The National Geographic Rock Tumbler Hobby Kit Review: is it Worth the Money?
- Katriona MacMillan
- Jul 1
- 6 min read
The National Geographic hobby rock tumbling kit is easily one of the most accessible pieces of rock tumbling kit on the market. An affordable investment for future hobby rock polishing, is the Nat Geo worth the money?
Who better than a Scottish rock shop who began polishing on this very device, to investigate?
<This blog contains Amazon links which I might be paid for, but it is unlikely>
Key Takeaways:
The box comes with everything you need to get started, including rocks and grits.
It is quieter than many other tumblers but not quiet.
National Geographic are excellent at replacing any broken tumblers.
Tumble up to 2lbs worth at a time.
4 steps of tumbling to shiny rocks – remember to burnish!
Absolutely not just for kids…
Very much worth the money.
Shop for the National Geographic Hobby Rock Tumbling Kit Here.
About the National Geographic Rock Tumbler Hobby Edition
The National Geographic is a household name these days. It started life as a scientific journal published in 1888 with a focus on exploration and discovery. Now, Nat Geo books, magazines, and TV shows are commonplace. All the products have this same theme: that the world is waiting for us to explore it…and that the team at National Geographic will help us along the way.
At some point in the 1900s (we can’t find info on the exact date) the National Geographic brand turned its attention towards scientific tools and ‘toys’ such as the hobby kit rock tumbler. Other toys in this range include the National Geographic Microscope, the Gemstone Dig Kit, and the ever-popular-with-kids Completely Gross Chemistry Set.
Reviewing the National Geographic Hobby Tumbler Kit
Now that we know a little about the brand, let’s dive into the review. We will start with the fun part – what you get in the box.
What’s in the Box?
The National Geographic hobby rock tumbler comes with loads of goodies. The goodies alone make it kinda worth the price. The rocks they send to get you started with represent a good mix of reasonably expensive material.
The box contains:
1 professional grade rock tumbler
Rubber Barrel
Replacement bands for the machine
A small strainer to empty your rocks into
5 pieces of jewellery fastenings – a necklace with a cage so you can wear one of your stones, a keychain, some earrings, and a ring.
4 stages of tumbling grit, enough for your first tumble
GemFoam rock polishing pads
227 grams worth of a mix of nine different types of rock
What Rocks Come with the National Geographic Hobby Tumbler?
There are a mix of rocks in the bag. We received tiger’s eye, rose quartz, carnelian agate, agate/chalcedony, and a bunch of Dalmatian jasper. Obviously there is other material in there. It depends on your luck.
Plastic or Rubber Barrels?
The National Geographic Hobby Kit rock tumbler comes with rubber barrels. These are better for quitter running and are compatible with just about every other rock tumbler we have bought.
How Noisy Is This Rock Tumbler?
It makes a fair amount of noise. Do not be mistaken, this is one of the quieter rock tumblers due to that rubber barrel, but you still need to keep it in the spare room or garage.
We have a dedicated rock tumbler cupboard in a heavy wooden sideboard in the rock room. If you shut the door and close the cupboard it is absolutely fine. It’s like living near a train track. You get used to it.
Adjustable Speeds?
This rock tumbler from National Geographic does not come with adjustable speed settings. It does come with adjustable day settings so you can pick how many days you want to tumble for up to one week… handy if you are prone to forgetfulness.
Is there Grit Left in the Barrel?
Sometimes there is a little grit left in the barrel. This is not necessarily the fault of the rock tumbler but rather of the rock tumbl-ee. If you don’t get your mix right, you end up with grit in the bottom. My bad. Let’s not talk about it.
Recommended Grits
The National Geographic hobby rock tumbler kit comes with four packets of grit. We do not use those continually as there are only enough for a single batch of rocks.
We buy our grits from UKGE who wholesale a huge whack of the grits for rock tumbling you can buy in the UK. However, you can buy rock tumbling grit from National Geographic themselves, or from this shop in Shropshire. We like to keep things in the UK.
You can also read up on which rock tumbling grits to use for polishing rocks in our previous blog, here.
Aesthetics – How does the Nat Geo Rock Tumbler Look?
It looks pretty suave. It is in all black with a grey base and white and yellow accents – the Nat Geo colours. The day timer button lights up in red to indicate which day you are on. Ultimately it doesn’t matter how it looks because it lives in the cupboard.
Compatibility with Other Tumblers and Parts
This is one of the areas where National Geographic rock tumbler hobby kits excel. We can use that rubber barrel with every other tumbler we have except for the StemRock, which has a larger base. You can use everything that you get with the hobby kit in other tumblers, too.
What We Didn't Like?
We are not fans of the GemFoam pads. The idea is that they buff the polish after the final stage. We didn't see much difference but mightn ot have used them properly. We did give up on them pretty quickly.
Do The Stone Circle Use the National Geographic Hobby Tumbler?
We used it until it died, then we contacted National Geographic to tell them that it had died, and they sent us a new one. We used that until it also died, we then bought a second one.
The company admit that there is a problem with the motor and freely replace them if they wear out. We use our rock tumblers constantly, so we do wear out the motors. Our top tip here is to be careful not to overfill the barrel. However, if you do break it, you are safe in the knowledge that they will replace it for you.
How Much does the National Geographic Rock Tumbler Cost?
At the moment the RRP is around £90 GBP. Is it worth the money? Yes. Evidence of this is that we bought it twice, still use the barrels, and might go back for a third time.
Rating Out of Five?
This is the device we first started tumbling on and it is excellent for beginners. We recommend this rock tumbler for budding geologists and as an unforgettable gift to those who love crystals.
Out of five? We give 4… but instead of stars lets have meteorites.
4/5 meteorites. We are very happy with it.
Nat Geo Hobby Rock Tumbler FAQs
We took this opportunity to answer a whole bunch of questions you guys have had about the National Geographic Hobby Kit Rock Tumbler below.
Is the National Geographic Rock Tumbler supposed to Spin?
Aye. If it didn’t spin it wouldn’t be forcing the rocks to tumble around inside it, mingling with the grit, and slowly eroding those porous outer layers until the rocks become smooth. Science.
On the grand scale of rock tumblers, 30-60 revolutions per minute is optimal. Nat Geo are known to spin a little fast, closer to 80 RPM.
Am I Supposed to Put Water in My Rock Tumbler?
Yes, your are. The water is the medium which carries the grit and buffs up your crystals. Pop in just enough water to cover your rocks and no more.
How Long do you Run a National Geographic Rock Tumbler?
Um. We ran ours to literal death, twice. They lasted about a year and a bit of constant tumbling every day before they gave up on life. If you don’t use it in constant succession and if you can manage not to overload the barrel, then yours will last a lot longer.
Is it Expensive to Run?
Most rock tumblers use around 1kwh which costs about 23 pence per day. If you live in America, it is even cheaper than this. Damn you and your low cost energy.
National Geographic Rock Tumbler Grit: How Much to Use?
We use a soup spoon full of grit in each barrel. Make sure it’s a hefty loaded spoonful. If you have a lot more rocks than normal, put in more grit. If you are doing a half barrel, less grit.
Is the National Geographic Rock Tumbler Hobby Kit Good?
We love it. It certainly helped us to begin rock tumbling without being ashamed that we had never done it before. We started tumbling in the 2020/21 season of rockhounding, so we have a few years under our belts now, and National Geographic remains one of our favourite brands for buying a rock tumbler in the UK to this day.
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