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Post by africaone on Nov 8, 2011 2:07:02 GMT -8
I alaways used the relaxing method with great succes.
If the pin resist I rolled it with the fingers (it helps when the pins "glued" to the thorax (espacially when it has been oxyded).
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Post by papiliotheona on Dec 10, 2011 2:32:16 GMT -8
This is the safest way.
Use a series of small injections of water into the thorax, preferably roomtemp. It is difficult to get the tip of the hypodermic to pierce the hard dried thorax but you have to keep trying until you find a weak spot you can pierce. Give that spot a few shots and it should be easier to penetrate the rest of the thorax after a while. Be sure you have a twisted piece of toilet paper or whatever on hand to blot any water that accumulates at the wing bases. After ten-fifteen minutes or so of this the wings and thorax should be noticeably flexible and you should be able to first rotate the thorax on the axis of the pin, then slide it down, with a little effort. Before you try this, blow gently on the butterfly or apply gentle downward pressure on a FW costa with your finger to make sure there is give.
DO NOT use alcohol of any kind as it is a solvent that releases long-dried bodily fluids onto the wing bases with staining results. Also it can cause thoracic stiffening and that is not what you want for remounting. I would not use ammonia either as it can cause fading.
Whatever method you decide to go with, be sure to practice it on less-valuable specimens first.
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