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I stopped at a local home improvement store to pick up a gift certificate for a neighbor whose birthday it is today, she loves this store. When I walked inside I saw this Gorilla Brand cart reduced from $39.00 down to $10.00 and had to grab one. An associate stated that they were just reduced and that she set one aside for herself. This cart art has two wheels, a telescoping handle and the mess around it is of a super strong material. In addition it has a couple loops where you can hang a hammer and / or other tools and it is collapsible.This will work well for fossil collecting and you can even fit a 5 gallon bucket on the inside. Great find in my opinion. @stats Rich- I know I might see you Saturday morning, I bought two of these and if you want one I will only sell it to you for $35.00- lol. But seriously, if you want it just give me the $10.00, I think you would like it- otherwise I will hold onto it because I could always use it- let me know.

Hey-Oh!!!! I found some little neat containers for super cheap and thought I'd share what and where! First pics are from Walmart's Back 2 School section. These were $1 dollar each. They are stackable, have two latches for containment and are great for smaller finds that are worth separating out and isolation. Second are classic plastic cotton ball containers that were being merchandised as small screw containers at Mendards. These come in two sizes (can't remember what) and they are $1.88 per container. I like these for separating my new finds that are smaller and need to soak in vinegar/etc... to further break down any matrix. OR as another source of stackable containers. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!!! Steve

For quite a while now I have been looking for some type of cabinet to display my better/favorite specimens. Curio cabinets and the like tend to be out of my price range. Even the used ones. My wonderful wife found some used glass retail cabinets for sale. They were so cheaply priced that I bought 2! They are 6 feet (1.82 meters)long by 3 feet (.9 meters) tall and 20 inches (50.8cm)wide. Now I can display some of my collection without worrying so much about dust, dirt, or accidental breakage as they were sitting out on an open shelf before. I’m super excited and had to share! The pic shows one of the cabinets. I’m temporarily using this one as storage as I had to get rid of the shelf I mentioned to make room. I’m working on the other one first as my main display. I’ll post some pics of it when I progress a little further and it looks more presentable.

I am an architecture student from India and my research dissertation and thesis are based at the Raiyoli site in Gujarat, India, known for its vast nesting grounds and several sauropod egg specimens discovered through the early eighties. It was also here that the Rajasaurus Narmedensis was first discovered. My design aims to create a new system including a live dig site, preparation labs, casting/moulding labs and also serving as a fossil repository for the secure storage of the fossils excavated at the site since no such facilities are present throughout the country. I would like to know the appropriate methods for categorization of specimens at such a site where a vast number of specimens, primarily eggs, petrified wood and a few bones have been found. Is there an existing method of categorization based on the size of the specimens and the equipment/tools required for the same? P.S.- My knowledge in palaeontology is limited to the questions relating to the spatial requirements for such facilities.

In the past I have posted some plastic “Plano” brand cases that I periodically find and buy from Goodwill. These are great cases, they are made very well and are compartmentalized and perfect for storage of smaller fossils. The below pic shows some of the Plano cases that I have, they are the thinner ones. But I digressed- so today I stopped in a Goodwill and picked up two of the below cases that must have been used by a salesman for samples. These cases are very nice and well made and they will be perfect when out collecting at road cuts for smaller items such as brachiopods, etc. These cases are also compartmentalized and will allow me to sort fossils as I collect them rather than placing them in plastic bags where the fossils could get damaged by the end of the day. And at a cost of $3.99 each, I could not go wrong.

Finally getting around to a project I have been wanting to do for a while now, making acrylic ID tags for my specimens. These particular ones (2.75x0.75") are sized to fit in the 3x3x0.75" boxes that I typically use in my drawers. And just for fun, my North Sulphur River drawer, which needs a little better organizing (and some tags) but I like it.

Hey! I apologize if this has already been asked/answered. I looked through the site, and did a search, but didn’t come up with anything. However, there is a plethora of information here, so it’s plausibe I simply missed it. Is there a preferred method to cleaning fossils without damaging them? What about storing them? Currently, I soak them in hot water with Dawn dish soap, and scrub them with a medium/medium-hard, plastic bristled brush. The same ones you used to clean under your fingernails. Currently, I’ve not found a sufficient storage system, and have just packed them into plastic tupperware, etc. I’m pretty new to fossils, and finding them, and basically anything handling fossils entails, so I want to make sure I’m asking all of the right questions, and am doing things correctly so as to preserve them as they should be. Thanks in advance for your help! Pictures of one of my favorite finds for attention.

