Always- always-always wear goggles - can't say this enough . 45 years in Ophthalmology - When working with metal - if you get even a little feel of metal in your eye - get your butt to the nearest eye MD. Be prepared to have any metal residue burred out of your eye , yes, we used them there, too. The last thing you want is even a little rust which would lead to endophthalmitis, which I have seen many times and once was enough. You can be blind in said eye within 2 days. No pain but no vision either. I know this sounds quite harsh but I have been brought to tears too many times by people not taking eye protection seriously - especially in trades. We get that you are hard-working and tough , but your eyes are not. And you're going to need them.
💯 thank you so much for your helpful reminder ❤️ you are so right about googles ive permanently damaged my eyes from. Or wearing them early in my career 🔥💎❤️
To add on to this, sunglasses, reading glasses, and dollar store glasses ARE WORSE THAN NOTHING. At best, false sense of safety, and usually a shot-trap for everything to get funneled right into your cornea. At worse, glass shrapnel when they shatter. (I've witnessed someone have that happen, from an engine valve spring going flying. Guy can only see shadows out of that eye now. Sidenote: our old HS woodshop teacher used to make the entire class watch an up-close eye surgery video, before they were allowed to touch anything in the shop. At least 1 kid puked every year, but safety glasses weren't an issue in his room
It makes me so happy to see that there’s still people that love lapidary and rock working I lost my grandfather when I was 8 and he was also a huge rock hound and lapidary work but now I’m 17 and I have a huge love for it and I do it on my free time it’s even my business so I love to see that you’re with your grandpa
It would be AWESOME if there was a PDF to download all these tools needed to start doing something with all the rocks I've been dragging home for decades. Unfortunately I don't have much money these days. Maybe if I knew what I was looking for I could find some of these at an estate sale or garage sale. Thank you for this video and all the others. I'm learning.
To me, a total newbie to lapidary, this video was an amazing insight into some of the tools, uses and your known experience about using them. Plus getting pricing was also great. I'm not sure I'm all that interested into getting that involved in lapidary - I'm totally hooked on tumbling and working with the finished stone in some combined stained glass and stone projects as well as resin. New follower of yours and I appreciate you - learning so much!
Thanks for posting this Dave. I have an HF 10" tile saw and could not be happier with it. I did need to make a couple of simple small improvements on it but it works as well as the more expensive name brands. I also have an HF two-barrel tumbler that I have used steadily for 2 years with no problems. I also made one improvement on it but was a very minor thing. And an HF flex shat that works well. If any of the viewers here are on a strict budget such as I, they should look into those tools. Good vid. Havagudun my friend.
E. D. Law Definitely my friend I have a tenant Saul and I told him so but I’m still going to go out and buy the harbor freight 10 inch tile saw to use it more to show folks that you do not need to spend $1000 on a ten” “lapidarysaw” To get the same results
@@lapidarydave I will tell you that this saw was a gift from a friend. There is quite a story behind it but will not get into it here. The guy that used it one time had not adjusted the water correctly and had burned up the blade just cutting about 100 pieces of small tile. I had to remove an arbor spacer and reinstall it correctly then bought a $66 lapidary blade for it. It works very well but I am not sure the new blade was worth the money I spent on it. It does a real nice job if I don't push it too hard. I was trying to cut too fast and left blade marks on the rocks. Since I slowed down it does a really nice job and 10 inch is a great size. Thanks.
Hi! I took my daughters “gem mining” and had a blast. Plus they love to collect rocks. I purchased a rock tumbler from Michaels for $100!! I had no idea HF sold that kind of thing. Thanks for the video!! I’m going to start making jewelry with my girls for fun. Good to know HF has inexpensive tools we’ll be needing.
My daughter just got into rocks mineral sample collecting ( she's 24) got all the kids into gold panning. If I could just get her into my jewelry biz. Have fun w her. The time spent w you, is dbl rewarded in many ways when they're older. Like diamonds in rough, shapes who they are.
