ALONG THE WALL AT DIAMOND DEVELOPMENT MIDDLEVILLE NY

The chisel and its use, have led to more than a  few painful incidents: they are too numerous to mention all of them, but I can relate a few that have happened to me over the years.

Years ago one thanksgiving weekend at the Silver Queen mine outside Perth Ontario, I found a large multicolored Zircon in a cavity in one end of a piece of rock weighing around 20 pounds. It was on the small end and I decided not to use a chisel, just give it a whack with the crack hammer. I put it down on the ground, hung on to the small end with my left hand so it wouldn’t fly away, gripped that hammer about a half foot from the head and gave a hard swing. I didn’t take into account, that the hammer had a long handle and that handle end whacked my elbow and changed the direction enough that, splat, I smacked my thumb holding that rock, resulting in a broken thumb, a lot of swearing and jumping around. It made for a long and painful drive back to Oshawa. To add to my discomfort on that drive I had a front tire on the car that was out of round and the steering wheel vibrated and I got into a traffic jam on the Hwy 401 that turned a three and a half hour drive into  five hours of torture. That was one time I couldn’t blame the chisel, just myself for being too lazy to use one. Ask me sometime about my beautiful Zircon.

It took 2 hours for these two hounds to knock off this big chunk at Crystal Grove

When you are using a chisel there are many  occasions you will have to pound on it from different angles, some times, your swing is hampered by rocks, roots and other impediments. These are the times when it seems, your swing gets impeded enough that the hammer just grazes the chisel head, deflecting it unto the web area of your chisel holding hand. I can honestly swear to you, this hurts like hell. I usually accomplish this feat at least once or twice on most trips to Herkimer.

I have one other painful experience at Herkimer to relate. This also involves the use of a chisel. If you go down there early in the spring, frost has had time to work on the walls, and you will get thin layers that frost has loosened on the wall.  If you remove these layers you can find wall pockets hidden behind them. I located such a piece about 3 feet long, 2 feet high and about 2 inches thick. It was over 6 feet off the ground, so I gathered some pieces of rubble made a pile to stand on so I wouldn’t have reach so high. I positioned my chisel into the cracked edge of the piece, but with the chisel parallel to the wall my thumb was on the wall. I gave it a few taps and nothing much happened, then I hit it harder, the chisel went in half it’s length taking my thumb in with it! The rock slab didn’t break, and my thumb was pinched and trapped and hurting like hell. I was truly caught between a rock and a hard place and I didn’t like it one bit. There I was trapped along the wall of an empty quarry, with the pain wanting me do do a little dance but I was scared I would fall off my little pile of rocks. I yelled a bit, (20 plus minutes), but there was no-one to come to my rescue. I feared I was doomed to hang there for hours waiting for help. I did what I had to do, gathering up my courage I  hit that chisel again, in the vain hope the crack would widen more and release my thumb. I pulled  my stuck hand back as I  whacked that chisel, and it worked. My thumb pulled free and it was black; you would have thought I’d stuck it in an ink well, and brother did it throb. Have you ever seen a man hopping around with his thumb in his mouth? That was me. As I recall there was another painful drive home after that trip. OH! That slab or rock when it came off the wall, it was a dud, no cavities!

I"m working on the upper layer at Crystal Grove St Johnsville NY

I also found out there are two ways to reduce the pressure from this type of injury, one involves using a tiny drill bit 1/32 or smaller and carefully hand turn it until it cuts through the nail and releases the pressure, or the same procedure can be done by a heated needle. It might sound painful to do, but you sure will feel glad you did.

All the comforts of home

Me and Bob Vansickle at Grystal Grove St Johnsville NY

Along with that hammer, you will need chisels to extract that precious crystal out of that hard rock. Just like hammers they come in many shapes and sizes,for example, the Gad Point, is a chisel with 4 sided point. They are useful to punch a hole in rock and get a crack started, but they are not useful in extraction. The best chisels are designed for masonry work and are used by stone masons and especially hardened for splitting rock. The only draw back is they are expensive. The cheap bargain cold chisels, bought at most stores are next to useless, the point is hardened too much and chances are it will probably break the first time you use it.

