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I know that eye protection, padded gloves for hammering to reduce harmful vibrations, and many other safety measures have been oft repeated on this forum to guard against injury, but I haven't seen much about ear protection specifically in regards to fossil hunting. First, an unnecessary backstory: I recently came to the realization that I have tinnitus and, being a bit of a hypochondriac, got myself freaked out over it. But that is, of course, silly since I can remember having tinnitus for years but just not really thinking about it. After calming down and realizing that I have had it for years, that it's very minimal tinnitus, and that it's not as bad as cancer, I have been considering ways that I can avoid making it any worse. Along with wearing earmuffs while vacuuming, I have begun to look for other strategies to avoid hearing damage. Now, some of these may be stupid questions (don't let anyone tell you, "there is no such thing as a stupid question."), but here it goes. The formation in which I hunt the most is the limestone/chalk Atco formation. One of my main means of finding fossils is just whacking on chunks of chalk, hoping to luck into some ammonites, echinoids, fish, or a perfectly articulated pterosaur clasping a new species of cretaceous mammal in its talons, and I have had much success (maybe not the last part). I mostly use an Estwing 4lb sledge and Stanely chisels with hand guards to do the job, but sometimes also use a 10 pound sledge for the harder and larger chunks. This works fine, but because I am dealing with relatively hard matrix the pinging of the sledge against the chisels can get annoying, but could it over time also cause tinnitus and hearing damage? Since I have gotten ear protection aware I have begun wearing EP3 Sonic Defenders when fossil hunting which have the great feature of allowing sounds like normal conversation and ambient noise in while reducing any noises above 85dB when the caps are off and greatly reducing all noise when the caps are in. Some of their other plugs like the EP4 and EP7 do the same thing and have more protection with the caps in, so I might get one of those too. So, my questions are: 1-When is it appropriate to wear ear protection while fossil hunting? 2-Could the pinging of my hammer against the chisel and/or chalk chunks cause hearing damage and thus tinnitus over time? 3-What kind of hearing protection do you recommend? Is what I am using ok? BONUS QUESTION-Any recommendations for padded gloves to get?

I am looking to purchase a couple chisels that will work well in the shale typically found in western New York. I have read several threads and have a general idea of the sizes that I’d need, but I wanted to be sure I got the right type of chisels. Should I get cold chisels or masonry/brick chisels? From what I’ve heard elsewhere online, hardware stores usually say that cold chisels are for metal but I’ve seen them recommended for fossils in several threads. Are either options okay to use? I’m mostly asking in terms of safety.

Hi everyone, I’m a beginner, and I need some help buying some tools. I have settled on Estwing since I have always been a fan of their hammers and it seems that you all are fans too. I need help on deciding if I should get a hammer with a pick or chisel end. I think I’m leaning towards the 22oz pick ended one. I noticed that Estwing makes this hammer in two lengths. Should I get the 13” or 16”? What about their pick ax? Do I need this right now? I also need help choosing some chisels. I don’t know what sizes I should get. Also, what size of sledge should I start with? Any other suggestions? Here’s a link to Estwing’s geological hammers: https://www.estwing.com/collections/geological Thanks!

Someone broke into my jeep last Friday night and stole my small digital camera used on collecting trips, my brand new Estwing rock pick (l3ather wrapped handle -gift from a friend) & my Estwing drilling hammer, chiselsk and some phone/ audio cables. Not enough for an insurance claim and most everyone says I lost just a bunch of hammers.

So I'm aiming to visit some of the Altamira Shale (Monterey Formation Shale) exposures in my city and try to find some fossils in fallen shale pieces. However, I simply cannot find a good way to split shale (I also have small rocks of Altamira Shale in my backyard, which could be seen as a sort of "practice"). The shale that I get are usually very hard and compact, as seems to not crack very easily with the materials I have. I don't have a real chisel, but I makeshift them (nail, screws, and screwdrivers). When I use them, it seems to just dig a hole in the area where I'm striking at and creates no cracks. Does anyone who has experience with Monterey Shale know the best way to split a shale like this, preferably clean in half? (It seems that the rocks I'm trying to split are the exact same rocks found in any other part of the Monterey Formation, like Jalama Beach)

It’s Father’s Day in the U.K. soon and I’ve been asked by one of my older daughters what I would like and I’ve opted for a new estwing. Shall I go pointy or chisel? I hunt in a variety of places both errr rock hard to soft shale. My existing hammer is chisel but I’ve never really used that end. My current hammer won’t be carried with a the hammer. Weight in the bag will be used for fossils not equipment!

Hello everyone, I will be going out for the first time to collect the lower Devonian Helderberg Group. I am wondering about which chisel and geology hammer are most appropriate for splitting the rock. Any help is appreciated. Joseph

Does anyone have any good tips for sharpening a chisel? Mine has recently grown dull from excursions to the local quarry for quartz. Any tips are appreciated!

I got this cape chisel a long time ago with a bunch of other tools at a flea market. Up until today I think the only thing I had used it for was to remove a woodruff key. Paired with a little 1 lb drilling hammer, you can do surprisingly delicate work removing matrix. Just figured I'd share. It went from sitting on a shelf to being one of my favorite tools