Rock hounds, polishers,lapidary types. Step on in.

[Boss]

I just started this hobby. I'm finding it addicting. I wanted to guage how much interest might be here on Irate so I don't have to deal with fag book. Anyone?

 

[Grnd93]

My grandfather was into it. Still have a lot of his stuff in the basement

 

[Takotruckin]

My 5 year old is a raccoon and picks up anything remotely shiny, and every rock he can. They got a rock tumbler for Christmas and I didn’t realize just how long it takes to polish rocks 😬.

 

[Boss]

My grandfather was into it. Still have a lot of his stuff in the basement

That shit is worth some money. Do some research if you plan on selling it. That is unless you want to pick up the hobby then keep it.
Polished some of my mom's favorite rocks
And this petrified wood i had with a harbor freight tumbler and poly plastics media from Amazon. Now I'm addicted.
These are dry btw

 

[Boss]

My 5 year old is a raccoon and picks up anything remotely shiny, and every rock he can. They got a rock tumbler for Christmas and I didn’t realize just how long it takes to polish rocks 😬.

Yes, it takes a specific frame of mind to enjoy the rewards. Now for me at least, it's just something that makes noise in the background and produces surprises every weekend.

I had to get organized real fast. I got polishing figured out now. I just need to figure out rock hounding. I have no clue what I'm looking for or where to look.

 

[Byro]

The old lady has been silversmithing for years now. She just got a trim saw and a Cab King. I’m into it, I’ll whip up a few cabs if I have a spare minute. Cab King is pricey, flat laps can be had for pretty inexpensive and is enough to get your feet wet.

 

[ThePanzerFuhrer]

I am constantly looking at rock. I don’t collect anything because if I did it would be everywhere. I do pick up large interesting ones to toss in the yard landscaping. Got one that has a few chunks of copper in it.

Next summer I’ll start picking the ones that would be cool looking to polish and could drop them into a flat rate box for you. There is a lot of petrified coral in my stone .

 

[Roc Doc]

My 5 year old is a raccoon and picks up anything remotely shiny, and every rock he can. They got a rock tumbler for Christmas and I didn’t realize just how long it takes to polish rocks 😬.

Same here. Days, lots of days.

Got one for my wife and it runs and runs and runs. Grandpa had one he made out of an old 120v motor with a pully and drum on rollers, and I still remember how loud that fucking thing was. The one I got for my wife is much quieter.

 

[deadmeat]

I started in High School and my dad really got into it.

I stopped
When he passed he a a lot of petrified wood, he loved it.
Branch pieces, not just slabs for working.

I couldn't find anybody who wanted it when he passed, it ended up selling with his house.
I did keep a box with some of the raw slabs he had when he passed.

 

[Boss]

The old lady has been silversmithing for years now. She just got a trim saw and a Cab King. I’m into it, I’ll whip up a few cabs if I have a spare minute. Cab King is pricey, flat laps can be had for pretty inexpensive and is enough to get your feet wet.

Yeah I've seen those from 1500 to 10 grand. Used, broken and missing parts under 1k used and working, fucked up stones around 1500.

If I get that into it I'd probably just go new. I'm hoping I don't.

 

[Rustymofo]

Took my son down to Tucson last weekend for one of the gem and mineral shows that I grew up going to every year. The main event is this weekend, it’s definitely worth a visit if you’ve never been.

Opal is my favorite. Bought this chunk of rough Ethiopian opal last Sunday. Have a couple of other smaller cabs (Australian black and Mexican fire) I’ll have to snap pics of.

 

[Bogus One]

We're re-doing the flooring in the house. Existing is shitty Pergo, but they had these cool "pebble stone" transitions between rooms. Couldn't find a similar product for the new flooring.
Wife got an idea: Petrified Wood
She cut pieces on my wet saw and polished. We actually just did the first install last night, Still needs some clean-up and "grout", but I think it's going to look cool.