My supply of car and truck springs and wedges

If you are a veteran collector you will probably have numerous chisels of varying  sizes and know how to use them. To the beginners out there, here is a hint on what you need for basic chisels. I suggest you get several 1/2 inch diameter chisels of various lengths, maybe 6, 10 or 12 inches long. You will also need several 1 inch chisels in the 8 and 12 inch lengths and one or two small ones 1/4 inch by 6 inch and maybe even a foot long one for delicate crystal extraction in deeper cavities. The thinner chisels cannot be pounded on with any great force as they will bend. Chisels shaped like an L are not very useful. If you pound on a chisel with a sledge you generally need at least a 1 inch chisel or thicker or they will bend.

Here are some of the chisels I take to Herkimeror bigger chisel but even they will also bend.or bigger chisel but even they will also bend.

I myself have chisels made out of Rebar, the steel they use to reinforce concrete. It is a high carbon steel and makes great long lasting chisel,  but you will need to find a blacksmith to fashion them into chisels. They work great because they are ribbed and are easy to hang unto. The Estwing company makes some useful chisels with rubber guards attached, that offers some protection for your hands. I find that your tools are easier to spot if you paint them a bright colour; I use fluorescent orange, they might look gaudy but it does help keeping track of my tools, so buy yourself a  can of bright paint and become a tool steel graffity artist.

Note the orange rebar chisel and wedge I paint my chisels for easy regonition

When I go collecting at Herkimer I probably take several dozen chisels. I also take along sharpened car and truck springs: they are used like chisels and because they are thinner they are very useful in cracks. When I head for Herkimer between the hammers,chisels , springs, bars and wedges, I might have two hundred pounds of steel. I even take an Angle grinder with me to sharpen chisels and grind down the burrs that will mushroom out on the butt end. When a dedicated rock collector thinks he has all the chisels he will ever need, he will find out he is just starting and will go to great lengths to improve upon his tools. He will start looking at flea markets, auctions , yard sales and mineral shows for good steel. The hunt for chisels will become as interesting as the hunting for the crystals.

I always take a large selection of chisels with me when I go to Herkimer: the rock down there is very tough on them. I have had favourite chisels that I have used for years, but alas , just like me  it only takes a few hours of hard pounding and were done for the day.

Even truck springs take a beating at Herkimer

ME AT DIAMOND DEVELOPMENT CORP. MIDDLEVILLE NY

Years ago I took a trip to Herkimer with my collecting buddy Bob Kenny, Scarborough club president at the time. We both were collecting on the floor of pit 2 at the Diamond Development Mine. I learned three things that day, never collect wearing leather gloves when it’s wet, never use a wooden handled Crack Hammer when your leather gloves are wet. The third thing I learned: accidents happen.Be aware of others collecting around you, and give them a little warning if you are going to do some work that might cause, material to fly, be it tools or rock.

I was working away, trying to find pockets in the floor. I was trying to lift a layer of Dolostone over a foot thick.  Bob was over 20 feet away on my left, working on the same low ledge. I had started some steel under a projecting block of Dolostone and started pounding on it with my wooden handled crack hammer. It had rained and everything was wet and muddy, the handle a little greasy. I took a hard swing and that hammer flew out of my hand. Like a slow motion scene from a horror movie, I watched that hammer fly end over end towards Bob. I yelled but he barely had time to react before the wooden handle clipped the end of Bob’s nose on it’s way past, 3 pounds of hard cold steel missing his head by inches. I was mortified, I had come so close to causing a tragic, possibly fatal accident. Bob wasn’t hurt very bad and was more forgiving than I might have been if it had been me with the damaged nose. Goodbye leather gloves; I now use the cloth gloves with the rubber fingers and palms which  last longer and provide a superior grip when pounding. The sharp broken rock at Herkimer will go through leather gloves in a half-a-day, compared to the good rubber faced ones, that can last a week. I also wrap Duct tape around the gripping area of wooden handled hammers so there is less chance of them escaping your grip.

