Ludwigia Posted April 13, 2015 Share Posted April 13, 2015 (edited) Last weekend I finally made it out to my favorite stomping grounds in the Wutach valley for the first time in 2015. I made a few nice finds and have just finished prepping the first one. It's a Staufenia sehndensis ammonite from the upper Aalenian, unfortunately missing part of the outer whorls, but still nice enough to keep in its matrix on display. Here's how it looked as found. First a bit of digging with the scribe and spraying with the abrader to ascertain its position. A little farther on. Now the inner whorls can be seen. More fine work with scribe and abrader. Pretty well done by now. One can however see at the bottom that part of the shell is missing. Edited April 13, 2015 by Ludwigia Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted April 13, 2015 Author Share Posted April 13, 2015 Thing is, I wasn't quite satisfied with it, since as can be seen, part of the shell at the top is partially dissolved away. It makes for an interesting pattern, but I'd noticed that the back side of the ammo seemed to have the shell better preserved, so I decided to give it a go. Here's how the block looked from behind at the start. After about an hour's scribing. After another hour or so. Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted April 13, 2015 Author Share Posted April 13, 2015 And finally with the abrader. Pretty well finished here too. After some fine tuning and a coat of rember, I ended up with a nice display piece viewable from both sides. Measurements: 20x17cm. Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PFOOLEY Posted April 13, 2015 Share Posted April 13, 2015 Beautiful prep as always, sir...glad to see you're back in the Wutach. You always find some lovely specimens there. "I am glad I shall never be young without wild country to be young in. Of what avail are forty freedoms without a blank spot on the map?" ~Aldo Leopold (1887-1948) New Mexico Museum of Natural History Bulletins Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seaforth Posted April 13, 2015 Share Posted April 13, 2015 WOW! Looks wonderfull Roger! Your box leaves wednesday BTW :-) Pat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted April 13, 2015 Share Posted April 13, 2015 Thanks for posting the process, Roger! Fantastic work, as always. 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...
Ludwigia Posted April 13, 2015 Author Share Posted April 13, 2015 (edited) Thanks, guys Looking forward to the box, Pat. Edited April 13, 2015 by Ludwigia Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpc Posted April 14, 2015 Share Posted April 14, 2015 do you sand blast this material with iron powder? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrangellian Posted April 14, 2015 Share Posted April 14, 2015 (edited) It looks a lot like a Hauericeras from my area! What are those little branching things below it - bryos? Edited April 14, 2015 by Wrangellian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted April 14, 2015 Author Share Posted April 14, 2015 do you sand blast this material with iron powder? Yes. It can be pretty tough at points and I sometimes have to go up to as much as 90psi. Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted April 14, 2015 Author Share Posted April 14, 2015 (edited) It looks a lot like a Hauericeras from my area! What are those little branching things below it - bryos? That's something I've been asking myself as well. Small burrows, maybe? I've seen these things before, but no one has been able to enlighten me on them as yet. I've got an id question on them running in Steinkern right now but...46 views, no answers. What do you think? I always find it fascinating to see how successful forms tend to repeat themselves over time. Edited April 14, 2015 by Ludwigia Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manticocerasman Posted April 14, 2015 Share Posted April 14, 2015 Very nice prep work Roger. The fossils on the bottom make me think of a bryozoan branching colony. Kevin growing old is mandatory but growing up is optional. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ptychodus04 Posted April 14, 2015 Share Posted April 14, 2015 Roger, as usual I am impressed. Well done. Regards, Kris Global Paleo Services, LLC https://globalpaleoservices.com http://instagram.com/globalpaleoservices http://instagram.com/kris.howe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJB Posted April 14, 2015 Share Posted April 14, 2015 The way you tell this prep story with all those pics is quite wonderful. Looks like it was a tuff job? JPC mentioned iron powder. Ive never heard of that. Compaired to bycarb or dolomite, how hard is iron powder? RB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted April 14, 2015 Author Share Posted April 14, 2015 Roger, as usual I am impressed. Well done. Thanks Kris The way you tell this prep story with all those pics is quite wonderful. Looks like it was a tuff job? JPC mentioned iron powder. Ive never heard of that. Compaired to bycarb or dolomite, how hard is iron powder? RB I can't tell you exactly how hard it is, but it is harder than bycarb or dolomite as far as I know, although I've always used iron powder and have no experience with other mediums. It's quite common to use it over here. Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ptychodus04 Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 I can't tell you exactly how hard it is, but it is harder than bycarb or dolomite as far as I know, although I've always used iron powder and have no experience with other mediums. It's quite common to use it over here. What pressure do you use? How careful do you have to be in order to not scar the specimen? I've only used bicarb regularly and glass beads when desperate. Iron powder might be a more expedient medium. Regards, Kris Global Paleo Services, LLC https://globalpaleoservices.com http://instagram.com/globalpaleoservices http://instagram.com/kris.howe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilized6s Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 Lovely work again, Roger. The contrast of colors is really great. ~Charlie~ "There are those that look at things the way they are, and ask why.....i dream of things that never were, and ask why not?" ~RFK ->Get your Mosasaur print ->How to spot a fake Trilobite ->How to identify a CONCRETION from a DINOSAUR EGG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted April 15, 2015 Author Share Posted April 15, 2015 What pressure do you use? How careful do you have to be in order to not scar the specimen? I've only used bicarb regularly and glass beads when desperate. Iron powder might be a more expedient medium. It depends of course on how hard or soft the shell is. In the case of these Wutach ones, they're pretty sturdy and since the matrix can sometimes be quite tough, I sometimes get up to 90psi. Generally, though, I use between 40-70. 1 Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted April 15, 2015 Author Share Posted April 15, 2015 Lovely work again, Roger. The contrast of colors is really great. Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amour 25 Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 Great job , so Iron oxide I use it when I blast gun barrels for bluing. Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted April 15, 2015 Author Share Posted April 15, 2015 Thanks Jeff. Yes, iron is quite multipurpose... Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpc Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 Great job , so Iron oxide I use it when I blast gun barrels for bluing. Iron powder, not iron oxide. As ludwigia said, it is used a lot in Europe. I bought a supply from a German friend to use on some Swiss ammonites, but have yet to find the time to try it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrangellian Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 That's something I've been asking myself as well. Small burrows, maybe? I've seen these things before, but no one has been able to enlighten me on them as yet. I've got an id question on them running in Steinkern right now but...46 views, no answers. What do you think? ... I'd like to see some closer pics of those. Maybe post it in the ID section here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted April 16, 2015 Author Share Posted April 16, 2015 I posted them for id in Steinkern recently and someone who should know suggested that they are probably Chondrites sp., a Palichno fossil (Agrichnia). Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amour 25 Posted April 17, 2015 Share Posted April 17, 2015 (edited) Actually I use Silicone Carbide, I don't know where that Iron Oxide came from, mind is wandering. Edited April 18, 2015 by Jeff L Nolan Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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