 

[Drummer79]

Yes, it takes a specific frame of mind to enjoy the rewards. Now for me at least, it's just something that makes noise in the background and produces surprises every weekend.

I had to get organized real fast. I got polishing figured out now. I just need to figure out rock hounding. I have no clue what I'm looking for or where to look.

watch Shawshank Redemption. Andy was a rock hound

 

[Boss]

Same here. Days, lots of days.

Got one for my wife and it runs and runs and runs. Grandpa had one he made out of an old 120v motor with a pully and drum on rollers, and I still remember how loud that fucking thing was. The one I got for my wife is much quieter.

There are 4 stages. The first stage (course grit) takes 1 week or more, depending on the imperfections your trying to lose. Stage 2 (medium grit) takes 1 full week to lose the couse grit scratches. Stage 3 (pre polish about a 500 grit) 1 full week to lose the medium grit scratches. Stage 4 (polish 8000 grit or so) takes 1 full week. So one or more months for one batch.

 

[Boss]

We're re-doing the flooring in the house. Existing is shitty Pergo, but they had these cool "pebble stone" transitions between rooms. Couldn't find a similar product for the new flooring.
Wife got an idea: Petrified Wood
She cut pieces on my wet saw and polished. We actually just did the first install last night, Still needs some clean-up and "grout", but I think it's going to look cool.

That's beautiful

 

[GonPostal]

My kids got into rock tumbling when they were about 12 (30 years ago). It was fun for them and results were impressive.

I still have that rock tumbler and the grits. I'm going to introduce that hobby to my grand kids now....

 

[billybob_81067]

Got a tumbler for my daughter's birthday that is coming up next week. Good to know we're in for a long haul wait and lots of noise! Where do you guys source your polishing grit? Any tips on tumbling to make it work better or not suck so much?

I bought the 3lb tumbler from vevor. Had pretty good reviews and looked better built than some of the other units out there. Price was very reasonable too.

VEVOR Rock Tumbler Kit 3lb Rock Polisher Rough Gemstones 4 Polishing Grits | eBay

Beltless Grinding: Indulge in a luxurious stone polishing experience with the patented dual-axis motor of the VEVOR rock tumbler kit! Its 60db low noise and overload protection promise long-lasting rock polishing performance while relieving you from the wear and tear of tumbler belts and...

www.ebay.com

 

[Grnd93]

That shit is worth some money. Do some research if you plan on selling it. That is unless you want to pick up the hobby then keep it.
Polished some of my mom's favorite rocks
And this petrified wood i had with a harbor freight tumbler and poly plastics media from Amazon. Now I'm addicted.
These are dry btw

I think most of his setup was home made, but I would like to try pass it on to someone who might get some use out of it.

 

[Takotruckin]

There are 4 stages. The first stage (course grit) takes 1 week or more, depending on the imperfections your trying to lose. Stage 2 (medium grit) takes 1 full week to lose the couse grit scratches. Stage 3 (pre polish about a 500 grit) 1 full week to lose the medium grit scratches. Stage 4 (polish 8000 grit or so) takes 1 full week. So one or more months for one batch.

Yep. We just switched our first batch out to the polish. We started with the stones that came with the tumbler. The boys are excited for next weekend when they can load up stones that they found.

 

[Boss]

Got a tumbler for my daughter's birthday that is coming up next week. Good to know we're in for a long haul wait and lots of noise! Where do you guys source your polishing grit? Any tips on tumbling to make it work better or not suck so much?

I bought the 3lb tumbler from vevor. Had pretty good reviews and looked better built than some of the other units out there. Price was very reasonable too.

VEVOR Rock Tumbler Kit 3lb Rock Polisher Rough Gemstones 4 Polishing Grits | eBay

Beltless Grinding: Indulge in a luxurious stone polishing experience with the patented dual-axis motor of the VEVOR rock tumbler kit! Its 60db low noise and overload protection promise long-lasting rock polishing performance while relieving you from the wear and tear of tumbler belts and...

www.ebay.com

Stay away from any grit that don't tell you what it is. This is a good one and what I used after trying shit that didn't work.
The ceramic filler can be found on Amazon by the bucket.

