? for any shellers out there - do you recognize rocks ?

[BillA]

I understand people who collect sea shells are called shellers, I have a question.

between my house and town I walk ~1/2mi of beach, and having no detector in hand I look for interesting shells
for me shell recognition involves color and/or shape, and most shells have distinct colors and sometimes an associated shape

but some rock fragments can have the exact coloration, and even some shape elements
- to the point I bend over to see it better/pick it up, and . . . . it is a rock
over time/tides I will see the same rock over and over, and I chide myself for getting suckered again and again

is it common to repeatedly mistake the same rock for a shell ? (some I have named)

 

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[Hillbilly Prince]

Are you sure? Mark the rock next time you see it. Or take it home. People used to make pets of them.

 

[BillA]

if I see a nice shell I will pick it up, I drilled some to hang in the breeze
so I also picked up some rocks but they cannot be drilled to hang in a specific manner unobtrusively like shells,
not useful other than as a fake shell

the beach is a dark sand with light bands of gravel, jasper and hematite abound; I'll pick some up again

 

[Hillbilly Prince]

The rocks look like shells? Need pics of this. How do you drill shells without breaking them?

 

[BillA]

will get some rocks & pics

shells are calcium carbonate with variable hardness (some are too hard)
I use a hss 1/16" bit and a variable speed drill, fuss a bit to find the pressure/rotation speed combo
the bits do dull, buy a number of them