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With the start of 2023 I decided to take a break from my long running prep project and prepare out something smaller to start the year off. I collected several of these C. clallamensis shrimp nodules last January and in my previous experience they tend to prep well. This was one that I had split on the beach so I knew that there was a large-ish claw and hoped nodule contained the rest of the arm also. The nodule before prep Unfortunately this nodule didn't contain an arm but rather a bunch of fragmentary shell remains and one large disarticulated claw, but the claw tip glued back on nicely and I decided to have a play with shaping the matrix resulting in an interesting bowled out effect. In total the prep took about 3.5 hours with my Ken Mannion TT pen and I'm quite pleased with how much I managed to undercut the outside of the nodule without breaking it away. While not the best shrimp this was a fun prep to start off the year. Thanks for having a look

Hello everyone, I am relatively new to fossil preparation and up until last week have been using an electric engraver to prep some of my collection, but it overheated and died on me so I am looking into upgrading to a proper air scribe. I was hoping some of you who work with UK tools might be able/willing to give me some advice on picking a tool. I have heard very good things about both Zoic pens and the Ken Mannion TT but I'm curious to know what the difference between them is from a use standpoint since one uses pusher plate internals and the other a piston (I think). A little background into the sort of thing that's in my collection that I'd like to prep. Most of my collection comes from the Whitby area, so hard pyritised ammonite nodules (the photo is a D. commune I was working on when the engraver died). I also have Rhaetian bone material from Aust and some small concretions, probably C. clalamensis from the last time I was back in Washington. I will post a few pictures of the ones I'm looking to work on next below as comments. Any and all advice you can give me is greatly appreciate. I'm looking forward to getting some things shelf ready while I can't go out and hunt for more. Thank you, Benton Walters