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You don't need water only if you are dry polishing. Otherwise the amount of water is very small and has to be adjusted carefully.

Kudos to you for figuring out Special! 🙂 Both of them are new genes for me...I'm going to have to do my homework...

Yeah, I guess I should have been clearer and called the male used a Highway (Gravel/Yellowbelly). 🙂

Thanks! That is great to know! If I ever find the time to tinker around with it I will post my results in a video. 🙂

Thanks 🙂

Thanks! Septarian polish? Hahaha no, I know it is possible using a rotary tumbler. Something about the stones rubbing against each other can create a high shine. I would like to try it, but, I am temporarily shut down due to excessive electric bills from the company named Unitil which owns my electric lines and charges me 2-3X the cost of electricity in fees. The *average* electric bill in my area is $600/month.

I add sugar to increase the viscosity of the slurry and slow action down to decrease the chatter of the stones against each other. Adding water is standard when action slows down, but, I've found you can take some damage on startup. Sugar also does well as it will also clog pores and you can get 'cleaner' stones when you dissolve it out. I stopped using the plastic wrap because it got sucked in a few times. Ideally it protects the lid from shedding grit from previous batches into the mix and makes cleanup of easier (as well as retaining moisture). 🙂

@lordsorril3732 I will try the sugar! Heard of using it, but not in vibe@ thank u!!

Yes, I've found that if I run them too long the polish actually gets worse...🙃

@lordsorril3732 thank you!!!

Everything gets tumbled before the vibes. Those polypropylene bowls are tough, but, scratches add up. 🙂

Thanks@@lordsorril3732

Heya, I only use the UV-45 for the first stage of the polish process. For me that is 1 cup of #120 Aluminum Oxide on startup, 1 cup after 12 hours (adjust the moisture level), and then check every 12 hours for 1 or 2 more days before cleanout. I finish the stones using #220 AlOx in the UV-18, sometimes a #500 AlOx step, and then 0.2um AlOx polish. If any of your stones in the UV-45 have a sharp edge the weight of the batch will make them cut through the poly bowl-do make sure they are nice and rounded and not going to crack as it can cost you $$$. 🙂

@@lordsorril3732 awesome!!! Thank you very much for the response 😊

Aluminum Oxide 🙂

Yes, be wary of buying used units from the last year or two because I read there was an issue with some of the motors.

I rotary tumble anywhere from 3 weeks to 6 months (depending on the material). Larger stones have less surface area and so imperfections take longer to grind out and may expose new ones in the process. I go low on the grit in my UV-45, if the slurry binds then you can easily crack your stones and risk damaging the bowl (which I have done). Much less of an issue on smaller vibes imo. 🙂

@@lordsorril3732 I'm really enjoying my Extreme Rebel 17 rotary tumbler for that 1st step. It does a better job in less time than the smaller barrel machines I have.

@@LemonySnicket-EUC I have heard good things about the Rebel 17s. They came on the market (better priced) after I bought my Lortone QT12s.

Thanks for the info! Yes, too much of it in one spot gets thick and muddy, like cement that never dries. I've found that in sandy areas where nothing will grow that a moderate amount of it retains enough moisture to establish clover.

@@BT-kf4kx Do you think it would work with my Lot-o. Dose it improve the shine?

Sugar will increase the viscosity of the fluid and allow smaller size grit to stick to the rocks better. A Lot-O works a little bit different than a UV-18, not certain if it gives you an advantage in one of those...

@@lordsorril3732 It’s something I could try I’m not scared to do that.

Sounds like fun! I could regale with you the tales like the time I tried to tumble a really expensive 3lb. rough blue/red sapphire (corundum), or the time a contractor mistakenly stepped into my grit discard pit and sank down to his thigh...and then came inside to clean off and saw my pets and then passed out. Ahhh good times...

Lol thanks, I got the undrilled bead glass from Fire Mountain Gems, you can find it in their search under Component Cane glass mix. It goes on sale frequently, so I don't recommend paying full price.

No Worries! I have no secrets and the worst questions are the ones that are not asked. If anyone gives you trouble, I will erase their comments ;-) Originally I was using pre-rounded quartz gravel as small media in my vibe tumbler, but, I switched to ceramic pellets 3/8" x 5/8" (again pre-rounded in a rotary) because I have more money than time. The gravel shrinks faster than the ceramic media, and when they get too small they crack and break and scratch the rocks--so they have to be replaced periodically before that happens. I only use Aluminum Oxide as grit in the vibe. I use three stages: #120, #500, and Polish. (The larger the # the smaller the grit). Usually Aluminum Oxide is white, but, it can come in a variety of colors all fairly equally effective. I use a brown variant for my #500 because I was able to buy 100lbs of it relatively cheap on Ebay at one point. Thanks for the likes! If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask. I love talking about rocks-lol...