Starting out in lapidary I found HF a great place for tools to get started. Eventually you move up to the more expensive highland park and the such tools but there isn't a better place to shop for hobby level tools!
Excellent video thank you so much. I was walking through Harbor freight a week ago and looked at most of this stuff wondering what I needed as a new enthusiast. I think you saved me a lot of time and money, much appreciated!
Stephen North Thank you so much my friend I really appreciate you watching it was kind of fun to make this video I was in the harbor freight for over an hour
High quality tour my dude, bravo. I love the constant stream of lived wisdom, writing extra thoughts on the screen, personal anecdotes, project ideas, and inside jokes (what's with 945, an area code?). Full contact learning, super appreciated, I'd pay to learn from you!
Hi Dave, Another great video! I have a Harbor Freight near me so I buy just about all my tools there. You just have to watch it, there is a reason the price is so low. I have two of the double barrel rock tumblers by Chicago Electric, they work great, just hit the bearings with a little WD-40 once in a while. And always keep a few extra belts around. I harvest my own agates and pet wood so I always have enough rocks to fill all the barrels. Do not buy the vibratory tumblers from there. They don't last! The only vibratory tumblers that work for rock is the Lot-O brand but they are a little to pricey for me. Keep up the good work!
I used to have a Lot-O. My only issue with it was it could grind too aggressively. You have to keep an eye on it. The rubber barrels make all the difference. I did have an issue with grit getting imbedded in the rubber and ruining the polish. I bought a separate barrel for each grit. I sure do miss that thing.😢
Thanks so much for this tour and breakdown of tools. I had no idea ! I need a tumbler and additives. Maybe a video with grandpa....he sounds like he could show us some knowledge.
Diane Green I definitely will be making some videos with him soon he is in his 80s and his wife doesn’t want us hoodlums coming around him during the 2020 wild world events
On the HF sand blasters you can eliminate the dust by adding a filtration system by adding a down draft vacuum to the table thru the back of the cabinet that flows thru a cyclonic chamber to capture and recover any stray media but make sure there is a High micron furnace filter box between the cyclone and the vacuum or the grit will kill the vacuum
Just yesterday I stopped by Harbor Freight and picked-up some stuff, but you have definitely extended my options for lapidary equipment and tools. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you so much. I literally just started learning about ladpidary a couple of weeks ago and it's way overwhelming at all of the things you need to get started and any areas where some money can be saved is always appreciated. I don't mind spending money if there is no comprable and relative safe work around but it's a huge initial investment to even try your hand at any projects.
good video.This gives me a few ideas just getting into cutting and polishing. I’ve collected rocks and agates for about 20 years. Just never done anything with them.
Thank you so much for watching my friend I really appreciate it I finally made a video on converting a tile saw into a flat lap :) here is a link ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-nn46PI63mmM.html
I'm a hobby watchmaker and I use a lot of these same tools for case and bracelet work. I'm not from the states so not Harbor Freight specifically but I have and use 80% of the tools you showed. Neat.
J S Thank you so much for watching I really appreciate it there is definitely some cool deals at Harbor freight I have been using with the harbor freight flex shaft for the last couple days and I absolutely love it I have an opened up the package that has the V wheel yet but I am excited about it
Ron Olsen I wonder if I can call the company manufacturing it and ask him if it’s the same thing as the Zamm compound which folks call Green Ridge which doesn’t help much I wonder if it’s a chrome oxide thank you for commenting my friend
Good stuff brother. Anything is better than trying to use sandpaper and hand. Them two barrel tumblers look good . Those bigger barrel ones idt people realize how much it takes to fill one of them in terms of pounds of stones needed . Great for agate types ,jasper etc not so much for turq from my experience. Takes months just for them harder ones about and lose just about all weight when doing turq. The vribra tumblers we would use them but I think it was usonic ,was wet with like 220 grit or higher ,they polished the coral and it kept the same shape not like the reg tumbler. Usonic cleaner can take away color fr certain cabs , not sure if they were dyed or what but yeah it will like bleach them .
