splitting slate

[cdaddi]

i have a big slate rock but i want to split it to make a flat piece how can i do this?

[Shadow_Demon]

Hi there, you should do some research into rock cleavage, (I don't know much about this myself, but am keen to learn :-)) this is how slate is split in the industry, then it is cut more neatly later on.

Just a basic response, hope it helps. A bigish flat sharpish blade would be good for splitting, depending on rock size. :-)

[Clanad]

This is not for the faint of heart. During my time at a University here in the western U.S., majoring in Geology, a stone mason who was an expert in slate splitting gave several demonstrations. The slate is a type of rock laid down is successive layers of mud, drying sightly between each deposition. This results in grain and cleavage along which the splitting is done. One has to identify the grain direction before beginning the splitting process. The mason had several tools, many of which were homemade. His favorite was a blade made from a used hand saw blade. All of the serrated teeth had been ground off and the resulting thin blade was struck, gently... gently with a wooden mall. On some samples he heated the edge with a blowtorch first. This resulted in some swelling and made the initial "cut" easier to start. It was important that the split be continued through the sample and not stopped part way through. If he wanted a thinner slate, he would carefully hold the previoussplit sample between his knees and begin another split with the same or thinner blade and his trusty wooden mall.
Best of luck!