For a while now I have been noticing a soft spot forming on the bottom of one of my three pound tumbling barrels. Normally I check my tumblers often so I wasn’t worried about the spot breaking because I thought that I would have caught the issue before it came to that. However a few weeks ago I left on a trip to Prineville and didn’t think to turn off the tumblers because I wouldn’t be able to monitor them for a few days.
When I returned from my trip I found a nasty surprise waiting for me. Actually I didn’t notice it right away. As I unpacked the car I realized that something didn’t sound quite right. I looked in the direction of the tumblers and noticed two of my barrels where light gray instead of the normal black color. The soft spot had burst while I was gone.
Burst Tumbler Barrel
There was dried slurry on both barrels that were in the tumbler base and a huge pile on the table under the tumbler. I cleaned up the mess then went to check the stones. I was tumbling a softer opalized petrified wood and was expecting a disaster. When I opened the barrel I found that there was some chipping but for the most part the stones held together.
Messy Tumbler Base
Mess on Table
Saturday I went to a local rock shop and pick up some grit and found a replacement barrel that cost $25.00. I decided not to buy the barrel when the shop owner told me he had some used tumbling equipment in his garage. I ended up buying two complete 3lb tumblers for $25.00. After this purchase I was finally able to get the opalized wood going again. I did have to add more material to the barrel because it is soft enough the original material had worn to half its original size.
Opalized Wood Inside Tumbler Barrel
