Everyone says you need a proper rock hammer to split shale, but a simple putty knife worked for me.

I was out near Sedona last month and needed a fresh surface on some shale layers, but I'd forgotten my Estwing. I tried a stiff putty knife from my truck and it slid right into the bedding plane, giving me a perfect split. Has anyone else found a basic tool that worked when the 'right' one wasn't there?

3 comments

3 Comments

dakotacraig21d ago

That's a good find for Sedona shale, but I'd be careful calling it a split. A putty knife works on already loose bedding planes, which is more like prying than true fracturing. A rock hammer delivers a sharp impact force to break fresh rock across the grain. If your shale was really solid, that putty knife would have bent. It's a clever field fix for the right conditions, not a replacement for proper tools.

aaron70819d ago

Honestly, I've split plenty of solid shale with just a putty knife.

jessica_miller21d ago

My buddy once used a flathead screwdriver to pop open a geode when his chisel was back at camp. Worked way better than expected. What's the weirdest tool you've seen someone use in the field?