tumbling ring with gemstones
by shelly sauder
(Toronto, Canada)
I want to make pmc rings with gemstone inlays.. can I put them in the tumbler with the stones in?
Thank you!!! :)
Stacy's Answer:
Hi Shelly!
While I am not a PMC artist, I do tumble many different gemstones. The gemstones you are using in your inlays and how they're set determine whether or not they will tumble without being damaged. If you've fired the PMC with the stones in, they should be able to handle the gentle movements of a rotary-style tumbler.
Your inlays are probably more at risk being hit with heavy items while tumbling, so I would suggest you only tumble a few rings without any other heavy things in your tumbler. You may find that polishing with either a buffing machine or a polishing wheel attached to a flexshaft or dremel gives you a better high-polish mirror finish without having to worry about damage to the piece. It's a lot faster too, but not so good for high production work.....tumbler's are great for that!
Return to Tumble Polishing Q & A.
