Tumbling Rocks!

One of the things I picked up again when we started Shadoe Stones that I have loved my entire life is rock tumbling. It is not a fast process but the results are often unexpected and stunning.  After we have moved I will go ahead and take you through the process with rough stones so that you can see what happens and how long it can take, but for now let me lay a little knowledge on you.

First off here is a kit for a beginner that I can recommend.  While the price looks steep, please remember that we are talking about a system that is throwing rocks around the inside of it for close to a month or even more through all of the stages.  You are going to want something that can hold up to it. On top of that this is a kit with the "polishing" compounds needed to make the rocks look good too.

One thing to remember when either purchasing or finding your rough rocks to tumble is how "hard" they are. If you have ever heard that diamond is the "sharpest" rock there is, then you have a basic start on the "Mohs Scale." A stone's Mohs number tells you how fragile it is. You should tumble stones in the same basic range together. One of the wonderful parts of tumbling is watching a rough stone turn into a polished tumbled stone. Tumbling breaks off the parts that aren't the specific stone you are working for and turns those into more grist for the mill.

A great way to find the Mohs number for stones is to look it up here where they also show you how to test an unknown stone for what it's number is. Where do you order stones to tumble? Ebay is a good source if you are interested in small batches or you can simply look outside.  If you start wanting to tumble larger quantities I would recommend finding a local rock hound club and letting them help you with finding local stones.  You can start your search for local groups to help you or your children here.

We will revisit tumbling after the move when I have my area set up.  Remember that stones lay around forever so this is a hobby that takes time and requires patience. Please visit Patreon if you love what I do so I can keep doing it!