Building a sifter for shark teeth?

storl

storl

Joined
Apr 17, 2007
Messages
1,607
OK, I know you guys are some crafty fellows, so I need some help. I was at Cumberland Island the past few days and have become fascinated with finding shark teeth. My wife and I found probably 50 during a couple of days of occasional searching, mostly finding them on the roads since they use dredged material to "pave" the roads. We even found a few broken pieces from megalodon teeth. I'll post a trip report tomorrow.

I talked to a ranger who said that just walking along the roads looking for them is good, but going to the dredge piles and using a sifter is even better. I have seen sifters for sale and plans for sifters all over the Internet, but the big, bulky ones don't really do it for me. I want a badass, lightweight, portable sifter.

I am thinking of using some angle aluminum to create a frame, connecting it at the corners with bolts and wing nuts so it can be assembled and disassembled quickly and easily.

I want to have a couple different layers at least, and the only thing I can think of for the sifter surface is hardware cloth. I would really like something more portable than that, since you can only really roll hardware cloth because bending it will eventually stress it enough to the point where it breaks. I have some Kevlar string from County Comm that I was thinking I could weave into a couple net type surfaces with different sized holes, but I was not sure if that would be durable enough. Also, I have not messed with net weaving a whole ton, so hopefully Doc Canada sees this thread and takes interest. :D

Between the layers, I was going to have some short aluminum tubing connected by screws just to keep the layers a bit apart. The whole idea is to be able to collapse this thing and stuff it in a backpack. I can add some pipe insulation if I ever need it to float.

So, what do you guys think? Any good ideas for a durable net surface? It will have to withstand repeated sharp edges and constant sand abrasion. I need some redneck engineering help!

Edit: Here are some pics of the teeth I gathered:

teeth1.jpg


teeth2.jpg
 
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Hmmmm....Not being a nautical fellow, I'm not quite sure exactly what kind of sifter you're talking about. I'm wondering about some sort of metal screen, like from a screen door? You should be able to roll that up, and it should be pretty durable. Other than that, I really don't know.
 
I've actually done this before on the Peace River down here in Florida, found all kinds of stuff including shark teeth, native bead and an arrow head. One of my buddies actually found a megalodon tooth that was 90%+ intact, really cool! :thumbup: I can't think of anything that would fit in a backpack and still be durable; we used metal grating on a wood frame.
 
Wow! That is so cool! I look forward to the pics!

First thing I thought of was a pie pan with numerous holes drilled in the bottom.
 
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How coarse is the material you will be sifting? If it is comparable to beach sand then I reckon you could maybe get away with using this:
WhtMeshLndryBag.jpg

A military surplus laundry bag, it has a mesh with about 5-10mm diameter depending on the bag you get. I know they can take a lot of weight so you can put in a couple of shovels, lift it off the ground, shake it. See what stays in the bag. Nice little workout to boot.

Anything bigger or harder than sand and I think you will have to go the metal mesh route. Unless you fancy getting a tennis racket and restringing it with thin wire and using it?
 
About ten years ago, we were on the Outer Banks, and I was digging around in the sand and found a couple sharks teeth. I was quite excited by it. A six year old boy was watching me, so I called him over to show him what I'd found. I hold out my hand, and he picks them up, puts them in his pocket and walks away.

I still think I could have beaten him up--but I didn't.

:)
 
We use a cat litter sifter. It is plastic and they come in different sizes. All you need to do is tape or screw on a longer handle so you do not have to bend over so much.
 
I still have some sharks teeth I found at the Calvert Cliffs in MD. The area ,then under water , was a whale birthing area..The best time to search is in the spring after winter storms have eaten away at the cliff. Just walk along the beach and you can easily see them.Digging not necessary.
 
Hmm, I like those Keene ones. I was looking for something more portable that could be disassembled and stuffed in a backpack, but they might work. Thanks for the ideas and keep em coming.
 
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