Thanks for the video. Great idea. I work in the automotive business. The sandpaper has a very weak backing and has a tendency to crack and break. Very cheap stuff. Other than that HF can be a good place to shop if you want to get started and save in the process
It’s one of my most favorite things to shop for a little things my friends who work in landscaping and construction and shit absolutely refuse to use their power tools LOL anyway my friend thank you so much for watching I really appreciate
Excellent video and going to my local store for the first time!! Btw….I dreamt of you 2 nights ago, we were cutting / polishing purple stone from the rough. I work with jewelry (not a lapidary) and am finding your videos very enjoyable. Thanks for all the knowledge.
That’s awesome my friend I’m sure we were having a blast cutting the purple stone which are my favorite:) enjoy the harbor freight I absolutely love that store
Very interesting. I want to get in to lapidary, but have no idea where to start. This was helpful, but a little overwhelming for a newbie like me. I look forward to future videos. Very informative. Ty!
Dawn Springmeyer Definitely understand that my friend a tile saw is one of the best places to start I am going to be making a video on how to make cabochons very easily with a rotary tool or a flex shaft thank you so much for watching I really appreciate it
Me too, I’m watching every video I can about cutting and shaping and carving stones. I’m a opalholic now, There’s some great videos to subscribe to and much to learn on you tube videos Opals. I think it’s going to be a great hobby, with better rewards than a lot wasted days in these hard times. Good luck Dawn.
Hi Dave. Not sure if these items are mentioned in earlier comments, but I have purchased a set of "third hands" here. Fairly stable. They have noise damping head phones, and ear plugs. They also have low grade head/ magnifying jewelers visors. Calipers, scales. But you took away the two best finds. The sand paper for the money is definitely the cherry on the sundae. Thank you for making this. It's a big help for those on a miniscule budget.
I have the Chicago Electric single tumbler going right now. I did need to do some modifications to make it roll smoothly and not constantly burn up the belt.
My issue with rotary/ Dremel tools is the high speed. High RPMs equal high heat. My solution was a variable speed nail grinder like nail salons use. It will go as slow as I want it to go. The price on fleabay was on par with low end rotary tools. I got more use out of it than you would think.
I'm Mike Watkins a 58 year old fellow rockbound. I love your passion because it reminds me of me and I don't know that many people of the same love. I wanna learn to cut rocks in the 1 to 4 to 6 inch max, affordable, safe and easy. I can't get around like I used to cuz I got pretty bad arthritis that's coming on faster than i'd not wanted it to. What would u suggest. Love your vids, I live in Phoenix Oregon and imo s. Oregon is amazing rock hunting. Love to plan a trip man, I think you'd be really fun to hang out with. God bless.
Hey brother, thank you so much for watching. I really appreciate it when it comes to arthritis you can try using different dops like using wax on a stick or superglue on a nail and I’ll let you maneuver it easier with less effort
I'd joined the Inside Track Club before(There's a video each month on a RU-vid channel of roughly the same name and they show the codes which is all you need to order saving the fee which every little bit helps!) I called & emailed to suggest that they carry the tiny Fretz type hammer sets, chasing & repousse work, but they'd not done anything and they don't make the tools just get a vendor who is selling them. I was intrigued with your story of many Native People who've made or improvised with these tools. Much of our most popular styles had been made by the same folk with even less! I've seen men who have a drawplate between their feet pulling on wire with pliers or hand drill chucks often of silver from played-out mines for raw ore. If you could do video of different things they make to give them some recognition and attribution for techniques they use. I was moved by the video to give you a Like & Sub!
