Whats the thoughts from everyone on this ball mill?

[jphayesjr]

I built a stand to hold my three rubber lined tumblers. the tumblers were made by Scott-Murray years ago and if your lucky to find one get it I used Model B Liner and lid gasket Stock # 1-0268 $58.90 also I used steel balls purchased from www.ballbaron.com I bought the not perfectly round ones, they are much cheaper then perfect ones used in Pin Ball machines 678-696-5302 ask for Dave, he'll hook you up with a good deal, I believe I used balls 1-1/16 diameter balls but that up to you and your requirement. If by chance you find and old tumbler case, the rubber liners can be found at Kingsley North, Inc. 1-800-338-9280
Good Luck
P

My friends who are lapidary artists consider the Scott Murray line the gold standard of rock tumblers. Good choice for smallish batches.

 

[jphayesjr]

Lortone bought the company and makes newer versions--in warranty-- of the desired models for lower prices that a lot of used equipment vendors are charging for old out of warranty Scott Murray machines. You might get lucky in Ebay and snag one at a bargain, but only if you have time.

 

[RockiB]

So, I was looking to make my own ball mill, but while looking around for a suitable container came across this (mainly for the container, not the motor):

Vevor 3kg Rotary Tumbler

As its quite a cheap thing, I thought I'd probably give it a try, but before I did, I hoped there may be someone that could give their opinion on something like this?

Thanks (in advance)

Richard

I own that for some art glass I hope to make, and it's really small. It's acrylic, not plastic. The way it closes is interesting, but an old pot with the lid clamped shut would be much more useful than this container imo

 

[goldshark]

Junk yards are my go to place for salvaging used mechanical stuff. Out here in Colorado, there are still scrap steel yards that separate used ski lift towers, you can cut to whatever length you desire, speed reducers, drives you have to engineer for the size of mill via new resources such as Northern Hydraulics, Bailey Hydraulics, Surplus City ,whatever. Not too hard to resource components for a2'x 4'L ball mill for around $1,000, labor excluded, batch plant. That should make a ball mill for a considerable production.Some scrap yards don't allow browsing due to OSHA regulations. Find one that still allows browsing. A well constructed junk yard ball mill will allow you to grind enough whatever, to make you a wealthy person, if you grind the right stuff.Rock tumblers are BS compared to a no She_ ball mill . This is not some thing you would set up in a close residential area though. Go big, or go home.