Rocks to Avoid Tumbling

[@gjackson6569]

It was funny that as I watched you reveal the tumbled rocks, I thought that even with the pitting and undercutting, that many of them looked great to me. Then when you pulled in the ones you showed as examples of great tumbling results, it was clear what you look for in your final product and the other ones clearly didn't measure up. Great video.

[@MichiganRocks]

Yeah, I like my rocks REALLY shiny.

[@guard13007]

Exact same reaction. I was like "Okay, he's just too picky." until I saw the good rocks.

[@Silvercanth]

That's how people that get into art and stuff fall for the Dunning-Kruger effect (if you don't know what that is I'd very much suggest looking it up. It's fascinating and I'd be surprised if it doesn't make you recall people you've met in your life) but you are clearly too smart for that, good job. I had the exact same reaction you did. :P

[@MichiganRocks]

@@Silvercanth I had to look that one up. I can think of many things in my life where as soon as I started learning about it, I realized that the subject was much, much deeper than I realized before.

[@Silvercanth]

@@MichiganRocks Any day where you learn something is a successful day. I'm glad to have played a part in you learning something neat.

[@ethankoh6851]

Having the attention span of a slanted kitchen shelf, I'm amazed that I went through the whole video, great narration

[@MichiganRocks]

I had never thought too much about the attention span of shelves, slanted or not.

[@samh1403]

I thought those rocks were looking pretty great out of the lot-o... until you compared them to your typical insanely perfect rocks. It really helped back up you're reasoning for being so picky about the rocks you start with and you're entire process. I'm a big time believer in your methods. You've really helped me out a lot in my first year of tumbling. Thanks for all the help you've been in your videos and on the forum.

[@MichiganRocks]

I'm glad you find the videos helpful, Sam. Until you start tumbling, I think it's hard to understand that some rocks polish up great and others don't. Hopefully this helped clear that up.

[@t2gunner]

@@MichiganRocks I've heard the advice, but the visual drives it to understanding... #RockOn

[@kokosnood]

I based my whole tumbling method on Rob's videos. THANKS ROB!

[@paigey-poo4235]

Fir me the allure of tumbling has never been about making the rocks look “perfect” but to just see the potential of the rock’s character, to see what unique qualities you can bring out of a piece! And a lot of the rocks here are perfect examples! Sure, everybody and their brother has shiny rocks, but finding and working something into a one of a kind palmful of art? That’s my goal! There’s certain qualities of the rock you can’t see unless you break it, tumble it, etc!

[@MichiganRocks]

I enjoy the process of tumbling more than the finished product. But for me, the challenge is to make them look as perfect as I can. I realize that not everyone has the same goal as I do. The problem is that I tend to show only those perfect examples on my channel. I thought people should know that not all rocks turn out perfect.

[@blackcat14077]

Sums up my thoughts perfectly!

[@teijaflink2226]

Right like I think granit looks absolutely beautiful and so different tumbled even you can't get the same shine and perfection like with jasper as example but it definitely looks different from the original stone, so depends what your after, he seems to be mostly after the shine and perfection, while others might be curious how the stone changes.

[@desertflamingos]

Even though I have been picking rocks up my entire life, I am brand new to the tumbling world. I have seen so many of the “perfect tumble” videos it is hard to picture a bad tumble. This was very educational. Thank you!

[@MichiganRocks]

Good, I’m glad my failure has been helpful.

[@Rocking-SLC]

Hey Rob, what a great demonstration showing some rocks are just not tumble-worthy. Some are perfect just they way they are such as the brachiopods. Others just turn out really disappointing in the end. Thanks for helping your viewers avoid tumbling pitfalls and have a happy and prosperous new year.

[@MichiganRocks]

Happy New Year, Earl. I think you have to tumble a few bad rocks yourself to really get the feel for which ones to pick up, but hopefully this speeds up the learning process a little.

[@nikkilovesrocks]

I'm stuck in a condo in Southern CA & I'm loving these vids! I have a 5lb bucket with my collection of raw crystal rocks which I would love to tumble. I hope my year ends more like your year begun! 💖✨

[@gwynnfarrell1856]

Sometimes a rockhound has just got to see what happens in the tumbler. You never know what might become an unexpected gem! Thank you for showing each rock as it progressed. I like that you included the Christmas ornaments as controls. Very educational! Happy New Year! 🎉

[@MichiganRocks]

I'm hoping this helps a few people. I get a lot of questions about what rocks should be picked up on the beach.

[@Shadowhurtz]

I do admire someone who's not afraid of admitting he can be wrong. Plus pretty rocks. You got yourself a subscriber.

[@MichiganRocks]

I'm wrong a lot. No point in pretending I know everything.

[@thomasnaas2813]

Love your casual, experimental approach. I've run into rocks that don't tumble well, I sometimes use a dremel with buffing wheels and diamond grit to good effect. For the porous stones I mix stone powder of similar hardness with slow drying epoxy, submerge the rocks and stick them in a vacuum pump container for thirty minutes and remove them before it hardens. Tumble on!