Thank you so much for watching and for the video suggestions my friend I have a friend named Bradley who lives on the reservation in Arizona who and provides a lot of his tools he would be perfect for helping me to make the video you are speaking of he could probably even just send me the footage to put on my channel I will definitely get on that my friend thank you so much and thank you for the lake in the sub it means a lot I’m super close to 10,000 subscribers where I will then unlock a few more RU-vid tools I’m looking forward to it :-)
No wonder everything that's about rock polishing is on back order at my local. 😁 I'm thinking a kickback is in order!!! I'm just about to get a few things and you pointed out that I could get them All for the price of a name brand Life machine. I'm thinking that I'd learn more about what I really wanted to do and the machinery required if I went to the harbor and didn't hurt my non existent Bank. Be well and thanks!
Great video! I get a lot of tools from HF. I’ve been using their flex shaft for jewelry for the last 5 years and still working like a charm. Grease it when you first get it and once in a while after that for a long life. 6” buffer is also great. QUESTION: Does anyone know if you can use the thin blades on the tile cutters for fine cutting? Thanks!
if you're going to use a 4-1/2" grinder, be sure to get wet or dry wheels, not dry only. You'll want to use it dry unless you have a wet grinder. Lotta more money. If you grind or cut dry, wear a good respirator, not a dust mask. Eye protection also.
Full range lapidary here. That continuous rim blade cuts fingers really well. :-) Have the 2 barrel tumbler. One barrel for cutting, one for polish only. If I had to buy a faceting machine to replace my DIY one, it'd cost $1000, not kidding. oh, you missed the set of watchmaker loups , x2 to x10. The reason the bench grinders are not used in lapidary is exstream shock hazzard! So nice to have a store just across town. Blnders may be required. 🙂
Love my harbor freight tumbler. Excellent channel. Thanks for the hours of entertainment. Did you cover the sandpaper section? It's my source of cheap tumbling grit. Way cheaper than the actual tumbling grit they never seem to have in stock.
B P it’s true that a lot of Harbor freight’s do not seem to have the tumbling media and in stock I roughly cover the Sandpaper section but they were out of most of their silicon carbide sandpaper which in my opinion is the best for lapidary work I did mention that there silicon carbide sandpaper is more affordable than hardware stores but I probably could’ve talked more about the sandpaper section thank you so much for commenting my friend I really appreciate it and thank you for enjoying the channel and it means a lot to me
I've used the green compound, I think it's called green chrome. I use it to produce a terrific mirror finish on 303 stainless steel knife pommels and guards. I think the black compound might be emery, and it's used on iron and steel with sisal wheels ( very aggressive cutting action.)
@@lapidarydave Great reply, but raising the finance and working to build up a company like that is beyond my remit, I'm a creative type not a business entrepreneur, I've only just started selling stuff on Ebay, lol 😀
I been a woodworker for years. I am looking to get into jewelry making and came across this video. Thank you Dave! It was very helpful. Where can one hear your music?
I'm going to dust off my lapidary gear soon -- I just bought a house & noticed a couple of opal & agate roughs between a couple of trees. My girlfriend & I spent most of the day digging by hand a 20' long swath up to 1' deep to pull up what appears to be a previous owner's lifetime rockhounding collection. I have 2 grapefruit boxes full of agate, opal, jasper, and a few odds. I had noticed that a few of the landscaping rocks are opal roughs -- so I knew a lot of the rocks were from somebody's collection. I don't understand why somebody would put a huge collection of either picked or purchased gemstones in the dirt along the driveway near the house. Many of the pieces were sharp & some as small as a jelly bean -- and were almost completely submerged into the dirt. And the only thing that can be found on this property is feldspar -- some of it cantaloupe size. I'm glad there's a decent amount of chalcedony in the collection -- it is my favorite
You know it could be left over from somebody that passed away and caretakers of the persons goods were not interested in the rocks so they just kind of threw them out he could also just be that a lapidary collected all of their undesirable pieces or stuff they know they’re not gonna work and then slowly but surely use it as landscape rock whoever buys my house after me is going to find lots of emeralds Rubys sapphires agates Jasper is Turquoise 🔥❤️ and I’ll kinds of fun stuff throughout my yard from when I get discouraged working a piece and just throw them out in the yard sometimes I have smaller pieces I know I’ll never work or that are not particularly good for working and are better for specimen And I throw them out in the yard
Daniel Taieb You so much for watching I really appreciate it I have heard that you folks do not have harbor freight but would you folks have similar products at Queens auto? Or maybe it was called princess auto
As a bricklayer, a word of caution; those cups for the grinder can do some real damage, and since they're segmented can produce choppy conditions. Happy lapidary folks
I purchased the rock tumbler from HF and it was a terrible terrible tumbler (but it was available in my tiny town). Now I am back to square one after returning it.
