FossilDAWG Posted October 21, 2010 Share Posted October 21, 2010 I have family in London ON, which allows me to visit Arkona every couple of years. I always end up driving past the South pit to collect at the North pit, or cross the river to get to the cliff. Once I drove around to see if I could figure out how to access the South pit, but noticed only fencing until I arrived at what seemed to be a private drive on the Western side of the pit. Could anyone tell me where to park and how to access the pit? The attached picture is from the fossilguy web site. Secondly, I have a number of crinoids that split through the specimen, so some of the arms are on one piece of "shale" (clay is more accurate), and other arms are on the counterpart. Is there a technique for putting these together so the crinoid can be prepped out? I haven't had much luck gluing the slabs together as the "shale" just disaggregates. Admittedly I have only tried water-based glues such as diluted Elmers white glue. Any advice would be appreciated. Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northern Sharks Posted October 21, 2010 Share Posted October 21, 2010 For parking, the person who owns the house doesn't mind if you park off to the side near the gate for the south pit. As you said, the gate is on the west side. You can't drive in, but you can walk in from there. You can also make your way to the river from there, walk through some shrubs and follow the riverbank to get to the collecting area if you don't feel like wading through from the north pit There's no limit to what you can accomplish when you're supposed to be doing something else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crinus Posted October 21, 2010 Share Posted October 21, 2010 Secondly, I have a number of crinoids that split through the specimen, so some of the arms are on one piece of "shale" (clay is more accurate), and other arms are on the counterpart. Is there a technique for putting these together so the crinoid can be prepped out? I haven't had much luck gluing the slabs together as the "shale" just disaggregates. Admittedly I have only tried water-based glues such as diluted Elmers white glue. Any advice would be appreciated. Don Northern is correct about accessing the south pit. However, I hear that they dug in the north pit just recently and that may actually be better. I am driving past the spot today and will stop to check it out. As for your crinoids. First of all, NEVER use anything water based on the Arkona Formation. It just turns everything to mud. Even so, I have yet to figure out a way to repair what you have described. It is best to find a crinoid with just a small portion poking out and take the whole piece to work it out. Some of the best crinoids I have from there were discovered that way. crinus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bear-dog Posted October 21, 2010 Share Posted October 21, 2010 As far as glues go,get a poor quality specimen and experiment.Try super glues.Gorilla glue comes to mind but others sometimes dis-agree.At any rate experimenting is the way to go.If it works your happy,if it dosen't there is no real loss. Bear-dog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frozen_turkey Posted October 21, 2010 Share Posted October 21, 2010 id go with your regular super glue. And if you mess up with it, it can be removed with a bit of nail polish remover or acetone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pleecan Posted October 21, 2010 Share Posted October 21, 2010 As for your crinoids. First of all, NEVER use anything water based on the Arkona Formation. It just turns everything to mud. Even so, I have yet to figure out a way to repair what you have described. It is best to find a crinoid with just a small portion poking out and take the whole piece to work it out. Some of the best crinoids I have from there were discovered that way. crinus How about setting the fossil in polymerized polyester resin and then followed by air abrasion? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shamalama Posted October 21, 2010 Share Posted October 21, 2010 Wanna see what happens to the Arkona formation shale once it gets wet? Before water you can see a partially pyritized Bactrites and a pyritized worm trail. And here is after I quickly splashed it in a bucket of water and then took it out b/c I thought I could clean it up a bit. Side view of the once solid shale I'm glad it wasn't something I really wanted! -Dave __________________________________________________ Geologists on the whole are inconsistent drivers. When a roadcut presents itself, they tend to lurch and weave. To them, the roadcut is a portal, a fragment of a regional story, a proscenium arch that leads their imaginations into the earth and through the surrounding terrain. - John McPheeIf I'm going to drive safely, I can't do geology. - John McPheeCheck out my Blog for more fossils I've found: http://viewsofthemahantango.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pleecan Posted October 21, 2010 Share Posted October 21, 2010 (edited) Good demo Shamalama.... should save a few collectors from heartaches. PL Edited October 21, 2010 by pleecan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilDAWG Posted October 21, 2010 Author Share Posted October 21, 2010 Thanks all for the info. I haven't got plans to get to Arkona in the near future, but when I do I'll have the option to try the south pit. I'd really like to meet up with some more Forum members too, all the people I've met to date have been great. Unfortunately I learned that the Arkona shale and water don't mix (or rather, mix too well) the first time I visited there. I now have two nice partially pyritized Corocrinus calyxes that once had the stem and arms attached before my ill-conceived attempt to prep them with a damp toothbrush. Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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