Hi all Mrs Rico and I spotted a vintage goods shop yesterday and thought we look around. I then spotted a very nice filling cabinet for £40 I do think it is a good buy. Today I felted the draws and cut the base of and add some casters. I have added a couple of fossils in just to try it out. I may make some deviders later. It only good for narrow fossil but I have a lot of them. Thanks for looking cheers Bobby

Earlier this week we got the opportunity to buy a few old chests of drawers from a printing company that is ending its business. It is the kind of cabinet they used to store all the little lead letters they used in the past for printing, usually they tend to ask quite a lot of money for this kind of furniture, but we got 2 of them for very decent price. I even found a few stray lead printing letters left in one of the drawers. It took me a few trips from there to my home to get everything here, and we still have a lot of drawers to clean, but they are extremely convenient for the storage of smaller pieces of the collection. Every drawer is already divided in little cases that are perfect to sort everything out, but I am cutting pieces of paper to put in every case to have a cleaner look since we can't get the drawers completely clean. It will take awhile to get al the drawers tidy, but we are really pleased with the first results.

I have a lot of small fossils, both vertebrates and invertebrates, that are starting to clutter around my apartment in junky plastic bins and bags. It is starting to get out of hand. I need something that is good for on a budget, but has the capacity to hold a large number of fossils and keep them safe. I do not want to display them, just keep them organized. I like the idea of having a wood cabinet of shallow drawers. I have been on the search for a decently priced wood map cabinet for a long time now, but I am coming up short. All of them are either far too small or way to expensive. Further, I have heard that certain woods like oak can release harmful acids to fragile fossils, and I have quite a few fossils that are very thin and prone to deterioration. Does anyone know of anything that I might be able to use for a decent price? I don't have a lot of time to build my own set. I do have a circular saw, drill press, and a sanding wheel, but if it takes more than a weekend to build, it is not worth the time to me. But I am open to anyone offering some plans to build a simple storage solution. Thanks!

I just bought these for my tiny brachiopods and other small fossils. The batting inside has black velvet on one side and white on the other, so you can flip to whatever background you like. The boxes are plastic. The window is glass. They are about 1 inch (2.54 cm) square. Thought I'd share in case others have similar needs.

Spent 12 hours yesterday helping out to downsize a widow's house as she prepares to move. Her partner passed away in December, and he was a bit of a hoarder (an organized one, I should add: everything was meticulously labeled). He was a novelty sign maker and assembled novelty clocks, in addition to being a competent woodworker and a car aficionado. It took a team of us to fill up one of those enormous rental dumpster bins to the top, a few trailers, and there is still a few more loads to go. All of this stuff was being consigned to the dump, with some better items being put to the side by a family member who runs an auction business - proceeds going to the widow to assist in her move. It would be a shame to see so many tools - a mark of this man's legacy - simply go off to the dump. A lot of this stuff is not for fossil prep at all, but one would be surprised how useful some tools and accessories can really come in handy to supplement one's designated fossil prep stuff. First up, storage solutions for smaller fossils. The double-faced case meant for storing nuts, bolts, nails, etc., has adjustable compartments. The classic nails, screws unit is also ideal for storing small fossils.

I was wondering what the best storage situation/environment is optimal as regards fossilized dinosaur eggs, especially hadrosaur eggs. Any advice would be appreciated.

Hi, I've been thinking about organizing my collection so it doesn't break... I've seen some suggestions like putting everything into decided lure boxes, or in paper trays in drawers.i cannot find where it is possible to get these white paper storage trays! Also haven't really done with a solution for storing tiny fossils (up to date they are in a pile of small zip lock bags. Please help! I would be greatful for any suggestions for storing my

Hi all Since I was thinking about getting more into fossil hunting I'm going to need a good spot to store my finds. does anyone have any suggestions on airtight glass/plastic display cases? on a side note, what about brass identification plaques? i think those would be helpful Thanks -Diamond

Does anyone know of a good and affordable place to acquire some boxes (like jewelry boxes) that are made out of acid-free materials? I really need to start moving some of my finds out of plastic bags, as I feel that I don’t really know what I have actually collected, given that they are not visible.

