Attempting to polish Thunderegg halves - Aiiiieeeeeee

[aimeesrockworks]

Oh boy, haven't posted in ages! But I've had time to lurk more lately and get my flat lap back out of it's box.

I finally got to hunt, dig, and cut my own Thundereggs (Whistler Springs, Ochoco's OR), HURRAH! And now I'm attempting to polish the halves on my All-U-Need Flat Lap. I got a baby half mostly ok- about the size of a quarter, at least I was happy enough with the finish to give it to my husband as a prize.

1) I feel like it's taking FOREVER to get past 320 grit (I have a mix of the original sandpaper-style and metal diamond disc's). My first round of the 80 does take a long time and I'm okay with that since I'm using a tile saw to cut by hand. Is it silly to assume that a larger egg will make the grind time go up exponentially??

2) I've gotten close to where I feel I can move on to the next grit a few times only to suddenly notice new deeper cuts by contamination. But it seems to happen at points where contamination shouldn't occur. Haven't changed the disc, it's the same water in the drip system, etc. The outer rind always seems so much softer than the centers but am I mistaken? Do I need to run the eggs through a tumbler or something to super-clean them first?

3) Am I nuts for using a flat lap to grind 2-3" wide Thundereggs? Or does someone need a new toy - aka Vibrating Flat Lap??


Really frustrated by this little task that I thought would be easy... since all I need is a flat surface, not a nice dome or such.


-Aimee

[Pat]

Oh, dear! Years ago we tried that using a vibrating flat lap. We didn’t know what we were doing. Seems like it has lots of steps like tumbling.

You must put a weight on each piece. Otherwise nothing happens.

Good luck!

I suspect we have some experts here. Hope they see your thread.

[fishnpinball]

Lots of luck. I polish small eggs in a tumbler but have not tried a flat lap or vibrating flat lap.

[aimeesrockworks]

I have some that I tossed in a tumbler too! I'm excited to see if they come out.

[Garage Rocker]

Oct 4, 2017 15:27:40 GMT -5 aimeesrockworks said:

I have some that I tossed in a tumbler too! I'm excited to see if they come out.

I've tumbled small egg halves and like them for something different.

Good luck! Let us know how yours turn out.

[roy]

the rougher the cut the longer it will take to get finished the 80 grit will leave deap scratches that take longer to smooth out the larger the surface area the longer it will take with a flat lap unless its of the vibrating kind cause then the entire surface is being ground at the same time

[pauls]

Sorry Aimee, but I think there's no easy answer. Perserverance is what it takes.

For people tumbling those little thunder egg halves, they make great turtles for kids.

[aimeesrockworks]

Oct 6, 2017 2:13:02 GMT -5 pauls said:

Sorry Aimee, but I think there's no easy answer. Perserverance is what it takes.

For people tumbling those little thunder egg halves, they make great turtles for kids.

Does "perseverance" = Rock Polishing Beer?

[Sabre52]

Yeah difficult if your saw leaves rough cut marks. I used to have one of those Richardson Rch high speed sanders. Sanded dry and had to use a vacuum and work outdoors as that is hazardous to your health. Got rid of that machine real fast. Polshed on a bull wheel which was a big slow 12" pad rig. Trick with the sanding wet or dry is to really keep the work piece moving in all directions and use a light touch so as not to just simply leave more scratches. Cross contamination can be a real problem too...Mel

[aimeesrockworks]

I had to get these 'done' (or at least as far as I could sanely get them) because I'm seeing the gal who collected them tonight. They're her first collected Thundereggs and the first ones I've attempted to polish on my All-U-Need.

Time for more practice!!

[woodman]

Time to invest in a Richardson Ranch high speed sander. It was made to do thundereggs. Along with their polisher that is.

[woodman]

Every thing you would need is in the photos.  My nice neat tidy uncluttered shop!!

[HankRocks]

Now that's more like it! My kind of work area.

[Fossilman]

I use my "Poly" and 8" wheels with sanding belts.. Still not what I'm looking for...It take the eggs to a shine,but not to where I want them to be...

[woodman]

Oct 16, 2017 9:12:26 GMT -5 Fossilman said:

I use my "Poly" and 8" wheels with sanding belts.. Still not what I'm looking for...It take the eggs to a shine,but not to where I want them to be...

After the sanding belts, I either use the polisher pad in photo or my polish machine.  both using cerium oxide as polish.

[Fossilman]

Oct 16, 2017 12:09:53 GMT -5 woodman said:

Oct 16, 2017 9:12:26 GMT -5 Fossilman said:

I use my "Poly" and 8" wheels with sanding belts.. Still not what I'm looking for...It take the eggs to a shine,but not to where I want them to be...

After the sanding belts, I either use the polisher pad in photo or my polish machine.  both using cerium oxide as polish.

That's my next step,a vibrating lap....Thumbs up

[aimeesrockworks]

Oct 15, 2017 17:45:08 GMT -5 woodman said:

Time to invest in a Richardson Ranch high speed sander. It was made to do thundereggs. Along with their polisher that is.

My 'shop' is my garage at home and it's not that big... I'm afraid of the dust with the Richardson's grinder. Someday I'll have a rock-shed again!!

[woodman]

Oct 16, 2017 14:48:19 GMT -5 aimeesrockworks said:

Oct 15, 2017 17:45:08 GMT -5 woodman said:

Time to invest in a Richardson Ranch high speed sander. It was made to do thundereggs. Along with their polisher that is.

My 'shop' is my garage at home and it's not that big... I'm afraid of the dust with the Richardson's grinder. Someday I'll have a rock-shed again!!

Dust is a problem with any dry sanding for sure. I always wear a good dust mask when using my bull wheel, but my flat lap is a wet so no dust during that stage.