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Author Topic: Question re tumbling with 80 grit for more than one week  (Read 1098 times)

Rock gal

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Question re tumbling with 80 grit for more than one week
« on: January 19, 2025, 02:08:18 PM »
Hi all 🙃

I have some more imperfect rocks which need that extra time in step 1 80 grit.

So far they have been tumbling for 8 days with the same grit. I have checked them and there are still plenty of imperfections that I want to smooth out. As the rocks are on the larger side I do have room for loss of volume so keen to tumble them longer.

Do I clean everything off and new grit at this point? How many days will the grit generally last before it is 'used' or becomes ineffective?

Cheers for any advice 😎

Bucket

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Re: Question re tumbling with 80 grit for more than one week
« Reply #1 on: January 19, 2025, 07:25:25 PM »
Hi again Roc gal. If you're after a quicker way of getting rid of imperfections from stones is to physically grind them away with a course grinding wheel. This is where a Lapidary Club could come in handy. You can try tumbling them away, but for some it will take ages with a number of grit changes. When tumbling, the grit takes a layer off all the stone (imperfections included) so you may never get rid of pits and high points as the entire stone will just get smaller. The same goes for chips and the like. Those that want better finishes at our club, spend a little time (and that may mean just an hour or less) at the grinding wheels before putting them in the tumbler.
Common sense isn't exactly common

Rusted

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Re: Question re tumbling with 80 grit for more than one week
« Reply #2 on: January 20, 2025, 04:15:44 PM »
Don't bother with a clean out, just add extra grit once a week and you will be sweet, If the rocks are getting to the right shape stop adding extra grit and just let the grit break down  to finer by itself and you can short cut a couple of stages.

Rock gal

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Re: Question re tumbling with 80 grit for more than one week
« Reply #3 on: January 21, 2025, 12:39:30 AM »
Thanks for your advice / tips Bucket and Rusted!  Added to the memory bank.  :)


 

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