Polishing gemstones and creating attractive jewelry is a fascinating and enjoyable pastime. With a few simple pieces of lapidary equipment, cutting and polishing becomes a pleasurable task. When fashioned into bracelets, necklaces and rings, some very saleable items can be created. These are ideal items for selling at fairs and markets.
The main piece of equipment is a tumbler. This consists of a barrel which may be lined with either rubber or plastic. Stones are placed in the barrel along with abrasive grit and lubricant. You can choose from either a rotary or vibratory model. The grit used is often silicon carbide and water is used as the lubricant. The tumbler is set at a predetermined speed. As the rocks and grit grind on each other, any roughness is smoothed over. The ultimate result depends on the coarseness of the grit and the length of time chosen to tumble the load.
The early tumblers were based on a rotary movement and this type is still used today. A barrel sits on two revolving parallel shafts. The barrel revolves, tumbling the stones inside. Rotary or barrel tumblers vary in size. Some have a capacity of only two to four pounds while commercial types will tumble much larger quantities. For hobbyists, it is false economy to buy the cheapest models. They are more likely to have maintenance problems. A good quality tumbler however will last for years.
The other type of tumbler, called the vibratory tumbler, has a gentler action. It shakes the stones around without the barrel revolving. The tumbling in both types begins with coarse abrasives. Progressively finer abrasives are used until there is a final polish to the end product.
Hobbyists tend to use the barrel or rotary tumbler. They are easy to load and can be allowed to operate without needing continual attention. This type can be slower to achieve the desired result although the time taken will depend on the grade of grit used and the hardness of the stone.
There are few moving parts on a vibrating tumbler so they tend to last for a very long time. They may be driven by a motor or by magnetic energy. Only the contents of the barrel are in motion. With this gentler motion, preformed shapes are in no danger of having the edges ground away to the point of losing sight of the shape. This is one benefit the vibrating tumbler has over the rotary type. The latter usually takes longer to produce the required result.
For greater flexibility, rotary units are available with twin barrels. This allows twice the quantity of stone to be polished at the one time. Alternatively, a different grit can be used in each barrel.
It can take between three and five weeks for rocks to be polished to the required standards. After being tumbled with a coarse grit, the stones are thoroughly rinsed before a finer grit is put in the barrel and the stones polished again. When the stones are at the required standard, a pre-polishing compound is used and eventually a final polish is applied. A tumbler is not the only piece of lapidary equipment needed by those who would like to expand their jewelry making skills. Saws, faceting machines and drills enable a creative craftsman to produce fascinating pieces of jewelry.
The main piece of equipment is a tumbler. This consists of a barrel which may be lined with either rubber or plastic. Stones are placed in the barrel along with abrasive grit and lubricant. You can choose from either a rotary or vibratory model. The grit used is often silicon carbide and water is used as the lubricant. The tumbler is set at a predetermined speed. As the rocks and grit grind on each other, any roughness is smoothed over. The ultimate result depends on the coarseness of the grit and the length of time chosen to tumble the load.
The early tumblers were based on a rotary movement and this type is still used today. A barrel sits on two revolving parallel shafts. The barrel revolves, tumbling the stones inside. Rotary or barrel tumblers vary in size. Some have a capacity of only two to four pounds while commercial types will tumble much larger quantities. For hobbyists, it is false economy to buy the cheapest models. They are more likely to have maintenance problems. A good quality tumbler however will last for years.
The other type of tumbler, called the vibratory tumbler, has a gentler action. It shakes the stones around without the barrel revolving. The tumbling in both types begins with coarse abrasives. Progressively finer abrasives are used until there is a final polish to the end product.
Hobbyists tend to use the barrel or rotary tumbler. They are easy to load and can be allowed to operate without needing continual attention. This type can be slower to achieve the desired result although the time taken will depend on the grade of grit used and the hardness of the stone.
There are few moving parts on a vibrating tumbler so they tend to last for a very long time. They may be driven by a motor or by magnetic energy. Only the contents of the barrel are in motion. With this gentler motion, preformed shapes are in no danger of having the edges ground away to the point of losing sight of the shape. This is one benefit the vibrating tumbler has over the rotary type. The latter usually takes longer to produce the required result.
For greater flexibility, rotary units are available with twin barrels. This allows twice the quantity of stone to be polished at the one time. Alternatively, a different grit can be used in each barrel.
It can take between three and five weeks for rocks to be polished to the required standards. After being tumbled with a coarse grit, the stones are thoroughly rinsed before a finer grit is put in the barrel and the stones polished again. When the stones are at the required standard, a pre-polishing compound is used and eventually a final polish is applied. A tumbler is not the only piece of lapidary equipment needed by those who would like to expand their jewelry making skills. Saws, faceting machines and drills enable a creative craftsman to produce fascinating pieces of jewelry.
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