hitekmastr Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 (edited) I collected these very thin, fragile cells from a Devonian site (Tully, NY) - what is the best method for stabilizing and preserving them? Thanks. Edited July 18, 2012 by hitekmastr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squalicorax Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 people use an elmers and water mixture or butvar/vinac for consolidation. My Flickr Page of My Collection: http://www.flickr.com/photos/79424101@N00/sets Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xiphactinus Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 I'm not sure there is much more you can do for them. They should be stable. They are just fragile because they are thin. I'd put them in a riker mount so they aren't handled roughly. That should take care of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gjb6774 Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 I agree with mounting. The water/glue mixture might help but it can also discolor over time. Good news is it remains soluble so can be removed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shamalama Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 Yep, Riker mount should do it. Just be sure to put something over the batting so the shells don't get caught in the loose mesh. Looks like a Mucrospirifer, Chonetes and Rhipidomella (clockwise from lower left). -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...
Herb Posted July 26, 2012 Share Posted July 26, 2012 If they are in danger of falling apart (not for normal use) you can buy clear, low gloss fingernail strengthener with clear fiberglass in it, it will hold the fossils together. It will have more gloss than glue/water mixture though. For plants clear hair spray works well, use it mainly on the back and edges of sample, it will soak into the center and hold it together. "Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence"_ Carl Sagen No trees were killed in this posting......however, many innocent electrons were diverted from where they originally intended to go. " I think, therefore I collect fossils." _ Me "When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."__S. Holmes "can't we all just get along?" Jack Nicholson from Mars Attacks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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