Stainless steel ball bearings

[Btl_Dvr]

Has anyone tried SS ball bearings for tumbling? I'm on the final stage of putting my tumbler together and am looking at different tumbling media options. Thanks.
Jay

 

[Gunsmoke47]

I believe ball bearings would run a high risk of breaking or at the very least cracking your glass. Especially if you are tumbling older glass. Copper is used because it is chopped very fine and is non abrasive to the glass.

 

[tazmainiendigger]

Jay, I dont beleive I would try them in my tumbler... I have a probe with a stainless steel rod and when the tip comes into contact with a bottle I probed, it marks it like a magic marker and it is almost impossible to get the marks off!!! Taz

 

[stinger haut]

Hi Btl_dvr,
Definitely don't use BB's of any kind. They will cause damage to at least some of your bottles.
As posted earlier, cut copper wire #12 or #14 gauge is usaully the best for general tumbling.
If you have a very large bottle (like a Demijohn) or a delicate situation of a unburst shallow bubble, try using plastic pellets. It takes much longer to tumble with plastic pellets because they are light weight.
Stinger

 

[Btl_Dvr]

Thanks for the feed back everyone. I've got a bunch of copper,now I've just got to get busy cutting it.
Jay