Dear Paul,

Yes, this is the bane of many of us who purchase bivalves. Some dealers
don't glue the valves and I am eternally grateful to them.

Here is what I have found out from experience. Most dealers seem to use
water soluble glues. I will soak glued bivalves for 24-48 hours. If only a
small dab of glue was used, the shells will often just 'pop' open. If a
more substantial dollop of glue was used, it may take awhile for it to
loosen. Most bivalves will have a slight gape and I will sometimes use a
feeler gauge to help open the valves after they have soaked. There are
often a few blades on the feeler gauge which are just a bit stiffer than a
few sheets of aluminum foil. I can often slip this between the valves and
help pry them open. I collect Pectinidae and the tough part is when the
whole hinge and the distal disc are glued :-(
These sometimes require several days of soaking.

I also have an insulin syringe and will inject water into the glued
valves. Insulin syringes have very thin needles. If you just throw them in
a bowl of water often they will just float. Getting them to submerge and
have water everywhere, I believe will speed up the process.

I have thought about trying to microwave for 5-15 seconds to see if this
will loosen the glue. I have not conducted this experiment. Wonder if
others have?

And after all of this, yes, there are some bivalves in my collection that
are still glued shut. These might oen up if I use an organic solvent such
as acetone or mineral spirits, however, not sure what effect these might
have on pigments.

Hope this helps.


> Greetings list,
>        I am a long time shell collector, Conch-L "lurker" and first time
> poster,  I am amazed at the knowledge and camaraderie of the folks on
> Conch-L and have learned a lot from everyone.  Thank you all so much.  I
> am
> also a longtime friend of Conch-Ler Harry Lee who I have considered my
> shell collecting "hero" for many years now.  Although I lack the
> credentials of many folks on here, I think I can can match passion for
> shells and shell collecting with anyone...;o).  Which brings me to a
> question I thought I would pose to the list to see if anyone had
> encountered this before.
>       I've noticed for a while now that upon purchasing bivalves of all
> types from dealers (especially online or by mail order) that the
> shells arrive with both valves sealed together by what I presume is some
> type of glue.  Some come tied together by thread or very thin string as
> well.  I realize this practice is probably intended to keep both valves of
> the shells together in shipping and transporting, which I can understand.
> The problem is that I prefer to display bivalves in "opened out"
> orientation so that both valves are visible at the same time.  This is
> hard
> to do if the two valves are sealed together by glue or some other bonding
> substance - only one valve can be seen at a time.
>       Is there any way to safely separate these shells again once they
> have
> been sealed together in this way or am I left with them this way for good?
> Has anyone noticed or dealt with this "dilemma" before?  Thank you in
> advance!
>
> Happy shelling to all, Paul Jones in St. Augustine, Florida
>
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Regards,
Charlie
.................................................
Charlie Sturm

Treasurer
American Malacological Society

Research Associate - Section of Mollusks
Carnegie Museum of Natural History
Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Associate Professor - Family Medicine
Fellow-American Academy of Family Practice
Fellow-Academy of Wilderness Medicine

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