moving bad ones

[Whitdadie]

Hello, would you say these buggers are fine to use when moving a scorp (it is going to be an A. australis, no handle ) The loop is a little sharp if you squeeze tight so should i glue rubber pad to the tips (where i would get that stuff i have no idea though)? That is only if you squeeze hard though, if you dont do that it is fine. If its not a good idea to use them, they were only 4 bucks on ebay so its fine. Just let me know what you think would be the best! Thanks

 

[Baphomet]

I have used similar forceps in the past, but favor my tweezers (18" & 24") as I feel as they give me more control and are much more sensitive.

If you do use the pair you showed, you can get "liquid rubber" at hobby shops, and dip the ends in this compound to form a non-stick and soft surface when used for picking up scorpions.

I would also suggest that you grind off the locking clamps of the forceps...

 

[invertepet]

We stock those - I find them to be quite useful. I wish I'd used a pair to remove the AZ Bark scorpion from my neck earlier this evening! LOL

bill

 

[Whitdadie]

Liquid Rubber, is that the same stuff as that elmers glue stuff in the brown bottle? I have never used the stuff but from what i hear it is sort of rubbery when it dries. If not, i am taking a trip to watertown this weekend so i will just stop at the hobby shop in the mall. Thanks

 

[Kugellager]

Liquid rubber can be found in most hardware stores and is generally used for coating tool handles...at least that is what I use it for. It usually comes in a paint can. You just dip whatever you want to coat in it and let it dry. You may want to do several coats.

John
];')

 

[Whitdadie]

Hmm.. Plenty of hardware stores in my town so i guess i will check it out! Thanks

 

[skinheaddave]

Plasti-Dip is one brand name.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[MrDeranged]

Just wondering, but isn't it easier and safer for the scorp to cup and carry as opposed to grabbing and possibly crushing the telson, thereby relegating the scorp to death by fecal impaction?

Just my newbie opinion.....

Scott

 

[skinheaddave]

Scott,

You are absolutely right ... sort of. I personaly prefer the cup-and-carry method wherever it is possible. I do, however, keep padded tongs, tweezers or forceps (depending on the size of the scorp and what is closest) on hand whenever I am working with scorpions. There has been the odd occasion where speed is important and it is easier to just snatch and move them.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[Baphomet]

Originally posted by mrderanged
Just wondering, but isn't it easier and safer for the scorp to cup and carry as opposed to grabbing and possibly crusing the telson, thereby relegating the scorp to death by fecal impaction?

This is true to a point...but personal safety has to come first, and if Whitdadie is not familiar with the "cup-n-carry" method, it is not something I suggest trying to learn when dealing with a Androctonus australis.

...and as skinheaddave said:

There has been the odd occasion where speed is important and it is easier to just snatch and move them.

 

[XOskeletonRED]

If you have any automotive stores near to you (which almost everyone does), you can get a replacement door seal (stick-on rubber or foam) for very cheap and they are excellent to use. They can be purchased in the form of foam at Walmart and many other stores, though they usually don't carry the rubber ones. They can be wrapped around forceps and they don't grip hard enough to damage the scorpion's tail unless you tried to do so intentionally. They are usually around .5 inches thick and at most, around 1 inch. Both rubber and foam work well, though I prefer the rubber ones because they last longer and are a little more cushioned.


adios,
edw. =D

 

[MrDeranged]

Originally posted by Baphomet
This is true to a point...but personal safety has to come first, and if Whitdadie is not familiar with the "cup-n-carry" method, it is not something I suggest trying to learn when dealing with a Androctonus australis.

Just wondering how is grabbing the scorp with forceps safer than putting a cup over it and then enclosing the scorp by closing the cup? Doesn't matter what kind of scorp it is. I agree that if the scorp somehow got loose and you needed to grab it and all you had handy was tweezers or forceps, go ahead, but cup and carry is always the safest way to move anything in my opinion... Alot easier and safer than trying to "tail" a scorp, whether it be a P. imperator or a A. australis, and whether or not they'ver done it before.

Scott

 

[conipto]

I got a pair of twelve inch rubber tipped forceps from Art Cerda last time I made a purchase from him. I don't know how I lived without them before. Those may be the same ones Bill stocks over there at invertepet, if so I find them incredibly usefull for my T's, and they'd make me a little more at ease if dealing with a hot scorp.

Bill

 

[Kugellager]

Scott...in general cupping is going to be safer to the scorp but when dealing w the nasties its much safer to the keeper to use tongs. Scorps has the tendancy to scoot around a cup if you make the slightest miscalculation. You wouldn't want that to happen with an Androctonus or most of the nasty Buthids. Hell it used to freak me out when I did that w my M.martensii..though they were on mildly defensive. I would never want to attempt the cupping method with a P.transvaalicus or an A.bicolor...you just create the slightest air currents with them and they will go after whatever they think is the source.

John
];')

 

[skinheaddave]

John,

I have succesfuly cupped both those speices. The key is to keep your wits about you and to use a big cup so that your hands stay away nicely.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[Whitdadie]

Believe it or not everyone, I can NOT find liquid rubber anywhere! haha. Man, i have to move to a city soon. Im going to die, well maybe not, but I still cant wait to move.. lol.. I am going to try the auto shops tomrrow and see about the sticky foam stuff. The hardware stores didnt even now what i was talking about. haha. I have to go to Watertown (the nearest city) to pick up my bugger on Tuesday so maybe I will make a special trip to WalMart and see what they have if the auto shops dont have it here. Thanks for the help everyone. Crossing my fingers now.