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ParkerPaleo's White River Prep


ParkerPaleo

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Now that hockey season has ended and the lab is warm again, and perhaps due to my new found extra time in isolation, I am embarking on documenting my prep projects.  I thought I would start the prep season off with something easy that should turn out fairly nice.  Please welcome my new little friendly Oreodont, Miniochoerus gracilis.  It came into my collection in the summer of 2013 and has sat jacketed in a box until today.  This evening I concentrated primarily on consolidation and bulk matrix removal with an ARO, and still have a ways to go.  The plan is to prepare the "down" side in the hopes of a beautiful orbit and zygomatic arch.  I did notice a cross section of vertebrae on the rear of the block so there is probably some neck attached as well.  I'm hoping there is enough matrix below the jaws to make a nice pedestal to sit on as well.  

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Nice!

Will be interested to follow how this progresses. :)

Life's Good!

Tortoise Friend.

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I am about 2 hours into bulk matrix removal and consolidation (not that it needed much).

 

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Looks like it will have a good smile.  From the top down view, you can see how much matrix has been removed.  I am just getting to the edges of the cheek bone, so I have a ways to go before I have the lower jaw exposed.  I was able to find the back of the other jaw from the back, so I know its there.  Hopefully I can start getting the opposite side face uncovered tomorrow.

 

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Here is a picture of my setup as well.

 

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Nice prep work on that oreodont, and I love your setup.  Thats a hella-big cyclone you got! I'm saving your pic, as I want to build my next prep box like yours.

"There is no shortage of fossils. There is only a shortage of paleontologists to study them." - Larry Martin

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I may have gone overboard with a 4" cyclone but, I am getting no visible leakage from the dust collector.  I had a long conversation with the engineering department at Oneida before I bought it, they even suggested dual stage to make sure all of the sub 10 micron dust would drop out.  I couldn't be happier with it.

 

We originally built the box so two people could work on opposite ends of a dinosaur bone or other large specimen.  The typical water trap and plumbing is on the backside of the workbenches.  My next major improvement is to hook up my 60 gallon compressor.  Running with an old 20 gallon currently.  The big struggle is getting a dedicated 220 line to my garage, worried its a bit beyond my personal capability and the electrician quotes are astronomical.  I already punched a hole through the back wall to bring a 20 amp circuit through for the compressor, my washer dryer are just on the other side.  It was annoying when I discovered the garage circuit was 15 amp and the compressor tripped the breaker on every restart.  Someday I'll get the electrical the way I want it!

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Progress today.  I uncovered the zygomatic and a few upper teeth.  Then I started going after the lower jaw.  It is mostly exposed now.  The specimen is laterally compressed significantly.  I'm unsure if there will be enough of a base left underneath that it can stand on.  I think my next session I will try to define the cranium and clean up the backside a bit. 

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This weekend ended up in more family time than I expected which is not a bad thing, but I didn't make as much progress on my current project.  Sunday night I was able to sneak away and spend some quality time at the bench.  I decided to get rid of attempting a pedestal.  There is only 1/4th inch between the lower jaws and there was not enough matrix under the cranium to extend a pedestal.  I'll figure out a stand for this piece later.  At the front of the skull, there is a small mound of material, the upper incisors from this side have floated off slightly, I'm preparing to remove the section and will place it back properly once the nose is cleaned up.  The atlas and axis are both preserved under the cranium as well, no picture yet but as I get closer on cleaning the cranium they will start showing in the pics.  

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On 4/2/2020 at 6:03 PM, jpc said:

nice set-up and fossil.  Where is that popcorn eating emoji?

Nomm, nomm, nomm...oh you mean THIS one? :popcorn:nomm, nomm, nomm!

 

 

 

 

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Think I'm close to done with scribe work.  Going to switch to abrasion or hand tools to start making it pretty.

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And I'm calling it quits here.  Going to fill the crack in the back of the cranium but other than that, its ready to find a stand.  I believe it to be a Merycoidodon culbertsoni now.  I initially thought Miniochoerus due to size but its a young individual.  It has teeth like a second grader with gaps all over the place.

 

I've started on the next project too.  Small teaser pic for you all.  I'm fairly certain the braincase is gone completely but I'm hoping for an excellent rostrum.

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Probably not 'cat'/nimravid, I was thinking Hyaenodon.  I'm fairly certain its not an amphicyon or canid either.  I'll have to prep some to confirm.  More exciting than an oreodont for sure!

 

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16 hours ago, ParkerPaleo said:

Probably not 'cat'/nimravid, I was thinking Hyaenodon.  I'm fairly certain its not an amphicyon or canid either.  I'll have to prep some to confirm.  More exciting than an oreodont for sure!

 

Short lived excitement, it is a hyaenodon but its a disarticulated skull.  Finding something else to work on today.

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Giving up is a strong word, more like pausing for an extended period.  At least the excess matrix is gone from it now, more room in its box to consolidate other things.

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On 1/4/2020 at 1:49 AM, ParkerPaleo said:

I am about 2 hours into bulk matrix removal and consolidation (not that it needed much).

 

DSC00438.thumb.JPG.fdd420589edec49cb652f8570b6d3b15.JPG

 

Looks like it will have a good smile.  From the top down view, you can see how much matrix has been removed.  I am just getting to the edges of the cheek bone, so I have a ways to go before I have the lower jaw exposed.  I was able to find the back of the other jaw from the back, so I know its there.  Hopefully I can start getting the opposite side face uncovered tomorrow.

 

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Here is a picture of my setup as well.

 

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How do you considate it? Brushing the fossil surfaces with paraloid b72 solution? 

I just bout an oreodont skull to prepare, (who knows when it will arrive) but I'm gothering some information on how to prepare it. 

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For this one, I used superglue.  Specifically a product called 'Penetrant' from PaleoBond.  This skull was pretty solid to begin with.  I took a micro-pipette with glue in it, and stuck it on any crack I could find.  Capillary action 'sucks' the glue into the void and makes a strong bond.  I am not squirting glue all over the outside of the specimen.  I've used Vinac or Paraloid before but I generally use that in situation where the specimen/matrix is very crumbly.

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Awesome canines. Its nice to see a young Oreodont skull with its snout not chewed off. 

 

Those Creodont teeth look great. Fingers crossed :fingerscrossed:

Many times I've wondered how much there is to know.  
led zeppelin

 

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Have a few things on the table now.

 

Thought I'd finish an Oreodont that has been in the collection since the 90's.  Needs to have the cranium cleaned up a bit and glue removed from the teeth.  Should be a spectacular specimen when done.

 

 

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