Hey guys! My latest project is finally at its first stage of deployment. As some of you may know, 2 years ago I released PaleoArchiver, a computer based program for cataloging, archiving, and documenting your fossil collections. Well, I found a lot of problems with it: #1 is that it was not mobile, I couldn't take a laptop out into the field, #2 is that it was based around one central flaw, and that is that you could not make custom tags/IDs for your specimens, they were autogenerated in numerically ascending order, and #3 is that the application had no way of organizing specimens by the site that they were found. As a result of these problems, I started working on a new version of PaleoArchiver, a mobile Android application, rebuilt completely from the ground up. It allows you to go out into the field and create new sites, add specimens to those sites, create field notes, etc. The best part is that everything you do is automatically geo-tagged. The GPS location, altitude, and GPS radial accuracy are all found using the phone's built-in GPS receiver. Further, rather than storing all of the data in a proprietary file format, all of the data is stored in a SQLite database. You can export or import databases as you wish, and use open-source, free computer applications to look at your database from your computer. This also allows you to share your database with friends and colleagues. Pictures for each specimen, site, and field note can either be uploaded from your gallery, or taken within the app. Also, there are fields for not only fossils, but minerals and arrowheads as well! A brief summary of the app's capabilities are as follows: Add new sites, specimens, and field notes quickly and easily Upload or capture photos of sites, specimens, and field notes Automatic site, specimen, and field notes geotagging Automatic storage of data in a SQLite database Export the database for safekeeping or sharing with friends and colleagues Import a database for easy transition when switching phones Search function for retrieving information about specific sites, specimens, or field notes Designed to be simple and easy to use both in and out of the field Edit and remove existing sites, specimens, and field notes And of course, I will continue to update the app. The feature that I plan on adding next is automatic specimen label generation, so that you can create and print labels for your display pieces. And like all new things, there may be some bugs/errors that I have not encountered. I have tested it on a Google Pixel, Nexus 5, and Samsung Galaxy S7 without any problems, but all devices are different. Google Play should tell you if your device will work or not, I don't think that any modern devices would fail (unless you have not updated your phone in the past 3 years!, which is a bad habit...). The app is not free, I spent a lot of time developing it in my own free time. There are no ads, and once you buy it, you never have to purchase it again and will have access to all of the updates. To purchase it, go to Google Play and search for PaleoArchiver, or click this link here. If you are unsatisfied with the app, please tell me what you dislike/have problems with and I will do my absolute best to fix it! For more information and some screenshots, also visit: my website

How do you guys store your fossils to keep them protected, for both display and long term storage? Does anyone use any special equipment or techniques?

Has anyone seen these? I thought they were pretty cool, good way to store stuff and/or safety ship fragile pieces. They are soft double sided clear plastic membranes with a ridged frame. They pop open like a clam shell and come with a variety of feet for standing,stacking,displaying & locking them together or apart. They can hold heavy and spikey just as nice as the danty fragile.Pretty neat if ya ask me. They are half price if you by in bulk. They come in 2 in. by 1.5 in. up to 7.1 in. by 6.15 in. Not sure if posting a link to their site is kosher,so pm me and I will share Web info.

A few months ago I put about a dozen tiny fossil inside of those empty gel caps you buy at high health for making your own "supplements" . the monsoon humidity got to them even inside the house, and the fossils inside got glued to the wall. Oh man, I saved them but wont use those again! Also, one gel cap that was in with a pile of small fossils in a box had micro fossils glued all over the outside of it. Those capsules at first seem a great idea, but unless you live in the Sahara, they are more trouble than they are worth. Any body else had this happen to them?

So due to family complications some of my fossil collection will have to stored outside. The best pieces are inside my house but my B-grade specimens are going to be left out in the dead of winter. I'm not worried about the ridiculously hard limestone specimens I have (it might even be good for them) but some Green River material and some U-Dig will be outside which I am worried about. Does anybody have some experience with this that they'd be willing to share?

So I filled the drawers in the display cabinet that I built last year and needed more room. I was going to go fossiling today but it was a little too rainy so I started on a new cabinet. It is real quick and dirty. This one is much simpler and made from scrap I had in my shop at work. I am partially done but still need drawer pulls and label holders and to tweak some stuff. I think the bottom piece needs to be trimmed down. So here is the first cabinet I made:

Here is some of my storage areas and my prep/ photo work station and my microfossil work station. And a display case.

I am planning a second trip to Penndixie, first one was over 10 years ago. On my first trip I did a poor job of storing the specimens for the ride home and so several got broken (I forgot these are old as antiques). How do you store materials you find on site? I was thinking giant Tupperware container with rows of bubble wrap. I read about using Elmers glue as a stabilizer, should I buy paleobond or a stabilizing compound? My goal is to take my three sons, dig around in the dirt, and find something for the kids to put in a shadow box. Thank you, Adam

Hi all, When it comes to storage and space requirements, a fossil collection poses more of a challenge than, for instance, a stamp collection does. Limited storage and display space is becoming more and more of a problem for me, which is probably is a phenomenon familiar to many of you. Perhaps you have found very creative ways (I hope!) to tackle this problem. Therefore, do you have any tips on how to store fossils effectively in a limited space? I have many of the smaller specimens stored quite efficiently in drawers already, and I am especially interested in how to deal with larger (several decimeters) and heavy (several kilograms) specimens? At the moment, they occupy (too) much of my floor space... Thanks for your input! Tim