Ready to start...

[Crann]

Right... bought my ST pen few months back, got my compressor today (50l) going to order my water trap soon, got hoses too, got a build up of large Ammonites and bone concretions that need to be prepped, will start off with a few practice Ammonites then move onto bigger things, any hints n tips for first time set ups and prep ? Cheers.

[Darktooth]

Good luck on your journey!

[JohnBrewer]

27 minutes ago, Crann said:

Right... bought my ST pen few months back, got my compressor today (50l) going to order my water trap soon, got hoses too, got a build up of large Ammonites and bone concretions that need to be prepped, will start off with a few practice Ammonites then move onto bigger things, any hints n tips for first time set ups and prep ? Cheers.

Go slow and take regular breaks. Practice on low grade things. Don't use a pen when a needle in a pin vice will suffice. Get some glue (butvar/paleobond,paraloid) you'll need it! Read threads, post your progression here and 'ask the experts'  

[Ptychodus04]

Don't forget lung and eye protection. Scribes produce copious amounts of flying rock and dust. Also, ear plugs as the scribe and compressor will ruin your hearing.

 

Use magnification on every prep job for the best results. I use a 3x lens/light combo for bigger pieces and a microscope at 10x or 20x for more detailed or smaller pieces.

 

Have a dedicated place to prep where you won't get in trouble for making a mess... you will.

 

Lastly, go slow and keep the tip of your scribe away from the specimen. Allow the scribe to chip the matrix away without forcing it. This will help you to keep from hitting the specimen with the stylus.

 

Good luck.

[JohnBrewer]

You're in the uk right? Drop me a pm and I'll send you some paraloid with basic instructions when home from my holiday if you pay £3.40 for the shipping to me and $5 to help finance the forum http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/donate/make-donation/

I'll send more paraloid in value than the cost of shipping and donation.  

[Crann]

12 minutes ago, JohnBrewer said:

You're in the uk right? Drop me a pm and I'll send you some paraloid with basic instructions when home from my holiday if you pay £3.40 for the shipping to me and $5 to help finance the forum http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/donate/make-donation/

I'll send more paraloid in value than the cost of shipping and donation.  

Yea Uk, what's the benefit of paraloid ? Cheers.

[FossilDudeCO]

Paraloid will help hold your specimens together!

It is essentially a glue.

Just mix the beads with acetone, let them dissolve, and apply to your fossil for protection!

[Ptychodus04]

Paraloid, Butvar and Vinac (PVA) are plastics that readily dissolve in acetone and can be used as a strong, slow setting adhesive or a fast setting stabilizer.

 

For the stabilizer (consolidant in trade vernacular) I mix 50 parts acetone to 1 part plastic by volume. It is extremely thin and penetrates deeply into fossils to help hold them together.

 

For the adhesive, you just use less acetone. I like to start with my consolidant and add plastic until I reach a jelly-like consistency (somewhere around a 5:1 or 10:1 ratio). This will take several days to fully set (clamp or secure your pieces in some other fashion) but it is VERY strong.

 

One huge benefit of using one of these materials is that they are indefinitely reversible by soaking in acetone.

 

For small repairs that require a quick fix, super glue is my go to material.

[Malcolmt]

The general solution of Butvar or vinac that I use is 10 acetone  to 1 solute. It takes the beads i have of either one about a day to dissolve fully. You need to use this in a well ventilated area

[Ptychodus04]

8 hours ago, Malcolmt said:

The general solution of Butvar or vinac that I use is 10 acetone  to 1 solute. It takes the beads i have of either one about a day to dissolve fully. You need to use this in a well ventilated area

 

Do you then dilute further for consolidation purposes?

[Malcolmt]

For the material that  I generally prep I rarely dilute further, unless it has thickened because it has sit too long and evaporated. Most of the time I use this as a solution in the field on crumbling specimens applied with a syringe to allow me to get the specimen home without it disintegrating. Cyano is too expensive to use that way. Vinac (new version)   dries very fast in the field . Remember I have air abrasion equipment so it is easy for me to get it off  once I get home. I generally use super thin cyano for consolidation at home as my fossils that need consolidating tend to be small (trilobites, cystoids  and crinoids) and when they actually need consolidation they are on  matrix that is ready to disintegrate just by looking at it. Most of the matrix I collect does not need general consolidation. With trilos the consolidation I do is to stop the exoskeleton from flaking off and the thin cyano works the best for me for that purpose. I used to use the real vinac but I can no longer get it and I have some of what they are now calling vinac and it is not quite as good as the original vinac. I also have Butvar 72 and again although it works I do not like it as much as the original vinac.