceramics). Most of all I have learned from your video not to over water the load. It also alleviated some of my concerns as to proper vibe speeds when using the Lot-O (eyeballing the motion)... this will also help me when using the Mini-Sonic 4. Again, well done! I look forward to seeing more of your videos. Thank you!
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capt38
starting to shine!
Member since November 2017
Posts: 45
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Post by capt38 on Feb 18, 2019 14:44:13 GMT -5
Thanks Rob, this is a perfect video. I too am a new user of a Lot o tumbler, and this make the operation a little clearer.
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Post by aDave on Feb 18, 2019 15:15:32 GMT -5
I’m working on another video of tumbling crazy lace agate, but it will be a couple months before the rocks are done. I will try to remember to get shots of the slurry at each stage, although it doesn’t really matter. You just wet the rocks and put in the borax and grit. I don’t worry about he slurry at all after that unless it looks a little dry. I guess I worry more about the moisture than slurry development. That takes care of itself. In hindsight, I probably should have referenced seeing how wet stuff is as opposed to the slurry itself. Water seems to be my Achilles heel with this thing. For instance, I'm on day 2 of 500 AO (plan on at least 3 with no run of 1000), and things are starting to really slow down. However, things still look wet. My temptation is to squirt in some water, but I'm wondering if there's too much water already. There's generally a fair amount of water on the underside of the cap when I open it. I haven't really been able to find that happy medium just yet. Since I think my machine cycles material much slower than yours in the first place, I think it becomes more temperamental in regards to water.
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Post by Jugglerguy on Feb 18, 2019 16:20:17 GMT -5
I’m working on another video of tumbling crazy lace agate, but it will be a couple months before the rocks are done. I will try to remember to get shots of the slurry at each stage, although it doesn’t really matter. You just wet the rocks and put in the borax and grit. I don’t worry about he slurry at all after that unless it looks a little dry. I guess I worry more about the moisture than slurry development. That takes care of itself. In hindsight, I probably should have referenced seeing how wet stuff is as opposed to the slurry itself. Water seems to be my Achilles heel with this thing. For instance, I'm on day 2 of 500 AO (plan on at least 3 with no run of 1000), and things are starting to really slow down. However, things still look wet. My temptation is to squirt in some water, but I'm wondering if there's too much water already. There's generally a fair amount of water on the underside of the cap when I open it. I haven't really been able to find that happy medium just yet. Since I think my machine cycles material much slower than yours in the first place, I think it becomes more temperamental in regards to water. In the 500 stage, I drain as much water out as I can at the beginning, like I do in the video. Then I add the borax and grit. Then I don’t even look at it for a day. On the second or third day, I give it two or three squirts. Not all squirt bottles were created equal, so look at my video. Not a lot of water comes out in one squirt from my bottle. Then I forget about it until I empty it. That’s pretty much all I do. When I was new to this, I worried about it a a lot more, but now I know about how often I need to add water and otherwise don’t think about it much. The last two or three stages really don’t require much tinkering. The first stage needs more babysitting though.
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Post by orrum on Feb 18, 2019 19:16:45 GMT -5
Way cool Rob!!!
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grizman
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since July 2011
Posts: 878
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Post by grizman on Feb 19, 2019 18:45:43 GMT -5
Thanks Rob,very well done! I am very impressed with your trim saw skill!. Part of the secret is a thin diamond blade and you use it well.
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