[@MichiganRocks]

I've never tried stabilizing rocks with epoxy (or anything else). I do realize that some of these could be worked on a cab machine or some other sort of grinder with better results. There's more than one way to polish a rock!

[@R.M.MacFru]

Well, I have just learned I'm not as much of a magpie as I thought. 😆 While the batch is not as shiny as your usual, I still think the tumbling was worth it for the color and patterns, particularly the one with the crystal pockets. (This is probably why I love geodes so much.) I was happily shocked that the specular hematite stayed intact. I was expecting glittery slurry. And on the one with the big hole...I like the contrast that tumbling created. The hole is the most interesting part of that rock, and the contrast makes it pop out, so to speak.

[@MichiganRocks]

I generally don't like holes of any kind, but I do like a large hole if it's full of crystals. I have seen some spheres that have half the rock missing completely that look really cool. I also like crystal hole in a cab sometimes.

[@Paschendale69]

What's a good approach with a hole with crystals in it that you'd like to keep? I have a few agates like that, but I don't want to ruin the parts that I like just to shine up the outer parts? Or have you already addressed that in another video? I'm still a relative newbie.

[@sparband]

I think that my favorite was the sparkly hematite. I liked the stink stone because it was different. They came out better than I thought too. I love the colors of the granite. It’s too bad that it undercuts.

[@MichiganRocks]

I think granite is probably the most collected rock by beginner rock hunters. There's nothing wrong with that. I did the same thing. But after tumbling a few batches of it, I stopped picking it up.

[@joannmay-anthony1076]

as a rock enthusiast, i like the imperfections. shiny is really nice, but the imperfections are a great looking contrast!

[@adamschaafsma5839]

I'm so glad you did this, it makes me feel like it's harder to mess up, and I feel more encouraged to just dive in and tumble.

[@MichiganRocks]

It's hard to mess up tumbling too bad. Even if you have a batch that doesn't turn out like you'd like, you can always run them over again. Think of any mistakes you make along the way as learning experiences. I've learned a lot in the past ten years or so.

[@Paschendale69]

I agree!

[@kotabear0172]

8:23 you cut it in kind of the shape of a cloud. It really matches with the coloring of the rock too. Really pretty

[@MichiganRocks]

That's a super pretty rock. Too bad it's so soft.

[@staceysakkinen1270]

I thought they came out great. I really liked the Omar rock, with the contrast from the shine to the dull hole. Thanks for showing us.

[@MichiganRocks]

Yeah, that one was pretty neat.

[@staceysakkinen1270]

@@MichiganRocks although you were right about those rocks not doing as well as the other batch you showed us which was absolutely gorgeous.

[@mlroeder]

That is my favourite as well, I think because the rest of it shined up so well that the hole comes across to me like it's deliberate. A feature, not a bug, as it were.

[@salishseaquest7952]

Rob, this was actually very informative. I appreciate all the time you devoted to getting us through the process on all the underrated rocks. It's many weeks of tumbling. I think for the most part you were right because you know what you like -- beauty is definitely in the eye of the beholder and the one who is running the tumblers. Happy New Year to you and Nancy!

[@MichiganRocks]

Happy New Year!

[@txwaterbird6115]

Just catching up on rock tumbling videos and your stink stone caught my eye. I actually like it. Those holes give it an interesting look. If I were tumbling it, I would use my water pic to blast out those holes. That's much quicker than a sewing needle. This process only works because my husband and I each have our own water pic. He would not appreciate it if I used a shared tooth implement on rocks.

[@MichiganRocks]

I lot of people have suggested both Waterpiks and ultrasonic cleaners. I might need to get one or the other.

[@Paschendale69]

I've wondered if that would work. I have one that I don't care much for, but it did seem too useful to trash.

[@leolamcconnell9872]

I'm new to tumbling and I count on you and your methods to receive a "good education". I think you're a natural teacher, I've learned, tumbled and practiced my happy dance. Thank you (a million times) for your efforts.

[@MichiganRocks]

Wow, I'm glad you've found my videos so helpful! Thanks for the nice comment!

[@johnsopko24]

I live in Michigan. I found a dirt road that the city laid gravel on and it's loaded with every color quarts Greenstone and about every gem Michigan has. I also have found alot of emeralds in gravel around here. I love rock collecting in Michigan.

[@MichiganRocks]

Wow, that sounds like some unbelievable gravel.

[@elenap15227]

A fellow gravel enthusiast! Your Michigan gravel sounds amazing. i only find agate here.

[@orirune3079]

Wait did you just say you found emeralds in gravel? What 🤯?? I need to start searching gravel more I guess.

[@clwbchbabycakes]

That first fossil - I would have oiled that like I do seashells. It brings out the color without damaging the piece since those don't need to be shiny. Things that look good wet but not dry - like Petosky stones - can be oiled. The holes with the druzy crystal are awesome!!

[@MichiganRocks]

Yes, I have some rough Lake Superior agates that I keep oiled. I don't oil my Petokseys though, I like those just polished.

[@KristiStClair64]

What kind of oil do you use? They don't go rancid?

