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Replicas vs real


Dino1

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Hey guys, has anyone here bought a fossil replica? If so does it look like the real thing? Does it feel the same? I’m thinking of buying some replicas because I can’t afford some real fossils.

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Aloha! It really just depends. There are what's called 1st generation research grade casts that are extremely accurate and realistic looking. Because they are 1st generation casts they have extremely fine detail. The weight and color are also going to be extremely accurate to the original. These type casts can be very expensive, hundreds or thousands of dollars. Then there are other casts that are made of very light weight materials and have very poor detail. They are obviously a lot cheaper. 

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There are some affordable replicas out there. They range from “is that real” to  “what the heck is it” I myself have several replicas. but remember you get what you pay for. Make sure you’re using a reputable company and you can come out all right.

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Personally I love both real fossils and replicas. They're a good way to get some rarer or more complete material.

 

Be mindful though, that there is a distinction between casts and sculptures. I'm not sure sculptures should even technically be called replicas. A cast is just that, a cast of a real fossil. So these will generally be the best and more accurate. But of course there can be poor quality castings as well.

And sculptures is something an artist makes. Sometimes a real fossil is either incomplete or so badly crushed that sculptures are made to properly show off what the animal looked like. These sculptures can be good or bad. Some are really well researched and might be very accurate. While others are nothing but garbage since they aren't well researched at all and might have terrible anatomy.

If you're new to buying replica fossils I would say that it's a good idea to look at the bigger shops as those normally have the better quality. While there may be some gems on our favourite auction site, there's a lot of trash as well.

 

 

Here are some examples from my collection.

 

This Phorusrhacos skull is a really good sculpture. It's nicely detailed and the anatomy is quite good.

Phorusrhacos_skull01.thumb.jpg.3b1c907ffbd71fcaa7f54678056965f4.jpg

 

A cast of an Oviraptor egg. Notice the really good detail and crisp edges. One thing that isn't really good on this replica is the pain job as it looks rather bland.

oviraptor_egg01.thumb.jpg.d73bcd9c6ff8cef8edcbcb1b03f057b2.jpg

 

And here's an example of a bit of a mix of things. It's a cast for the most part. But the skull is a sculpture since the original was too crushed. I bought this one unpainted and unmounted to spare costs. This can be a very nice way to save some money and have a fun paint/mount project at the same time.

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Olof Moleman AKA Lord Trilobite

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Although I prefer real dinosaur fossils my collection includes replicas of claws and jaws of rare specimens that are never available to a collector or priced out of reach.  I also have provided replicas of my fossils to a couple of museums.   Purchase the highest grade available those that have lots of detail and I prefer that they are painted.  Good way to balance your collection. 

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Hi there, I do own like @caldigger mentioned quite a few replica fossils :) 

In this topic you can all of my replica's, but like LordTrilobite mentioned replica's can be pricey as well, especially the good ones.

And there is indeed a difference between casts and sculptures like LordTrilobite mentioned, casts usually are the best in quality especially as they retain much of the details from the actual fossils, the reconstucted sculptures can be of a high quality as well depending where you buy then. Some paleoartists and companies spent a lot of time on research and details to make the reconstuction as scientifically correct as possible.

Some replica's look very lifelike, thought you can often feel they are not fossils as soon as you pick them up, but I think replica's are a great way to enhance a collection, cause like Troodon said, some fossils are simply out of reach for most collectors.

 

There are 5 very reliable businesses that I know, and I have replica's from 3 of these companies, I shall send you a PM with links to their websites.

 

 

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Interested in all things paleontology, geology, zoology, evolution, natural history and science!
Professional exotic pet keeper, huge fantasy geek, explorer of the microfossil realm, member of the BVP (Belgian Association for Paleontology), Volunteer prepper at Oertijdmuseum Boxtel.  

View my collection topic here:

The Growing Collection of Ziggycardon
My animal collection at the "Members pet" topic

Ziggycardon's exploration of the microfossil realm

Trips to Eben Emael (Maastrichtian of Belgium)

My latest fossil hunt

 

Next project will be a dedicated prepping space.

 

"A mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone, if it is to keep its edge." - Tyrion Lannister

 

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10 hours ago, Dino1 said:

Aloha! Are you from Hawaii too? Thanks for the information!

I lived on the island of Oahu for ten years. I'm afraid I no longer live there. I absolutely loved Hawaii and wish I was still there. What is life like now with the coronavirus? Are you even allowed to go to the beach?

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2 hours ago, Dracorex_hogwartsia said:

I lived on the island of Oahu for ten years. I'm afraid I no longer live there. I absolutely loved Hawaii and wish I was still there. What is life like now with the coronavirus? Are you even allowed to go to the beach?

We are all quarantined right now like many places, we are not allowed to go to the beach right now

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