Lmshoemaker Posted August 14, 2012 Share Posted August 14, 2012 I recall a time when fossil hunting a while back seeing in the wall of the place I was hunting a rock with a rather large amount of trilobite fragments, the limestone holding it was incredibly tough, and I couldn't get it off with my hand held saw, nor half an hour of chiselling. (this only caused a small crack in the rock, 1/4 of an inch deep,). Since I don't have a large saw, what are some ways the rock could be romoved, so I don't end up leaving a good plate to erode again if I don't have to? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paleoworld-101 Posted August 14, 2012 Share Posted August 14, 2012 Hmmm i think there isn't much you can do. A rock collapse could be very dangerous if you continue hacking at the wall. Perhaps you should just leave it? I know it is hard lol i've had to do the same with some very nice Brachiopods and Gastropods. "In Africa, one can't help becoming caught up in the spine-chilling excitement of the hunt. Perhaps, it has something to do with a memory of a time gone by, when we were the prey, and our nights were filled with darkness..." -Eternal Enemies: Lions And Hyenas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted August 14, 2012 Share Posted August 14, 2012 Good advice from Kenny Rogers: "You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em, Know when to walk away and know when to run...." "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...
Raistlin Posted August 14, 2012 Share Posted August 14, 2012 Fragments are one thing if it were a whole one I would chew it out if I had too. I agree with the others though. At this point I have a few fossils left behind. I sucks and I think about them, but there are reasons they are left behind. The reasons include getting permission to cut into a rock, and just the huge amount of time it would take to get some out. They day HR at work gives me the ok to cut the cephslopod out of the rock behind work it is mine. Until then I must wait and watch the weather beat at it By the way, I love The Gambler. RobertSoutheast, MO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Multicusp Posted August 14, 2012 Share Posted August 14, 2012 Don't know how a vinager/ water solution would react with the rock, or fossils, but a spray bottle with this solution may help without causing too much mayhem. I know it works with limestone matrix because I have set a many fossil free from it's rock prison this way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Missourian Posted August 14, 2012 Share Posted August 14, 2012 Of course, it depends on the fossil. Context is critical. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bullsnake Posted August 15, 2012 Share Posted August 15, 2012 Take some pictures, and enjoy them. I believe Auspex calls that a 'field collection'. Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caveindia Posted February 7, 2013 Share Posted February 7, 2013 Take some pictures, and enjoy them. I believe Auspex calls that a 'field collection'. I second that. My experience with fossils is a bit unusual. Since the fossils I usually enconter are inside caves and since cavers agree not to remove them from caves photography is a fair option. That also allows other fossil hunters to see these things in situ. And often that is very instructional. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash Posted February 7, 2013 Share Posted February 7, 2013 I left a diprotodon leg bone behind once, it was in a heap of peices and i didnt feel i could get it back without losing pieces, didnt have anything to carry it out with me. Floods have since washed away all the pieces. Regrets. I think we all have these moments though. Just sigh and keep looking for the next find! "Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe" - Saint Augustine"Those who can not see past their own nose deserve our pity more than anything else." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caveindia Posted February 8, 2013 Share Posted February 8, 2013 I found a Ptychodus tooth that was almost 2 inches across. It was in a 2 ton boulder. I spent 2 hours slowly working it out only to have it explode with one wrong hammer hit (it was 105 - I got a bit light headed). All you can do is walk away. A 36 volt lithium battery-operated Hilti hammer drill could help. We use one (see attached picture) for placing bolts on climbs. It is possible to drill multiple holes around the specimen and then gently chisel it out. For larger items, the rock can be "shaved" off when appropriate chemistry is inserted into the drill holes prior to an application of an electric signal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeymig Posted February 10, 2013 Share Posted February 10, 2013 When I come across a block stuck in a wall that has or may have a trilobite in it, I dig behind or above it. I then hammer a pry bar behind it and "pop" it out. Once I get it down to the base of the outcrop I will "crack" it open and see what I got. I have found some of my best ammonites and trilobites this way. These blocks weigh around 10-50 lbs. and I ease them out and down the wall or let gravity do its thing. Im very careful and there's no one in the way and Im not going to start a landside. Its all in the technique and years of practice. mikey Many times I've wondered how much there is to know. led zeppelin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DitchDiggerUno Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 A 36 volt lithium battery-operated Hilti hammer drill could help. We use one (see attached picture) for placing bolts on climbs. It is possible to drill multiple holes around the specimen and then gently chisel it out. For larger items, the rock can be "shaved" off