[@clwbchbabycakes]

@@KristiStClair64 baby oil. You can also use lighter fluid, which is a thinner form of oil.

[@WagonPilotAdventures]

Great video for beginning tumblers to show how different rocks turn out. I think a lot of people start with very high expectations due to rock tumbler advertising pictures. I still tumble a lot of granite since it's plentiful near my house, which makes it easy to experiment and fine tune my methods. Keep up the good work!

[@MichiganRocks]

Have you figured out a way to stop the undercutting?

[@WagonPilotAdventures]

​@@MichiganRocks Not yet. Granite patterns are so random. I'm just getting back into tumbling after several months off, but I do have two 1lb Nat Geo tumblers now. Going to run some days/grit tests as soon as I finish some pudding stones. Starting to film too.

[@katherinehanna3968]

Loved seeing the before During and after tumbling. I haved collected some smaller pieces that I want to use as wearables, pendants and dangling accessories including earrings, belts, and ties or lacing, many of these are small peanuts or jelly bean sizes in colors from icy white, cool blues/grays, and warm orange/ peachy colors, flattering against skin

[@MichiganRocks]

Sounds like you're going to make some nice stuff!

[@KatyDidRocks]

Thank you for the excellent explanation of the difference between porphyry and amygdaloidal crystals!

[@MichiganRocks]

I always get those mixed up.

[@CityRockhounding]

I agree, very helpful and cool to know.

[@oldhaggys]

I love stones with contrasts on them. Different textures, different colors, different angles and so on. Therefore i love the granit, the stinkstone, the omar. Also I would probably love the granits if they are bigger so I can use them for sensory / fidget stones. The undercutting gives that contrast when you fidget with them

[@MichiganRocks]

It's not that I don't like these rocks. It's that they don't polish the same as the beach rocks that I usually show here. I wanted to do a video showing that not every rock on the beach will tumble the same way.

[@midlifetravelers6151]

I love this tutorial, Professor, I am learning the names of the rocks because of you taking the time to identify them in their raw form. Sometimes my rock and mineral identification books don't give a good picture example. Your video definitely does!

[@MichiganRocks]

I wish I knew how to identify more of them, but I do what I can. I'm glad it's helping you out.

[@SustenanceNCovering]

Love them all. They obviously are not up to the quality of your regular stones, but they are all still beautiful.

[@MichiganRocks]

You can still love them. They're just not going to shine up like the others.

[@katiewood6036]

The sandstone may not polish but big pieces look great in an aquarium. Cherry shrimp love picking microfauna off the rough surface. It was interesting to see how they tumbled.

[@MichiganRocks]

That one came out of the tumbler pretty much how it went it, but smaller. I agree that some rocks can look great even if they don't tumble well.

[@CroneFingrCraft]

That shiny grey stone with the big rough indent is gorgeous with the two different textures! I would use it as a stress stone😁

[@richardbidinger2577]

I think the Omar turned out awesome. The contrast gives it a cool look. After seeing your well polished stones, I can understand you being a little biased. You do great tumbling work.

[@MichiganRocks]

Thanks, Richard. I figure if I'm going to spend a ton of time tumbling rocks, I want them to look as good as possible. I'd rather be picky before tumbling than disappointed after.

[@blinderb1032]

My daughter and I are learning a lot from your videos. Thank you!!

[@MichiganRocks]

You're welcome!

[@ohhadivist]

I got a beginner tumbler last year and I’m really excited to go down to the river and see what rocks I can find once the weather warms up. I don’t think I’ll be so picky but this video gave me a lot to think about when choosing rocks.

[@MichiganRocks]

You don't have to be so picky. I didn't start out that way. The thing is, I show a lot of rocks that are much more perfect than these. I thought I should show examples of rocks that don't turn out the same as what I usually show here.

[@benjilee5279]

Wait! What?!? It turned out so, so good! And your editing was Magical!!! Great job!

[@Indyanas_ocean_view]

Super awesome video! On quite a few of those rocks the imperfections are hard to notice unless they are pointed out. I was surprised that the crumbling gray hematite rock got as shiny as it did .😍🥰😇👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@MichiganRocks]

I was really surprised by the hematite too. I'm not sure how something that crumbly doesn't just fall apart.

[@Indyanas_ocean_view]

@@MichiganRocks I thought it would just turn to dust and disintegrate. 😍🥰😇👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@marybethprinkey2635]

These are all very lovely I believe that the hematite would make a beautiful statement piece as a necklace

[@kylaabegglen1275]

You crack me up Rob! I was 😂 pretty hard when you asked if it was weird that you were disappointed that those turned out better than you thought.😆 You really do an excellent job of tumbling, probably the best results I've seen. So being picky makes a positive difference for sure. I love that beautiful banded chert you polished, wow!🤩 Thank you for an awesome explanation and demonstration on what rocks not to tumble and why. I hope you and your family have a very happy and amazing New Year!✌🤠

[@MichiganRocks]

I was afraid that this video got a little long, but without talking about why they didn't do well, there wouldn't be much point. I'm glad you found it helpful.

