jamijr
having dreams about rocks
Member since April 2021
Posts: 59
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Post by jamijr on Jun 27, 2021 12:35:10 GMT -5
This is one of the three rocks my dad saved for me when he planted mom's lime tree and it just will not polish. I want to give it that "wet" look so the brown stripes that didn't show up until I started tumbling it to really pop. (Before that it just looked plain grey-black.) So far I've tried CPP powder, tin oxide, cerium oxide, burnishing with Ivory Soap, and even today tried car wax. Sorry if the images are a bit blurry, they turned that way when I cropped them. Also, I know it's still got some "flaws" in them but I've been tumbling it for awhile now. Not just the original grit stages, but then a week each in the different polishes. And yes, I use ceramic media in various sizes and shapes. I'm holding off on tumbling it again because I've ordered different polishes to try. On order I have Chrome Oxide Polishing, Super Cerium, aluminum oxide (TXP - Rock Tumbler Polish), and Titanium Oxide. I just want to make those brown stripes "pop" by giving it that wet look. It's so pretty when I first take it out of the tumbler and wash it off. But as it dries it goes back to being dull.
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Post by jasoninsd on Jun 27, 2021 16:38:10 GMT -5
I wish I had some suggestions for you as I believe this is one of those emotional rocks that need to be preserved and "dressed up" as best as it can be...but I'm still very much in the "learning stage" of all of this too. I'm wondering if it's one of those types of rocks that remain stubborn and just won't take a polish...
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Post by Rockindad on Jun 27, 2021 18:29:00 GMT -5
Hard to tell by the pictures but it looks coarse-grained. If that is the case it may never take a polish no matter what type you use. If you are open to it, an applied finish such as a clear shellac or epoxy could be used to give it the wet look and make it "pop". Just make sure to use a finish that will not yellow with time as some epoxies, shellacs and many other finishes will.
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jamijr
having dreams about rocks
Member since April 2021
Posts: 59
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Post by jamijr on Jun 28, 2021 10:31:14 GMT -5
Hard to tell by the pictures but it looks coarse-grained. If that is the case it may never take a polish no matter what type you use. If you are open to it, an applied finish such as a clear shellac or epoxy could be used to give it the wet look and make it "pop". Just make sure to use a finish that will not yellow with time as some epoxies, shellacs and many other finishes will. That's what I'm kind of worried about. It's got splotchy shine, some spots are shiny and others are dull. I've even been trying to research if it's safe to mix different polishes together but all I get is stuff about grit. I just want to know if I mix two or more polishes together in the tumbler if I'm going to get an ammonia and bleach situation.
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stefan
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2005
Posts: 14,095
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Post by stefan on Jun 28, 2021 16:20:17 GMT -5
No worries about mixing polishes, but I'm afraid that rock is just not going to progress much further. It looks like a course grained basalt,and just won't shine in a tumbler. You could try to polish it by hand (progressively finger sandpaper grits) or take a Dremel and a buff drum with some buffing compound.
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Post by rmf on Jun 28, 2021 19:47:50 GMT -5
That looks like it could be basalt or a metamorphic rock and it may not polish or poorly at best.
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jamijr
having dreams about rocks
Member since April 2021
Posts: 59
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Post by jamijr on Jun 29, 2021 10:47:35 GMT -5
No worries about mixing polishes, but I'm afraid that rock is just not going to progress much further. It looks like a course grained basalt,and just won't shine in a tumbler. You could try to polish it by hand (progressively finger sandpaper grits) or take a Dremel and a buff drum with some buffing compound. That's kind of what I was thinking. I might try to find a Dremel on sale as I don't want to have to borrow dad's. It's probably a landscaping rock from previous owners. The neighborhood where we live sprung up not long after WWII. Before there were homes here it was a military base/airport. While redoing the backyard a few years back dad even found part of an old cistern that the airforce just filled in with dirt when they were done with it. At some point one of the owners must've just had a ton of landscaping rocks instead of a yard because even after being in this house since I was about 3 years old (and I'm 44 now) we're still digging up old landscaping rocks, WWII era stuff like mess kits (that are too deteriorated to keep, sadly), old marbles, pieces of the landing strip for the airplanes, etc.
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