How To Clean Stainless Steel Tumbling Shot

Daily Wire Tip January. 9: How to Continue Stainless Shot Free of Residue

Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip
January 09, 2022

Question:

How does one keep stainless steel shot, used for tumbling a piece, costless of black oxides that build upwards and can impart a dark residue to silver?

Reply:

First let me say that if you utilize a tumbler to work-harden and clean your jewelry pieces, that you lot should never mix metals in the same tumbling batch. Each batch needs to be one pure metal such every bit all copper or all silverish or all contumely (this ways no mixed metal pieces such as one made with silverish and copper, etc.) Stainless steel shot needs to be cleaned between each and every run.

At present let'south wait at a few reasons why the shot turns black. When using a new rubber barrel (fifty-fifty if yous cleaned information technology well before the first use) until it is 'cleaved in', ofttimes the rubber on the inside comes off during the first 3 or 4 runs, leaving an undesirable blanket on both the shot and your jewelry (particularly if it is one of the inexpensive barrels, in my personal stance, Lortone is best). If you lot were running a batch that included mixed metals, copper and brass will tumble off a bit of residue that will adhere to all of the material in the batch, including the shot. If you used a dish detergent with a citrus condiment like 'lemon fresh' or something, the citrus will plow all of the metal black. If you employ city water, check to meet if it contains additives that could exist reacting with your metals and if so, utilize purchased water in a jug.

At present here are a couple of methods to clean the shot.

1. Make a thick mixture of blistering soda and water and run it with the shot for two or 3 hours; remove the shot, rinse everything clear and if still blackened a chip, repeat.
2. Run the shot in articulate water with a good dose of pure (no citrus) Dawn dishwashing detergent with grease cutter.

Using fresh h2o each time, repeat either cleaning method chosen, as many times every bit necessary to go rid of the collected crud.

Respond contributed by Dale "Cougar" Armstrong

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Source: https://www.wirejewelry.com/jewelry-making-blog/1157/how-to-keep-stainless-steel-shot-free-of-residue/

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