ElToro Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 I got a Spinosaurus tooth recently and don't really know anything about dino fossils. I got it cause its good to show visitors who don't seem to find Cambrian stuff exciting. I'm assuming its real,(seller was recommended, and its even got that annoying red sandy Morocco matrix on it) but don't mind being proven wrong. Is that the root of the tooth at the bottom? Its 77mm. Any help would be much appreciated. If it is a fabrication I'd have no way of knowing, it being my first and only dino tooth. "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordTrilobite Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 Yeah looks like a fine tooth. 1 Olof Moleman AKA Lord Trilobite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElToro Posted November 23, 2015 Author Share Posted November 23, 2015 I looked at it with my 10× loupe and it has a lot of really cool texture in the top half. Has the enamel come off the bottom or is that the root? "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordTrilobite Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 Maybe the enamel is slightly damage. But I think that bare part is mostly root. The teeth themselves are pretty common so I don't think they are often completely faked. What does sometimes happen though, is that some teeth are restored or assembled from incomplete different teeth. This one looks good though. Olof Moleman AKA Lord Trilobite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElToro Posted November 23, 2015 Author Share Posted November 23, 2015 Cool. Good to have a little root. And the enamel does seem to stop at the same level all the way around. This one is from a very reputable taxidermist in Paris (I wished him well, Paris is still in major mourning) who gets a lot of his African stuff from Morocco and picks up a few dino teeth too. "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snolly50 Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 (edited) To my eye you have a very nice example of this commonly occurring tooth. I would be pleased to own it. For fun you may wish to closely examine the area designated by the crude arrow on my reproduction of your photo. There appears to be a significant fracture. Aided by the loupe you can determine if it circles the entire tooth. Perhaps it represents a complete repaired break. If so, looking for matching between the surface textures of the two parts will, it is hoped, demonstrate that the pieces "belong together" and are not a cobbled reconstruction. Have fun. Edited November 23, 2015 by snolly50 1 Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, also are remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so. - Douglas Adams, Last Chance to See Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElToro Posted November 23, 2015 Author Share Posted November 23, 2015 (edited) Yes! I noticed that and looked at it intensely. The crack only goes around 60% of the circumference. And even the tiny textural detail match up. I'm getting a better mini microscope with led and something like 50× (I seen another geologist use this. Ive always been happy with my 10× lens) so I will look at it again, but if it is glued its a very expert job! I've glued ww2 miniatures since I was 12 and its not easy to get a join u can't spot under 10×. Edited November 23, 2015 by ElToro "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runner64 Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 Yup definetly a Spino tooth. These teeth are very common and are among the most common dinosaur teeth sold on the market. These are never faked(unless you count composites which only happens to big teeth). It looks like you have gotten a nice example of one. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElToro Posted November 23, 2015 Author Share Posted November 23, 2015 This is the other side of the tooth. The crack would join up quite high quite high but there's nothing visible. There is another crack further down that also doesn't go all the way around. And really I don't mind if its repaired when its repaired that well. "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElToro Posted November 23, 2015 Author Share Posted November 23, 2015 Thanx guys! I'm pretty happy with it now. Yea, I figure that common teeth Mosasaur and Spinosaurus wouldn't be worth faking. And the guy I got it off is a cool guy. Showed me a shrunken head. Does that count as taxidermy? Hmmmm. "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troodon Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 The biggest issue with Spino teeth is not faking them but restoration and composite teeth to make larger ones. Big increase in selling price. You havce a nice tooth, enjoy. You may want to add an adhesive/stabilizer to take care of any cracks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElToro Posted November 23, 2015 Author Share Posted November 23, 2015 Looked at it again with the lens and the crack does seem to go all the way around. So it maybe an expert repair job, but it is definitely the same tooth. "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElToro Posted November 23, 2015 Author Share Posted November 23, 2015 The biggest issue with Spino teeth is not faking them but restoration and composite teeth to make larger ones. Big increase in selling price. You havce a nice tooth, enjoy. You may want to add an adhesive/stabilizer to take care of any cracks What's good to use? I also need to carefully remove the leftover matrix. "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snolly50 Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 What's good to use? I also need to carefully remove the leftover matrix. With gentle friction a dental pick or carbide needle will easily remove any of the granular encrustation that remains. Caution, the enamel layer may flake, especially if you are working around an already "bald spot." Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, also are remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so. - Douglas Adams, Last Chance to See Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElToro Posted November 23, 2015 Author Share Posted November 23, 2015 What adhesive or stabilizer do u recommend? I rekon I can get the matrix off with something softer than the enamel so it won't damage it. My nails can almost get the matrix off. "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troodon Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 A dental pick or xcato knife can be used but work slowly and gently. I use Paleobond adhesive to repair fossils and PVA (vinac) as a coating for seal surface cracks. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElToro Posted November 23, 2015 Author Share Posted November 23, 2015 PVA. The old wood glue. I got to get some PVA anyway to stabilize a friable matrix. Thanx guys! "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptor Lover Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 Great tooth! "Or speak to the earth, and let it teach you" Job 12:8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpc Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 PVA. The old wood glue. I got to get some PVA anyway to stabilize a friable matrix. Thanx guys! Not really... yes it is all polyvinyl acetate, but wood glue is dissolved in water. The stuff used widely in paleo is PVA dissolved in acetone. It lasts longer and is easily reversible if you glue things badly. And it is much harder to find, but look at the Black Hills Institute's web site. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElToro Posted November 24, 2015 Author Share Posted November 24, 2015 Not really... yes it is all polyvinyl acetate, but wood glue is dissolved in water. The stuff used widely in paleo is PVA dissolved in acetone. It lasts longer and is easily reversible if you glue things badly. And it is much harder to find, but look at the Black Hills Institute's web site. Yea, I gotta find a place in Australia. Shipping and US$ kills me. I'm checking my local hardware store today. They are huge and have never disappointed me. "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy's Dad Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 Looks genuine to me. These are becoming really common here in Morocco, not difficult to get hold of real ones at all, so the amount of fakes and restorations has dropped considerably in the last couple of years and the prices have come right down. Enjoy your lovely tooth! Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElToro Posted November 24, 2015 Author Share Posted November 24, 2015 Sheesh! How hard is it to find Butvar 76 in Australia!? Called a million people and spoke to local engineers, hobby shops, carpenters and noone has ever even heard of PVA aside from wood glue. I put up a post on the Fossil Prep forum on here. I hope someone can help me. "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElToro Posted November 24, 2015 Author Share Posted November 24, 2015 Looks genuine to me. These are becoming really common here in Morocco, not difficult to get hold of real ones at all, so the amount of fakes and restorations has dropped considerably in the last couple of years and the prices have come right down. Enjoy your lovely tooth! Thanx mate! Yea, I'm not a big dino guy but when I saw how cheap teeth were from the largest land predator to ever walk the Earth, I had to get a medium one. Its not 101mm but it ain't 50mm either! "That belongs in a museum!" - Indiana Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted November 26, 2015 Share Posted November 26, 2015 Sheesh! How hard is it to find Butvar 76 in Australia!? Called a million people and spoke to local engineers, hobby shops, carpenters and noone has ever even heard of PVA aside from wood glue. I put up a post on the Fossil Prep forum on here. I hope someone can help me. Try looking for Paraloid. "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...
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