Welcome to the Previously Rockhounding Podcast where we explore the world of rockhounding and lapidary from the ye olden days of the 1970s and 1980s through the lens of vintage issues of Rock & Gem magazine.
You can listen to the latest episodes here on Currently Rockhound.com but you can also find us on all the major podcast platforms such as Anchor, Spotify, Amazon Music, Audible, Google and Apple Podcast or just add our RSS Feed to your preferred app.
Episode 20: April 1980
The 1980s are here and money is on everyone’s mind, or at least on the minds of Rock & Gem contributors. We read about sky-high silver prices and how to protect your dollars by investing in diamonds. The Frantic Fumbler gives us his reasons for why so few young people are getting into the hobby and we go back to a time when buying direct from a manufacturer was a new, innovative idea.
Episode 19: The Mineralogical Record Vol. 5 #4
To finish out the 1970s we take a break from Rock & Gem and read an issue of The Mineralogical Record to get a little more perspective on what the hobby was like during the decade. Although both magazines share a related subject, they could hardly be more different.
Episode 18: December 1979
We’ve made it to the end of a decade with a lapidary Christmas 1979. The 70s don’t exactly go out on a bang, but current trends are thoroughly represented in this issue with another article about using diamonds for lapidary applications, an ad for a belt and disc cleaner and a field trip article in which petrified wood is found via dowsing rods. We do read about some interesting ideas for projects that we would consider making! That’s right, a good project idea from Rock and Gem! It was bound to happen eventually, it only took 18 issues.
Episode 17: October 1979
October 1979 promises articles on some very intriguing topics such as “Government and the Rockhound: Closing off the Backcountry” and “Are Fire Agates Really Opal?”. Will the articles live up to the promise of their titles? We also read about rock-related projects we probably won’t be attempting any time soon like “Rock Flower Pictures” and “Gem-set Driftwood”. As always, this issue contains plenty of interesting ads and even an article with genuinely good advice.
Episode 16: September 1979
In this issue some of the articles fall short of what’s promised by their titles but we fill in the gaps with helpful information, such as the best ways to preserve your finds on their way from the field to home, and our experience with polishing soapstone. We also learn a great new word for lapidary enthusiasts thanks to the Frantic Fumbler, who also wrote a great article spotlighting the lapidary world’s transition to using diamonds. We’re getting close to the end of the 1970s and some of the articles seem to be foreshadowing trends that we’ll be seeing in the next decade.