when appropriate chemistry is inserted into the drill holes prior to an application of an electric signal. I have a hammer drill that we use with a clay spade bit for removing overburden. It is much faster than a hand pick, plus as caveindia stated, is very useful for drilling pilot holes to create sheer planes when removing a hard piece of matrix. As a contractor, with extensive power tool experience, I have always been happy with my makitas (approximately half the price of hilti) Hilti tends to be very expensive, but is a well built tool. Bring extra batteries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DitchDiggerUno Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 Oh, and stay away from Milwaukee. I have had a horrible results with the battery life of a cordless 18v set. Historically Milwaukee has been on par with Makita, and definitely above the "do it yourself" brands such as dewalt and ryobi. But they have had some serious issues with the quality of their Li Ion batteries. I had two actually overheat and smoke. Hitachi and Bosch are also good brands but I'm not sure if they make a 36v cordless hammer drill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caveindia Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 I have a hammer drill that we use with a clay spade bit for removing overburden. It is much faster than a hand pick, plus as caveindia stated, is very useful for drilling pilot holes to create sheer planes when removing a hard piece of matrix. As a contractor, with extensive power tool experience, I have always been happy with my makitas (approximately half the price of hilti) Hilti tends to be very expensive, but is a well built tool. Bring extra batteries. I second that. Makita will certainly do a fine job. I also used a 24V DeWalt hammer drill for pilot holes, which was OK except drilling was predictably slower and battery life short. There is also a gas or diesel-powered version, very powerful, but messy and heavy to carry around and perhaps with the progress with lithium batteries might no longer be manufactured. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caveindia Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 it turns out the gasoline versions are still out there. Here is one example http://www.loink.com/product/1078/gasrotaryhammerdrills less expensive one can be gotten online from Walmart. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOM BUCKLEY Posted June 11, 2013 Share Posted June 11, 2013 I'm surprised no one has mentioned a rock saw. You could go with the big expensive ones with the large diameter blade. This would work well on a quarry floor but is a bit unwieldy to position on a vertical wall. I've made my own by shortening an old gas powered weed wacker and replacing the head with a diamond blade. I've used it on sandstone, shale, and what I like to call, "The limestone from Hell"....otherwise known as the Bertie Waterlime. It works rather well. Tom AVOCATIONAL PALEONTOLOGIST STROKE SURVIVOR CANCER SURVIVOR CURMUDGEON "THERE IS A VERY FINE LINE BETWEEN AVOCATIONAL PALEONTOLOGY AND MENTAL ILLNESS" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lmshoemaker Posted June 15, 2013 Author Share Posted June 15, 2013 Since this thread got revived, I have another question: when splitting shale, it often happens that bits of the shell of whatever fossil is in the rock ends up on both the plate and counter plate, is there anything I can do to prevent this? I had a nice nearly complete arctinurus that suffered from this, and both the plate and counter plate contain almost half of the shell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOM BUCKLEY Posted June 15, 2013 Share Posted June 15, 2013 There's nothing you can do to prevent this. The same thing happens with trilobites. I used to dig the pieces out of the negative and glue them to the positive.....usually some pieces were lost or broken. An expert told me that the best way to go is to glue the two halves back together and then prep as normal. I'm currently trying this on a specimen and will report back when I've finished in about 1 week. Tom AVOCATIONAL PALEONTOLOGIST STROKE SURVIVOR CANCER SURVIVOR CURMUDGEON "THERE IS A VERY FINE LINE BETWEEN AVOCATIONAL PALEONTOLOGY AND MENTAL ILLNESS" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trilobite nut Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 I tried something with shale this week and it is a bit risky but it works great. I'm working with Widder shale, so as soon as I remove a slab from the wall, while it is still quite workable, I use guitar string. The high 'E' string. Wrap it around your hands and slide back and forth to cut very thin slabs from your big slab. The moment you see something recognizable that you may want, stop cutting any deeper, wrap it up, bring it home and let it dry enough to be able to soda blast the rest away. I don't know the consistency of what you are working with, but give it a whirl. Don't try cutting it after you have given it more than a day of sitting, even wrapped in saran wrap. It gets too hard and the cutting is way too difficult and resulted in small chunks breaking out, rather than a thin, smooth slab. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ridgehiker Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 Trilobite nut...must try it. I collect two things...fossils and guitars. The high E string is the only one I break so always have a one hanging around. (Also cuts cheese well). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeepDigger Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 (edited) "...know when to run...." That's when the wall starts coming down right!? Edited August 22, 2013 by JeepDigger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now