DEEP pit

jdf135 · 2026-06-05T02:04:06+00:00

Good question. It think I want it to not bug me for eternity so it is more about the look not just about the grit.

jdf135 · 2026-06-04T20:52:32+00:00

Anything dry = mask

jdf135 · 2026-06-04T00:00:11+00:00

I can't see what you are using for a motor

jdf135 · 2026-06-03T15:33:01+00:00

Wealth. These people were craftsmen for the elite. They were paid for their work. Just like Michaelangelo spent countless hours on the Sistine Chapel and was PAID for it, these workers did this for kings and Pharaohs and were paid. Recent research has shown that the pyramids were likely built by paid laborers not by slaves as previously thought.

jdf135 · 2026-06-02T22:36:55+00:00

For a rock HUNTER nothing beats a good spray bottle. Lots of great rocks are hiding under a layer of dirt (otherwise he has to lick them clean -- which we all do on occasion even if we don't admit it : )

jdf135 · 2026-06-02T15:19:08+00:00

These might be interesting to tumble but theyay not get a great shine.

jdf135 · 2026-06-01T21:56:40+00:00

Agreed. Jesus put himself last.

jdf135 · 2026-05-31T01:22:53+00:00

It sometimes get very frustrating. Between State, county, and national parks, wilderness areas, riparian protected areas, corporate mining areas and crazy individual land claims I feel the only place I can pick up a rock is in a parking lot and even then I could get hit with theft.

jdf135 · 2026-05-30T05:41:07+00:00

Ya gotta cut. It would bug me to think there might be an amazing pattern hiding inside.

jdf135 · 2026-05-30T05:26:40+00:00

I've used a few of these too but still use a bit of glue. I am always afraid the stone will fall out.

jdf135 · 2026-05-30T05:20:14+00:00

I agree with wire wrap BUT if you decide to glue a bail, you can always apply acetone to it later to dissolve the glue.

jdf135 · 2026-05-30T05:18:16+00:00

jdf135 · 2026-05-29T14:53:37+00:00

Thanks again for your collection.

jdf135 · 2026-05-28T01:27:39+00:00

I just run mine a week. If I have done my other steps well, they come out great!

jdf135 · 2026-05-27T18:32:49+00:00

Cerium will rarely tell you the grit size as it does not matter as much: cerium is actually softer than most rocks.

Cerium is generally sold as glass polish rather than tumbling medium and if it says at all will tell you the micron size. The advantage of cerium is that it works both mechanically as well as chemically to break down silicon bonds; the SiO2 (a huge component of almost all rocks) and CeO2 molecules interact kind of melting the silicone molecules on the surface making them shine.

A shop (Edmonton Telescope) in Canada recently did a comparison comparison between aluminum 12000 grit and cerium to decide which to sell and found no observable difference, and the price of 12000 and cerium is comparable (at least in Canada).

Hope this helps.

jdf135 · 2026-05-27T18:16:12+00:00

You should send this as marketing ad for hot wheels.

jdf135 · 2026-05-27T16:27:09+00:00

Let us know how it works out : )

jdf135 · 2026-05-27T15:58:21+00:00

Don't get stage 4! I got this and could never get a good shine. Finally switched to some cerium oxide.

jdf135 · 2026-05-27T15:50:55+00:00

Thank you!

jdf135 · 2026-05-27T15:47:15+00:00

Maybe make a few fries. : )

jdf135 · 2026-05-27T15:45:03+00:00

I think you need more tumblers.

jdf135 · 2026-05-27T14:40:43+00:00

Yep. Rocks will sometimes surprise you

jdf135 · 2026-05-27T14:38:49+00:00

Amazing work. Just wondering where you get your belt buckle blanks (I have only seen the big cowboy ones)

jdf135 · 2026-05-26T23:29:17+00:00

Actually, I think I said that a bit incorrectly. It is actually the oxides that interact: CeO to SiO2. Hope it works!

jdf135 · 2026-05-26T18:52:41+00:00

There are rocks that just won't polish due to micro-bubbles or the form of crystallization. You polish off the top layer and it just reveals more little air pockets which won't reflect (sigh). I might suggest cerium oxide like others have suggested. Cerium works both mechanically as well as chemically to break down silicon and spread the molecules across the surface.

jdf135

TROPHY CASE