Another Lortone question.

not sure if i mentioned in my other thread, I was given a Lortone, never used.
my question = The lid on the one i have been given sits at the top of the barrel. I have read some instructions somewhere on the web, that says place the lid just above the water and shot?
So, do i need to get another drum, one with an internal lid?

Is it a Lortone barrel? If so, it should have 2 parts: 1 that is part rubber and sits snuggly on a lip at the top of the barrel, then a metal lid that goes over that and screws in place.

Yep, that's what i have.
How long should I leave it tumbling?

anywhere from a quick 20 minutes to days on end, depending on what you're doing.

Most of my stuff ends up going on overnight.

If you're in a hard water area, don't use barrelbrite - it's rubbish unless you have soft water. The barrelling soap from Manchester Minerals works beautifully though.

Your barrel should never be more than a third full, including shot, whatever you're polishing, and water, or it won't be effective.

Right then, so I've got the right equipment. ok, i may just do a test rum, (ooppss that's Mooch over on anther thread talking about wine, got me thinking about alcohol) test run.
thanks gals

What you gonna be tumbling?

I mainly use mine for maille and, like George, will tumble it for hours. I love how smooth it gets.

I'll be putting a pair of earrings, 3cm long 1.50mm think and 2mm ish wide, that has a bezel setting half way-ish down.
a ring with bezel setting and a pendent, that is approx 5 x 2.5 cm, made of combined silver and 9ct gold. You can put gold in right?

Most metals are fine in the tumbler. I don't like the results on aluminium, and never put bronze in water.

You have to be careful with stones. As a general rule you can't tumble

• organics, like pearls or shell
  
• porous stones, like turquoise, emeralds, opals
  
• friable stones like kyanite, labradorite
  
• anything softer than steel (about 5.5) on the mohs scale

Other than that you're good to go.

I make a point of always tumbling finished pieces made with lampwork - glass is hard enough and if it's not strong enough to take tumbling, it's not good enough to sell. It's a great way of exposing any dodgy bumps or loose stringer.

Thanks George.
I think I'll pop the stones in after tumbling.

But I'd be very worried about putting glass beads in, but i'll give it a go, when I have my kiln, which seems to be getting further and further away. Never mind, I'll get there.

Cheers