vance71975
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since September 2022
Posts: 760
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Post by vance71975 on Sept 29, 2022 17:18:18 GMT -5
So Im doing Mexican Lace Agates and Zebra Jasper, and I have come to the point where I have decided, that as much as I love the look of Agate and Jasper, I need to get a Nat geo type Tumbler if I am gonna run them. 14 days on stage one is just driving me nuts lol. Think I am gonna stick to Softer Stones in the Tumble-Bee from now on and get a Nat Geo Style Tumbler for the harder stuff.
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Post by jasoninsd on Sept 29, 2022 17:34:16 GMT -5
So Im doing Mexican Lace Agates and Zebra Jasper, and I have come to the point where I have decided, that as much as I love the look of Agate and Jasper, I need to get a Nat geo type Tumbler if I am gonna run them. 14 days on stage one is just driving me nuts lol. Think I am gonna stick to Softer Stones in the Tumble-Bee from now on and get a Nat Geo Style Tumbler for the harder stuff. I've seen Crazy Lace take more than six months to get out of stage one...regardless of the type/size of tumbler!
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brybry
Cave Dweller
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Member since October 2021
Posts: 1,199
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Post by brybry on Sept 29, 2022 17:46:43 GMT -5
I've got Bahia & Botswana agates that have been running since Oct/Nov of last year.
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pebblesky
fully equipped rock polisher
Placed another order in rockshed. Happy 2024 everyone!
Member since September 2022
Posts: 1,391
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Post by pebblesky on Sept 29, 2022 17:53:37 GMT -5
Do you have photos of how your agates and jaspers look like after 14 days? Just curious...
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vance71975
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since September 2022
Posts: 760
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Post by vance71975 on Sept 29, 2022 18:37:19 GMT -5
Do you have photos of how your agates and jaspers look like after 14 days? Just curious... Sadly no I didnt, they all have a Few small spots that I want to grind out. A couple have some Bigger gouges i want to grind out, but they are looking pretty decent so far, just not quite where i want them.
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vance71975
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since September 2022
Posts: 760
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Post by vance71975 on Sept 29, 2022 18:37:56 GMT -5
So Im doing Mexican Lace Agates and Zebra Jasper, and I have come to the point where I have decided, that as much as I love the look of Agate and Jasper, I need to get a Nat geo type Tumbler if I am gonna run them. 14 days on stage one is just driving me nuts lol. Think I am gonna stick to Softer Stones in the Tumble-Bee from now on and get a Nat Geo Style Tumbler for the harder stuff. I've seen Crazy Lace take more than six months to get out of stage one...regardless of the type/size of tumbler! LOL I didnt need to hear that thanks
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ericabelle
spending too much on rocks
Instagram acct: @erica_shoots_everything
Member since April 2021
Posts: 482
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Post by ericabelle on Sept 29, 2022 22:09:52 GMT -5
So Im doing Mexican Lace Agates and Zebra Jasper, and I have come to the point where I have decided, that as much as I love the look of Agate and Jasper, I need to get a Nat geo type Tumbler if I am gonna run them. 14 days on stage one is just driving me nuts lol. Think I am gonna stick to Softer Stones in the Tumble-Bee from now on and get a Nat Geo Style Tumbler for the harder stuff. I have two 15 lb tumblers, and I still have some crazy lace agates and Botswana agates that run for 5-9 months in stage 1. The jaspers don’t usually take as long. It drove me crazy at the beginning, too. I think that’s why I quickly got a vibe soon after my first rotary. I figured at least I could finish out the rocks that were ready to move on. LOL Patience is not a virtue I have apparently.
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vance71975
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since September 2022
Posts: 760
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Post by vance71975 on Sept 29, 2022 23:22:58 GMT -5
So Im doing Mexican Lace Agates and Zebra Jasper, and I have come to the point where I have decided, that as much as I love the look of Agate and Jasper, I need to get a Nat geo type Tumbler if I am gonna run them. 14 days on stage one is just driving me nuts lol. Think I am gonna stick to Softer Stones in the Tumble-Bee from now on and get a Nat Geo Style Tumbler for the harder stuff. I have two 15 lb tumblers, and I still have some crazy lace agates and Botswana agates that run for 5-9 months in stage 1. The jaspers don’t usually take as long. It drove me crazy at the beginning, too. I think that’s why I quickly got a vibe soon after my first rotary. I figured at least I could finish out the rocks that were ready to move on. LOL Patience is not a virtue I have apparently. I do have patience to an extent with Some things, like I can let a wine or mead sit for months before bottling it. But Agate, I dont think that I have the patience for Agates lol. If I do any more I might just do a "rough look polish" on them, Start them on 500 SiC for 7 days, then 1000 AO Pre Polish, and 8000 AO polish and call it good lol. But ya there is no way I can afford a Vibe tumbler any time soon so I will just choose my rocks a bit more carefully from now on lol. Lucky for me, The fast majority of my rocks from my rock hunting trips are quartz, quartzite, and Basalt so they do tend to cut a lot faster lol
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jimmie
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2021
Posts: 233
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Post by jimmie on Sept 30, 2022 6:53:21 GMT -5
It’s the one thing I like about tumbling, patience! I have no idea how long some of my rocks have been tumbling, it’s what kind of look you are trying to achieve. Everything I tumble isn’t perfectly round or that perfect look. The material determines what I’m trying to get out of a rock. Lot-o and vib are the only time I’m time concerned, final stages are quick.
