This is a topic I searched for and puzzled over before.
Back when I was really into barrel polishing, I was looking for something that wasn’t stationary.
I was wondering if there was something portable that could do barrel polishing…
What I found was called the “Maze-Maze Man.”
There really are all sorts of things out there in the world.
I always think that official product names are tricky.
Back then, I was patrolling machinery on Yahoo Auctions when…
( ,,`･ω･´)ﾝﾝﾝ? What’s this?
I clicked and checked the screen… hmm, a “mixer,” huh? Yeah, that would be tough. When contents settle in a 18-liter can or 20-liter pail.
It’s definitely a hidden, niche piece of equipment.
It wasn’t very expensive, so I bought it right away.
When I checked the price on Amazon… I was a bit surprised.
Toslon Sealed Tank 20L SN-20 Blue
To do barrel polishing, you have to meet several conditions.
• The tank must not leak when shaking
• The media thrashes around inside, so the tank is consumable. Metal won’t work.
• The tank should be relatively easy to obtain
• The lid should be easy to open and close
• The weight to rotate should be light
and so on.
With these requirements, I narrowed it down to PE/PP (polyethylene/polypropylene) materials.
Panasonic Dial Timer 3-Hour Type with 1m Cord WH3211BP
The unit itself has a timer built in, but it’s pretty rough, so I chose an analog one that allows for finer adjustments.
When running for long periods, I didn’t think it was really necessary.
I went with 3 hours because the scale is easy to read.
The media is what I introduced the other day, purchased from “Toho Steel Machinery Co., Ltd.”
It’s a repurposed item like this, but the effect is more than sufficient. I apologize for the lack of images since I don’t have anything polished to show.
Barrel polishing pros and cons
Pros
• It polishes automatically
• Uniform finish
Cons
• It’s loud. Super loud (Clang! Clang!)
• When you open it, there’s foam everywhere, so it’s hard to rinse and hard to remove items
• The process takes longer than expected
• You need space to store it.
When I write it out, there are more cons than pros… don’t you think?
