Can I save money by buying a tumbler and buying bulk rough stones and polishing them myself?
For a 3# hobby tumbler, (which holds around 2# of stones), the economics works out about like this: Grit$5.00 Rocks$0 to $10 Electricity$1 Tumbler$3 (Amortized over 2 years) Labor$0 ———————— Total Cost$5 to $10 per pound Buying high gloss polished stones at a rock shop ranges around $20 to $60 per pound for small quantities. The larger tumbler you get the better the economics works in your favor. If I was just starting I’d get a 12# barrel or even better two 12# barrels. That way I could have one going all the time for first stage, and one working through the rest of the stages.