THATS ME ON THE FLOOR AT HERKIMER AROUND 1985

Bob Kenny and Jennifer and Blair on Herkimer pit floor

When I go to Herkimer it always amazes me, that the owners let kids go out to collect with hammers totally unsuited for the job: carpenter claw hammers, ball-peen and bricklayer’s hammers .They ought to be ashamed to turn the kids loose to pound with abandon on that hard rock. They might as well have them running around with scissors. The kids are usually not supervised closely; if they were given goggles they are soon abandoned and you seldom hear any of them disciplined. We have been there on Science week when they put over a thousand kids through the mine in 6 hours, bus loads of kids, while the adults hid on the buses scared to come out I guess. It got so wild we gave up and went back to the trailer. My advice don’t go down there on Science week.

DIAMOND DEVELOPMENT Middleville NY June 2011 1st pit

WHAT

The Hammer

Me and my Geology Hammer useful to paw through a mine dump

If you are going to become a mineral collector, a Hammer and Chisel are probably your most important tools. Without this pair the removal of crystals from rock is  next to impossible. They are the means of extracting a crystal that is attached inside a vug and when you want to split a rock or enlarge a hole or create a crack to get a pry bar started, you need a good combination of Hammer and Chisel.

Hammer’s used for rock collecting come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, from a sharp pointed Geology Hammer. These come in several lengths and are fairly light maybe 2 lb. at most. I don’t find them to be useful to drive chisels, except for light tapping of small chisels to remove a fine crystals. They can be useful in loosening dirt, the sharp end really shouldn’t be used to pound rock.

The type of hammer I find most useful is the Crack or Club hammer, really a baby sledge: they come in various lengths and weights. The solid steel hammer like the Estwing are almost indestructible, but they have their drawbacks. They transfer a lot more vibration up the handle and I find they have a tendency to twist your wrist when they rebound of steel. This type comes in several lengths and weights usually 3 or 4 pounds. The most common are the wooden handled ones ( can be bought everywhere)  most with heads in the 2 to 4 pound range, but they too have drawbacks. They can break and the heads can become loose.

My old faithful's, two Fiberglass handled hammers I have used for over 20 yearsl

I myself prefer the Fiberglass handled hammer since there is  less vibration and they are durable .  I have used 2 different ones for over 20 years: a short handled 3 pound one and a long handled 4 pounder. They come with a hefty rubber grip and are better to hang onto; wooden ones can be slippery. I have even used a 6 pound sledge with a short handle as a crack hammer, but they are hard on the forearm.

Stone Mason Hammer 4 pound head

The overuse of a rock hammer can lead to Tendonitis, sometimes called Tennis Elbow: I prefer to call it dumb Rockhound elbow. I have overdone it at Herkimer twice. The first time my right arm was so sore I couldn’t lift it high enough to change gears on my truck.  I had to reach across the steering wheel and use my left hand to drive home. It took 6 months of therapy to get it back to somewhat normal. I now have to be very careful not to overdo it. I have to rest my arm more often. It’s frustrating getting older, your mind knows what to do but your body breaks down doing it. Call it  either determination or stupidity , it hasn’t stopped me yet.

Another story to follow. Dick

Our April Meeting Was Great

Wall of Victoria Crater, Mars

For many years the conventional view was that planetary geology was only about old battered rocks and not too interesting.  Our guest speaker dispelled that view.  According to Carmen Marra there is a lot going on in the solar system. He correctly pointed out that a better term would be planetary science rather than planetary geology. Planetary science grew out of the combination of astronomy and earth science; but now encompasses atmospheric science, geochemistry and so-on.  No matter; the rockhounds among us like to look at rocks and minerals from other worlds.

 The presentation was wide ranging with a lot of remarkable photos from some very remarkable places. To start of were shown two pictures that are familiar to most of us; the red spot on Jupiter and the rings around Saturn. The great red spot is a huge storm, large enough to contain two or three planets the size of earth. There are many powerful storms on the planet, with lightning strikes more powerful than those on earth. They are caused by constant hurricane force winds of up to 500 km per hour.

 The rings of Saturn are structured water ice crystals with some dust contamination. The rings appear to be as little as 10 metres and as one kilometre in thickness and are likely the result of debris caused by a disruption of a moon.

A Crater on the Moon

On to our moon; the moon may have been formed from the crust and mantle of the earth. About 4.6 million years ago a projectile the size of Mars dealt a glancing blow to the earth. The impact threw a huge amount of molten material was deflected into and coalesced around the moon. Much of the surface of the moon is covered with craters; some very small and some up to 100 miles in diameter. There also some pretty big mountains on the moon which originally were thought to be the result of volcanic action, but are known to result impact from craters. The mountains are not from volcanic action, but are caused by huge amounts of material, form crater impacts, being thrown over large areas; sometimes even to the opposite side of the moon.

