<div dir="auto"><div dir="auto">Hi Gretchen,</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">I agree that using epoxy is a tricky thing, as it will set and then it's (almost) impossible to remove. I like the idea of experimenting with stabilizing the back with Remay or something of the sort and B72. It all comes down to size. If these are specimens that are not incredibly heavy, then you may very well succeed. Another option could be to prepare a thick B72, so you can "embed" the pieces onto a mold and then cut the mold out (or release it with an acetone chamber).</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div dir="auto">I'm happy to continue to chat offline if you want to send me photos.</div><div dir="auto">All the best,</div><div dir="auto">Mariana</div><div dir="auto"><br></div><div data-smartmail="gmail_signature" dir="auto">Mariana Di Giacomo, PhD<br>Natural History Conservator, Yale Peabody Museum<br>Associate Editor, Collection Forum, SPNHC<br></div><br><div class="gmail_quote" dir="auto"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Tue, Jun 18, 2024, 17:00 Anderson, Gretchen <<a href="mailto:AndersonG@carnegiemnh.org">AndersonG@carnegiemnh.org</a>> wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424;background:white">Dear Colleagues,
<u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424;background:white"><u></u> <u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424;background:white">I just received this question from my vertebrate paleontology department and am looking for thoughts on how to better stabilize these fragile specimens. The specimens are fragile and some are
extremely thin. <u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424;background:white"><u></u> <u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424;background:white">A Research Associate in VP would like to use a </span><a href="https://www.jbweld.com/product/marineweld-syringe" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer"><span style="color:blue;border:none windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in;background:white">marine
epoxy</span></a><span style="color:#242424;background:white"> to stabilize thin pieces of cannel coal that contain impressions of fossils. His practice is to coat the back of the fossil with a thick layer of the epoxy. He mentioned that this system had been
used at the Field Museum. The specimens are studied by either making a latex peel of them or a CT-scan to yield a positive of the impression. The plan to go forward is to use CT scanning rather than latex peel, when possible. The RA champing at the bit to
stabilize a few specimens. <u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424;background:white"><u></u> <u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424;background:white">I am concerned about continuing the use of epoxy and would much rather use a method that is more conservation friendly. I would like to suggest a different way to do this, perhaps using a material
like remay or a light carbon steel fabric with Paraloid B-72, lining the back of the fossil to provide improved stability. This would be reversible. We are currently testing this on some scrap pieces of the coal.
</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:black"><u></u><u></u></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424;background:white">What are the standards for preparing this kind of fossil? Does anyone have experience with this type of epoxy? If so, how stable is it?<u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424;background:white"><u></u> <u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424;background:white">Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated.
<u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424;background:white"><u></u> <u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#242424;background:white">Thanks!<u></u><u></u></span></p>
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<p><b><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Gretchen Anderson</span></b><u></u><u></u></p>
<p><b><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Conservator</span></b><u></u><u></u></p>
<p><b><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Carnegie Museum of Natural History</span></b><u></u><u></u></p>
<p><b><span style="font-size:14.0pt">Andersong@CarnegieMNH.Org</span></b><u></u><u></u></p>
<p> <u></u><u></u></p>
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