matt cable Posted December 23, 2013 Share Posted December 23, 2013 I'm one of those crazy people who enjoy to prep. I thought I'd share a prep job I completed this summer. I prepped this Kainops trilobite for a friend and took pictures through the process. This trilobite is from Black Cat Mountain and the matrix is a soft limestone. Most of the nice inflated trilobites are found by spliting. A few small chips are in the negative. I cut that piece down a bit before I glued. I probably should have cut it down a bit more since it was just thin chips. After the glue set, I used my Aero scribe and Swamblaster abrasive unit. Once I found the tail, it was a very fast prep. I'm always very careful until I know exactly where the trilobite is hiding. A scribe will mess up a trilobite very quickly. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted December 23, 2013 Share Posted December 23, 2013 Excellent prep work, Matt! Thanks for posting the sequence - nice to see the gradual progress. Regards, Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 __________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted December 23, 2013 Share Posted December 23, 2013 Super of you to expend the time and effort to document the prep progress; thank you! "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...
jpc Posted December 23, 2013 Share Posted December 23, 2013 nice work... and thx for the cool photo of your lab. I like to see how others are set up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcoSr Posted December 23, 2013 Share Posted December 23, 2013 Really nice work. I wish I had the talent and patience to prep like that. Marco Sr. "Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day." My family fossil website Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros My Extant Shark Jaw Collection Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowsharks Posted December 23, 2013 Share Posted December 23, 2013 Awesome. I really enjoyed seeing the prep from start to finish. To be honest, what I like most about this prep is the fact that you smoothed out all of the little squiggly prep lines around the trilobite. I hate seeing those, especially when the matrix around the trilobite is darker and you see a million of those little tool marks - to me it is very distracting to my eyes and detracts from the bug. Your prep here looks very neat and clean. I too love to see your work area and am envious that you got your own place in your house; I have a small desk area with some shelves. Someday I hope to turn my shed into a workshop...someday. Daryl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt cable Posted December 24, 2013 Author Share Posted December 24, 2013 Thanks, guys. My man cave is my prep room. When I was single, I spent some serious money to get set up right. I'd been using dental picks before that. Fast forward to today, my wife is very understanding and lets me prep when I need some fossil therapy. It's relaxing for me. I agree with you, Daryl. I hate the poor landscaping on some of the Moroccan trilobites. A smoother surface makes the trilobite look like it's walking the ocean floor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lmshoemaker Posted December 24, 2013 Share Posted December 24, 2013 Did you coat the bug with anything? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt cable Posted December 26, 2013 Author Share Posted December 26, 2013 I usually do not coat anything I clean, but I think I did brush on a coating of matte Krylon diluted in acetone. This trilobite didn't contrast as much as most Black Cat bugs do and I wanted it to stand out a bit more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jed '06 Posted December 26, 2013 Share Posted December 26, 2013 Hi Matt, Thanks for posting the step by step. Being a newbie at prepping it was very helpful! Great job! Gotta ask, what the heck is that hanging from your ceiling? Jed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted December 26, 2013 Share Posted December 26, 2013 (edited) Great job, Matt! With a really good looking result! How tough is that matrix? It's good to see your setup as well. I'm also a prep nut and have just posted something on these lines as well: http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/topic/34371-hunt-results-from-the-aalenian-and-bajocian-in-germany/page-7#entry466733 Just scroll up a bit to find the beginning. Edited December 26, 2013 by Ludwigia Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt cable Posted December 27, 2013 Author Share Posted December 27, 2013 Thanks Jed - It's an inflatable pterodactyl my wife got me a few years ago. Looks like it needs some air... Hi Ludwigia - I always love seeing those large ammonites prepped out. Interesting that you prep the pieces before you glue them together. I almost always glue my pieces early so I won't loose a small chip. But I'm also dealing with much smaller fossils. This particular matrix is a soft limestone and very easy to work with. I'm used to soft shale up to hard limestone. This is a nice balance. The trilobites are nicely inflated (typically only in limestone), but easy to prep (typically only in shale). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malcolmt Posted December 27, 2013 Share Posted December 27, 2013 Nice set up, nice prep work, you just gotta love the material from Black Cat Mountain. Wish there was a source for unprepped matrix from there..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raistlin Posted December 27, 2013 Share Posted December 27, 2013 I usually do not coat anything I clean, but I think I did brush on a coating of matte Krylon diluted in acetone. Like the spray Krylon? If so I might have to pick some of that up. RobertSoutheast, MO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt cable Posted December 29, 2013 Author Share Posted December 29, 2013 Yup. I picked it up at a craft store like Michaels. I've seen some people just spray right from the bottle, but it comes out too thick for me and the matrix also gets coated. I have a small glass bottle, spray a bit in there and cut it down with acetone. I then just paint it on the fossil. I prefer the matte Krylon, but the glossy is also available in the store. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raistlin Posted December 29, 2013 Share Posted December 29, 2013 About how much do you dilute the spray? RobertSoutheast, MO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malcolmt Posted December 29, 2013 Share Posted December 29, 2013 I mix 1 part krylon matte with about 4 parts acetone when I use it to brush over eurypterids. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raistlin Posted December 29, 2013 Share Posted December 29, 2013 Awesome, thanks. RobertSoutheast, MO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt cable Posted December 29, 2013 Author Share Posted December 29, 2013 That sounds about right. It's heavy of the acetone side and really depends on the fossil, matrix and how much coating you want. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raistlin Posted December 29, 2013 Share Posted December 29, 2013 So I take it you just do a small squirt in your jar? At least for something like the trilobite. I assume it does not take much to coat a small fossil. RobertSoutheast, MO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt cable Posted December 29, 2013 Author Share Posted December 29, 2013 Exactly. 1 or 2 sprays should do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon Posted December 31, 2013 Share Posted December 31, 2013 Thank you, great to see the process and very informative Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AeroMike Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 David, that one looks really amazing. " This comment brought to you by the semi-famous AeroMike" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perfect Castaway Posted April 9, 2014 Share Posted April 9, 2014 Hey Matt, I've been prepping some trilobites I got from a trip to Blackcat Mountain last year and I'm curious: how did you smooth out the matrix and remove the prep lines? I've tried various dremel attachments and they don't seem to work very well. they smooth it out way too much, actually. Makes it look unnatural. I'm at a loss. Any help would be fantastic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lmshoemaker Posted April 9, 2014 Share Posted April 9, 2014 Hey Matt, I've been prepping some trilobites I got from a trip to Blackcat Mountain last year and I'm curious: how did you smooth out the matrix and remove the prep lines? I've tried various dremel attachments and they don't seem to work very well. they smooth it out way too much, actually. Makes it look unnatural. I'm at a loss. Any help would be fantastic. I'm not sure how David did it, but I have heard some preparators use fine sand paper to smooth the matrix. 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