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Archaeological Sifter


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Picked up this bad boy the other day for a mean 20 bucks. Looked like an antique but the wood was solid and so was the screen. I just lacquered and added 2 more L-brackets to sturdy her up. I was wondering, have any of you used a sifter like this and if so how do you like it? It would seem as if it were a 2 man job. One to sift, one to dig. So I guess the bigger question is how do you split the haul??? :D

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If you want all the fossils for yourself you could just fold the screen down to fill it and lift it to sift it. I've seen more archeological sifting done dry. When I sift in a gravel bar for teeth I like a smaller screen so I can sift with the screen slightly in the water to help wash out clay particles that seem to cling when dry but if you're in sand this should work well.

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I've use similar sifter because I'm an archaeologist. :) I didn't liked but it is the best option when working alone. It do not work well when raining and it will easily broken when using daily.

PS. Your one was cheap. In Finland you don't get even sieve net for 20 USD.

"It seems to me that the natural world is the greatest source of excitement; the greatest source of visual beauty; the greatest source of

intellectual interest. It is the greatest source of so much in life that makes life worth living."

-Sir David Attenborough

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Nice sieve but it may be a little awkward to use.

Here are some photos of one I made years ago.

Before gotting primarily into fossils I used to do a bit of gem collecting.

So I have tried tripod seives and a few others, and this is what I find the most easy to use.

I have two lengths of bar that I drive into the ground depending on how soft the ground is.

Also not shown clearly in the photos is that the open frame slips over a 3/4 inch bar.

Depending on what size the gravel is mor or less seive mesh grades can be used.

As a idea maybe there should be a thread devoted purely to tools and matereials used for finding and

preparing fossils as this is a topic asked by many and new and easier methods are always welcome even by the

most experienced person.

Mike

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As a idea maybe there should be a thread devoted purely to tools and matereials used for finding and

preparing fossils as this is a topic asked by many and new and easier methods are always welcome even by the

most experienced person.

Mike

:Thumbs Up:

I like it! Nothing but creative and inventive minds on here!

Steve

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This kind- My link, stands by itself and is easier for one person. :) This particular one is fairly expensive but it makes a good model. ;)

Agreed, 180$ is a little much for 15-20$ worth of wood ;)

Edited by -AnThOnY-
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  • 3 weeks later...

I made a large 20 x 30 inch sifter frame out of plasic wood, hardware cloth and attached removable 1.5 inch PVC pipe legs with U bolts.

Wiggles a bit but holds 3-4 shovel fulls of gravel and shakes and wiggles really good to sift out the teeth. I use a 5 gal bucket to dump creek water over the gravel to speed up the process

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