We have tumbled some very fine batches of rocks, and have also (s)tumbled along the way so we are sharing our rock tumbling advice with the world.
Here are our tips and observations on rock tumbling best practices:
- We use an MJR Tumbler with a 20 lb barrel. The 20 lb barrel allows us to tumble large (fist size) rocks. Ours has worked great for 5 years, and while we do keep it cleaned, and oiled per the MJR instructions, the maintenance is easy, and it’s how we tumble LARGE ROCKS!
- We use 4 stages of tumbling grit, one week each = coarse grit, fine grit, pre-polishing, then polishing.
- We also BURNISH! Burnishing is when you tumble the stones in an ivory bar soap flakes bath for 2 days. We always have foggy stones after the last polish, but then the burnishing process removes any films, and lets the polished surface shine. It really makes a big difference and we have never not had to do it. So our time for tumbling is 4 weeks and 2 days.
- Not for any metaphysical or spiritual reason, but just because it is cool, we try to collect rain water and use rain water for our tumbler. It is not easy, but if we are going to tumble and storms are coming, we collect as much rain water as we can in 5 gallon buckets. Some people use distilled and filtered water to ensure no particles at all are present, but if you can collect rain water, it adds a nice touch and a great story.
- If you have questions about our MJR Tumbler (https://mjrtumblers.com/), or the stones we use, or anything at all, please contact us for further rock tumbling advice or rockhounding questions.
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