Unlike the moon, Mars has an atmosphere. The Martian atmosphere consists of about 95% carbon dioxide and much thinner than the earths.  At one time its atmosphere may have been very similar to the earths.  There is evidence of long lasting storms and water clouds. The recent picture pictures taken by the Martian rovers, spirit and opportunity greatly contributed to our understanding of the geology of Mars and other planets.  We were shown pictures of the very famous Martian blueberries, which are concretions of hematite that have weathered out of sedimentary layers of selenite; strong very that there was once plenty of water on Mars.

A View of Enceladus a Saturn Monn

 And finally we were treated to some very remarkable photographs of Enceladus, courtesy of the Cassini-Huygens space mission.  Cassini discovered water-ice plumes on the tiny Saturn moon. Further analysis revealed the presence of salt in the plumes. Researchers concluded that the tiny moon harbours a  salt water ocean beneath its frozen surface. Close-up pictures revealed a lunar body crisscrossed with long lines of geysers emitting plumes of ice into space far enough to contribute to the rings around Saturn.

Carmen Marra describes himself as a recovering graduate student.  He is affiliated with the Astronomy and Space Exploration Society of the University of Toronto. He is an enthusiastic and extremely knowledgeable supporter of space exploration and planetary science.  This was very interesting and certainly opened our eyes and aware of the wondering things that happening in outer-space today.

 Unlike the moon, Mars has an atmosphere. The Martian atmosphere consists of about 95% carbon dioxide and much thinner than the earths.  At one time its atmosphere may have been very similar to the earths.  There is evidence of long lasting storms and water clouds. The recent picture pictures taken by the Martian rovers, spirit and opportunity greatly contributed to our understanding of the geology of Mars and other planets.  We were shown pictures of the very famous Martian blueberries, which concretions of hematite that have weathered out of sedimentary layers of selenite; strong very that there was once plenty of water on Mars.

And finally we were treated to some very remarkable photographs of Enceladus, courtesy of the Cassini-Huygens space mission.  Cassini discovered water-ice plumes on the tiny Saturn moon. Further analysis revealed the presence of salt in the plumes. Researchers concluded that the tiny moon harbours a  salt water ocean beneath its frozen surface. Close-up pictures revealed a lunar body crisscrossed with long lines of geysers emitting plumes of ice into space far enough to contribute to the rings around Saturn.

Carmen Marra describes himself as a recovering graduate student.  He is affiliated with the Astronomy and Space Exploration Society of the University of Toronto. He is an enthusiastic and extremely knowledgeable supporter of space exploration and planetary science.  This was very interesting and certainly opened our eyes and aware of the wondering things that happening in outer-space today.  The pictures are: Top left: A wall of Vitoria Crater,Mars; centre right: A view of Moon crater; Bottom right: A close-up of the Saturn moon, Enceladus.  All photos are courtesy of Carmen Marra via various NASA expeditions.

Insert

Gems and Minerals in Russia

The May Meeting of the Gem and Mineral Club of Scarborough will be held on May 2^nd at the Knox United Church Meeting, 2569 Midland Ave beginning at 8:OO PM. The meeting will feature a joint presentation by Quintin and Willow Wight on the gem mines of Russia; diamond, emerald and dematoid garnet mines that they visited in Siberia and Arkangelsk.   caption:  a diamond covered billiard table in Mirnyy.

