National Geographic Professional Rock Tumbler Kit- Rock Polisher for Kids and Adults, Complete Rock Tumbler Kit with Durable Tumbler, Rocks, Grit, and Our New GemFoam Polisher, A Great STEM Hobby
| Dimensions: | 32 x 17.02 x 26.04 cm; 3.08 Kilograms |
| Material: | Plastic |
| Batteries Required: | No |
| Batteries Included: | No |
| Assembly: | No |
| Material: | Plastic |
| Reference: | NGPROTUMBLER3 |
Well made, but speeds are simply too fast even on the lowest setting I find. Too many rocks break up into tiny fragments. Although I am no expert.
Watch YouTube videos before using to get best results. Good fu
1 something to explore on utube to learn about and remember (very key)
2. To actually ‘ remember’ to check it
3. To give him something to look forward to doing like, searching for pebbles etc
The excitement he gets from ‘opening the tumbler’ is lovely to watch, he loves what comes out.
Later on this year he hopes and I hope he can start to use some tools to cut stones.
He has lost 50% of his sight so it is going to be a big learning curve.
This tumbler is just so easy for him to use and not to noisy either. We put it on a small carpet and that seems to work well.
Thank you geographic people for helping us to move forward with a lovely simple hobby
My daughter has loved rocks her whole life, so this is a brilliant way for her to take her finds to the next level. It was super simple to use, and the results were just stunning. She LOVES it.
This is a great product for my nine Yr old son, after some research we discovered that the amount of the course git was not enough to give the proper polished finish (my husband sat through a 45min utube video by a pro) so ordered more off ebay and its working brilliantly.
Does a decent job. Very happy with the rocks I’ve tumbled and has been a fun activity to do with my 11 year old son. My only gripe is the rock supplied are not that interesting but they do end up lovely and smooth and shiny so you can’t fault the tumbler. Also do be careful you tighten the lid properly. I didn’t the first time I used it and it makes a really horrible mess if it comes off!
It is easy to set up and care compare to other tumbler.
Sometimes when on the beach I see some unusual coloured stones and wonder what they would look like all polished. Now I’ll find out.
I won’t include a photo as it looks just like the photo. I bought this for my 13 year old son for Christmas and we’ve run some batches through it. It takes about 4-5 weeks to do all the steps so it takes time which is good. It isn’t too loud. We did it in the basement and didn’t see any issues in the rest of the house.
Advantages
-Rubberized tumbling canister for durability and quietness
-Easy to use
-Comes with everything you need (we ordered more grit after as there is only enough for about 2 batches)
-Comes with jewelry parts to put the stones in.
Disadvantages
-The lid can be hard to get off. It seals itself on well. We had to pry the lid open a couple of times to get it off. You have to be really gentle or you can damage the seal.
-The lid can be finicky to get on. One time we must not have got it on quite right and the thing burst open when we were away, made a mess on the table, and almost damaged the machine. So, you should check on it daily. You also need to ensure there is no grit stuck around the lid to ensure a good fit.
-The belt for the machine is very small and the gears for it are plastic. I think this part should be more durable.
I wish they sent more stones to tumble in the kit and more grit. Otherwise, knowing what I know now I would still buy the machine and do recommend it. Just watch for these points and you will be fine.
I started the first batch of stones and it was on its 2nd stage of grinding and it suddenly stopped. Lights on but nobody home.
Motor burnt out? Who knows.. but it’s not working now. I’ve Got a pile of half-ground stones and had ordered more to do -but no grinder 🙁
It is not as quiet as we had thought it would be so we have to keep it outside the house whilst it is running.
Works well, up to my third week of tumbling and very happy with the results so far. Much quieter that previous model. Highly recommend this produc
An excellent machine to start tumbling. It is built strong and easy to use. It has automatic cut off if anything goes wrong, eg over filling as I have done. I totally recommend this product. I had a problem with my first one but Amazon/ National Geographic replaced it with no worries. The customer service was above and beyond though out the whole process.
