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So, I snapped my ivory piece in half, what do you guys recommend for fixing it?


Cthulhu2

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I've been collecting fossils for a while now and it finally happened, I broke one of my finds. Repair and restoration is a part of paleontology that I have no experience and could use some help! What products do you guys recommend? 

 

 

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1 hour ago, caldigger said:

Do both parts fit together exactly or did you lose any, leaving gaps?

They come together with very little gaps. 

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How big is this piece? Are going to need to great some bracing contraption or is it manageable as a small project.  Pictures will help with assessment.

 

 

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1 hour ago, caldigger said:

How big is this piece? Are going to need to great some bracing contraption or is it manageable as a small project.  Pictures will help with assessment.

It's just a 4 in liece, nothing crazy!

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Preferably I would use a thick solution of Butvar B-76 to bond it, but superglue will work too.

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I agree with these guys about the superglue but if you do not hit it just right you may need to "re-break" it to fit it correctly.

Using some modeling clay to situate your specimen in a "fixed" position will give it a stable hold so your "fix" will be as good as it can be.

The use of a water soluble glue such as "wood" glue is slower but has NEVER failed me.

I even use it for a stabilizer. Thinned down and allowed to dry makes for a more stable specimen but can leave a "Sheen" that could be un-desirable.

 

I use it to stabilize pyrite on occasion and some of my pyrite ammonites, out of the Del Rio formation, I have had over 30 years.

I have even used it to stabilize ivory as well. Mastodon skull, donated to a Grand Prairie Tex High school, had this concoction used on the ivory or what was left of it.

Later, while the school kids excavated it, it was further stabilized with a substance used to stabilize dry rot wood.

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