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Started By
Message
1
Posted on 7/15/25 at 10:04 am to Bjorn Cyborg
quote:
What is the purpose of the hobby?
To get shiny, collectible rocks?
It is about the hunt and the process. There are two different types of enjoyment. Rock hounds go out hunting rocks in areas known for certain rocks/minerals, they're into geology and the outdoor aspect of the hobby. After they find the raw goods they tumble, cut, polish, etc. Some pieces are specimen grade, others are used for jewelry and such.
There are some good YouTube channels out there about it. I like Dan Hurd because he just seems like a pleasant dude to be around and his videos are always interesting.
This post was edited on 7/15/25 at 10:09 am
Posted on 7/15/25 at 10:12 am to LegendInMyMind
Do you make jewelry or sell them?
Posted on 7/15/25 at 10:23 am to bad93ex
We did tumbling when one of my sons was 8-9. We bought the tumbler and got bags of rock samples from a monthly trip to a trade days at our nearby state park. Lots of people with hobbies would have booths set up there.
We kept the tumbler in the basement and could still hear it from upstairs. We got used to it though. It was lots of fun for a couple of years.
This led into hunting geodes to crack them open with a pipe cutter to reveal beautiful interiors. That’s another story.
We kept the tumbler in the basement and could still hear it from upstairs. We got used to it though. It was lots of fun for a couple of years.
This led into hunting geodes to crack them open with a pipe cutter to reveal beautiful interiors. That’s another story.
Posted on 7/15/25 at 10:27 am to bad93ex
Depends on what you are looking for..
As op said one at harbor freight .. not so much for rocks as is for cleaning metal etc..
The National Geographic one is solid as I recall.. but there are a few with different features.
Go onto Amazon.. look for a few key things.. you want the tumbling container to be lined with a rubber sleeve . Will feel like a bicycle tube. This prevents wear on cylinder.. but much more important it reduces tumbling noise…
Look for ones with a good top also.. padded..
Some have little plastic covers that drop over the tumbler ( hard to describe).. it basically attempts to cover the machine to help reduce noise more.. they will tell you the expected decibel of the tumbler as it is working.. they can be noisy.. even if in the garage .. pay attention to the decibel ratings.
online there are tons of professional and hobby distributors..
He may want to get a dual tumbler.. this allows him to run two batches at same time and he may be at stage coarse grit on one and fine grit on the other.. you have to go through the stages and it takes times so a dual produces more product..
Look for interest stuff around the ground but tbh you can buy them online at big distributors.. and buy “batches”…. Jasper.. amethyst.. petrified wood.. mystery mix etc..
Have fun .. I loved rocks ( minerals more) and had a tumbler as a kid.. I ended up getting a geology degree when I grew up..
As op said one at harbor freight .. not so much for rocks as is for cleaning metal etc..
The National Geographic one is solid as I recall.. but there are a few with different features.
Go onto Amazon.. look for a few key things.. you want the tumbling container to be lined with a rubber sleeve . Will feel like a bicycle tube. This prevents wear on cylinder.. but much more important it reduces tumbling noise…
Look for ones with a good top also.. padded..
Some have little plastic covers that drop over the tumbler ( hard to describe).. it basically attempts to cover the machine to help reduce noise more.. they will tell you the expected decibel of the tumbler as it is working.. they can be noisy.. even if in the garage .. pay attention to the decibel ratings.
online there are tons of professional and hobby distributors..
He may want to get a dual tumbler.. this allows him to run two batches at same time and he may be at stage coarse grit on one and fine grit on the other.. you have to go through the stages and it takes times so a dual produces more product..
Look for interest stuff around the ground but tbh you can buy them online at big distributors.. and buy “batches”…. Jasper.. amethyst.. petrified wood.. mystery mix etc..
Have fun .. I loved rocks ( minerals more) and had a tumbler as a kid.. I ended up getting a geology degree when I grew up..
Posted on 7/15/25 at 10:29 am to bad93ex
I noticed Harbor Freight has one. It does look pretty beefed up though. I've never used it.
My kids toyed with one a few years back which I though was pretty cool.
My kids toyed with one a few years back which I though was pretty cool.
Posted on 7/15/25 at 10:31 am to Bjorn Cyborg
quote:
Do you make jewelry or sell them?
I don't. I've never gotten into it more than going on the occasional hunt with a friend. The folks I know who are into it are part of a local rockhound club that share hunt locations and equipment and such. It seems like a cool community, but I've just never gotten into it that deeply despite an interest.
This post was edited on 7/15/25 at 10:32 am
Posted on 7/15/25 at 10:45 am to bad93ex
Don't buy coarse grit. It's a massive rip off. Just throw any sand in there and it works just as good. Just buy the finishing grits.
