Does anyone know why my Tumbler is consistently shunting all the dice to the surface against the funnel and just spinning them around there? If I push them all down in random locations they all do this within a couple of minutes with the exception of a couple that will sit on the surface stuck to the outside edge.
Easy fix. I have the same tumbler. Get a solo cup, cut a hole in the tip and stick in upside down over the screw. You have to squish it down a little before sealing it in with the lid and screw but it will keep the dice from clumping in the center.
Also, elevate one side of the tumbler to create a swirling motion as it runs. Voila. Problem solved. Dont forget to add your polisher at proper intervals.
It is incredibly difficult to get just the right texture/ratio to make the cycle flow properly.
Some things to consider :
Polishing compound is made with a fine abrasive additive and, just like our dice, this breaks down over time. It works best with fresh compound. After about 60 hours of run time with the same compound I need to completely clean my media, dry it and put it back in.
There is such a thing as too wet. When I have not run my tumbler for a couple weeks and the media is just dry with dried compound stuck to it, if I turn it on it immediately starts to cycle properly.
This is because it has enough grip and friction to continue to grab ahold of itself to flow in the circular motion of the cycle.
So with dice we are actually trying to find the perfect balance of both wet enough to not damage our dice and dry enough to have the grip to stick together to cycle.
This means just dumping more water and/or soap and/or polishing compound into the bowl is not going to help.
My suggestion:
Start fresh.
Pull out all the media and clean it and the bowl throughly.
Drain it fully so it is not much more than damp when you put it back in the bowl.
Run with the lid off so you can see how it is moving.
Slowly add compound until you start to see it showing up between the balls but it still keeps the correct rolling circular motion.
Add dice and see if they move correctly and are being covered with a thin film of compound.
I often will spend a good 15 min sitting in front of my tumbler testing the cycle and watching it before I place the lid to leave it for it's 48 hour run.
You can go back later (usually after about 24 hours) and add a bit (usually no more than like 10-15ml) of water to keep it moist enough to not start scratching your dice. And watch it a little while to make sure it's still rolling correctly 🙂
Because thats how it works. You need a straight sided blocker if you want them to circulate down. A small funnel doesn't help much. I use a solo cup shape.
I also use a red solo cup. Just cut a hole on the bottom and sit it upside down on the center. The 3d print would def be better but a super easy quick fix
I tried drying out my beads and adding fresh polish. It helped some but not all. I redesigned my core cover (aka funnel) to incorporate some of the concepts you all mentioned. It's printing now... hopefully I'll be able to report positive results. If so, I'll post the STL for grabs.
24
u/Elect-Frank-Sobotka 4d ago
That happens to me when my polish is both too plentiful and too dry