Panning for Gold

[USTiger]

Panning for Gold

Hi all i found this instruction (Step by Step guide) to how to pan for Gold

Panning Instructions

Before you actually start to process your first pan full of material, look around for the best location for panning. Select a spot where the water is a minimum of six inches deep and flowing just fast enough to keep the muddy water from impairing your vision of your pan and a place where you can sit down comfortably.

STEP A.

WASHING OFF LARGER ROCKS AND MOSS

1. Fill pan 3/4 full of gravel, then submerge it deep enough so it is just under the surface of the water. Give the pan several vigorous shakes back and forth and from side to side, but not too vigorous as to wash material out of the pan.
2. Change from the shaking motion to a gentle circular movement, so the material starts revolving in a circle. This process will cause most of the dirt and clay to dissolve and wash out of the pan. If roots and moss surface, work them over your pan with your fingers to dissolve any lumps. Pick out the larger rocks after making sure that they are washed clean.
Repeat processes 1 and 2 of step A to get the smaller rock to the surface and to cause the heavier concentrates to settle.

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STEP B.

WASHING OFF LIGHTER SAND AND GRAVEL

1. Hold the pan just under the water and tilt it slightly away from you. Begin to swirl the water from side to side, with a slight forward tossing motion. Take care, but with sufficient force to move the surface and the lighter gravel out over the edge of the pan.
2. Leveling the pan from time to time and shaking it back and forth will cause the light material to come to the surface and the gold to settle to the bottom.
Repeat process 1 and 2 of step B until there is only about two cups of heavier material left in your pan. This material is usually called "black sand," or "concentrate."

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STEP C.

WASHING OFF BLACK SAND AND CONCENTRATES

At this point it is better for the beginner to raise the pan completely out of the water, leaving about an inch of water in it. Tilt the pan slightly towards you and swirl the water slowly in a circular motion to check the pan for nuggets and pieces that are easily picked out by hand.
Then submerge the pan again in water and repeat process 1 and 2 of step B for final concentration. This is the most critical part of panning. Make sure this final process is accomplished with as much diligence as possible so you do not to wash out the gold.
If you have a plastic pan, the use of a magnet can be employed to quickly aid in the separation of gold from the black magnetic sand concentrate.
Apply the magnet to the bottom side of the pan and move it in a small circular motion with the pan slightly tilted. This will swiftly isolate the gold from the black sand.

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PANNING HINTS

When using a steel pan, make sure to remove all the oil from the pan before you use it. The most common way is to "burn" it over the coals of a campfire using extreme caution. The pan is heated to a dull red glow, then dunked in water. This not only removes the oil but also gives the pan a dark blue hue, which makes the gold easier to see. If any oil is left in the pan, it will cause the fine gold to float, making separation impossible.
Another secret to speed up the final steps is to keep a small squeeze bottle of detergent close at hand. A couple of drops in the pan during the last separation will break the surface tension of the water and speed up the operation considerably.
In conclusion, don't let anyone tell you that this country's rivers and streams no longer contain gold. Every year winter storms bring more to the surface, continually renewing nature's supply. It's all there for the taking, and the gold pan is still the best way to find it!
An item that is considered a necessary part of a panners equipment is a panning sieve. The sieve sets over the pan and can screen or classify the larger cobbles, making the panning process much easier. The sieves are available in sizes from 1/4 of an inch (4mesh) to a 100 mesh size screen. The gold pan sieves are most popular with the medium size pan and are available in most prospecting stores that sell gold recovery equipment.

I hope you find this usefull..

USTiger

 

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[cptbil]

Also!
If you know how to handle & process "mercury" ?
You can coat the bottom of the a copper pan with it , or roll some around in a steel pan, and recovery some of that really fine gold!
That usually has to be tossed away!
You! Usually recover more than of it, than "The Pickers" you'd get!

 

[Jeffro]

If you're into panning Tiger, I'll show you a trick I learned years ago from an old timer. Gets 90 percent of the gold out of the black sand in seconds.

 

[USTiger]

If you're into panning Tiger, I'll show you a trick I learned years ago from an old timer. Gets 90 percent of the gold out of the black sand in seconds.

Yes please .. anything i can learn is good.

USTiger

 

[Jeffro]

Well, this is really easier to show someone than try and describe it, but I'll give it a whack...


Once you get down to black sand, bring the pan down level again, with the black sand pile kinda spread out a little, at the far side of the pan (away from your body).

Now imagine there's a coin in the dead center of your pan. With one hand start rotating the pan in a counterclockwise motion (if you are using your right hand, opposite if you're left handed), no bigger than the coin, all the while holding the pan perfectly level.

In about 5 to 10 seconds, most of the gold will bunch together at the upper left hand of the pile of black sand. swirl a little water around to wash the sand away, and suck the gold up.

Repeat until there isn't much more gold to get, and throw the sand in a container for further processing later, after you have saved up a bunch.

This will get 90 percent of the gold out of your pan in under a minute! Saves time in sampling, processing, etc.
The less time you spend seeing what's there, and the more time you spend moving material, the more gold you'll wind up with at the end of the day.

One of these days, I'm gonna have to get it on video. I haven't seen anybody else do this, even though I've shown people who have been panning for decades. Credit for this technique goes to a fella named Dick Stephens, one heckuva interesting prospector I met out in the woods a few years back.

 

[USTiger]

Thanks m8.. i sure will try it

USTiger

 

[goldinmypan]

Poprivet over on the 49er forum posted somethinl like that only instead of moving the pan he would create a vortex with his hand starting at the outside and working to the center. I haven't tried it yet so don't have first hand knowledge but go check it out.

 

[Sandman]

The GPAA offers a video on panning at a reasonble price. This is easier than reading about it.

 

[aarthrj3811]

Just before I get to step B I always sink another pan with a big rock in it. I then pan into it. If I goof or someones dog trys to knock me other what I spill is in the other pan. ..Art

 

[Visionquest]

One thing USTiger, since you are in Wa, don't forget to get very familiar with the Washington Gold and Fish book. It is required to be with you anytime you do any prospecting in washington. You will find the panning laws in Wa are not the same as most other states, so read up on it to avoid issues.