Diy vibratory tub

Hi all, first post here. I have been reading this forum for a while now when I need the real down and dirty info on something important. This is a great forum.

Anyway, I am just finishing up my most recent build, a vubratory finisher. I make and sell hangers and needed a way to take the burrs off so they wouldn't snag. Other companies wanted 10k for a machine, and I didn't really like the idea of that, so I made my own. It isn't real big at 3.5 cubic feet, but it works great.

I had a hard time finding other builds online, so I figure I will post mine to help anyone who is attempting the same thing.

I gave it a test run today with a 90v dc treadmill motor, and everything seemed to be just fine until smoke came out both ends of the motor. I already have a vfd and 3 phase motor waiting at the local electric shop just in case this happened, so all I have to do is pick it up. it was only a 900w treadmill motor, so I didn't really expect it to work for very long, just long enough to see if things would work the way I wanted.

I will be posting pics here as soon as everyting is in place and final, video too.
If anyone has any questions, I would be more than happy to amswer them.

Just some small pointers. I did one last year for a friend that wanted to polish aluminum wheels. I think you have severely underestimated the amount of power you require for the pot size and mass. It is normal to use two motors driving unbalanced weights 90* apart. This causes a phasing action, which causes different media flow patterns. These patterns can be tunable with two VFDs, one for each motor and is very effective in optimizing the abrasive action of the ceramic media. The optimum pattern will be different depending on the size of the media and shape and mass of the parts being deburred. For a similar size pot we used two 2hp motors. Even though the base and frame weighed in excess of one tonne and was bolted to a concrete floor, it still vibrated the whole building.

Were i use to work had 2 in the shed out back, they had there own foundation pad, but the shed use to just sit on it, well about once a week, you had to go out with the fork truck and drag it back on to the pad that it had walked off.

IMHO vari speeds + variable weights a must, how the stuff flows and circulates is a key thing to how long it takes. As is fluid - soap levels, too little or too much greatly effects the process. If you can't vari the speed you have to vary how full it is. Got wrong they can damn near self destruct, the right amount of grit + vibration and they work faster + quieten down a fair bit.

You make hangers....? Polished hangers? I had no idea there was a market for this....but then I usually just dress myself right out of the laundry pile so what do I know?

C&M Topline sells a MR Deburr 300 that is a 3CU Ft unit that is a great unit for the approximate $2600 price tag. I have two of them and they treat me well.

A friend built one homemade similar to the MR Deburr 300 and it came out really nice. His motivating factor was that he was in Canada and with the Ontario Taxes, super weak dollar, and his access to fab equiment and metal made it reasonable to make it.

For a 3 cu ft machine, you should be using a 1hp motor minimum depending on media density.

GregSY said:

You make hangers....? Polished hangers? I had no idea there was a market for this....but then I usually just dress myself right out of the laundry pile so what do I know?

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Yep, we sold 60,000 hangers overnight and I needed a way to keep up rather than deburring one hanger at a time. Now I can catch up on orders. Ike's Hangers if you want to see them.

I am going to ise a 2-3hp motor to replace the fried one. The tub is fully suspended on springs, so vibration isn't really a problem, just the concussions in the air. My wife could feel it in the house.

I am going over to pick up the new motor in a few minutes. I can adjust the weight on the shaft.

If your shaking the whole building or shaking a shed off it's pad there is something wrong with your vibratory polisher. I had a 1.3 cubic ft sweco that I never bolted down. It ran fine like that for years. I also have a rotofinish Gemini 12 that I ran for a while without bolting it down. It also ran fine. In fact I stood up a nickel on the base of the machine and it didn't move. Just because they look simple don't underestimate the amount of engineering that builders put into these machines.

Gemini 4 Demo - YouTube

Hammond Roto Finish - Hammond Roto Finish

HubbyIke said:

I will be posting pics here as soon as everyting is in place and final, video too.
If anyone has any questions, I would be more than happy to amswer them.

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Great, looking forward to pics and details.....

I'm interested, too.

HubbyIke said:

it works great.


I gave it a test run today with a 90v dc treadmill motor, and everything seemed to be just fine until smoke came out both ends of the motor. I already have a vfd and 3 phase motor waiting at the local electric shop just in case this happened, so all I have to do is pick it up. it was only a 900w treadmill motor, so I didn't really expect it to work for very long, just long enough to see if things would work the way I wanted.

If anyone has any questions, I would be more than happy to amswer them.

Click to expand...

How can it "work great" when you say the motor died ?

The verdict is in. It works. I installed the 3hp 3phase motor and vfd and that was the right thing to do. The dc motor was not fried, just overworked, so I put it on my drill press and it works like magic. The tumbler does a fantastic job of deburring my stainless hangers. I deburr the rods before bending them so they don't tangle. The tumbler has not moved on it's own and it is on wheels. I can set a box of rods on the frame and it says there. The cycle times are about 20 minutes or a bit less to get no burr. The parts are still pretty shiny too. I have 50,000 parts to run and have already put 10,000 through the tumbler. The limit seems to be about 200 rods per load before they bunch up in groups. I have found the sweet spot at about 82-92 hz or ~2600 rpm. The material really rolls in the tub. I have a spray system on it and a settling tank under the tub that works great. I am currently pumping the settled water into the yard.(i know, be careful about polution). I do have a filter, just have to hook it up. I have found a company to make the formed hangers for me without burrs, so this tumbler will only run hangers for another week or so.