[@kylaabegglen1275]

@@MichiganRocks I liked it and didn't even notice it was a bit longer because I was really paying attention to the info. It was full of great information! I love learning from you KZbin Rock Stars! Thanks!😊

[@rikspector]

Rob, Agate Dad led me to your site. I completely understand why you are picky. Nothing's perfect ,but by setting your goals as high as possible, your work is a "cut" or "polish above the rest. I was a picture framer for many years and sometimes the glass, or plexi, after completing the job ,ended up with specks of dirt or dust on the inside. It would have been easy to ignore them, but my boss said "Would you want that in your house?" We always re did ones like that. Your results are a reflection (literallY:) of what you do, so over time people will know that you strive for great results. Keep that attitude, it sets you apart from many others. Cheers, Frederick" Rik" Spector

[@MichiganRocks]

Thanks, Rik. It's more fun to strive for the best possible shine I can get. I like the challenge. I used to mow a lot of lawns in high school. I worked for a friend. The two of us mowed about 70 lawns with LawnBoy push mowers. We both tried to make the lawns look as good as possible. Straight lines, good trimming, and rolling up garden hoses that the home owner left out were all things that we did to be proud of the work when we were done. I guess I'm just wired that way.

[@denisemurray412]

Great explanation, teacher. You've still got the touch. I have always gotten much information from your videos. I wonder if the 'iffy batch' would transform more with a polish up from the wheel. Could you take them one step further and show us that?

[@sumitaghosh615]

I didn’t know what you were talking about until you showed us what good rocks looked like. Thanks for that! Great video.

[@MichiganRocks]

I'm glad I thought to do that at the end, especially for new viewers who don't know what my tumbled rocks usually look like.

[@mr.ramjangles5165]

Any tips for tumbling labradorite? I have a rock tumbler in my classroom. The second graders love it! Just found you today…great video! ✅👍🏻

[@MichiganRocks]

I haven't tried it, but I have some ordered. I have only read about people failing at tumbling it, I haven't found any success stories. Maybe I'll have some advice at some point.

[@ranchodelasirena7485]

BTW, I love your channel. I am a certified rock hound, can't walk anywhere without looking for rocks. You have me wanting to buy a rock tumbler.

[@MichiganRocks]

Seems like a must have if you're certified.

[@tinacluff2793]

I like the omar one, the flat one I can see turned into a pendant, the red one with the crystals was cool, love the yellow one, the black one looked like a galaxy (you said it was kind of crumbly), the big black and crystal one was my second favorite. Still love your Christmas ornaments.

[@MichiganRocks]

Wow, it seems like you liked almost all of them!

[@tinacluff2793]

@@MichiganRocks hehe, what can I say I love rocks

[@tashacano3324]

This was definitely an interesting watch. I only used a rock tumbler once when I was a teenager. I dumped the slurry down the drain😅 Let's just say my parents never let me get rocks to do more than the one batch😂

[@MichiganRocks]

Oops, that could be a costly mistake.

[@tashacano3324]

@@MichiganRocks It was lol they had to redo the plumbing in our bathroom. Luckily we were living in a trailer house at the time and at least it was easier to get to🤣

[@MichiganRocks]

You should have watched this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oF6WZmmPpquirpo

[@tashacano3324]

@@MichiganRocks I was in high school so it was a while back lol definitely pre youtube😂

[@jacquelinejones823]

We just got a tumbler for the kids and I to work with! I’m excited to get started. We do NOT know enough about rocks yet. But we will learn as we go!

[@MichiganRocks]

You don't need to know too much, just get started and see what happens. If the rocks don't get shiny, you can run them again and you will have learned something. I have several videos on how to tumble, just in case you missed them. Pick the one that most closely matches your situation: Rotary tumbler followed by vibratory tumbler: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oaTVnqOGj9d0q7c Rotary tumbler with ceramics: kzbin.info/www/bejne/moqqd5SiZcpkjbs Rotary tumbler with plastic pellets: kzbin.info/www/bejne/e5-xp6ytrN-nqJo How to use a Nat Geo Tumbler: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eaS3lGShjbqohtE Tumbling beach rocks in a Nat Geo tumbler: kzbin.info/www/bejne/lYfQnmVqe8hqoJY

[@SmallWonda]

So many pretty rocks - thanks for taking the time to show why some could be disappointing when tumbled - bearing in mind they take so much time & energy to polish... Happy New Year!

[@MichiganRocks]

Happy New Year!

[@erinharrington4232]

I'm really excited to watch this when I get a minute! I've been sorting my collection lately so I can finally try tumbling my first batch - definitely going to be rewatching your older videos!

[@MichiganRocks]

I hope this is helpful. I learned by trial and error and I might be able to save you a little of the error. However, I think that tumbling a few bad rocks is the way you'll really learn the best, so don't feel bad if they don't all turn out great.

[@insp7]

Thank younsomjuch for taking the time to demonstrate the difference between good quality and low quality rock type Your teaching chops shine!

[@MichiganRocks]

I'm glad to help, Curtis!

