tumbling-box

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. A box or cylindrical vessel of wood or iron, pivoted at each end or at two corners, so that it can be made to revolve. Small castings, shot, pens, needles, buttons, and similar objects are placed in the box, with a quantity of loose emery-powder, sand, sawdust, or other abradant, and when the box revolves the abradant and the objects fall or tumble over, rubbing against each other and becoming quickly cleaned or polished. The device is largely used in many manufactories to save labor in cleaning and polishing material of all kinds, and in mixing or dissolving gums, etc. Also called, in various forms, tumbler or cleansing-mill, tumble, tumbler-drum, tumbling-wheel, rolling-barrel, scouring-barrel.