Geological hammer, chisels, hardhat, gloves and goggles, pens and
notebooks, sample bags and containers.
Also do bring a magnifying lens, a compass, a GPS and a waterproof
camera.
Geological
Hammer
The most
important item of
your field equipment is a proper
geological hammer.
It may seem like a regular hammer will do, but it
can be dangerous to use it to hammer rocks.
A proper geo
hammer is made
of a special steel so that it does the proper job safely.
Chisels
Chisels
are used as a further help to get a piece of mineral or rock out of a
larger piece of rock.
There are a few different types of chisels. Cold chisels, Gadpoint chisels are
shorter and thicker.
Broad-bladed
chisels, also short and thick, are used for splitting
rocks are
long and thin - perfect to get minerals out of cavities.
Hardhat,
Gloves and Goggles
You do
need the safety
gear. Protective
glasses (goggles) are a must when you're using your
geological
hammer. Hardhat
is best to wear in all times but necessary when you're collecting rocks
next to high cliffs where rocks can fall down from above. Some rock
collecting localities now require a hardhat so you may as well get one
anyway. And gloves
will
protect your hands - if you are new to the hobby you'll be surprised
how quickly rocks ruin your nails and the skin of your hands.
Magnifying
Lens
Magnifying lens, aka
hand
lens,
is an excellent tool out in the field as well as once you have taken
your rocks back home and start identifying them properly.
There are
different strengths, but 10x is a good one.
You can buy one from that
website for just a few dollars.
Compass
and/or GPS
For
remote localities, it is
very handy, if not necessary, to bring a compass (particularly if you
visit remote
areas with no obvious landmarks where it is easy to get lost).
You don't
want to get lost.
Again, you can choose between different compasses on
that same website, and they are NOT expensive!
GPS (Global
Positioning System)
is good if you plan to go back to that remote locality and find the
exact spot.
Or if you want to have the coordinates of an exact location
on the labels in your collection.
Sample
Bags and Containers
You need to
bring bags
and containers
too. Bubble wrap
is good for weak samples. Make sure each specimen is separated in its
own bag or container and put them all into your backpack. Backpack is a
good bag to bring because it leaves your hands free for collecting,
taking photos etc. Even better is a real rock
collectors bag, which leaves your hands free, and doesn't
require that you get it off your back every time you want to use it. As
with all your gear, you find the bags on that same website.
Notebook,
Pens and Sticky Labels
As
you pack your samples into
bags, use sticky labels
on the
piece of rock or bag, and make notes about each sample into your
notebook
(with the number that is on the sticky label of course). The notes need
to be made in the field - you may think you will remember them once
home, but you won't, not in detail anyway. Write down where the
specimen was found - without
location your rock/mineral won't be worth
anything!
Camera
And
finally - a camera
- an important piece of equipment for anyone working in the field. Take
photos about the rock as you first found it.
And, take photos about the
surroundings. It will help you to remember the place and also give you
more information later on if you wonder about something. The ideal
camera is a waterproof one, so you don't have to worry if it's raining
a bit.
This site uses British
English, which is the English we use in
Australia.
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