[@carolinesmith1971]

I just started tumbling rocks and your videos have been so helpful! I’m curious about what would happen if you were to skip the grit stages with petoskey stones and went straight to the polishing stage. Would they just look the same as they do when they’re wet?

[@MichiganRocks]

No, the polish stage is what usually damages Petoskeys more than any other stage (except maybe the 500 stage). It's really hard to tumble Petoskey stones. I have a couple methods that work pretty well. I'll put a link to one here, and the other one will be shown in a future video. Actually, here are four ways to do it: How to Hand Polish a Petoskey Stone: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qZusnoGorLdsd9U How to Partially Tumble a Petoskey Stone: kzbin.info/www/bejne/f3O1omqahaljgs0 Petoskey Stones in Corn Cob Media: kzbin.info/www/bejne/naO2nY1uaJqJetE Polishing Petoskeys on a cabbing machine: kzbin.info/www/bejne/kIi5mpeNqp5_j7s

[@yoopermann7942]

some of those supprised me some didnt, i found if you polish some granites on a cab machine they turn out great,, thank you for the tips

[@MichiganRocks]

Yep, a cab machine is a different story. Puddingstones are another good example of something that does way better on a cab machine.

[@dylan-cv9il]

hey rob, so i’m a beginner for tumbling completely, i’m gonna order one of the national geographic tumblers the hobby edition one, as you said in your review the polish is really bad, so i figured i’d get that separately. i found one that looks okay and i wanted your take on it, for step one it’s silicon carbide F80, step two is silicon carbide F220, step 3 is silicon carbide F400, and finally instead of aluminium oxide is ‘pumice powder’, i remember you saying that aluminium oxide is really good for step 3 and 4 so should i go for a different one?

[@MichiganRocks]

I have never heard of using pumice powder for a polish. I also strongly recommend that you use aluminum oxide as your prepolish. I have a link to the Rock Shed in the description. That’s where I buy my stuff. i also buy from Kingsley North for coarse grit. That link is also in the description.

[@staceymcmahan5016]

Great demonstration! I think they all look interesting and great .

[@tonys.5940]

So based on the results, are you more likely to try tumbling questionable rocks or stick with your previous hunches?

[@MichiganRocks]

I'm comfortable with the decisions I've been making. I guess if I find something really cool, I might be a bit more likely to take it home and give it a try. Overall, I think I predicted pretty well here.

[@gyroscope915]

Really informative. I like that you explain your reasoning every step of the way, it makes it very easy to understand even if, like me you don't know much about rocks.

[@MichiganRocks]

That's how I like to learn, so that's how I tend to teach.

[@gyroscope915]

@@MichiganRocks if you don't mind me asking, what if any, is the down side of putting to much water in when you tumble? You always talk about how much to fill it with water and I'm curious what affect that has

[@MichiganRocks]

@@gyroscope915 I'm not 100% sure. I think more water will slow down the rocks, and maybe wash off the grit more. With less water, the slurry gets a little thicker, carrying the grit around better.

[@azdigger4843]

Your crazy? BWAHAHAHAHA! We are all crazy, after all we walk around looking at rocks all the time.

[@unclebillsoutdoorandwildli8489]

Good thing that stink rock didnt stink the lot up. Seems like you got a good understanding on how the rocks will tumble. Sometimes you never know. Got a new subscriber. This is my other channel Im about to do some things with. Will be watching your videos again or letting it run while Im out. Was fun to watch. Awesome video

[@MichiganRocks]

Thanks, Bill!

[@txwaterbird6115]

My bete noir is ruby in zoisite. I know there's a way to tumble it and get a shine. My brother-in-law who is a geologist collects spheres and has a beautiful shiny one. The problem for me is that I keep trying to polish it (ruby in zoisite) over and over again. So if you have any ideas, I hope someone out there might have a hint or 2. 🙏 Thanks for the video. As always, yours are fun and informative.

[@MichiganRocks]

I have only seen pictures of that, never tumbled it myself. I just looked up the two minerals and found that zoisite is 6-7 and ruby is 9 on the Mohs scale. I think that's your problem. Silicon carbide and aluminum oxide are both 9 also, so they're going to have a hard time with the ruby, but will easily wear the zoisite. That's going to cause undercutting, or uneven wear on the two different minerals. Your brother in law's sphere was not tumbled. It was probably ground with diamond grinding cups. Some rocks will turn out much better on a cabbing machine or some sort of grinder than they will in a tumbler.

[@AlchemyOfTheFourthKind]

I like using dremal tools. They have polishing tools in the right dremal kits.

[@The_red_finger]

The algorithim strikes again who else found themselves here by accident lol

[@LilReaper1010]

Best 36 minute video on rocks i've seen!

[@MichiganRocks]

Thanks!

[@theyxaj]

KZbin decided I needed to see this video. I love that I can just happen upon a person talking about rocks and shining them up, this is great :)

[@MichiganRocks]

If you liked this, you would probably enjoy the videos where I polish much nicer rocks.

