Product Description
Small 2mm PIN-FREE stainless steel shot! 1kg pack of stainless steel shot for use when tumbling. These tiny stainless steel balls (or spheres) can polish most hard to reach places, and fine detailed pieces.
This shot is 100% stainless steel. However, even stainless steel can rust if not looked after properly (there are many different types of stainless steel, despite common belief some can rust and some are magnetic!).
| LOOK AFTER YOUR SHOT To keep the shot clean and rust free, give it a rinse after use and keep it completely immersed in water with a little fresh barreling compound. Some people prefer to clean and dry the shot between each use; we don't as we think it takes too long (the shot must be totally dry before you put it away) - as long as the shot is always kept totally covered by water, you won't have any problems with rusting. |
For the best results, your barrel should be 50-75% full once jewellery, shot, and water has been added to get the best polishing action.
Sometimes called tumbler shot or barreling shot.
If you're tumbling silver which has been antiqued with liver of sulphur or pickled (maybe you balled up headpins, or soldered something, and then pickled the piece), I really recommend you clean and neutralise your piece carefully. Warm water and a little soap on a soft brush, followed by rubbing the piece in a little bicarbonate of soda mixed with water, and finally rinse.
This is how we use our tumbler normally:
- Open the barrel (if using a barrel with a plastic end-cap you must place the lid-end in HOT water for 30-60 seconds to soften it first), drain out most of the old water which the shot has been sitting in.
- Fill with a little water from the tap, swirl the shot around, pour out most of the water (if it looks very grey and scummy; repeat this step)
- Fill to about a third or half-full with clean water
- Add no more than 0.5-1 teaspoon of Barrelling Compound or Burnishing Liquid (depending on size of barrel and your water). If the barrel is totally filled with foam when you open it, add a little less next time.
- Add the metal to be polished
- Replace the lid (if using barrel with plastic lids, remember to always soak the lid in hot water before removing or replacing it)
- Tumble for an hour or more. Until you know how to long to tumble, take your pieces out every hour and check. It can take anything from 1-5 hours.
- When happy with the finish, take out your sparkly pieces, rinse, and wipe with a clean polish cloth. Done!
- Make sure the shot is completely covered by the water, and leave until next time. If the water looks very dirty and messy, replace some with fresh water until it covers the shot, add 0.5 teaspoon of compound, shake until dissolved. The compound helps keep your shot clean, as well as polish your metal.
* Please note: shot can polish away very shallow detail such as fingerprints, and get stuck inside small holes, so it’s best to cover these areas with duct tape before going in the tumbler.*
Size: 1kg
