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It's the Tumbler's Fault

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Spheroid that destroyed ring
Ring had to be cut out

Categories: Jewelry; Projects and equipment

The tumbler is where the magic and misery happen. Unrivaled for polishing, weird things are afoot inside the innocent container. Liken it to the power of dripping water which will eventually disfigure solid rock. The gentle swooshing of the tumbler can have a similar devastating effect on jewelry made from softer metals like silver and copper.

I have ruined more than one JPL3 in the tumbler. Given the weave's narrow aspect ratio range, there is scant wiggle room choosing ring size before it devolves into a 4-in-1 hybrid. While such chains may resist all efforts to slip a link by brute force (i.e., trying to force a link back "into" place), a few hours in the tumbler can undo many links.

Aside from a few lost JPL3s, a Mobius flower weave bracelet showed just how severe the erosion can be. I try to tumble my pieces for at least 24 hours. Somewhere between hours 14 and 24, said bracelet was ruined (see picture 2). Whereas most weaves allow the rings to move freely and get even exposure along their entire surface, a string of Mobius units has one side exposed. Thus, it gets worn unevenly.

And that doesn't end the mischief. Tumbling media is usually composed of many shapes to ensure that all surfaces of the jewelry get burnished. A ball bearing will not get into a sharp crease but a spheroid, parallelogram cylinder, or rod will. They also get into spots that defy explanation.

Such was the case for a graduated Byzantine earring. A spheroid got lodged within one of the small units and almost wore through the ring entirely. The spheroid would not dislodge as much as I tried. And I wasn't being gentle since that section would have to be excised anyway. How it got in there - and why it wouldn't come out even though it had nearly worn though the ring, leaving what would seem ample room to pop out - was anyone's guess.

To prevent unwanted residents, I insert wires into/through the weave in suspect places to restrict the opening or eye where media can become embedded. Sometimes it takes more than one wire as evidenced by one of the pictures...yet a piece still managed to sneak in there. Big gaps are not the problem; it's the small spaces that invite the unwelcome.

Tangles and knots happen but so far none have been ruinous. New situations announce themselves at the most unexpected times. Still, tumbling has saved more time than caused failures. But enough, already. It is heartbreaking when days of assembly have been for naught and the final step delivers the kill shot.

Posted by M: June 26, 2020

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