Old Methods of finding gold

[aarthrj3811]

I have done a lot of research on ways to locate gold. Most of the old methods information is not very good. But.. in early history they had a lot of gold so it must have worked. The story is that they used a copper bowl to locate gold at night. The Spanish used two rods that had notches on the ends. They took two people to operate. They would walk until they came together and the notches locked . Then there was the Dip needle. It looked like a compass’s that was turned on it’s side. ...Art

 

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[10claw]

I have done a lot of research on ways to locate gold. Most of the old methods information is not very good. But.. in early history they had a lot of gold so it must have worked. The story is that they used a copper bowl to locate gold at night. The Spanish used two rods that had notches on the ends. They took two people to operate. They would walk until they came together and the notches locked . Then there was the Dip needle. It looked like a compass’s that was turned on it’s side. ...Art

Art, sometime in the past someone posted a picture of a certain type of weed that grew where there is gold. The weed looked to be at least knee high and had a nodule on the stem that formed supposedly because of nearby gold. At that time I did not think much about it but now wish I had saved a photo of it. Don't remember who posted it either.
I have tried asking the question to trail hunters about how the Spanish found the '' dig here spot '' but no luck so far except what you have here.

 

[aarthrj3811]

I don’t remember that. I do know that many prospectors pull weeds and clean the roots then pan what comes off them. Many of them have found places to mine using this methods...Art

 

[Barton]

A long time ago I remember reading stories about a plant that grew over silver deposits

 

[aarthrj3811]

Another place that many people pass up. The only time that gold moves in a stream or river is high water (flood stage). The rocks or boulders along it will have gold in the cracks. If there is a rock face which has moss on it is worth while to clean it off and wash and pan it...Art

 

[Seden]

The name of the plants are:.........

Ok guy's, if you're out in the Desert looking for gold the plant that you look for is called a "Trumpet Plant" as it only grows in highly mineralized soil. Another plant that is helpful is the California Poppy as it grows in Copper rich soil and silver and gold are usually found together with copper. As any commercial miner will tell you that a gold mine is also a copper and silver mine and a silver mine is also a gold and copper mine and a copper mine is also a gold and silver mine-it all depends on the ratio of each.

The reason a dip needle was used was that it is nothing more that a sideways compass and so detected the concentrations of magnetic material in the soil and usually the higher amount of magnetite the higher amount of gold will be found which I have found to be true over the years. Also the bigger the size of the magnetite the bigger the size of the gold in a placer operation. If all your seeing is real small magnetite, keep walking.

I have taken a inexpensive liquid filled plastic Bruton compass and turned it sideways and used it to find one of the most productive areas in the desert. I first adjusted the needle so that when I turned it sideways the needle was in the middle of the side and started walking and observing the readings. The needle continued to drop till I came to this creekbed and close to the end of the hill. I then did an about face and walked back to where I came from and watched to my amazement that the needle slowly rose to it's starting position when I reached the place I started from so it does work.

Before the invention of the Proton Precession and fluxgate magnetometers, the mechanical magnetometer (like my improvised Bruton compass) was all the geologists had for surveying.

 

[aarthrj3811]

Many people are afraid to ask questions. Lets show them the results. Any information that you can find will help you someday. Always remember that there is always another way to skin a cat...Art

 

[Goldminer]

It was I that posted the picture of the Desert Trumpet plant, and here is another one.

 

[10claw]

Seden, thanks for the mention of the trumpet plant================
Goldminer, thanks to you too for that great photo of the trumpet plant. We never know who this will help i the future.

 

[Seden]

10claw and Art, you are welcome! Glad to be of service. I too hope it will help someone as it took me many years and alot of research and sampling to find this out.
One device that would be helpful (laws of physics obeyed) would be a way to measure specific gravity or the density of materials the way a metal detector senses the change in conductivity and current flow in an object beneath the coil. I found a recent research paper this looks promising just need to build the circuit. Problem would be to make sure it's measuring the stuff on the surface, not a mile or more down!

 

[10claw]

Okay Seden, since I am an electrical dummy, specially on specific gravity, just what would that machine tell you?
Maybe if you can contact some of the boys that have graduated from NASA, that is, retired, you could probably have the circuit up and running in short order. If you remember the '' soundwitch '', it was made by a retired NASA man. He could find nuggets from a good hundred + yards but here in Alabama it locates all the micro ( minerals to some ).