As the Canadian Delegate to the International Gemmological Conference (IGC), Willow attended the 30th IGC at the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow in July, 2007. Accompanied by her husband, Quintin, she joined in the pre-conference and post-conference tours of diamond, emerald, and demantoid garnet mines across Russia from Mirnyy in northern Siberia to Ekaterinburg and Arkhangelsk. Willow and Quintin together will describe aspects of the journey, illustrated with photographs of the mines, their products, and some of the spectacular finds. They will also cover some of the magnificent collection of the Fersman Mineralogical Museum in Moscow, and the Urals State Mining Museum in Ekaterinburg. The nature of the occasion merits some short mention of the local scenery and geology as well”

Colonel (Ret.) Quintin Wight, CD, MA

Willow and Quintin in a siderite vug, state museum, Ekaterinburg

His 37-year career in the RCAF/CF took Quintin, a graduate of Queen’s, Carleton, and Concordia Universities, to many localities in which he could find mineral specimens to add to a growing collection. He began writing about minerals in 1966, and has since published a book and over 130 articles and reviews on mineral-related subjects. He began to specialize in mineral photomicrography in 1973, and has given more than 120 presentations to groups across North America, and in England, Belgium, Italy, Switzerland, Tanzania, and New Zealand. Inducted to the Micromounters’ Hall of Fame in 1990, he now coordinates that organization in Baltimore, Maryland, and heads an annual gathering of specialists in microscopic minerals in Rochester, New York. The mineral quintinite was named in his honour in 1992.

Willow Wight, BA, FGA, FCGmA

Willow Wight is perhaps best known internationally as Editor of The Canadian Gemmologist, the official quarterly journal of the Canadian Gemmological Association. After 25 years as Editor, she has now assumed the position of Editor Emeritus.

Willow graduated from the University of Toronto as an organic chemist, then took up the study of gemstones in 1967. Her first practical work in gemstones was in association with Paul Desautels, then Curator of Minerals at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. At the Smithsonian, she examined, verified, and catalogued the gemstones in the US National Collection, gaining a wealth of experience. On her return to Canada in 1975, she was sought out by the National Museum of Natural Sciences (now the Canadian Museum of Nature) in Ottawa, and has remained there ever since. She is now a Research Associate in Gemmology at the Museum. Willow’s research has led to many articles, with particular emphasis on new Canadian gemstones, e.g. ammolite from Alberta, hornblende from Baffin Island, and scallop pearls from Nova Scotia. The series “Rare Gemstones Check-list” in The Canadian Gemmologist has earned her international praise. Her latest work is in the history of gemmological exploration in Canada.

Willow is the Canadian Delegate to the International Gemmological Conference (IGC), an organization created by the late Dr. Edouard Gübelin and others in 1952 to promote advanced research in gemmology.

 Be sure to attend our fabulous presentation.  All guests and visitors are welcome. 

In 40 + years of collecting I have made numerous mistakes and I guess you can say I have paid my dues in the Duffus club. When you’re on the wooden end of a sledge hammer, don’t do what I did on a trip to Herkimer NY.

We left early on Friday on a May 24 th. weekend,  arriving at Middleville around noon, set up the trailer at the KOA and I figured I could get in a few hours collecting over at the Diamond Development just across the road. I paid my fee and started looking for a location that was easy to collect. I found a likely looking spot along the wall, a section stuck out at the bottom of the wall like a step. I got some steel set in a crack at the bottom of that Dolostone step,  stood on the top of that step, and took a mighty swing at that steel, and missed ! The sledge came back between my feet. It’s hard to stop 12 pounds of steel, on an over-swing, but I tried and paid for it with a wave of agony; I threw my back out. I crumbled to the ground unable to stand. I basically crawled to the truck, leaving my tools behind. I managed to get in the truck and drive back to the trailer, where I spent the next 2 days flat on my back on the trailer floor. Donna had to bum a ride and go over and rescue my equipment. I managed to drive home on Monday and ended up off work all week. This was my all time worst collecting trip ever.

FLOOR OF PIT 2 AT DIAMOND DEVELOPMENT AROUND 1985

 When my father watched me hammering ,he always used to call me “Lightning” and said I never struck twice in the same place. I like to think I am better than that, even if my story proved otherwise. The years of collecting have proved a few things to me: I can hit a chisel on consecutive strikes , misses tend to damage equipment, and misses tend to happen more often when your tired or impatient. Every miss is waisted effort. I generaly limit strikes with a 12 lb sledge to 10 concecutive swings, then stop, after that I make mistakes . If you are a big bull of a man you may be able to go at it longer. Another thing to watch for, if you are pounding on steel springs, be prepaired to hear have your ears rung a bit by the loud bell like ringing of steel on spring steel . In a way that is a good thing. What you don’t want to hear is the cracking of a wooden handle when you have smashed it on the steel. I will say than when it comes to sledge hammer work you don’t want to miss, especially if you got your brave but not to bright buddy talked into holding the chisel.

