Ahh ok, it sounds like thats what the problem could be, its just a little worrying as the barrel washer is my most expensive piece of equipment! I'll try it out and get back to you, thanks for the help!
Ahh ok, it sounds like thats what the problem could be, its just a little worrying as the barrel washer is my most expensive piece of equipment! I'll try it out and get back to you, thanks for the help!
It could be that the rods that turn have just become a bit too shiny and therefore slippy. They need some friction to help them to turn the barrel. When this happens I just wrap a little masking tape around the rod and it gives enough grip to turn the barrel. You just need to wrap it the right way or it will just unwrap and stick to the barrel stopping it form turning again!
Hope this helps
J.
Su' xx
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Could someone please explain what the fins on a barrel polisher are. And which is best for silver, rubber lidded or metal lidded barrel polisher?
And is there a guide to what stones will survive barrelling?
Some barrels have extra bits of rubber inside to help things tumble (bit like the ridges in a washing machine drum).
I like a rubber inner lid, with a metal lid on top.
Anything over 5.5 (stainless steel) on the mohs scale should be OK. Not porous stones obviously.
Thanks for that info.
Hi Wendy...It might be worth you looking at this 'nooks and crannies' thread...it came up with a few ideas for reaching those parts you just can't reach!!
http://www.cooksongold.com/forum/showthread.php?t=143
Hi Guys, I bought a toy rock tumbler on ebay for £20. I use it with Steel Shot, water and a squirt of washing up liquid to tumble pickled silver and Silver Art Clay pieces. It works very well indeed.
Hello. I've got a Manchester Minerals barrel polisher (unused - my husband got it for me for tumbling stones which I've never got around to doing) but didn't realise that I could use it for silver. So this post has been invaluable, thanks. I will have to get a barrel for metals as the ones I've got don't have vanes.
My question is, how long do you leave it working and can you put in more than one piece of silver at one time?
Thanks
Cheryl
Hi Cheryl and welcome to the forum!
You don't actually need vanes/fins for barrelling - though a rubber barrel is much less noisy.
You can put in as many pieces as you like as long as you don't overfill. I aim for no more than a third full including shot, silver and water.
Polishing time varies. For a quick wash and brush up, 20 minutes is fine. I happily leave mine running overnight if needed, but on average two to four hours seems to do the trick.
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