Thumblers tumbler model b will last more than a lifetime. Its a rotary tumbler so it takes longer than the vibration tumblers but literally the only thing that can go wrong is the belt.
Thumblers tumbler model b will last more than a lifetime. Its a rotary tumbler so it takes longer than the vibration tumblers but literally the only thing that can go wrong is the belt.
Posted on 7/15/25 at 10:55 am to bad93ex
I know its 6 hours away but mount ida arkansas has lots of mines for quartz crystal. Everyone there is looking for perfectly formed and undamaged crystals so there is tons of polishing material to be found.
I'd recommend wegners crystal mine. The shop has a massive collection of tumbled stones and some incredible specimens. Most kids really love the mine tours. Safari truck up a mountain to a mine site to collect your own stuff.
I mined there for 10 years so if you have any questions just ask. Do not go until it cools off lol
I'd recommend wegners crystal mine. The shop has a massive collection of tumbled stones and some incredible specimens. Most kids really love the mine tours. Safari truck up a mountain to a mine site to collect your own stuff.
I mined there for 10 years so if you have any questions just ask. Do not go until it cools off lol
Posted on 7/15/25 at 11:03 am to bad93ex
It starts as polishing rocks
It ends with him polishing poles
It ends with him polishing poles
Posted on 7/15/25 at 11:07 am to Tr33fiddy
quote:
I know its 6 hours away but mount ida arkansas has lots of mines for quartz crystal. Everyone there is looking for perfectly formed and undamaged crystals so there is tons of polishing material to be found.
We drive through Arkansas a few times a year and that would actually be a cool stop along the way to get a hotel and go after some rocks. By chance, is it a dry county?
Posted on 7/15/25 at 11:41 am to bad93ex
quote:
By chance, is it a dry county?
It's a dry county so it's best to bring your own.
Posted on 7/15/25 at 11:43 am to bad93ex
Posted on 7/15/25 at 11:43 am to Kracka
quote:
I bought a cheap national geographic kit off amazon for my son when he was 7-9 years old.
I bought that same kit for myself a few years ago. It got the rocks smooth but not shiny. I think my rocks were all too similar in size. I read that you need all different sizes for it to work properly.
Posted on 7/15/25 at 11:45 am to bad93ex
Just to be clear the quartz crystal is a mineral not a rock :)
“Naturally occurring inorganic homogeneous solid with definite chemical composition and order atomic structure..”
“Naturally occurring inorganic homogeneous solid with definite chemical composition and order atomic structure..”
Posted on 7/15/25 at 11:49 am to Tr33fiddy
quote:
I know its 6 hours away but mount ida arkansas has lots of mines for quartz crystal.
Just went to the Ron Coleman mine a month ago. We found some small clear single point quartz, a few doubles, some rocks with cool little quartz crystals sticking out, and a ton of rough chunks of quartz. Very hot, very sunny. Lots of red clay but we really liked it. I made a necklace for my son to give his gf out of one of the clear ones.
Posted on 7/15/25 at 11:51 am to bad93ex
quote:
By chance, is it a dry county?
Tons of bars if you stay in Hot Springs.
Posted on 7/15/25 at 12:07 pm to Slevin7
I got the National Geographic one for the kid a while back. The barrel is actually durable rubber so it's super quiet.
You should try making sea glass. Put some broken bottle pieces in there with grit. It comes out really cool...like what you might find at the beach. Thicker glass (champagne bottles) work better.
You should try making sea glass. Put some broken bottle pieces in there with grit. It comes out really cool...like what you might find at the beach. Thicker glass (champagne bottles) work better.
Posted on 7/15/25 at 1:21 pm to bad93ex
I was into rockhounding and polishing for a while. I'm about to box up my tumblers and other stuff and sell it soon. Fun hobby.
Find any creek in your area with gravel beds and look for interesting specimens.
The harbor freight tumblers are great starter/intermediate tumblers. I have a few.
You can patch the tumbler you have with a bicycle tire patch, assuming it is the rubber barrel.
Find any creek in your area with gravel beds and look for interesting specimens.
The harbor freight tumblers are great starter/intermediate tumblers. I have a few.
You can patch the tumbler you have with a bicycle tire patch, assuming it is the rubber barrel.
Posted on 7/15/25 at 1:26 pm to bad93ex
last summer i managed to push a very large rock off the top a mountain in Colorado. Huge rock that took me a while to get it rocking to turn over and start its descent. The sound it made crashing through trees and everythign else on its way down to the river bed was awesome. It obliterated everything in its path and then when it reached the river bed of rocks it split in two after hitting a much larger rock. It was awesome. Should have videoed it. Yes i was more than aware that there was no people or animals any where near its path. I was in the middle of the woods and knew there wasnt' another human being within a mile of me, and i could clearly see all the way down to the river bed where the path of this rock went.
That's my rock tumbling story.
That's my rock tumbling story.
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