 

[aarthrj3811]

https://www.google.com/search?site=...j1.1.0....0...1.1.64.img..0.1.137.agI12J_TPSY

"Trumpet Plant"

 

[Seden]

10claw,

I read that Bill Morgan passed a few years ago. I sure wish I bought the info on using a walkie-talkie to locate gold. Anybody know about how this worked?

 

[aarthrj3811]

I read that Bill Morgan passed a few years ago. I sure wish I bought the info on using a walkie-talkie to locate gold. Anybody know about how this worked?

Anyone that wants it PM me your address

 

[Red_desert]

Ok guy's, if you're out in the Desert looking for gold the plant that you look for is called a "Trumpet Plant" as it only grows in highly mineralized soil. Another plant that is helpful is the California Poppy as it grows in Copper rich soil and silver and gold are usually found together with copper. As any commercial miner will tell you that a gold mine is also a copper and silver mine and a silver mine is also a gold and copper mine and a copper mine is also a gold and silver mine-it all depends on the ratio of each.

The reason a dip needle was used was that it is nothing more that a sideways compass and so detected the concentrations of magnetic material in the soil and usually the higher amount of magnetite the higher amount of gold will be found which I have found to be true over the years. Also the bigger the size of the magnetite the bigger the size of the gold in a placer operation. If all your seeing is real small magnetite, keep walking.

I have taken a inexpensive liquid filled plastic Bruton compass and turned it sideways and used it to find one of the most productive areas in the desert. I first adjusted the needle so that when I turned it sideways the needle was in the middle of the side and started walking and observing the readings. The needle continued to drop till I came to this creekbed and close to the end of the hill. I then did an about face and walked back to where I came from and watched to my amazement that the needle slowly rose to it's starting position when I reached the place I started from so it does work.

Before the invention of the Proton Precession and fluxgate magnetometers, the mechanical magnetometer (like my improvised Bruton compass) was all the geologists had for surveying.

I had a liquid filled compass with me on the last trip to AZ in 2009. Sounds like that should work really good, never thought of it before. Do you keep the compass at about waist height while walking or down lower to the ground?

My first trip to AZ after buying a GB-2, it can work the same way, but probably not as well. Being such a Greenhorn at the time, had my sensitivity up to 10, a small 5" elliptical coil padded wrapped with duct tape. There began to be a big change every 30 ft or so in ground balance. Noting the number on the different spots, stopped at a higher reading. Moving the surface sand a little brought up handfuls of those large magnetite chunks. Turned on the hotrock switch and a few more steps gold a 2" rusty brown quartz chunk with a little bright gold showing on the one edge. It had been hot so was soon after drinking a couple cold ones (back at the car). I stood up, turned around to pick up the specimen, then didn't find it again or my spot. Standing out in the desert, you turn to think about what was just found, try turning around again, to see where it was and everything looks the same. I walking some this way, then back the other way.....it would be better to put something there before turning around, mark the spot first. The dowsing rods were in my car, had used them to locate this area to search, narrowed it down to a small enough location. I moved on to other gold fields then, should have stayed with where the rods put me.....being a Greenhorn thinking of all the photos in treasure magazines of nice size gold nuggets.

These were 2 different trips to AZ mentioned here, the first (after buying my GB-2 back in the 1990s) and the last 2009 in Oct-Nov.

 

[Seden]

Red desert,

Sorry I didn't reply earlier as I thought this thread was done. To answer your question, I held it about shoulder high. Nice thing about the Bruton liquid filled compass is that's it doesn't have to be aimed N-S like the very sensitive "Aqua Meter" does. You just can't walk with the Aqua Meter for that reason.

 

[Red_desert]

Shoulder height would be even much better than waist high, because that means distance from the ground isn't going to be a critical factor. You could locate these pockets of magnetite using a Fisher Gemini 3, 2-box detector except when walking up or down a steep wash slope. A 2-box must be held so each box is about equal distance from the ground, not higher or lower than when it was tuned. Compared to size and weight, a liquid filled compass is definitely easier to carry.

 

[aarthrj3811]

I just talked to an old prospecting friend from the Reno area. They have had 5 or 6 flash floods in his area this month. He is checking the Drain pipes that run under the streets. Those corrugated pipes make pretty good slices and can trap gold...Art

 

[aarthrj3811]

I know another guy That sweeps out the street gutters in one of the old mining towns. As you can see gold is where you find it

 

[Seden]

Wow is that in Nevada?