Make Your Own Paleontology Slides For Microfossils

[jkfoam]

One of my recent posts on microfossils generated some discussion on the difficulty of obtaining Paleontology microscope slides for microfossils at a reasonable price. Typically, the slide assembly which includes a regular glass microscope slide, the paleontology slide and an aluminum holder to hold the assembly together can cost about $1.50 each and you generally have to order in lots of 100. It kind of puts some folks off from getting involved with microfossils which I think is a shame because of the beauty and detail that can be found in microfossils.

So I went out to my shop and put together a system for making your own slides at a minimum expense and just a little skill. All the stuff you need is available at your local craft store (Hobby Lobby or Michaels) and hardware store. Here's what you need:

1. Elmers school glue

2. Can of spray glue

3. Sheet of stiff poster board/paper, Black in color

4. Sheet of stiff poster board/paper, White in color

5. Sheet of Matt Board (the stuff they use for matting when frameing pictures) You might not have to buy it. Just ask the Frameing Dept for their scraps. Matt board is pretty thick and thats what we use to make the slide cavity.

6. 12 Inch piece of 1/2 inch Stainless steel pipe.

Step 1. Cut the Black Poster board and the White Poster board into 3 inch wide strips that are about 12 inches long. Then glue a strip of the white poster board to a strip of the black poster board. Use the spray glue to make the job easier. This double thickness adds stiffness.

Step 2. Then cut the 3 inch wide strips you just glued together into 1 inch pieces. I used a paper cutter. these 1 X 3 inch pieces will be used for the backs of the slides.

Step 3. Now cut the matt board into 3 inch wide strips. Make them as long as you want to. Again using the paper cutter cut the 3 inch wide matt board strips into 1 inch pieces. If you want deeper cavities in your slides then glue two Matt Board strips together using the spray glue. I like the double thickness. It seems to be very versatile.

Step 4. Make the cavity in the 1 X 3 inch matt board pieces. I made two kinds of cavities. The easiest was to punch a 1/2 inch hole in the 1 X 3 pieces. The other was to use a 1 inch chisel and a 3/4 inch chisel to punch a rectangle in the 1 X # inch pieces. This takes 4 hits with the chisel to make the rectangle hole. To make the 1/2 hole I had to make a hole punch. To make the hole punch I cut a 4 inch length from the 1/2 stainless steel tubing. Then I chucked it up into my drill press. With the tubing spinning in the drill press I used a file to put a knife edge on the end of the tube. I polished the knife edge using emory paper and crocus cloth. Then just use the sharpened tubing/hole punch like a chisel. Position it where you want the hole and hit it with a hammer. Be sure you have a stout board under it before you hit it.

Step 5. Now you glue the backs you made from Steps 1 and 2 to the 1 X 3 matt board pieces with the cavities cut in them. If you want a black background o9r a white background glue accordingly. I make some of both. I use the Elmers glue for this operation.

Step 6. Glue you microfossil to the bottom of the cavity using, Gum Tragicanth, Elmers glue, or model airplane dope or what ever is your preference.

Step 7. Fix a label to the slide. Then place a regular glass slide on top of the Matt slide. Then use two strips of Scotch Tape to secure the assembly into one unit. Finished

The hardest part of this project is making the 1/2 inch hole punch from the stailess steel tubing. Stainless steel is a hard material but once you get a edge on it it will last. If you don't have a drill press then look around for someone who does. Without a drill press this can be very difficult to accomplish.

JKFoam

[Guest Cris]

Way to go, JKFoam! I know this'll come in handy for a lot of these guys on the forum just getting into microfossils. (myself included) I love simple step by step instructions that even I can understand I just may have to give this one a try.

[Gatorman]

Awesome post JK! I think this will help many of us I know i will use this in the future.

[Guest Nicholas]

A+ Post, I'm going to try this too.

[Harry Pristis]

A tip o' the hat to you, JKF! Good improvisation. And nicely explained and illustrated. Expository writing is a real skill.

[kauffy]

this is truly awesome JKFoam! im definantly going to go out and get these materials and give it a go! i will be sure to let you guys know what happens.....unless of course i end up chopping my hands of and i cant type hahaha

thanks a lot!!!

[Shuko]

Super helpful post, JK! This is going to be a BIG help.

Now all I need to do is figure out an alternative method for getting the hole punch. I don't have the right tools to sharpen one, so I'm going to have to figure out another way to punch the holes. I want the neat little circular holes, not the square ones.

I considered buying some craft hole punches (you know; the kind they use for scrapbooking and whatnot), but I'm afraid they won't be heavy-duty enough. Anyone have any good ideas for alternatives?

Maybe a drill bit I can attach to my Dad's electric drill? lol.

[Harry Pristis]

Super helpful post, JK! This is going to be a BIG help.