Daughter loves this rock tumbler and it is of great quality
This was bought for a friend who has had a lot of fun making craft jewellery with the resultant polished stones.
The rubber drum keeps noise to a minimum but by its very nature, you will need to find an “out of the way” place to put it or the constant roll of rocks will drive you mad.
I covered the box it came in, in sound-deadening foam and place this over the tumbler when in operation. This quietens down considerably.
Now on stage 2 of 4 of our first Agate Mix. Can’t wait to see the end results. There was a very clear difference after just 5 days with (coarse) grit level 1.
It runs quietly and without a hint of motor heat as the heavy body acts as a good heat sink. The rubber barrel is good quality and runs quietly. The problem is it’s just too small to run stones Much over 25mm in size as there is little movement /roll wave action inside due to the size.
The machine runs too fast also even on the slowest setting. Higher speeds don’t speed up the process. I think they actually restrict it by not allowing the roll-tumble action needed to found and smooth the stones.
In addition the grits are Poor quality and are played out after 4 days tumbling so and 1 stage will
Require a clean and reload. Not necessarily a bad thing as you can check progress and use the timer to set the number of days to run. You need to get to
It when it stops though so your slurry doesn’t turn into cement.
Overall a well built machine but one that will very quickly result in upgrade fever setting in.
J’ai utilis ce produit pour polir des pierres semi-prcieuses collectes sur les plages gaspsiennes. Trs joli rsultat, au-del de ce que je croyais possible avec ce type de produit. J’ai ha^te de commencer ma nouvelle collection d’pidotes, d’agates et de jaspe bleus.
(1) You’ll need to purchase additional grit if you intend to use this machine multiple times. The grit provided in the kit is a very small packet of each grit and inadequate for multiple uses.
(2) If all you want is to tumble glass to create the look of beach or sea glass, I find the course grit to be very effective to frost the pieces. If you want the glass to be polished instead of frosted (perhaps to be used for jewellry), then you’ll need to purchase additional finer grit).
(3) If you’re intested in tumbling “raw” broken glass, all you’ll need to use the course tumbling grit and run the machine at speed 2 or 3 for at approx 48 hours. Speed 3 will speed up the process, but I find that speed 2 works equally as well to get the frosted look. I purchased some additional grit (Polly Plastics Step 1 Course) and use 2 teaspoons of grit with the barrell filled to 50% capacity. I usually add some pea sized rocks to help with taking off the sharp edges. Don’t overload the barrell or the glass won’t tumble properly. If you stop the machine overnight because of the noise factor, be aware that the ground down glass particles will solidify like concrete at the bottom of the barrel. Make sure to stir the contents again if you start the machine back up again the next day.
(4) Try to avoid smaller shards of glass or really tiny pebbles as they will work their way under the lid and spill the entire liquid…I speak from experience !!
(5) If you’re like me and have found some nice colored sea glass on your travels that is not 100% frosted, then tumble it for at least 24 hours with the course grit for a more frosted look. I find speed 2 works just fine.
So far I’m pleased with the machine. I have it set up in the workshop in my basement with a tray underneath (in case of any spillage). The machine is not overly loud (probably 2 out of 5 if I had to rate it).
UPDATE. I’m now getting an error code “E” when operating on speed 3. Barrell is not overloaded but it’s still not running consistently anymore (shuts down after less than 15 minutes of use). I’ve noticd a small humming noise when moving from speed 1/2 to 3 and then shortly thereafter, it will shut down and as soon as I change speed from 2 to 3, it will shut down immediately. I’ve reduced the speed to 2 and so far it’s not shutting down. Email has been sent to company to inquire on warranty (I’ve only been using for 12 hr intervals for the past 2 weeks). UPDATE 2. A new replacement unit will be sent by National Geographic as soon as stock is available in Canada (4-6 weeks). They offered a refund, but since the price has increased by over $100 since I purchased, I’ve opted for a replacement instead. They have a 2 year limited warranty as per their correspondence with me. UPDATE 3. Replacement kit sent. VERY HAPPY with customer service at Nat Geographic !!