[@theyxaj]

@Michigan Rocks The comparison rocks at the end are so beautiful! Especially the banded chert, like you said. I definitely plan to enjoy other polishings as a treat when I need something chill in my life. And thank you for the captions! Rock on!

[@MichiganRocks]

@@theyxaj One of the subscribers here (Christina) is doing the captions. It's something I don't have time to do myself and she volunteered to help by doing them.

[@fantasystaplesuwu1554]

I love that stone you called stink stone! It looks SO cool!

[@MichiganRocks]

Those are pretty cool. I find them fairly often, but I don't usually bring them home.

[@leannesutter9429]

Thank you, Rob for taking the time to demonstrate this. It gave me a better understanding and will help me to make the decisions with how I clean and polish my Great Lakes finds. I appreciate your explanations on why you prefer polishing certain rocks, how you grade the finished rock/fossil at each stage of the process and the challenges you had with some of them.

[@MichiganRocks]

I get questions fairly often about what rocks should be picked up. The short answer is that you should pick up whatever looks good to you. But that answer doesn't help too much if you're planning to tumble them. I'm glad you found this useful, that's what I was going for.

[@segamble1679]

I learned so much from this video!!! Just starting tumbling, and just learning what most of the rocks I've been collecting are called was super helpful!

[@MichiganRocks]

That's great! You might like this: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rYCmiJSQgaaJnqM Be sure to watch the follow up video with the answers.

[@stevezozuk9622]

I can see why you don't tumble most of them , and there is definitely some good ones from that batch. Lesson for us all . Very cool , judging by the cabinet you can do a lot of tumbling at a time , smart using a cabinet to muffle the sounds. Thanks for the great tutorial Rob . Cheers

[@MichiganRocks]

Glad you enjoyed it, Steve!

[@KatyDidRocks]

Haha. Rob, I clicked through right away because I love your thumbnail! Can’t wait to see what rocks to avoid….

[@MichiganRocks]

You have lots of experience, so I probably won’t teach you too much.

[@debivort]

Awesome video - great to see that infamous old quartzite once again. Happy New Year!

[@MichiganRocks]

That's a famous rock. It's really not my favorite tumble, but it's still setting on my counter. I'm not sure what to do with it.

[@debivort]

@@MichiganRocks start a rogue's gallery box of rocks?

[@reebee4237]

Great video, excellent good, better, best examples. Love your tumbling cabinet.

[@MichiganRocks]

Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed it.

[@erebusmint]

I love it when youtube recommends me things like this… it’s fascinating!

[@MichiganRocks]

I love that too.

[@maravish2070]

I missed the rocks because I was too distracted by your feet lol I love you bro. I learn something from you every week. Cheers!

[@MichiganRocks]

My feet?

[@storytimewithunclebill1998]

I see your point. Some of them were ok, but not like you get the others you have done. Was fun to watch. Great video

[@MichiganRocks]

If I'm going to spend weeks or months tumbling a rock, I want to be really happy with it when it's done.

[@oldgamerchick]

Thank you for this video. Now I know which of my rocks to avoid tumbling. Happy holidays to y'all

[@MichiganRocks]

Merry Christmas, Old Gamer Chick!

[@cynthiahappel3697]

I completely agree with you about the tumbling of certain rocks. Nice demo. Thanks

[@MichiganRocks]

Sure, no problem, Cynthia.

[@richardbuckner4400]

Hmmm…..I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder. IMHO most of them look great!

[@MichiganRocks]

They don't look like what I normally show here though. Lots of people liked these more than I did.

[@lucisue53]

I'm a first-time viewer of your channel and wanted to thank you for the detailed information about your process. I am a geologist by training, though it has been many years since I worked in that profession. May I share a tip for cleaning grit out of the pits and holes that you had in some of the rocks? A dedicated WaterPik will help blast into the holes to loosen and remove the grit efficiently. That particular brand (maybe other brands too) can be fitted with different nozzles that focus the spray for different spray intensities, and the flow volume can adjust as well. Thanks again for the informative video - so much fun to watch. It brings back great memories of the rock tumbler we had in school.

[@MichiganRocks]

It's kind of funny how many people have suggested that recently. Probably a couple a day for the past week. I participate in an online lapidary forum where some people have suggested a fabric spot cleaning gun. It sounds like they have more pressure than a Waterpik. I think I'll have to try one or the other. Thanks for the tip.

[@strawby]

This video got recommended to me totally out of the blue. I’m not a rock collector or anything of the like… but I couldn’t help but watch this all the way through!

[@MichiganRocks]

I can't imagine this being interesting if you're not into rock tumbling. Thanks for watching though!

[@jordanstevens3]

I liked the explanations you gave along with what your expectations where

[@MichiganRocks]

Thanks. I'm not always right, but at least you know what's going on in my head.

[@tommelinn4268]

That banded chert towards the end of your video is a really pretty stone and pattern! I have tumbled some it as well and always like the results.

[@MichiganRocks]

That's one of my favorite tumbles ever.