Now all I need to do is figure out an alternative method for getting the hole punch. I don't have the right tools to sharpen one, so I'm going to have to figure out another way to punch the holes. I want the neat little circular holes, not the square ones.

I considered buying some craft hole punches (you know; the kind they use for scrapbooking and whatnot), but I'm afraid they won't be heavy-duty enough. Anyone have any good ideas for alternatives?

Maybe a drill bit I can attach to my Dad's electric drill? lol.

Shuko . . . why don't you take JKF's design description to a local machine shop? The shop will have the stainless steel tube stock you need, and they'll make the punch for a few dollars (shop for price).

As I thought about these slides, it occurs to me that you could back the slide with a second slide, gluing it in place with rubber cement. If a microfossil is to be glued in place, I could imagine some usefulness in being able to examine it from either side without "unsticking" it.

Rubber cement is great for bonding unlike surfaces such as cardboard to glass. It is useful for holding the microfossil to the slide. It is nice because you can pop off the fossil and stick it back without a new application of glue. Or, you can rub off the old glue with your thumb.

What do you think?

-------Harry Pristis

[Shuko]

Harry:

Thanks, I'll take your advice into consideration. I wonder if my local high school shop would know how to do it. It'd be a good project for them.

I'd also thought of what you suggested, in the slide on the back. I've been wondering what I could do to ensure that I'd be able to view the fossils from all angles, but I don't know how to achieve it without risking compromising the fossil. If I move it around too much, I'll run the risk of damaging it. ^^; Anyway, at least this way you could see both sides of it. Wouldn't that be neat? What do you think, JK?

[Guest solius symbiosus]

Super helpful post, JK! This is going to be a BIG help.

Now all I need to do is figure out an alternative method for getting the hole punch.

You can buy hole punches relatively cheap from your local tool supply.

[jkfoam]

Harry, Shuko,

Generally, if the microfossils are not too large I put a "top" and "bottom" specimen on one slide. There is no reason you could'nt just glue two slides together back-to-back or just scotch tape them together.

Harry, that was a good suggestion about going to the local machine shop. Just be sure you agree on a price before you leave. Also, Shuko, you have the right idea. Go to the High School shop and see if they can help. It sounds like this would be a great project for some student. Also, instead of just a 1/2 inch hole punch have them make a 5/8 inch hole punch too.

jkfoam

[Harry Pristis]

Harry, Shuko,

Generally, if the microfossils are not too large I put a "top" and "bottom" specimen on one slide. There is no reason you could'nt just glue two slides together back-to-back or just scotch tape them together.

Harry, that was a good suggestion about going to the local machine shop. Just be sure you agree on a price before you leave. Also, Shuko, you have the right idea. Go to the High School shop and see if they can help. It sounds like this would be a great project for some student. Also, instead of just a 1/2 inch hole punch have them make a 5/8 inch hole punch too.

jkfoam

Solius has the best idea. These punches are called "hollow punches" for leather, etc. Here's one that you can get for $8.00 total. CLICK HERE Other diameter punches are available.

[kauffy]

Ok JK, in the next couple of days im going to start to make some of these using your step by step instructions, i hope i can get them right! i only have one question about placing the fossils into the slide cavaties...is there anyway i can place them there without haveing to glue them? i was thinking of using a small bit of bluetac on the back...this would mean they would stay put, but i could remove them easily if need be. But what do you think about bluetac? i was thinking that it may harden a bit over time and make it hard to get it off in the future, or that it would get stuck in all the little cracks and grooves in the fossil (for example a rodent tooth) whats the solution?! does anyone have any ideas for placing the fossil in the slide which is easily removed?

Thanks

Chris

[jkfoam]

Kauffy,

I don't know anything about bluetac. It kind of sounds like colored plummers putty. Hey, try it . It may work. The classic method for glueing micros in a slide is to use a solution of Gum Tragicanth. This stuff is water soluble so all you have to do is wet the fossil and it is immediately released from the slide. I have heard you can buy Gum Tragicanth from a pharmacy here in the US. The problem I had with Gum Tragicanth was that fungus would grow on it. Susposedly you can add a drop or two of formaldehyde to the Gum Tragicanth solution to prevent this from happening. Lately I have been using model airplane dope to glue my fossils in the slide. I just use a small drop of the dope. If I want to remove the fossil it just takes wetting the fossil with acetone to loosen the fossil from the slide.

Kauffy, I have not purchased any Gum Tragicanth in over 30 years. I got the gum Tragicanth I used from a Professor of Geology at the University of Houston. He gave me about 10 grams which made more solution than I could ever used.

I hope this helps.