The tumbler has been running since I bought it for my daughters birthday present (28days ago), no problems to report. Ideal for an out building as you would expect tumbling stones do make noise. She’s diligently read and stuck to the guidance leaflet tumbling the stones that came with the tumbler and beach finds. Great present and turned out to be a good buy.
It is not too noisy and does the job but as I’m new to rock tumbling the instruct book is very poor and most of it is in French.
The supplied rocks included too many tiny useless chippings, very disappointed with the “Gemstones” !!!
Everything there to begin enjoying it! Sturdily made better tha my old one from years ago, a good price and all I need to get started
THANK YOU !
Does a really nice job, takes a long time but kids enjoy the results.
I got this for my son (7) who is in to gems and interesting rocks. He has quite a collection of odd rocks, mixed bags of opals from ebay and chunks of Tasmanian jasper.
It is great to be able to throw some rocks in the tumbler and see how they come out. You will definitely need extra grit but we have found you can get a couple of uses out of the packets by checking each day and taking out rocks you think are done and adding new ones.
The rock tumbler hasn’t stopped running since we got it!
I am still learning about the product…. it will take time to figure best times for what rocks etc
Super easy to use. A little bit noisy (especially the 1st tumble) but not really bad.
My adult daughter was excited to get it and happy with it. She does find her stones come out much smaller. She will experiment and use larger stones perhaps.
Bought this as a bday present and it hasn’t disappointed. Daughter loves it and can’t wait to see the finished stones.
I like very much how the tumbler only took 3 days for the first grit tumble, looking perfect,so far so good, the stones from nat geographic are wonderful, colours are bright already, can’t wait till final polish.
Cracking bit of kit,quiet, sturdy and best value for money
Liked the sealing method and timer, but need to be aware that too big a load of stones will cause the lid to move and allow leakage.
All in all I would recommend this set , as ive bought more gem stones from NG to practice on. Its neat and compact and easy to use, but for children I would recommend adult supervision and it to be kept out the way of curious little fingers. You need a lot of patience as each procedure takes days.
This item was purchased (for 6year old grandson to be helped a little by his Mother. It has given much pleader even through the waiting weeks of tumbling. Many quick looks to see how it was progressing
Last week we got the stones out and they were gorgeous. Cannot wait to go to the beach to search for some more samples
JoanOsborn(Grandmother)
Awesome in all ways untill the motor crapped out … To appease upset grandson I had to quickly purchase another one to continue his polishing ….
What a great little rock tumbler it’s so good all the kit is ready to go, it is great learning tool
It’s Great ~ it does what it says it does
But patience is needed .
Each Sachet of grit states net weight 0.7oz (20 g).
Great for kids. Works well only issue is you only get a sachet of each grit and refills can xost more than the unit.
So far it has been great to use.Nice quality barrel
Bought to keep me occupied during lockdown. Although it takes a long time to actually end up with a “finished product”, it has kept me occupied and given me a new interest.
Has certainly proven to be a hit. Albeit only had a month so only time will tell
Quiet operation and robust cylinder. Well made for the price.
Thanks it’s great to fulfil a dream of being able to tumble and polish my own stones great experience for all children of all ages
I keep it in my bathroom by my room with the bathroom door shut. Sounds like a washer or someone filling up a tub. Works amazingly.
Best ever kit my 11 year old daughter is Living the stages she gets to see we all love it and can’t wait to see the rocks
I was not to impressed with the rocks supplied there was no Amethyst and possibly missing a couple of others the majority was varying pieces of Quartzite pink and white and a lot of chips
I can’t speak to how well it works yet but it came very quickly!
I rated this at 4 stars, only because I think we should get more grit with the package.