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Post by rocknewb101 on Jul 22, 2023 11:37:47 GMT -5
Hi all - so my mini sonic arrived yesterday and in went my stage 2 rocks. This is about 15 hours post start and I'm wondering if 1. it's wet enough (I've read where the mini needs more water than the lot-o; however, I've also read that you empty the barrel of water in the same way as the lot-o, so I'm not sure what I should be seeing), and 2. is it full enough? It runs great - I have a tbls of 120/220 based off a post I found while searching. I purposefully kept out a larger rock based on other's posts, but the slurry doesn't seem thick enough - maybe this just needs more time. 3. Should I recharge the grit? Or is this good to go for the 3-4 days?
Anyways, any thoughts are appreciated. Thanks so much!
I typically use a little more grit at the 220 stage than you did. Looks about right. I have always tried to fill mine 2/3 full with the filler. I typically add enough water so I can just see it when turning but I think most people use less. Seems to work for me. You could add borax if you want more of a slurry. I have been doing without borax lately and seems to work well although I am using more grit. I would say see how it looks after 3-4 days and adjust from there.
I typically use a little more grit at the 220 stage than you did. Looks about right. I have always tried to fill mine 2/3 full with the filler. I typically add enough water so I can just see it when turning but I think most people use less. Seems to work for me. You could add borax if you want more of a slurry. I have been doing without borax lately and seems to work well although I am using more grit. I would say see how it looks after 3-4 days and adjust from there.
I know the machine directions say 5tsp - that seemed excessive and I'd seen a post from 2017 where the member talks abut using only a tbls for this stage, so I went with the lower amount. I'll add in some borax and see what it does to the slurry and adjust next round . May add a little more water too and see what happens. THank you!!
I think your water level looks fine and I use the same amount of grit in the first stage. Sometimes when it looks like that, I’ll add a little pinch more of grit. I only use borax in the 500 and polish stage, but I would imagine adding a little of that would help thicken the slurry too and be cheaper. You could add a little bit of borax and give it a spritz or two with a water bottle and see how that looks in a few hours. The action looks good, and the fill level looks perfect.
I think your water level looks fine and I use the same amount of grit in the first stage. Sometimes when it looks like that, I’ll add a little pinch more of grit. I only use borax in the 500 and polish stage, but I would imagine adding a little of that would help thicken the slurry too and be cheaper. You could add a little bit of borax and give it a spritz or two with a water bottle and see how that looks in a few hours. The action looks good, and the fill level looks perfect.
Great! Thank you! This morning it's still going well and has the slurry amount has increased. I added about 1/2 tbls of borax last night, along with about a tbls (give/take) of water. Glad to know about the fill level. I didn't want to go too high. Thanks!
Looks good to me. My understanding is you only need minimal water. I think the manual says if the rocks look shiny-wet then there's too much. Not that the manual should be followed and I don't have a lot of experience with the MT-4 yet either. but I've been trying just enough water to keep it moving. I'm actually using vinegar, little experiment. I'm using 1tsp of kaolin to slurify. I've heard good things about sugar in these too.
Thank you! I'd always heard you needed more than the lot-o, but it appears to be about the same, maybe slightly more wiggle room with the mini...Interesting experiment with vinegar. I'd be curious to know if any affect with the final polish (one way or another).
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Welcome to the Rock Tumbling Hobby Forum where we share a love of rocks and a sense of community as enduring as the stones we polish.
The RTH Forum of www.RockTumbling.com is an Amazon Associate site and we earn money from
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