Menu
What's new
Find's Treasure Forums

Welcome to Find's Treasure Forums, Guests!

You are viewing this forums as a guest which limits you to read only status.

Only registered members may post stories, questions, classifieds, reply to other posts, contact other members using built in messaging and use many other features found on these forums.

Why not register and join us today? It's free! (We don't share your email addresses with anyone.) We keep email addresses of our users to protect them and others from bad people posting things they shouldn't.

Click here to register!

Need Support Help?

Cannot log in?, click here to have new password emailed to you

The Power of a Lortone Rock Tumbler baby!!!:super:

Y

Yaridnac

New member
[size=large][size=medium]Hi guys,

I just wanted to show this pretty picture of all of my coins that I just washed. I can't believe the difference!!! The Coins where completely black and after 3 hours in the Rock tumbler. Shazaam baby!!!:clapping:. Super Shiny and ready to put away in my Piggy bank. I just use this lortone Rock Tumbler for the first time that I got from Ebay for a sweet price. It has a dual chamber, I liked it a lot. By the way, after I saw them clean I find out there was a nice Silver Nickel from 1943 so I put it in my home made electrolysis machine for a couple of minutes and then a nice rub with backing soda and bam!!! Brand new coin for my collection. I'm a newbie so bare with me guys, I guess excited about the little things. :yikes: Enjoy the pics!!!][/size][/size]​
 
I wonder how much that tumble wore that nickel down. You need to cull out the good ones before doing that.:confused:
 
[size=medium][/size] Hi khouse,

I learned it from research online. I use the fish tank gravel, warm water and a bit of dish soap. I washed them for 1.5 hours. Changed the water and did the same thing for another 1.5 hours. Pretty good results, I've seen some people tumble their coins for 24 hours but I just did it long enough for them to come out shiny enough.

Awhitster,

I completely understand what you're saying but these coins were ridiculously black and chunky that I couldn't read the dates or know it was actually silver. On the nickel you can see the detail on the building is fade out. I don't know if I did that or it was around the block too long. :veryangry:
Either way, I still like it a lot. :clapping:
 
Mine come out looking like that but not in 3 hours. Mine take about 36 hours to get really nice and shiny. What did you use?

Chris
 
Hi cwilk,

I posted the procedure up there but here it is again. By the way the soap is Dawn in case it matters.
I learned it from research online. I use the fish tank gravel, warm water and a bit of dish soap. I washed them for 1.5 hours. Changed the water and did the same thing for another 1.5 hours. Pretty good results, I've seen some people tumble their coins for 24 hours but I just did it long enough for them to come out shiny enough.
 
Well that's what I use too. I find that the longer I have been using my gravel the longer the process takes. This latest batch has done nearly a thousand bucks worth of clad and it now takes 36 hours to process a load with just soap and water. I think I need new gravel or steel BBs like UW suggests. One point that is important that your post reminded me of is that the more often you change the water, the shorter the processing time. At present I tumble for 2 hours and change, after that about every 8-10 hours. I also tend to overload my tumbler which slows things up too.

Chris
 
You got it - fish tank gravel and a squirt of Dawn in the Lortone, or any wet type tumbler for that matter.. BTW, using Dawn does make a difference as it is an alkaline type detergent. Alkaline is opposite of acid, yet the cleaning qualities are similar. Watch out with aluminum pieces though as alkaline will attack that material.

And if any of you happen to practice the shooting sports and reload you own ammo this method works outstanding on your spent shells as well. I recommend you leave the spent primers in place while tumblig otherwise you'll need to come back and poke the gravel out of the flash holes. Even when leaving the spent primers in place while tumbling then popping them out afterwards the flash holes are perfectly clean. Lay the wet shells horizontal on a towel overnight and they'll be bone dry the next day. Kid you not, the shells come out looking better than new, and something to do with the Dawn makes them literally impossible to become tarnished over time...

P.S. - A screen type kitchen sifter is the perfect companion to separate the used water/detergent mixture from the coins or shells. Just dump the cleaned gravel back into the tumbler bucket...
 
For tumbling shooting brass I use scraps of leather. It takes all night, but some of the brass are really dirty. They come out looking like some GI worked all day on 'em with Brasso. Much better than new brass.

I wonder if leather would work on coins.

Another aggregate is ground corn cobs. They are much gentler than aquarium gravel, and neither may not be abrasive enough.

I only mention these unusual media as a contrast and that they may work for some.
 
Bum Luck said:
Another aggregate is ground corn cobs. They are much gentler than aquarium gravel, and neither may not be abrasive enough.
Click to expand...

Absolutely the gravel is more abrasive, but I tell ya what, I get a minimum of 20 cleanings on .45 ACP shells before they split down the sides.

Here's a few shots of some .45 Colt shells:

Before:

before.jpg


After:

after1.jpg


after2.jpg


Just can't deny results like that... :)
 
If you will find a new coins, ok, you can wash them in anything you want, but old(ish) ones... the best you can do is just to leave them as the are, or take a soft toothbrush and wash those coins in hot soapy water if they really black & dirty. That's if you actually collect coins seriously.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top