Chip Tumbling Media (WARNING: Actual metal content!)

My office opens onto a fab shop - machining on one side, where they take big pieces of metal and cut them up into smaller pieces of metal, and on the other side, welding, where they take small pieces of metal and stick them together to make big pieces of metal. ;-)

The gal in the office is an artsy-craftsy type, who sells trinkets at flea and tick markets and such.

Well, I had an idea - what if you took some chips:

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and make exotic earrings with them? I'm sure something as crazy as that would sell in places like Ventura or Laguna Beach, which are very artsy- craftsy type communities, but they'd need to be tumbled to make them safe to handle, obviously. You can't sell earrings that would accidentally cut somebody's throat!

The artsy-craftsy gal in the office has a tumbler, presumably to polish random rocks or whatever; my question is, to tumble chips like that, what would be an appropriate media? I have a virtually unlimited supply of bead-blast beads, and on rec.pyrotechnics they discuss tumbling media, but that's for mixing BP (black powder) and stuff, probably not for smoothing the cutting edges of chips. (they work with everything from mild steel to inconel and hastelloy and stuff, which, being "exotic" alloys, could probably bring top dollar in places like LB and Vent.

Any suggestions? She's going to bring in her tumbler next week, and I can get or make virtually any kind of chip you can think of.

So, what would be a good media? BBs? Blast beads? mineral oil? Sand?

Thanks, Rich

Reply to
Rich Grise
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How about going a different way. Resin suspension. Can't be any worse than bird poop ear rings. Might be nearly as interesting as resin encapsulated scorpions were in the late 1970s.

Reply to
Bob La Londe

Well, that sounds easy to do, but what kind of resin, and what happens when the resin wears off and exposes those darned dangerous sharp edges?

Thanks, Rich

Reply to
Rich Grise

Someone invents a new cocktail or way to get high. Kinda like drinking shots of cobra blood.

-- Not merely an absence of noise, Real Silence begins when a reasonable being withdraws from the noise in order to find peace and order in his inner sanctuary. -- Peter Minard

Reply to
Larry Jaques

Acid bath or electrostatic deburring process.

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Reply to
Steve W.

"Steve W." fired this volley in news:iforho$21q$1 @speranza.aioe.org:

I agree. I'm touted as being somewhat knowlegable about ball milling and tumble-deburring.

The problem with a tumbling process is that any milling media heavy enough to abrade the edges of those curls will also tend to break them up, and bend them, and distort the edges.

You'll need a chemical or electrolytic (not electrostatic) process, unless you want to do them by hand with a high-speed wheel.

LLoyd

Reply to
Lloyd E. Sponenburgh

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