Microfossil "Collector Cards"

[Pagurus]

I've been cleaning and remodeling my son's old room these past few weeks, making it a safe and presentable guest room for my son's son, my 4-year-old grandson. Lots of dinosaur stuff in the room now. As I was cleaning out old baseball and hockey cards I had a fossil-brained idea. Such ideas usually lead to many hours of neglect for all the responsibilities of a husband and homeowner, even one who is supposedly retired.

 

This particular idea involved those "collectible" baseball and hockey cards.  Why not "collectible" fossil cards? Not just photos though. Real fossils. Even better, how about using the cards to display my own small but growing microfossil collection. Some fossils I've found in gravel matrix I've collected myself, but mostly matrix I've obtained from other TFF members, especially @Sacha

 

I thought about attaching those wonderful little "gem jars" to the cards, but they really wouldn't be ideal for this job. I ordered, instead, a package of 19mm coin capsules, exactly the size of a U.S. penny. Each capsule would hold a microfossil and each card would include a photo of that fossil and it's relevant information. I liked the idea, and I gave it a try. Here's how it looks so far.

 

 

 

There are a few ID's I'm not actually sure about, but I wanted to get going on the cards. I'll fix them as need be.

 

Each card has a catalog number that refers to the photo files for that fossil. I attached the coin capsules with either Velcro dots or that tacky putty stuff that's not supposed to damage walls. I wanted the capsules to be removable. Each capsule has a small label inside with the catalog number, in case it falls off the card. I put a bit of cotton in each capsule, and the fossils are sitting on the cotton. I would love to find 19mm foam dots, but the cotton will do for now. The millimeter rules are at the same scale as the photos.

 

The cards fit in anything designed to hold a baseball card collection, mostly boxes and album pages. They also stand nicely in those little plastic frame holders.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I used different colors for each location, so far, to make it easier to keep track the cards and the fossils. When I add more locations I might have to change the designs a little as well. It's been a bit of a slow process so far, it should be quicker in the future.

 

I think any shark teeth that could fit in these 19 mm capsules would display nicely as well, as long as they aren't too thick for the container. I'd be glad to hear any ideas which might improve the usefulness of the cards, or any inaccuracies you notice. I'll be posting a few of my questionable ID's in the ID section soon.

 

Thanks for looking.

 

Mike

 

 

Most of my current ID's are thanks to the incredible photos and research by TFF members @oldbones @MarcoSr and @Al Dente, and others as well. Thank you!!!

[jpc]

These are really nice.  Do you print them on cardstock?  

[Tate Museum]

We did a similar thing here for an open house many years ago, but less fancy.  Each specimen is on an almost full sheet of paper.  Picture, info and specimen in a clear mini-jar.  Your photos are much nicer and I love the color coding.  

 

   

[Fossildude19]

Awesome work, Mike!

Looks like a great way to store/display these. 

Yankee ingenuity, showing it's muscle!  

[Tidgy's Dad]

I think this is an absolutely brilliant idea! 

[Bobby Rico]

Really nice , great idea and very well designed . Good work

[Nimravis]

Very nice- Love the idea.

[Pagurus]

1 hour ago, jpc said:

These are really nice.  Do you print them on cardstock?  

Thanks. Yes, I print them on 110-pound cardstock. I would actually prefer the stock to be a little stiffer, but this works well enough and it doesn't jam in the printer.

[Pagurus]

1 hour ago, Tate Museum said:

We did a similar thing here for an open house many years ago, but less fancy.  Each specimen is on an almost full sheet of paper.  Picture, info and specimen in a clear mini-jar.  Your photos are much nicer and I love the color coding.  

 

Thanks for the photos of your display. The larger size makes them easier to see, especially for the hoards of visitors you have. They look good.

[Pagurus]

1 hour ago, Fossildude19 said:

Awesome work, Mike!

Looks like a great way to store/display these. 

Yankee ingenuity, showing it's muscle!  

 

Thanks, Tim. I'm trying to get organized, as if that will ever happen. I do like the way this is working so far, though. We Yanks do have our moments.

 

1 hour ago, Tidgy's Dad said:

I think this is an absolutely brilliant idea! 

 

Thank you, Adam. I had a "Eureka!" moment.

 

51 minutes ago, Bobby Rico said:

Really nice , great idea and very well designed . Good work

 

Thank you Bobby. I appreciate your comment.

 

47 minutes ago, Nimravis said:

Very nice- Love the idea.

 

Thanks, Ralph. I hope the idea is useful to others.

 

[ynot]

Very nice way to display those pesky little buggers!

Good idea!

 

PS No poem?

[Herb]

really nice idea

[Mediospirifer]

Cool idea. I like it!

 

I may look for some penny holders for micros--they'd take less space in my rock drawers than gemjars. I'd just have to figure out some trays...

 

It would be interesting to work up some cards for the submillimeter micros. I wonder if a conodont could be seen through a penny holder? I'd want to glue the fossil to a bit of card that fits, rather than use cotton or foam.

 

On the 19mm foam dots idea, you could look for sheets of foam and a 19mm hole saw blade. I'd grind down the saw so that it was more of a smooth knife, and try it on a cutting board. Any craft store should have foam of a good thickness.

 

[Ludwigia]

Very good, Mike! You've developed a practical, aesthetically pleasing and nicely presentable system.

[Al Dente]

Very nice cards. I've done something similar with my small fossils. I've put mine in riker mounts so I can easily transport and display them at our club sponsored fossil shows. Here are a couple.

