ES

Stone tumbling

· 1 min read · Techniques

Illustration: Stone tumbling

The tumbler spins stones with water and abrasive for days or weeks until they are rounded and polished. It is a simple way to get shiny pebbles.

Steps of the technique: Load the barrel, Rough, Medium grit, Fine grit, Pre-polish, Polish
Summary of the steps

Stages #

  1. Roughing with coarse silicon carbide (one to two weeks).
  2. Medium and fine grit.
  3. Pre-polish.
  4. Polish with cerium or aluminum oxide. Wash the stones and the barrel between stages.

Stones #

Quartzes, agates, jaspers and stones of similar hardness to each other (≥ 7 on Mohs work best). Do not mix very different hardnesses.

Result #

Rounded, shiny stones, ready to drill and mount as pendants.

Tips #

Fill the barrel to three quarters and do not let it run dry.

Step by step #

  1. Load the barrel. Stones of similar hardness, up to three quarters.
  2. Rough. Coarse carbide with water, one to two weeks.
  3. Medium grit. Clean the stones and repeat.
  4. Fine grit. Another week.
  5. Pre-polish. With very fine powder.
  6. Polish. With cerium or aluminum oxide.

Tools and materials #

  • Rotary tumbler
  • Silicon carbide of several grits
  • Cerium or aluminum oxide
  • Filler media (plastic pellets)

Common mistakes #

  • Mixing hardnesses: the softer wear away.
  • Not cleaning between stages.
  • Letting the barrel run dry.
  • Overfilling.

See also #

This entry was drafted with the help of AI and is pending review by the author.