Art Jewelry - Using a Tumbler to Polish Metal

Art Jewelry magazine associate editor Jill Erickson shares some tips on using a rotary tumbler with stainless steel shot to polish and harden metal. Visit www.artjewelrymag.com/howto for more information and videos.

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• harden
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• rotary
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[allybruce08]

can i use the tumbler to polish polymer clay?

[artjewelrymag]

@allybruce08 A short answer from Jilla from the Art Jewelry forum: Yes you can. Line the barrel of your tumbler with 400-600-grit wet/dry sandpaper, using two strips to make one long strip. Check the direction the barrel turns, and overlap the ends of the strips so the beads will go with the strips, not against. Tumble 2-3 hours per grit, then work your way up. This will make the beads smooth, NOT shiny. BUFFING will make them shiny.

[GYMAW]

Hi, I have a tumbler and I use it polish my handmade smooth-finished jewellery, after being in the tumbler for several hours, the pieces come out shiny but with small indents... how can I avoid this?

[artjewelrymag]

@GYMAW That could be due to the shape of your steel shot pieces. If they have sharp edges or ends, they can create small indents. They are like tiny hammers after all. You can buy different shapes of steel tumbling shot from jewelry supply companies. A more rounded shape of shot may help. Good luck!

[sonicfreak04]

is metal clay ceramic or actual metal?

[artjewelrymag]

@sonicfreak04 Metal clay is tiny particles of metal held together in a moldable organic binder. When you heat the dry, shaped clay hot enough, the binder burns away and the metal particles sinter together. So it's actual pure metal once it's been fired.

[aaaarrrgggghh]

@GYMAW don't use still but experiment with softer material, people even use crushed nut shells and whatever they have but ideally always softer material than the one you are polishing

[RadiantJasmin]

@artjewelrymag I recently bought one of these used without the directions, so I really appreciate this video! I just need to buy a new belt and I can get started tumbling :-)

[pyrotechnics100]

well first of all its not a rock tumbler its a ball mill used to crush rocks powder and make black powder but totally not for polishing metal

[RosaButton]

@junejay51 you use 1lb of shot for a 3lb tumbler.

[holistichabits]

Thanks for the tips! It answers a lot of my questions

[junejay51]

What size tumbler are you using, and how many pounds of shot? I'm getting ready to purchase these, and don't know how much shot to order for a 3 lb. tumbler.Thanks!