Bill and Anne at their Site

During the Victoria Day weekend in May 2012,the Gem and Mineral Club of Scarborough will be participating in a field trip to Herkimer New York to collect Herkimer diamonds.   Herkimer Diamonds are doubly terminated quartz crystals, which are quite rare in most localities, but common to the area; hence the name.   The trip will be organized by Bill and Anne McIlquham the Canadian source of diamonds.    Bill and Anne have a claim at the Ace of Diamonds  mine The trip will take place  on our  Victoria Day weekend  from May 19 to  May 21.  If you are a member of the Gem and Mineral Club, join us for a very enjoyable  weekend of  mineral collecting.   Bill will open a vug  for us, so there will also be BBQ during the weekend.  Motel rooms have been booked for us and will be held until April 28. If you are a newcomer to mineral collecting and are uncertain about what tools to bring; don’t worry. There are plenty of tools on site for lending. You might also look at some of Dick Stata’s posts on collecting on our website.   For more  information on Herkimer Diamonds visit  Bill and Anne’s website or go to   Geology.com  There are numerous sites in the area so collecting is not necessarily limited to this site.  If you like ” diamonds” or like mineral collecting,  contact the Gem and Mineral club of Scarborough.   To reserve a spot on this great collecting trip, send  Bill and Anne  an email.

USING A SLEDGE AT BEAR LK RD MANY YEARS AGO

Another important piece of your collecting gear is the sledgehammer. They come in various sizes and weights, from 6 pounds up to 20. Most collectors may have an 8, 10 or 12 pound sledge, it sort of depends on who you are physically. A 60 year old 100 pound woman might have trouble swinging a 12 pounder, but probably could do a number on her husband with a 6. The Herkimer collecting areas in NY restrict collectors to 12 pound sledges, but there are places where you can use a 20 pounder.  I have tried them, while heavy to lift they don’t bounce off the steel when you strike, and the force of the hit is tremendous. They are so effective at driving steel, the Ace and Diamond Development don’t let you to use them.

These types of hammers have either wooden or fiberglass handles, either one works fine, but the fiberglass one I think is tougher and the head doesn’t come loose as often,since they are glued in. The wooden handles tend to split. I have broken many a handle and loose heads are common as they dry out sitting around. When I go collecting I often soak the heads of the wooden handled sledges in a pail of water for a day;  the wood swells up and the head is solid for a few days. To help protect the wood just above the head I wrap it well with a layer of duct tape. If your aim is bad and you over-swing you can hit the handle with the end of the chisel,thus the tape helps the wood from being chewed up by the steel. Fiber handled sledges often come with a rubber sleeve just above the head for the same purpose. As a rule of thumb most people have trouble swinging a sledge with the full length handle, especially with the heavier ones. I have be shown by experts how to select the correct length for a collector. Stand the sledge on it’s head, stand beside it arms down at side, mark the handle where it meets your wrist just above your hand. This should be the correct length; cut it off at the mark. Use a wood rasp, to bevel the cut edges and your good to go.

When I go to Herkimer I take all these Hammers and use most of them

The sledge is a handy tool when the collecting is close to the vehicle; two or three sledges make an awkward and heavy load to carry long distances. My advice to all overeager rockhounds, who want to pound, is try to get in better shape.  A  little weight training will help, watch where you’re pounding, and for heavens sake take a few warm-up swings. Golfers do it for a club weighing a few ounces!  If you can, get a pair of impact gloves, their padding will help absorb the vibrations that travel up the handle. You can build up your arms and back muscles, but when steel hits steel or rock, there is a tremendous amount of energy released, and that vibration that runs back up the handle will numb your hands and fingers. I believe this wear and tear over the years has been the main cause of me having to have Carpel Tunnel Surgery on both hands. Surgery hasn’t stopped my collecting yet, but sledge and crack hammer work causes my hands considerable discomfort and they are not as resilient as they used to be.

It is a good Idea to have a few spares, handles can break

I don’t want to dishearten anybody’s desire to be a serious collector, I have done it for over 40 years, but those years of pounding does take it’s toll .

Another collecting story to follow.  Dick Stata