My dad said he wants it when the hangers are done so he can tumble rocks. I think I will use it for tumbling parts when I work on motors. I don't like cleaning heads and valve covers by hand. I can also tumble other engine parts in here, or just about anything for that matter.

I have noticed that the media works better when it is clean and with a bit of soap, but not too much. I have been thinking of building a bigger tub for it in the future so I can run bigger parts.(up to ~40"). Right now my parts have to be under 24". My tractor head will be the next thing to go in. I put a quarter in there a couple of weeks ago to see what would happen but I have been unable to recover it so far. I have seen it go by twice since putting it in there but have not been fast enough to grab it. I think it still looks like a quarter.

I have been meaning to get a video of the tumbler working, but have been too busy. Maybe this week.

If anyone wants info, just ask. This thing is solid and works great. I like it better than the Giant tumbler in Chicago. My tub is round so the parts roll more than the Giant, where they went up and down more because of the very deep tub. I know a deeper tub will shorten cycle times, but I need to keep parts from tangling and bunching.

I did see someone's build on here a while back who made brush guards for 4 wheelers? I think. The tub on his machine was hinged and that is why he had problems with it vibrating across the floor. The tub has to be fully suspended on springs to isolate vibrations. I do need a sound cover of some sort because the concusion from the machine is deafening. I wear ear plugs, but have used it a couple of times without and i fear my hearing has gone south a bit because of it, or maybe everything seems quieter when the machine isn't running. Haha. It sounds like a BIG genset running and I can only imaging what the neighbors 1/4 mile away think I am doing down here. My dad drives truck and LOVES the tumbler. I think the vibrations make him happy because it feels like you are in a big truck with the motor running wot under load when you stand next to it. you can feel the vibrations in the house from the concusions of the machine 150 feet away in the shop. I don't think it is coming through the ground, probably air pressure waves. The customers who come over to buy clothes ask what kind of engine is running in the shop that they can hear/feel it in the house.

I am using smaller amplitude and higher frequency to keep some shine on the hangers. The machine I tried in chicago made them look like galvanized fence wire with high amplitude and low frequency. I am using 1/4" ceramic tristars. I think I have a little over 300#s of media in the tub.

...A picture is worth a thousand words....

GregSY said:

You make hangers....? Polished hangers? I had no idea there was a market for this....but then I usually just dress myself right out of the laundry pile so what do I know?

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We'll now you know about the special hangers they make for your leggings!

But seriously Ike - you're a dick. All of us working ourselves half to death trying to figure out how to survive in this industry, and here you come with THE solution for every woman selling LuLaRoe. Freaking 10 cent part you're cranking out in your garage, potentially by hand, and you're going to retire before any of us. Dick.

But seriously, such an awesome, simple little idea, and it looks like you're capitalizing on it beautifully. Congrats man!

I will warn you though: China will become your competition at some point, and for a product like this, you're going to struggle to compete. Keep expanding your product line, and keep driving your brand forward.

Oh, and post your build! We like homemade contraptions around here, if only so we can all year each other down!

Good luck!

Congratulations IKE!

Trying to figure out which shop you are..
Near the post office?
Near the Cenex ?

3t3d said:

Congratulations IKE!

Trying to figure out which shop you are..
Near the post office?
Near the Cenex ?

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I am just outside of town. Where are you?

A Bruce Springsteen says.....

Windows are for cheaters, chimneys for the poor
Closets are for hangers, winners use the door
So use it, Rosie, that's what it's there for


In Chippewa.
In the tank farm, oil terminal.

Ok guys, I just measured the db level of my tumbler so I know what hearing protection measures to take.

This thing is pushing 120 db. If you are using a vibratory tumbler, PLEASE use hearing protection. A 3db increase doubles the sound pressure. Normal talking is 70 db.
It is no wonder my head hurts after being out there all day, even with plugs or muffs.

....and still no pictures.....

PLEASE! A tumbler and a vibratory finisher are TWO DIFFERENT MACHINES! Please use the correct descriptive terms. You are sounding like a confused kid!

Insult intended!

HubbyIke said:

Ok guys, I just measured the db level of my tumbler so I know what hearing protection measures to take.

This thing is pushing 120 db. If you are using a vibratory tumbler, PLEASE use hearing protection. A 3db increase doubles the sound pressure. Normal talking is 70 db.
It is no wonder my head hurts after being out there all day, even with plugs or muffs.

Click to expand...

CalG said:

PLEASE! A tumbler and a vibratory finisher are TWO DIFFERENT MACHINES! Please use the correct descriptive terms. You are sounding like a confused kid!

Insult intended!

Click to expand...

I thought the thread title said vibratory....sorry you missed it.


I will be posting pics and video as soon as I can get time to set up the tripod and think. I have been working crazy hours to get caught up on orders. I have about 35,000 hangers left to tumble.

Where do I post with the build?