finding and identifying chert

[mattybock]

there is pride in making something by yourself, but there is greater pride in being a cheap a#&.

So who here has learned how to identify the rock called chert? How do you ID it? I hear it's found in river beds, but being near Dallas the closest thing we have is the trinity, and shuffling through needles and beer cans can be a pain. Does it look special to the trained eye, or am I to carry a skillet to the water and whack rocks on it until something works?

 

[CrossXstix]

In the Dallas area, you should have a lot of brown or rootbeer chert out in the fields. It looks chalky on the outside, but when you flake off a piece, it should look shiny browm.

X
david

 

[mattybock]

THAT'S CHERT?! all this time I thought it was supposed to be black or grey, not that weird looking rock that I've seen forever.

thank you! But- does all chert spark equally?

 

[Bill Hall]

When I was an anthropology student, I learned that the word "chert" was just another name for flint, but was given that name to designate it from flint that came from the eastern hemisphere. The other term we used for chert was "new world flint", meaning the same as flint but found in the western hemisphere. It's important in order to determine the culture of stone tools and points and such.

So, if you're looking for chert, and if you're familiar with flint, just look for flint. Chert and flint come in a variety of colors. There is a lot of white-to-grey colored chert in New Mexico. Some stone tools I have seen from around the U.S. have been brown or even black, and some have swirly colors mixed in. Chert is also very tight grained, very homogenous (pure) and, of course, very hard. If you find a rock with included sparkles, definitely not chert.

Think dull colors, hard, pure, and very sharp when broken. I had some examples of chert chips and broken points before I moved, but who knows where they are now. Maybe I can find a website that will help with chert I.D. Bill

 

[Bill Hall]

Google "chert Wikipedia". A couple of good examples of grey and black chert there.

 

[rafterob]

Search US Geological Survey. It may take a little computer savvy but you can get to a place where it shows where in your area different minerals are located.

 

[dcriner]

People who quarry gravel for use in concrete might let you paw through their reject piles and even help you identify chert. Chert is not desirable in concrete because it pops out of the finished surface, leaving a hole.

 

[George T.]

A nice week end drive to the Texas Hill Country and you could load up a very large truck. In some areas you have lime stone and flint all over the hills around the Colorado river valley! Geo. T.

 

[Rifleman1776]

THAT'S CHERT?! all this time I thought it was supposed to be black or grey, not that weird looking rock that I've seen forever.

thank you! But- does all chert spark equally?

Chert is flint. Not all flint is chert. The term only relates to how it is found in nature. Some flint is found in limestone or chalk quarries in nodule form. Chert is embedded as big chunks or even hills and mountains. Not all flint, whether it be in nodule or chert form, is created equally. Meaning some flint is good some isn't. Note the discussions about the difference between black English and amber French flints. Both flint but with different characteristics. Those who have accomplished it say knapping yer own gunflints is fun. I have never succeeded in making a decent flint. Where you live makes all the difference. You may find good flint/chert, you may not. Good luck.

 

[Billnpatti]

This may sound like I am being a smart a$$ but I am serious when I say, first you have to go where chirt is found. You don't find it everywhere. Once you are in an area that has chirt, the first thing you need to do is put on your safety glasses. You sure don't want a bit of chirt to get in your eyes as you bang on rocks. Look first for a piece of rock about the size of a large lemon that is covered with limestone and bang it with a hammer to knock off a bit so you can see what is inside. If it looks like flint, you are in the right area. Now you can use this lemon size stone as a hammer stone with which to check other rocks to see if they are chirt. Now, you need to look for rocks with a limestone covering that are around the size of a grapefruit or larger. Give them a glancing blow on the side with your hammer stone to flake off a piece so you can see what is inside. If you see what looks like flint, you have the right kind of stone. Gather a bunch of these larger chirt stones because when you are knapping, you will waste far more stone than you use. There is just a lot of waste when you are knapping. With a couple hundred pounds of chirt in the trunk of your car, you are ready to look on YouTube for knapping instructions. Be absolutely sure to wear all of your safety equipment, especially safety glasses. Those chirt flakes are literally razor sharp and a piece in your eye can do serious damage.

Here is a good beginning flint knapping video, there are about 4 or 5 in the series. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyzNIa-U5Nc

 

[BrownBear]

Here is a good read for you on chert in general. This is a pretty good explanation of how to make your own gun flints.

 

[Oudoceus]

There's a Utube video where a guy said chert could often be found in the crushed rock around railroad tracks. I don't know how useful it would be. The pieces were pretty small.

 

[cynthialee]

If you can find it in river beds then it stands to reason you could find it in ancient dry river beds.

 

[Deadeye]

We have an abundance of it here, white, black, grey, tan, red. Everytime i go for a hike i come home with pocketsful of the stuff. The chert here isn't covered with anything, I've seen chunks as large as a football and as small as a gunflint. The outside is shiney just like a piece of broken glass is shiney and the edges are sharp. It's so hard that even after lying around for a million yrs. the edges are as sharp as when the chert originally was broken. I look for small pieces that are close in size to a gunflint so I only have to knap it a little to make it usuable in my rifle. Lots of local flint shooters use it. Deadeye

 

[Mr.D123]

I've been meaning to go along a walk see down the river. Planned on taking the kids.

 

[smoothshooter]

Where I live in northern Stone County, MO, chert and flint are so common as to be the subject of frustration and sometimes profanity due to the fact that they are in the way so much. If I knew how to post pictures on the internet I would show you a field down the road about a quarter of a mile from my house where there are enough fist-sized and larger chert rocks to fill up a 5 gallon bucket covering an area probably no larger than 30 feet across. We use them all the time to help fill in dug post holes, as filler material when pouring concrete, and to throw at un-cooperative hogs and cattle when we are trying to get them into the barn, out of the garden, out of the yard, or into a new field, etc. People who have gardens around here are constantly having to pick them up, since evert time you plow or use a rake or hoe, more come up from below the surface of the ground. It is a sad fact that the rock-to-actual soil-ratio by volume in a lot of gardens in this area is about 1 to 3 or so. Not all of these garden rock are chert or flint, but in many cases the majority are. If you were to stop at someone's house around here and ask if they could have or buy (!!!!) some of the rocks from their pasture (or yard) it might just be the funniest thing they had heard all week; but they would be very curious as to why anybody would want any of those @#%^^* rocks in the first place. Perhaps you will find this post concerning my part of the world geologically and culturally enlightening. Sincerely, Smoothshooter

 

[Zonie]

If I was in your neck of the woods you can be sure I would inquire before removing any stones.

After all, my motto is, "It never cherts to ask."
:grin:

 

[smoothshooter]

That was REALLY BAD, Zonie :surrender: - Smoothshooter

 

[Semisane]

That was REALLY BAD, Zonie :surrender: - Smoothshooter

It chertinly was Smoothshooter. Zonie should be ashamed.

 

[Bon Sauvage]

Rock on Zonie.