[@jneihart2]

Excellent way to finish off the year.... with a video from the rock tumbler extraordinaire! Thank you for a great year of fantastic viewing pleasure! Happy New Year to you and all your family!

[@MichiganRocks]

You're welcome. I'm glad you enjoy my videos. I appreciate all the comments too. Happy New Year!

[@katiedid713926]

You know what, I really like how you gave every single rock the benefit of the doubt. I'm serious, you had me rooting for all the rocks. A very fair breakdown of those beauties. And i like it you're a perfectionist so we can appreciate the contrast. Thanks. Happy New Year!!

[@MichiganRocks]

I felt sorry for some of those rocks, so I had to be nice to them.

[@katiedid713926]

@@MichiganRocks you're hilarious🤣🤣

[@CarolynMcPherson-r3z]

Rob, you are your own worst critic.These are all beautiful, and some are more beautiful than others.

[@MichiganRocks]

It's not that they're all horrible rocks or anything, but they're not nearly as shiny as what I usually pick up and polish. I just wanted people to know that not every rock you pick up on the beach will tumble equally.

[@michelesadler1792]

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge on rock tumbling, I have been looking for you - LOL... I can't seem to get enough of the beauty of the Lake Superior rock varieties... and now I am learning how to polish them. TY :)

[@MichiganRocks]

You're welcome! I'm glad to help.

[@michelesadler1792]

@@MichiganRocks I'm having trouble with getting a solid shine on my rocks... I am digging around your KZbin clips to find the simplest steps for getting a good shine on my Lakes Superior rocks, any suggestions?

[@michelesadler1792]

I just found this one... I'll try fallowing this one... thx... Rock Tumbling Tutorial for Rotary Tumblers and Ceramic Media

[@MichiganRocks]

@@michelesadler1792 Here are my complete tumbling videos: Rotary tumbler followed by vibratory tumbler: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oaTVnqOGj9d0q7c Rotary tumbler with ceramics: kzbin.info/www/bejne/moqqd5SiZcpkjbs Rotary tumbler with plastic pellets: kzbin.info/www/bejne/e5-xp6ytrN-nqJo How to use a Nat Geo Tumbler: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eaS3lGShjbqohtE Tumbling beach rocks in a Nat Geo tumbler: kzbin.info/www/bejne/lYfQnmVqe8hqoJY

[@UtrechterK]

I live in Flint, I love digging up rocks and I just found your page and wanted to say thank you for all of the videos! Super helpful!

[@MichiganRocks]

You're welcome!

[@speedwaychaser]

The defects give the stones/rocks character and uniqueness

[@MichiganRocks]

Lots of people feel that way. I post lots of videos of much more perfect rocks that I picked up myself and tumbled. I thought it was a good idea to show that not all rocks end up looking like what I show on this channel a lot.

[@lynettepavelich7540]

Rob, you’re so funny! Learned there are many factors to polishing. Amazing how much mass gets polished away. Finally able to stop in and checked out your great craftsmanship this week. Hard decision but then I saw a petoskey bead…happy girl!💖

[@MichiganRocks]

Oh you went to Olivet? Thanks!

[@lynettepavelich7540]

@@MichiganRocks yes! Great store with a good variety of items. Staff super nice and helpful!

[@MichiganRocks]

@@lynettepavelich7540 I really like the people there. Mary is great.

[@macdaiddavidson8051]

I have learned a lot watching this. I used to pick up rocks I thought were interesting as a kid. My mother sewed my pockets closed because I forgot to take some out before my jeans went in the washer. I kinda like the imperfections in the rocks you tumbled. I really like the greenish one a piece broke off of. Some of the dark undercutting on a couple of them looks pretty to me but I understand why you don’t like them. I’m just looking from a different point of view.

[@MichiganRocks]

There are a lot of people who agree with you. I prefer rocks to look as perfect as possible. Some people like them more natural looking. I show a lot of nearly perfect tumbled rocks on my channel and I wanted people to see that not every rock that you pick up on the beach will turn out like the rocks that I usually show here.

[@Elizabethmay08]

I love the holey crystal ones. Where I am there is often agate in them, not always. They look nice either way

[@davidhile5363]

Occasionally the black stuff will surprise you. Thanks for the excellent demonstration. HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE ! 🎉🍷🎆🎉

[@MichiganRocks]

Yep, it even surprised me in this video.

[@santadam]

Great to see this, thank you! It helped explain some of my more dull batches. Loved seeing your favs at the end!

[@MichiganRocks]

Glad you liked it!

[@MarianSelleck]

Very interesting video, thank you! I will look closer at my choices to tumble.

[@Stonehaven2112]

I like your videos and methodical approach and attention to detail. A Textile Spot Cleaning Spray Gun like an Arrow does a great job cleaning out holes and cracks between grits as well as residues after the final polish. Just uses warm water. Also a great tool for cleaning clay out of crystals and even minimizing bruises and scratches on fluorite and calcite.

[@MichiganRocks]

Yes, I've heard the same thing. A friend of mine gave me an inexpensive Water Pik type thing that also works really well. It's a little cheaper than the textile machine, although probably not as powerful. It really works great though.

