The following are a number of sources I have found useful for the beginning (and also for the not-so-novice) rock tumbler. They share a number of things in common but also often have their own unique ideas or pieces of advice. (I will add to this List as I become aware of more sources).
1) RockTumbler.com “Rock Tumbler Instructions” – A reasonably detailed set of illustrated instructions. This site is based in USA and is the commercial site of a rock tumbler gone into business. It is noted that the owners of this site “publish what we believe is the largest library on the web of articles, videos and blog posts about tumbled stones and rock tumbling”. It is a mine of information – like stumbling upon a whole beach of colourful and already-rounded stones.
2) Alan Silverstein’s site “Collected Information on Rock Tumbling” – Sections on “Quick Start (Rotary Tumbling)” (updated 2008) and “More Detailed Advice on Rotary Tumbling” (updated 2011) – A no-frills but very informative set of instructions and advice. Alan is a software engineer from Colorado, USA.
3) Steve Hart’s book, “Modern Rock Tumbling” (first published 2008) – This whole book is full of useful information and advice on rock tumbling. The middle part of Chapter three is on “Understanding the 4-Stage Rock Tumbling Process”. Available from Steve himself and from all good online book sellers for about US$25.
4) “Professional Gemstone Tumbling” by Lortone (2011) – This is the 21-page booklet that came with my Lortone tumbler when I bought it. It is a set of basic reasonably-sound instructions, a very good starting point. I have not come across a copy of this online anywhere. Note that it is different from the “Rotary Tumbler Instructions and Parts List” that also came with the tumbler and is available online on Lortone’s website.
5) Lortone’s Instruction Videos – These consist of “How to fill a Lortone barrel” and three videos of how to change a drive belt on different Lortone tumblers.
6) “Rotary Tumbling Guide” from Aussie Lapidary Forum – A more cryptic and informal set of instructions and advice but valuable in how the author shares their rock tumbling experiences and experiments.
7) YouTube series on Rock Tumbling – Constructed by a US tumble polisher who uses his tumbler a handful of times a year, this series of six videos shows how he goes through the four stages of rock tumbling, using what looks like a 4lb barrel. The fifth video shows the resulting polished stones and the sixth video discusses what he does with his stones (he’s not into jewellery making). [Added 5 July 2019]
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