1. Determine a location to operate. Rotary Tumblers are designed to operate 24 hours a day, for several weeks at a time. Choose a safe location that is accessible, but won't interfere with your daily activities. Do not operate in an outside location. The Barrels contain water, and if frozen, will cause the barrel to become unbalanced, which could cause the motor to overload and damage the unit.

2. Before the first use, and once a month thereafter, put a few drops of oil on the Driving Shaft bearings.

3. Check the V-Belt tension. It must be kept as loose as possible without allowing it to slip on the Pulley. Check before each use.

4. Make sure the exterior of the Rubber Barrel is clean so that it doesn't slip on the rollers. Wipe it with a soapy cloth, then wipe it clean with a damp cloth, and dry thoroughly. Do not use liquid cleaners of solvents.

5. Make sure that the Stop is lightly touching the Barrel Lid. This will prevent the Barrel Lid from rubbing against the housing and will reduce friction.

6. To open the Rubber Barrel, remove the Barrel from the unit and then remove the Knurled Nut and the Washer then remove the Barrel Lid (sometimes it's helpful to use the washer as a pry tool to remove the barrel lid).

You are now ready to select your rocks and load your barrel!!!

When selecting your rocks it is important to remember Golden Rule #1 "Garbage In Equals Garbage Out". To achieve a high quality result it is important to start with quality rough rock. Use your own judgement here and make notes in your log to learn from your experiences.

Rocks that are porous, should be discarded. They will not polish out to that high quality brilliant shine that you are looking for and may carry grit from one step to another, creating an issue with Golden Rule #2 "Avoid Contamination".

Rocks with fractures will most likely break while tumbling and scratch the other rocks in the batch. If you are able to break the rock at the fracture, the rock can still be used, otherwise it should be discarded.

To achieve the best result, the barrel should be loaded with rock of various sizes (1/4 inch up to 1 inch) and similar condition and hardness. Rocks with jagged edges will take longer than rocks without, thus both would have different processing times, same with hardness. By selecting rocks with similar condition and hardness, you are selecting rocks that have similar processing times.

Loading the Barrel

Make sure the barrel is clean before loading, remember Golden Rule #2 "Avoid Contamination". It is also imperative to load the Tumbler with the proper amount of materials, or the process will not be successful, and the motor could be damaged. An under loaded barrel will not lift rocks up the inner side walls allowing the cascading effect. Also, the abrasive material in an under loaded Tumbler will tend to form a slurry and will not be effective. An overloaded Tumbler will not allow the rocks to cascade. Lastly, too much water will cause the abrasives to float and not do their job.

Load the barrel from 2/3 to 3/4 full. More pointed or abrasive rocks or stones will require close to 3/4 full, leaving a 1/2 full barrel when it comes time to polish. If you don't have enough rock to fill the barrel 2/3 full, we recommend filling the remaining volume with plastic pellets.

Note: Make sure loaded barrel isn't over 3 lbs. An overloaded barrel may damage the motor.

Coarse: 4 Tbsp
Medium: 4 Tbsp
Pre-Polish: 4 Tbsp
Polish: 6 Tbsp
Burnish (Liquid Hand Soap): 1-2 Drops
Plastic Pellets (as needed to fill void and especially useful in polishing stages so rocks don't scratch each other).

Next, place the stones into a clean container or plastic bag. Fill the Rubber Barrels 1/2 full with water and clean out the remaining slurry and grit. Wipe and dry with a paper towel. To clean the stones, gently slosh them around in clean water and remove them a few at a time checking for breaks or cracks. Discard broken or cracked stones. Place the stones in a plastic colander, or old nylon sock and rinse them completely off. There should be no slurry or grit remaining on the stones.