[@purplekat5864]

Super interesting and informative video! Thanks for taking so much time to go through the lengthy process! About holes. I had to chuckle through the whole thing about your HOLE attitude. 😂. I actually LOVE the holes, especially in the stink stone. I think it really gives stones personality. But we all like different features. Pretty much ALL stones are just fascinating and beautiful to me. Thank you again!!

[@MichiganRocks]

Yep, I think it's cool that we all have different tastes.

[@lindenbug]

Thanks for the demonstration! Someone who really likes granite or other rocks that undercut in later stages could just stop at 220 in a vibratory tumbler and do the rest by hand or treat with mineral oil to enhance the color like I do. I try to be picky about the granite I pick up and only take home more unusual pieces I feel are worth spending a little extra time on. My guess is that coarser grits still work in the tumbler because they’re enough to cancel out the undercutting whereas the finer ones don’t impact the shape enough.

[@MichiganRocks]

I don't think I'd want to hand sand granite, but doing them on a cab machine or flat lap would be another option. Sometimes undercutting is much less with techniques other than tumbling. Thanks for the tip.

[@hightde13]

For some reason I thought holes like that were limpet damage. Very neat video, thank you!

[@MichiganRocks]

I had to look up "limpet". I don't think that's something that's in the Great Lakes.

[@syddlinden8966]

If i end up getting a tumbler, i think the gun for me would be seeing the colors emerge and just seeing the patterns the stones have. Your super shiny ones would make great worry stones and would be lovely for handling. And the "not good" ones would be great to just look at for ages cause of all the writers intricacies in the patterning on so many of them. It all depends on what you like to find in the process and this was certainly a very informative video on how to spot thing in the raw stone that might do weird stuff when tumbled. THANKS!

[@syddlinden8966]

😑 *fun for me wierd intricacies Eventually I'll remember to proof read when on mobile...

[@MichiganRocks]

I’m glad you found this informative. Lots of people have told me that they like the rocks that didn’t get as shiny. I think it’s just good to realize that not every rock on the beach will turn out the same.

[@oldgamerchick]

I am rewatching your video. I don't have any ceramic beads so I picked up very small pebbles from the road. I looked for smooth ones. I was pleasantly surprised to find some of them turned out to be milky quartz. 🤗. I also want to talk about holes in rocks. I love holey rocks and look for those with holes all the way through for the fossils that created them. I have researched and found 3 types of rock boring clams, of course the worms which are more prevalent. Also there are sponges that eat rock and to my surprise there are also a variety of crab that likes to munch on rocks. I don't know what the crab holes look like yet. I have several types of rocks with clam and worm holes. Not sure about sponges. Great video. Never get tired of watching your videos for new info I missed the first time through. 🙃☕❤❤❤❤

[@MichiganRocks]

I had heard of boring clams (but never exiting ones!) but not sponges or crabs that eat rocks. I'm pretty sure we don't have anything like that in the Great Lakes though, at least not that I've heard of.

[@oldgamerchick]

@@MichiganRocks it probably depends on the type of minerals. I don't know for sure. I must do more reading. I just was out today and found an amazing fossil. I think it may have been a tooth at one time. The exciting part is what ever this critter is that has been eating on this rock is still attached. Plus there us an amazing echnoid cast on it. Its very faint but the whole thing is there. It also looks like bits of the stone has started to turn into what they call common opal here. I am really happy I found it. I was out looking at the road cut for corals and found a very large stem or possibly coral piece. It's covered in clay gotta wait for it to dry so I can clean it. Thank you again for your awesome channel. 🤗

[@TheRicoGonzales]

3:25 My guess is porphyritic. Are those pyrite crystals? I've only seen amygdaloidal basalt, but I think it has to be calcite or carbonate to be deemed amygduoles (because the mineralization is a result of water percolating through porous rock.)

[@luxuryballer2216]

What a delightful random algorithm recommendation this channel is, looking forward to exploring your channel!

[@MichiganRocks]

Thanks!

[@BonnieLegion]

Really enjoyed seeing the contrast between the not so good rocks and the really nice ones, really showed your point well. bless love your videos, they are helping

[@MichiganRocks]

Good, that's what I was hoping for. I didn't want people thinking that just any rocks they pick up on the beach were going to tumble equally well.

[@ripadipaflipa4672]

I grew up on Lake Superior and enjoy Ur channel partly to reminiscing over the rocks I can’t find in FL 😂 I really like it when U say the rocks point of origin and type of rocks Ur using plz keep it up Thank!

[@UncertainEarth]

Thank you for the great video! I love your demeaner and the way you explain everything, no filler, just information.

[@MichiganRocks]

Thanks. I don't like a bunch of fluff most of the time either.

[@easterazali9237]

You were absolutely right master there is a huge difference between hard rocks and soft ones ! You know your rocks for sure ! 🥰👍 Happy new year to you and the family ! 🥳🎉

[@MichiganRocks]

Happy New Year, Easter!

[@easterazali9237]

@@MichiganRocks thank you Rob 💗💐🙏🏻