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ericabelle
spending too much on rocks
Instagram acct: @erica_shoots_everything
Member since April 2021
Posts: 482
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Post by ericabelle on Sept 30, 2022 7:51:45 GMT -5
vance71975Yep, you can avoid those agates for now, or you could just always have one going in stage 1 with the rest of your rocks, I guess as long as it didn’t have sharp edges and tear the others up. A couple months ago, I got too many agates going at once in my stage 1 rotary and I was hardly pulling any out to move onto the next stage, so I took some out for a while. Now, though, my vibe is so backed up, I may start adding more agates again!
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vance71975
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since September 2022
Posts: 760
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Post by vance71975 on Sept 30, 2022 11:14:24 GMT -5
vance71975 Yep, you can avoid those agates for now, or you could just always have one going in stage 1 with the rest of your rocks, I guess as long as it didn’t have sharp edges and tear the others up. A couple months ago, I got too many agates going at once in my stage 1 rotary and I was hardly pulling any out to move onto the next stage, so I took some out for a while. Now, though, my vibe is so backed up, I may start adding more agates again! My girl is laughin at me and feels bad for me so she is getting me some green opal, Lapis and red Aventurine lol
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Post by jasoninsd on Sept 30, 2022 11:26:43 GMT -5
vance71975 Yep, you can avoid those agates for now, or you could just always have one going in stage 1 with the rest of your rocks, I guess as long as it didn’t have sharp edges and tear the others up. A couple months ago, I got too many agates going at once in my stage 1 rotary and I was hardly pulling any out to move onto the next stage, so I took some out for a while. Now, though, my vibe is so backed up, I may start adding more agates again! My girl is laughin at me and feels bad for me so she is getting me some green opal, Lapis and red Aventurine lol I probably shouldn't say anything about your girlfriend getting you a softer rock versus a harder rock...so I'm not going to! LOL *Man I can be so juvenile sometimes! LOL
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vance71975
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since September 2022
Posts: 760
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Post by vance71975 on Sept 30, 2022 11:52:29 GMT -5
My girl is laughin at me and feels bad for me so she is getting me some green opal, Lapis and red Aventurine lol I probably shouldn't say anything about your girlfriend getting you a softer rock versus a harder rock...so I'm not going to! LOL *Man I can be so juvenile sometimes! LOL ROFLMAO THAT WAS BRILLIANT! Seriously i cant stop laughin
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Post by Starguy on Sept 30, 2022 14:58:26 GMT -5
vance71975Completing a batch of tumbled rocks takes some time. Wait till you finish your first batch though. You’ll be so proud of yourself
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stefan
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2005
Posts: 14,095
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Post by stefan on Oct 1, 2022 19:18:41 GMT -5
Patience patience patience. I have been at this for coming up on 18 yrs now. My records indicate that on average a batch takes 16 to 20 weeks to complete. It's a marathon not a Sprint! If you really need speed then get a vibe (if you can find one right now lol)
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vance71975
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since September 2022
Posts: 760
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Post by vance71975 on Oct 1, 2022 21:05:19 GMT -5
Patience patience patience. I have been at this for coming up on 18 yrs now. My records indicate that on average a batch takes 16 to 20 weeks to complete. It's a marathon not a Sprint! If you really need speed then get a vibe (if you can find one right now lol) Or Pick softer stones that cut faster lol
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rocknewb101
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since October 2022
Posts: 1,322
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Post by rocknewb101 on Oct 5, 2022 11:04:13 GMT -5
vance71975 Yep, you can avoid those agates for now, or you could just always have one going in stage 1 with the rest of your rocks, I guess as long as it didn’t have sharp edges and tear the others up. A couple months ago, I got too many agates going at once in my stage 1 rotary and I was hardly pulling any out to move onto the next stage, so I took some out for a while. Now, though, my vibe is so backed up, I may start adding more agates again! My girl is laughin at me and feels bad for me so she is getting me some green opal, Lapis and red Aventurine lol Would love to see your green opal when done. I have a pound of it sitting, waiting, but until I get better I'm not even going to risk it.
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vance71975
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since September 2022
Posts: 760
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Post by vance71975 on Oct 5, 2022 11:08:19 GMT -5
My girl is laughin at me and feels bad for me so she is getting me some green opal, Lapis and red Aventurine lol Would love to see your green opal when done. I have a pound of it sitting, waiting, but until I get better I'm not even going to risk it. It should be coming in thursday(my girl loves me) I am not sure how soon I will start it, because I do want to get some softer media to run with it in just to ensure a good tumble. But I will likely post pics when its done.
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ctxtumblebug
having dreams about rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 56
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Post by ctxtumblebug on Aug 28, 2023 0:39:30 GMT -5
An angle grinder with a diamond blade and a dremel tool with diamond tips helps a whole bunch when it comes to getting hard and/or rough rocks ready for a stage one tumble. I use these tools to eliminate major problem areas off of the rocks before I begin a stage one tumble. The National Geographic tumbler set at top speed with 46/70 grit for three days with a quick check on the rocks at day two is what wins the game for me on the stage one tumble. I am pretty much able to complete a full tumble process from start to finish in less than two weeks with agates, jaspers, quartz and chert all coming out with a decent shine by using the NG tumbler and a Chicago Electric tumbler. My grit process is 46/70, 60/90, 120/220, 500 pre-polish and 500 polish. I will eventually use cerium oxide polish in this process as well to get an even better shine.
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