JKFoam

[kauffy]

hmm thanks for all that information JKfoam, i will give it a few goes and see how it works out...i will see if i can track down somewhere that sells some of the Gum Tragicanth, i will also give the airoplane dope a go as well, and see if it is easily removed; my fear with this is that the acetone might react with some of the fossils?? i was also thinking of making a "double sided" slide, with a cavity straight through and then placing a celaphane type plastic "sandwhich" in the middle....placing the fossil in the sandwhich; inside the cavity...although this would work in displaying both sides of the fossil i think it would look quite tacky as the celaphane would pull away from the edges of the fossil taking away the uniform look that the slides like yours have.

i guess i will have to do some trial and error and see which works best. Maybe these little slides wont work for some of my fossils but hopefully they will for most!

thanks a lot

Chris

[jkfoam]

Kauffy,

In another life I was a chemist. Acetone will not react with fossils with the exception of amber.

JKFoam

[Harry Pristis]

Ok JK, in the next couple of days im going to start to make some of these using your step by step instructions, i hope i can get them right! i only have one question about placing the fossils into the slide cavaties...is there anyway i can place them there without haveing to glue them? i was thinking of using a small bit of bluetac on the back...this would mean they would stay put, but i could remove them easily if need be. But what do you think about bluetac? i was thinking that it may harden a bit over time and make it hard to get it off in the future, or that it would get stuck in all the little cracks and grooves in the fossil (for example a rodent tooth) whats the solution?! does anyone have any ideas for placing the fossil in the slide which is easily removed?

Thanks

Chris

"...Rubber cement is great for bonding unlike surfaces such as cardboard to glass. It is useful for holding the microfossil to the slide. It is nice because you can pop off the fossil and stick it back without a new application of glue. Or, you can rub off the old glue with your thumb...."

[Maryland Mike]

Hey, great info.

Two thoughts.

Some craft shops like Michaels in my area have a soft foam in white that might be easier to punch through than matte board.

Hole punches can be purchased in sets from either a leathercrafting shop like Tandy (there are others you can find online) and Harbor Freight tools. They are not particularly expensive. Half inch is usually about the largest.

[Rain1950]

Anybody having trouble finding a punch can contact me, I am a machinist/Toolmaker and we have them already made up in whatever size you need

[kauffy]

Harry, that sounds like the best solution...i will go speak to the guys at mylocal harware and see if they have some.

Good to know also that acetone wont effect my fossils! may try the dope method too....

Thanks everyone..i think im about ready to get started!

[Ramo]

I just made up some of my own micro slides.

I used the craft foam that's in sheets.

1. Cut to size of slide

2. Punch hole (I used a plastic piece of pvc pipe that I sanded sharp. The photo explains better. I had one end that was the inside diameter, and on the other end it was the outside diameter)

3. Glue fossil to slide (I used duco cement on all but one that I tried elmers glue on both seemed to work good)

4. Put top slide on

5. Tape both ends

6. Labels need made and put on

This foam is very thin (about the same as a slide) If the fossil is too thick, the top slide will break the fossil so you have to put two pieces of foam between the slides. (I found this out the hard way!)

[Harry Pristis]

Harry, that sounds like the best solution...i will go speak to the guys at mylocal harware and see if they have some.

Good to know also that acetone wont effect my fossils! may try the dope method too....

Thanks everyone..i think im about ready to get started!

If you don't find rubber cement at the hardware store, check with your local stationery/office supply store. It should be inexpensive wherever you can find it.

[Maryland Mike]

Has anyone tryed the 2" X 2" or 1-1/2" X 1-1/2" cardboard coin holders for micromounts?

Has anyone used them just as part of their organizing system for their smaller fossils?

The mylar film is supposed to be chemically non-reactive (archivally safe for coins). They come anywhere from dime-size to dollar-size as well as an oblong opening, can be purchased inexpensively with a storage box or with pages that will fit in a 3-ring binder.

They should be easy to label either by hand or with a computer printed label.

You might not need to fasten most items down.

I was thinking they would be a good way to organize and catalog a lot of my smaller shark's teeth and fossils.

If they work reasonably well for micromounts (how the light reflects or difracts through the mylar could be an issue), they might be a good alternative as well.

I've got to say though, there is nothing quite as satisfying as making something from simple materials that really gets the job done like your slides, JKFoam.

Also, what kind of digital microscopes are you folks using?

[ZiggieCie]

On 3/19/2008 at 9:46 AM, Shuko said:

Super helpful post, JK! This is going to be a BIG help.

Now all I need to do is figure out an alternative method for getting the hole punch. I don't have the right tools to sharpen one, so I'm going to have to figure out another way to punch the holes. I want the neat little circular holes, not the square ones.

I considered buying some craft hole punches (you know; the kind they use for scrapbooking and whatnot), but I'm afraid they won't be heavy-duty enough. Anyone have any good ideas for alternatives?

Maybe a drill bit I can attach to my Dad's electric drill? lol.

I know that I am ten years late on this conversation, BUT, Harbor Freight now has hole punch sets for $8.00. Your never to late for new people.

[aplomado]

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