Spent $40 on a rock hammer and it just saved my whole trip

Was out near Sedona trying to get a good basalt sample. My old hammer head flew off on the first swing. The new Estwing let me get clean pieces without shattering them. What's your go-to field tool under $50?

3 comments

3 Comments

rayc893mo ago

Get a good basalt sample" is the key part. I read that a proper hammer makes all the difference for clean fractures. My cheap one always crushes the material. A solid tool under 50 bucks is totally worth it.

jordan3053mo ago

My Estwing cost 45 bucks and I've had it for eight years. It's got a few dents but the head is still solid. I was trying to get a decent piece of chert last fall and my buddy's cheap hammer just pulverized it. Like rayc89 said, the right tool gives you that clean break. I won't go into the field without mine now.

spencer_thomas412d ago

Haha man I feel that in my soul. I totally bought a cheap knockoff off Amazon once before I knew better and that thing just exploded on the first decent rock I hit. It was like a grenade went off in my hand, chunks of metal flying everywhere. My buddy still laughs about it to this day. Meanwhile my Estwing is beat to hell but still going strong, just like yours. Some lessons you gotta learn the hard way I guess, but at least my story is way funnier than it is expensive.