The best part about Harbor freight is not take back anything even if it’s open within 90 days a lot of your tools are hit or miss I’m sorry you didn’t have a good experience
@@roosevelt3311 unfortunately I don’t have any recommendations back in the day MK Diamond used to make a 7 inch blade went out of business recently when I used to use those tile saws, I used to put a 6 inch blade but you lose a lot of depth. I would ask the DIY Lapidary group on Facebook. They’ll know where to get a nice thin 7 inch blade.
@@lapidarydave No problem they also have the diamond blade sharpening stones there red blue and yellow. The grits are 180, 225 and 300. I'm not sure but they have them.
@@AEON.Thank you. I got myself some safety goggles like two months ago. My friend lost his right right when has was sanding so steel and a piece went straight into his right eye.
i Have purchased 2 tumbler machines from HF and love them. Only problem is they don"t sell parts and the inner seal wears out. If anybody knows where I can buy the inner seal please post it, I have been buying extra barrels just to get the seal. Thank you.
What is the best type of way to grind and reshape small pieces of shale ? I’m planning to use some in jewelry, I know it’s soft and fairly unusual but just curious. Thanks.
I've got one of these vibratory tumblers at 4:20. It's nice for rounding off sharp edges on fresh broken stone, And there isn't a minimum rock load for it to work, but I wouldn't buy another for lapidary. Progressively finer aluminum oxide powders get airborne every time you open it, and there isn't much you can do to not get it on your hands, or into your lungs. I have thought about filling it with pieces of Waxed wooden dowel, to see if it'll shine them after the last tumble, but cleaning out all those abrasive particles is a huge pain.
Do you know my friend even though I do hear people are managing to polish rocks with a vibrator Tumblr at Harbor freight I do know that it is not intended for rocks rather for metal such as bullet casings and tools so I can see why one might have small problems with it I am impressed that you were managing to make it work please let me know how the wax wood works for you
Mike Louis I love Harbor freight they are probably definitely cancer causing tools but they have a decent return policy and have some stuff that is more affordable than they’re bigger brother lapidary equivalents
Gotta say this: I love you brother but what's up with you leaving all your beautiful nice tools out in the snow & rain LMFAO Thank you for being so awsome and showing us so much. You are so appreciated and probably need to hear it more often 💜
AU Prospector You are 100% right my friend I have 1 million excuses but I will save you on all of them because they are pretty weak LOL it won’t happen again I’ve learned a valuable lesson I have a video coming out on the new Highland Park 6 inch trim saw And I damage the cutting table by leaving it out in the snow my grandfather fixed it but it’s still a shame thank you so much for the appreciation I really enjoy your comments
I use the Maguire's Ultra cut compound and the Maguire's show car finish from harbour freight to polish stones. I generally buff in 10 coats of each. The little grinding disk set that has the "v" wheel.in it... only one of those wheels had a shaft that fits in a rotary tool. The other ones you have to use a hand drill with.
John Morgan That’s cool that you use the Maguire compounds For your stones I definitely am excited to give that a shot I have noticed that the wheels that come with the V will have two different shank sizes the larger shank does not fit in my Dremel but it does fit in my flex shaft Dremel sells Chuck for their Rotary Tours I’m not sure if it fits the larger shank of the view will but I think it might and I will be buying one to test that out thank you so much for watching my phone
Make sure to use lots of water and even the cheap pets can I have some news obviously higher quality diamond bits work better but use what you have to the best of your abilities always and every application of life
