trout hunter Posted September 20, 2011 Share Posted September 20, 2011 Hello everyone, you have a great forum here and i would like to pick your brains about ammonites/lites. I was out in south Ab doing some brown trout fishing and i noticed some ammonites on the shore. I looked around a bit more and found some good chunks and some full fossils (left those in the mud as i dont have a licence). what i was wondering how do i can and pollish these to enhance the colour? can i sand off all the white shell to expose the ammonite undernieth or do i need to find the internal structure to get the cool specimens? I will post a few pics of what i found so you can better answere my question. Thanks again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Dactyll Posted September 20, 2011 Share Posted September 20, 2011 Trout Hunter... It sounds a good days fishing you had to me I hope the trout were biting... Not all ammonites will have the preserved ammolite type shell so maybe only try sanding a smal broken piece and see what happens... some photo's will help us see better what you found... Cheers Steve... And Welcome if your a New Member... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trout hunter Posted September 20, 2011 Author Share Posted September 20, 2011 here are some of the samples that a collected. The others i have are small chips of different looking layers to practice on. I have a TON of experience with hand sanding and polishing some of the most expensive vehicle on the earth so i am hoping that this will help me in my endeavors. from what i have read i should start with weak acids first so i have one chip in vinegar right now. how long shout it stay in the acid? how long is too long? my parents are biologist so if need be i can go as strong an acid as i want/need can i use any sand paper as long as its 400 grit or greater? or do i have to use a special rock sand paper....that sounds odd as sand paper is rocks.... is heating it before clear coating a must? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trout hunter Posted September 21, 2011 Author Share Posted September 21, 2011 this is a small fragment that i have been playing around with. 400 grit to 600 then clear coat. One is in the best light i could find and the other is the worst but is a truer depiction of the piece. any tips or comments are welcome and appreciated. Thanks Jeremy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Dactyll Posted September 21, 2011 Share Posted September 21, 2011 Trout Hunter... Theres obviously some of the ammolite type preservation thats took place and the piece you have finished looks quite effective and will stand out very well in natural daylight...the depth of finish achieved is based on putting a rather thick coat of 'maybe' epoxy craft type varnish over the shell once its clean so maybe you need to do some googling about one coat thick layer varnishes...sandpaper... I would use traditional wet & dry and maybe lower your gritsize gradually to approaching 1000 grit for the finish... I very often go lower than that on some calcite specimens to give them the 'maximum' of depth of sheen when polished... Theres a few guys who come on TFF who have prepped this material and they are more qualified to advise you better than me...I hope they notice the thread... Cheers Steve... And Welcome if your a New Member... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted September 22, 2011 Share Posted September 22, 2011 ...well I've noticed it now. I'm no expert on ammolite, but I do do a lot of sanding and polishing and I'd say you're on the right track with what you're doing. Careful with that acid though! Calcite is extremely sensitive. If the matrix is relatively soft you could try sandblasting it away under low pressure to reach the ammolite layer. Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trout hunter Posted September 23, 2011 Author Share Posted September 23, 2011 cleaning if going well on one of the larger scrap chunks. I have cleared off 1"sq to reveal the red ammolite. I have been using a small pick to horizontally scrape the calcite off but this is taking a while (about 2 hours / inch) my next question is under the red layer is there going to be other colours? (going from the calcite down to the matrix) or does this change from specimen to specimen? i will post some pictures when i get home from SAIT. Jeremy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted September 23, 2011 Share Posted September 23, 2011 With ammolite, the colors are a product of refraction, not pigment, so a change of the thickness will alter the results. Greater thickness brings reds and greens, thinner favors blues and violates. The full effect is realized only after laborious polishing. "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trout hunter Posted September 24, 2011 Author Share Posted September 24, 2011 good thing we have a cold winter up here and i hate ice fishing lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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