[MarcoSr]

Mike

 

Really nice job!  I've also seen Eric's Riker mount displays with the cards at the Aurora Fossil Festival which looked really good.  I've even seen at fossil shows pictures printed on poster board sitting on painting easels.  I wish I had the time to make cards like these but my bigger issue is storage space as I have hundreds of thousands of these micro teeth from several hundred sites worldwide.

 

Marco Sr.

[Pagurus]

 

@ynot  Thanks, Tony.  Nope, I won't assail our members with any of my poems on this thread. This topic does remind me, though, of one of my favorite Shel Silvertein poems, Hector the Collector, from his book, Where The Sidewalk Ends.

 

@Herb Thank you, Herb.

 

 

8 hours ago, Mediospirifer said:

Cool idea. I like it!

 

I may look for some penny holders for micros--they'd take less space in my rock drawers than gemjars. I'd just have to figure out some trays...

 

It would be interesting to work up some cards for the submillimeter micros. I wonder if a conodont could be seen through a penny holder? I'd want to glue the fossil to a bit of card that fits, rather than use cotton or foam.

 

On the 19mm foam dots idea, you could look for sheets of foam and a 19mm hole saw blade. I'd grind down the saw so that it was more of a smooth knife, and try it on a cutting board. Any craft store should have foam of a good thickness.

 

 

Thanks! Yes, these coin capsules do take less space but in many ways they aren't as convenient as the gem jars, since they don't come with the foam inserts or the trays or foam packing to keep them in. I am trying to figure out some trays for the capsules too.

I think cards would work well for the tinier micros as well, but you're right that they would get lost in cotton or foam. Some other insert would be necessary. If you try it, I'd love to see what you do. I'm not sure what glue would work best. It's a very long time since I prepared permanent slides.

I might try your idea for the foam dots. I thought about using a hole saw but I figured it would just rip up the foam. Maybe grinding it down would work. It might be worth trying. I don't know much about die cutting, but I suspect that would work better, but I don't know if it's practical. I will be interesting to see if any of us come up with a useful idea.

 

 

5 hours ago, Ludwigia said:

Very good, Mike! You've developed a practical, aesthetically pleasing and nicely presentable system.

 

Thanks, Roger.

 

1 hour ago, Al Dente said:

Very nice cards. I've done something similar with my small fossils. I've put mine in riker mounts so I can easily transport and display them at our club sponsored fossil shows. Here are a couple.

 

Wow, these Riker mounts with the cards and gem jars inside the mount are terrific! Thanks for posting them. I'm sure I will copy your idea for some of my larger micros that don't fit into the small capsules. Thanks.

 

1 hour ago, MarcoSr said:

Mike

 

Really nice job!  I've also seen Eric's Riker mount displays with the cards at the Aurora Fossil Festival which looked really good.  I've even seen at fossil shows pictures printed on poster board sitting on painting easels.  I wish I had the time to make cards like these but my bigger issue is storage space as I have hundreds of thousands of these micro teeth from several hundred sites worldwide.

 

All the work you've done with micros is incredible, Marco! I'm really grateful for all the posts you've shared here on the forum. They've opened up a whole little world. Thank you.

[ynot]

13 minutes ago, Pagurus said:

I think cards would work well for the tinier micros as well, but you're right that they would get lost in cotton or foam. Some other insert would be necessary. If you try it, I'd love to see what you do. I'm not sure what glue would work best. It's a very long time since I prepared permanent slides.

I might try your idea for the foam dots. I thought about using a hole saw but I figured it would just rip up the foam. Maybe grinding it down would work. It might be worth trying. I don't know much about die cutting, but I suspect that would work better, but I don't know if it's practical. I will be interesting to see if any of us come up with a useful idea.

Try felt dots for Your backing and use a leather hole punch to make "dots" or buy some with a sticky back.

[MarcoSr]

36 minutes ago, Pagurus said:

All the work you've done with micros is incredible, Marco! I'm really grateful for all the posts you've shared here on the forum. They've opened up a whole little world. Thank you.

 

Mike

 

I haven't had much time to post much lately.  Seeing your post has encouraged me to make a new micro post on TFF later today.

 

Marco Sr.

[ynot]

27 minutes ago, MarcoSr said:

 

Mike

 

I haven't had much time to post much lately.  Seeing your post has encouraged me to make a new micro post on TFF later today.

 

Marco Sr.

[Pagurus]

10 hours ago, ynot said:

Try felt dots for Your backing and use a leather hole punch to make "dots" or buy some with a sticky back.

Thanks for suggesting the hole punch, Tony. I will definitely give that a try!

[KCMOfossil]

On 3/16/2018 at 5:06 PM, Pagurus said:

19mm coin capsules

Great idea.  Thanks for the post.  I just ordered some of these.

 

Russ

[Pagurus]

8 hours ago, KCMOfossil said:

Great idea.  Thanks for the post.  I just ordered some of these.

 

Russ

Thanks. I should mention that I tried two different types of coin capsules. One is called "Direct-Fit." This worked well for small micros, less than 1.5 mm, but was too thin for larger specimens. The capsules pictured on the cards I posted are a bit thicker, up to about 3 mm thick. These were described as 19 mm Plastic Clear Round Coin Capsules ... and sold for about $5 US for 100 pieces. Either of the capsules can be attached to the cards, and I think they both look good, but one is a bit thinner than the other.

[KCMOfossil]

14 hours ago, Pagurus said:

two different types of coin capsules

Thanks for the clarification.  I just checked my order and its looks like I got the thicker ones, so that will be nice for what I have in mind.  I paid $8 for 100.  I've needed something like this for a while, but I always balked at paying $.35 or so for each container.  So $.08 each feels much better.

 

Russ

[Malone]

Fantastic ideas