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RB's Fossil Crab Prep Thread !!!


RJB

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Good work, Ron. :fistbump: I also appreciate how skilled you are at landscaping matrix like this. 

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...How to Philosophize with a Hammer

 

 

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On 7/12/2019 at 7:42 AM, RJB said:

  Here ya go.  it could have used a bit more work but this is where I stopped.  This was a tuff prep for me. 

 

RB

 

Here is how I left it a couple of months ago?

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and here is how it looks now.   Cool crabs but difficult to prep.  Very grainy rock!

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That ..... is .... beautiful.

You are a true artist.   Is that a leaf?  freshwater crabs or a mangrove?  Man these guys leave us with so much more to find!

 

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Hey Ron, very nice job on a difficult crab to prep.  That one had pretty nicely preserved legs.  Looks like you can almost tell that the rear leg have paddles.  Curious what 2 part putty you use for some of your reconstructions.

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23 hours ago, crabfossilsteve said:

Hey Ron, very nice job on a difficult crab to prep.  That one had pretty nicely preserved legs.  Looks like you can almost tell that the rear leg have paddles.  Curious what 2 part putty you use for some of your reconstructions.

Hey Steve.  The first I used was Antler Sculpt, the one im using now is the most common one you can find on Amazon.  Either can be tinted with masonry colored powders. 

 

RB

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Thanks man, will have to check them out.  Envy your fall trip to WA for more crab concretions.  Tnis is the first year in probably 15 years that I'm not going out there.  I do like the Pacific NW, great beer, great wine, lovely sea and mountains and also amazing crab fossils of many species.  It really sucks that so much of the area has been closed to collection.  For me that is an even bigger suck with all the Ontario Canada sites being close.  All those trilobite and echinoderm beauties not being rescued before being ground to dust.

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  A couple of weeks ago a fellow ive known for well over 20 years told me his son needed to sell some crab concretions he's been holding on for awhile.  Well, today they arrived.  4 big flat rate boxes!  Wooooooooo  Hoooooooooooo!!   I dont have time to go through these till winter but by golly its going to be a heck of a lot of fun!!!!    My motto,,,,,,,  gather and aquire to keep one busy prepping!!!   :)   This was quit exspensive though!!!   I always have moneys set aside just in case something like this happens.  Nice to be prepared with moneys burnin a hole in one's pocket.  :)

 

RB

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  • 2 months later...

    Well,,,, I now seem to have a heck of alot of crab concretions to go through this winter.   Took a lot of time and quite a bit of moneys but have enough now to last me 2 or 3 years?  A nice feeling let me tell  you!   Today, I was going to finish up my Notogoneus but was way too windy so I decided to do some pre-winter prep on certain crab concretions.  Beside some other smaller stuff I got to this one concretion that I am super excited about!   I got this one in a trade.  I thought it was in 3 pieces but come to find out,,,, 4 piecs.  When the 4th piece came off, (and quite easily I might add) I could instantly see how the left legs splayed out.  OMG!!!  Im so excited about  this crab I can hardly stand it!  Ive got a long ways to go in order to get it ready for real prep but just seeing how this is going to be will make me lose sleep!!!    I just hope I can get to this crab soon with lots more prep work but if the weather permits me to do anymore outside air abrasive work, I must do that first.  Winter is very long here. 

 

RB

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  Well that didnt take long.   I had done about 2 to 2 and 1/2 hours of Super Jack work and then glue some big chunks back on and clamped them.  Then my son comes over and brings me a truckload of firewood!  I love that kid!   I then had the gonads to ask him if he would get my 12 inch tile saw out and make some cuts?  and of course he did.  I just love that kid!   So,,, I then glued that last piece back on.  Gluing is usually scary even though ive been doing it for years but believe me, just a grain of dirt can put a bad spin on gluing things back together!!!  I cant say that enough,,, one little teeny tiny piece of anything can really put a dent in your gluing adventures!!!   Anyways, this project is just about ready.   and yes im scared.  Both Merus's (arms of the crab), are a bit forward so Im wondering just how the Chela's, (intire claw), are situated?   and not only that, I already know that the crab itself is like glass!!!   Ive only done one of these giant Pulalius crabs from this local but  have seen two others and let me tell you,,,,, these are tuff preps!!!   Just makes it more exciting for me.  I always like a challenge.

 

 

Here you can see the Super Jack rock removal and the 2 hunks of rock glued back on.

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and here is the last hunk o rock back in place.  I cant freeeeeeekin wait to get back to this!!!  This last piece of rock had some small but very important little pieces of missing leg that needs to be put back into place!!!

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RB

 

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2 hours ago, RJB said:

Gluing is usually scary even though ive been doing it for years but believe me, just a grain of dirt can put a bad spin on gluing things back together!!!  I cant say that enough,,, one little teeny tiny piece of anything can really put a dent in your gluing adventures!!!  

+1! I’m always surprised with how a minuscule piece of gunk can really have a major effect on the overall glued fit!

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 Wasn't back at this conc for more than an hour or so and everything that is 220 in my garage quit!  Got my electrician buddy coming over tonight to tell me whats wrong.  and yes, I checked all the breakers and the reset botton on the motor.    Was sooooooooo excited to get this 'bowled' and start exsposing the carapace!  Dang it!!!  Thats the best cuss word I can use.  Believe me it was a bit more in real life!  Ha!  :)

   Oh, and an average size crab for comparison.   Both the same species. 

 

RB

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Wow, finally another adventures in crab prep with Ron.  That is one big crab concretion and you've already had a sneak preview of coming attractions.  Those were two NICE boxes of rockes.  Dang it I sure missed doing a hunt this summer/year.  Look forward to the revealing of the crabbie.  Good luck.

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On 9/24/2019 at 2:25 PM, Ptychodus04 said:

Man, that stinks!!! Hope it's a cheap and easy fix.

 

On 9/25/2019 at 8:18 AM, crabfossilsteve said:

Wow, finally another adventures in crab prep with Ron

 

  My electrical problem turns out to be quite major!!!  Gunna be awhile before I can get back to preppin.  :(

 

RB

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3 minutes ago, RJB said:

My electrical problem turns out to be quite major!!!  Gunna be awhile before I can get back to preppin.  :(

 

RB

No!!!! That stinks. Did you fry your panel bus?  That’s probably the most major thing I can think of in a residential electrical system.

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Dang it! I haven't been able to do much prep myself for a couple months due to my own home improvement woes.When your house is 112 years old, it's like a really expensive game of whack-a-mole. I've had to prep vicariously through you and others. I hope you get squared away soon. Looks like the winter is headed you way.

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11 hours ago, RJB said:

My electrical problem turns out to be quite major!!!  Gunna be awhile before I can get back to preppin.  :(

OH NO!! Sorry to hear that! Time to get out the extension cords and dremel engravers and rotary tools!

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1 hour ago, RJB said:

Hey Guys, @Ptychodus04, @Fossilis Willis, @Randyw, NO problem with either box, its something underground!

 

RB

That’s an easy but expensive fix probably. New trench, new wires, empty wallet.

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