If You See These 5 Surface Patterns on a Rock, Keep It ... Gems

Rockhounding surface patterns matter. Jody Padia’s 14 pound Bruneau Canyon agate sold rough for $1,800 after one flashlight check. I use 4 field tests under $50 total to sort agate, druzy quartz, gossan, tiger’s eye, and junk before the hammer comes out. Wet surface test, $3 steel nail scratch test, $8 Convoy S2 backlight test, and a $27 Escali Primo specific gravity check. This is mineral identification in dirt, not guesswork at a clean table. 💎 Dendritic manganese in Bruneau Canyon agate, checked with water and an $8 Convoy S2 flashlight 💎 The $3 steel nail scratch test that separates quartz druzy at Mohs 7 from calcite at Mohs 3 💎 Specific gravity on a $27 Escali Primo scale: malachite near 4.0, chalcedony 2.6, gossan near 5 💎 Concentric agate banding from Succor Creek and Bruneau Canyon, rough at $5 to $50 per pound 💎 Druzy geode opening with an Estwing E3 22P hammer, about $32, without smashing the cavity 💎 Chatoyant tiger’s eye from Plumas County, 6 pounds cut into 200 cabochons at $35 wholesale each 0:00 $1,800 Bruneau Canyon dendritic agate 2:38 The Special texture and the $3 nail test 5:15 Concentric banding, agate glow, and $200 rough 7:13 Druzy quartz, calcite, and safer geode cracking 9:08 Chatoyant shimmer and the 2.65 specific gravity check Subscribe if you want rockhounding tests I would actually trust on wet gravel. Last summer, a dealer showed me a 14-pound gray stone found in an Idaho dry creek bed, purchased for $1,800. This video demonstrates how simple field tests, costing under $50, can identify valuable minerals and reveal the hidden worth in seemingly ordinary rocks. Learn how to spot these precious stones with basic geology knowledge.