James
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since October 2003
Posts: 876
|
Post by James on May 2, 2004 21:13:04 GMT -5
I just got a used Thumlers Model B from Ebay for $80.00. The catch is, it has a 3000 rpm motor. I contacted Al Tumbler and he said I should keep it and use it for my coarse grind. Well guess what, that thing rips right through rough in no time at all! I ran a load for 6 days and decided to check the contents a day early. I was in awe by the results. The rock level had shrunk by at least 1/3 and the slurry was a THICK brown sludge. All the grit completely reduced into nothing. I think this new tumbler will easily cut the 1st grit step in half, if not greater.
|
|
|
Post by cookie3rocks on May 2, 2004 21:17:57 GMT -5
I want a super charged tumbler. Yee-Haaw ;D Cutting down the coase stage is a dream come true. Congrats on a great buy cookie
|
|
|
Post by sandsman1 on May 3, 2004 0:44:52 GMT -5
thats some good news im tired of waitin for 3 --4 weeks for it to get lookin good guess the next tumbler i get will be that one hahaha thanks for the info james seeya john
|
|
|
Post by Original Admin on May 3, 2004 4:16:40 GMT -5
James,
Now that makes total sense to me - Ive often wondered on the rotation speed of barrels, and I'd had the "theory" that a higher RPM would do each phase faster.
At the end of the day - so long as its not so fast as to stick the rocks to the sides of the barrels with centrafugal force thus keeping them still - the faster the spin - the better.
A tumbler like this would work for any stage I believe, so if you get another couple of barrels for it - give it a whirl and let us know what happens. I for one would certainly like to speed the process up somewhat.
Cheers Andy.
|
|
James
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since October 2003
Posts: 876
|
Post by James on May 3, 2004 14:15:11 GMT -5
I have a seperate barrel for each grit. I worry that the extra speed will cause the stones to crack during the later pre-polish and polish steps. Maybe it will be ok for harder rocks (agates etc...) but not for obsidian or moonstone.
If it dosen't damage the rocks, it should cut the whole project time by at least half.
|
|
Skipper
spending too much on rocks
Member since March 2003
Posts: 258
|
Post by Skipper on May 3, 2004 14:19:27 GMT -5
|
|