We had these done for us by our gem cutters - not really a job for the hobbyist unless they are really keen. You need to use a vibe tumbler as rotary tumblers are just way too slow. Grind and polish with diamond rather than the usual silicon carbide grit and oxide polishes. You can use lower grade diamond rather than the expensive faceting grade diamond but still more expensive than standard tumbling consumables. Even then, the process is pretty slow.
We get asked regularly by customers about tumbling sapphire - we usually try and talk people out of it
They do come up nice though.
cheers
Leah