I buy in bulk now because I don't see this ending soon. The Rock Shed is the go to for that.

Large VIBRATORY Grit Pack - The Rock Shed

Large Combination Grit Pack for Vibratory Tumblers Our loyal customers have asked for this large combination pack of commonly used vibratory tumbler grits. The convenient combination pack includes: 10 lbs of 120-220 medium grit (stage 1) 5 lbs of 500 Aluminum Oxide (pre-polish) 5 lbs...

www.rockshed.com

There is a good youtude channel called Michigan rocks that shows you the proper tech. I'll find it and post up.

 

[Boss]

This guy.

 

[Boss]

Yep. We just switched our first batch out to the polish. We started with the stones that came with the tumbler. The boys are excited for next weekend when they can load up stones that they found.

Harbor freight has a dual 3lb tumbler. Around 60 each. 50 on sale. I got 2 so I have more stages going at time. This way you have some appreciation for each stage and you can move finished rocks ahead and keep others behind.

 

[Smithy]

I collect yooperlites and crystals when I spot them in the wild

 

[guy in Idaho]

OP....

From Crescent City going north up along the Oregon coast there are quite a few places for agates.

Agate Hunting 101: A Beach Guide to Finding Oregon's Best Hidden Gemstones


You can also search along the pebble strewn edges of rivers ....like the Rogue river or Umpqua/Smith river.

Take a trip up to Hood river and check out a mile or so upstream from where it dumps into the Columbia.

Early summer to fall is better for the rivers to see what the spring melt has left on the banks for you to find.

You will need a large/small shovel, some buckets, and screens to sort the rocks.

It's best to use a walmart/similar folding beach cart to drag your gear around.

 

[Boss]

I am constantly looking at rock. I don’t collect anything because if I did it would be everywhere. I do pick up large interesting ones to toss in the yard landscaping. Got one that has a few chunks of copper in it.

Next summer I’ll start picking the ones that would be cool looking to polish and could drop them into a flat rate box for you. There is a lot of petrified coral in my stone .

I'm very interested in this. PM me when you ready and we can arrange it. I can even send you back some polished back as payment or just reimburse you or both.

 

[buzzbombxj]

We do some rock hounding, haven't polished in a while. We mostly buy at shows, and on vacation as we pass through towns that have rock shops. Our house was decorated like a natural history museum, (but with way better samples). Currently at the rental we are in we have crystal beds, amethysts, and petrified wood scattered around, quartz and geodes in the hall bath, a big ammonite in the walk in closet, and underwater themed fossils in the master bath (megalodon tooth, clam, sand dollar, fish, more ammonites, etc.) My fridge magnets are all Rocks too. Yes, I am an autist.

 

[Yota Up]

Good thread. Daughter got a tumbler for Christmas and we haven't put it to work yet. She's always bringing home rocks from camping trips and it would be nice to sort out which ones are good. Our kit came with one serving of the media so hoping for cheap links on Amazon for more.

 

[Boss]

Good thread. Daughter got a tumbler for Christmas and we haven't put it to work yet. She's always bringing home rocks from camping trips and it would be nice to sort out which ones are good. Our kit came with one serving of the media so hoping for cheap links on Amazon for more.

I can tell you this stuff works. I tried the nat Geo shit and it won't give you the shine that this stuff does. Not sure what machine you have. Just pay attention to the grits.

 

[Quick & Dirty]

I'm not a proper rockhound, just a casual interest, picking up interesting rocks. I have a couple fossils, native copper, obsidian.

 

[Boss]

Here is what's important. The grit. Silicon carbide for the course grit and aluminum oxide for the polish.

Step one

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

I have an 8000 aluminum oxide grit I haven't tried yet but the 1200 works fine and was used on the rocks I posted earlier.