While I don’t know the type of jewelry you need to polish and the
size of your production, I would enthusiastically agree with the
Orchidian that recommended using a magnetic tumbler. They work well
for the type of polishing that you described-not for more general
polishing. I work in 22k gold and it works so well for the type of
work for which it was designed. I use a larger vibratory tumbler with
stainless steel shot of the larger variety to work-harden chains and
for cleaning of larger pieces, especially silver ones. It will do no
harm. Just remember that the magnetic tumbler was not designed for
pieces with significant flat areas; they will have a frosted
appearance. You can choose the size of magnetic tumbler that best
meets your production needs. I have the smallest-it takes up very
little space and it saves lots of time. — Ellen Sheldon —
@elsheldon
Ellen: What if you use the magnetic polisher first to get in all the
small crevices, and subsequently use a large steel shot tumbler.
Will that sufficiently undo the frosted finish on the large flat surfaces?