Rockhounding.org

Rockhounding tools and gear

Three kits: a beginner kit for your first trips, a field kit for when you know what you like to collect, and a lapidary kit for cutting and polishing at home.

See the beginner kitGift ideas
A rock pick resting on creek gravelWorn leather work glovesTumbled agate and jasper

Photos: Geolina163, CC BY-SA 4.0; el cajon yacht club, CC BY 2.0; 88pathoffroad, CC BY-SA 3.0.

Kit · 6 items

Beginner kit

About $120 for the whole list.

  1. 01Estwing E3-22P rock pickThe 22-ounce pointed-tip hammer most geologists carry, forged in one piece so the head cannot work loose.Compare rock picksSee it on Amazon →
  2. 02Clear anti-fog safety glasses, four packRock throws chips when it is struck. A four-pack covers the family and the pair that gets lost.Compare safety glassesSee it on Amazon →
  3. 03Ironclad General Utility glovesFreshly broken rock is sharp, and these are thin enough to feel what you are picking up.Compare glovesSee it on Amazon →
  4. 04Klein Tools 16-inch canvas tool bagHeavy canvas with a vinyl-covered bottom and a steel-framed mouth that stays open while you load it. Rock wears through nylon daypacks.Compare backpacks and bagsSee it on Amazon →
  5. 05Watertight Medical KitA compact waterproof kit. Most collecting sites have no phone signal.Compare first aid kitsSee it on Amazon →
  6. 06Your state guidebookCoordinates, access notes and what is legal to collect at each site. We match 44 titles to the states they cover.Find the book for your state →
Kit · 11 items

Field kit

About $400 without the detector.

  1. 01Estwing rock chiselFor working a specimen out of the rock instead of breaking it free.Compare chiselsSee it on Amazon →
  2. 02Estwing 3-pound crack hammer (B3-3LB)The hammer for striking chisels. A rock pick has a hardened face and should never hit another hardened tool.See it on Amazon →
  3. 03Estwing 18-inch gad pry bar (GP-18)A point at one end starts a crack and a wedge at the other opens it. It works seams and crystal pockets that a hammer would shatter.See it on Amazon →
  4. 04Nikon 10x triplet loupeTen power is what geologists use to read crystal faces and grain in a hand sample. A triplet lens keeps the image sharp to the edge.See it on Amazon →
  5. 05EISCO unglazed porcelain streak plates, 12 packDrag a mineral across the plate and the colour of its powder separates look-alikes such as hematite and magnetite.See it on Amazon →
  6. 06AAdvance Instruments 254 nm shortwave mineral lampTrue shortwave with a visible-light filter, which is what makes willemite, scheelite and most calcite glow. Wear UV-blocking glasses with any shortwave lamp.See it on Amazon →
  7. 07Stansport gold panA riffled plastic pan is the whole of gold prospecting in one purchase.Compare gold pansSee it on Amazon →
  8. 08SE 13-inch classifier, half-inch meshSits on a 5-gallon bucket and takes out the cobbles, so the pan only carries material that can hold gold.See it on Amazon →
  9. 09Thumler's A-R1 rotary tumblerA 3-pound rubber barrel on a steel base, with a motor built to run for weeks at a time. The rubber keeps it quiet enough for a garage.See it on Amazon →
  10. 10Polly Plastics four-stage tumbling grit kitCoarse, medium and pre-polish silicon carbide plus an aluminum oxide polish. The tumbler does not come with grit.See it on Amazon →
  11. 11Bounty Hunter Tracker IV metal detectorAn entry machine for old workings and placer ground. Gold-specific detectors cost several times as much and can wait.Compare metal detectorsSee it on Amazon →
Kit · 9 items

Lapidary kit

The saw and the pads start the bench; the cabbing machine finishes it.

  1. 01SKIL 7-inch wet tile saw (3540-02)The budget way into slabbing. Hobbyists use this saw to trim and slab small rough, always with water and never with oil.See it on Amazon →
  2. 02MK Diamond 7-inch Hot Dog thin-rim bladeThe blade that comes with a tile saw is thick and wastes agate. This thin continuous rim fits the same 5/8-inch arbor.See it on Amazon →
  3. 03STADEA 4-inch wet diamond polishing pads, 50 to 3000 gritSeven pads and a backer for finishing flat faces and large specimens, by hand or on a variable-speed wet polisher. Do not skip a grit.See it on Amazon →
  4. 04WEN 8-inch five-speed benchtop drill press (4206T)A fixed press keeps a diamond bit from skating or snapping, which a handheld tool cannot do. Drill stones wet and plug into a GFCI outlet.See it on Amazon →
  5. 05Lasco diamond drill bits, 0.75 to 2.5 mmTwelve diamond-coated bits sized for cord and jump-ring holes in pendants. The smallest sizes need a pin-vise adapter in a drill press chuck.See it on Amazon →
  6. 06Thumler's Ultra-Vibe 10 industrial vibratory tumblerRuns the medium through polish stages in days rather than weeks. Only the industrial model is built for rock; the standard model is for brass cases.See it on Amazon →
  7. 07CabKing 6-inch cabbing machineSix wheels with a pumped water feed take a slab from rough shape to a polished cabochon on one machine. It is the top of the bench.See it on Amazon →
  8. 08SmartyRocks adjustable display caseA shadow box with a clear front and movable dividers, so the layout can change as the collection grows.See it on Amazon →
  9. 09Acrylic three-peg display stands, 12 packThe standard way to prop small specimens upright on a shelf.See it on Amazon →

Comparison guides

Rock PicksBackpacks & BagsChisels & BrushesGlovesSafety GlassesFirst Aid KitsGold Sluice BoxesGold PansMetal DetectorsGold DredgesBrushes & Spray BottlesScoops & ShovelsProspecting ResourcesAll comparison guides

The guidebook for your state

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Gifts for rockhoundsThe same picks sorted by who they are for: a child starting out, someone new to the hobby, someone who has the basics and a home lapidary bench.Open the gift guide

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Photo credits, Wikimedia Commons: Geological hammer by Geolina163, CC BY-SA 4.0; Work gloves by el cajon yacht club, CC BY 2.0; Tumbled agate and jasper by 88pathoffroad, CC BY-SA 3.0; Rock pick by Chmee2, CC BY-SA 3.0; Willemite and calcite under UV by Jud McCranie, CC BY-SA 4.0; Sawing Blue John by Andy Mabbett, CC BY-SA 3.0.