Any one in SoCal who can melt.

[Tree!]

I want to melt this into a button and would be willing to pay someone with the proper equipment to help me do that if anyone can!
Thanks
Dan

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Cry Of The Eagle: History And Legends Of The Cherokee Indians And Their Buried Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[KevinInColorado]

That looks like a gram or so...right? I encourage you to do this networking to find someone local who can help and...
- check with local clubs for advice or referrals
- ask the goldsmith in your local jewelry store
- consider delaying your melt until you have about 3 grams as the process is a bit easier with a little more material to work with
- consider doing a mini-smelt by doing the melt with some soda ash, silica sand and borax to remove impurities

 

[chlsbrns]

Why do you want to melt it into a button? It's more valuable as a nugget.

If you really want to melt it all you need is a charcoal briquette & a handheld propane (or hotter mapp) torch. Scroll down this page a little bit:

Gold Prospectors of the Rockies - What to do with your gold

 

[KevinInColorado]

If you try the charcoal method, post up some pics of the process. I'd recommend putting some silica sand and borax on top of the gold before melting to reduce the risk of the force of the flame blowing your gold out of the charcoal. Preheat the borax ( you can use laundry aisle borax, that's what the pro's use!) in a Pyrex dish in the oven to drive the water out of it before using it btw.

Also, there are lots of safety precautions you need to know if you do this. Eye, hand, work surface protection. Spilling molten gold on a workbench will immediately start a fire for example. So will your clothes, unless they just melt onto your skin of course. Read up before you play with fire!

 

[Bonaro]

The gold is more valuable as fines than in a button. Fines are a natural form that has a uniform purity. A button can be alloyed to any purity and is tougher to sell.
That being said, melting it into a button is easy.
Get a stainless steel spoon and blacken it with candle soot. Clamp the spoon in a vise and put your gold into it. You can put a pinch of borax on it if you want (it helps) but is not necessary of you only want a button. Heat the BOTTOM OF THE SPOON because you dont want to blow the gold out of the spoon with the force of the torch. Oxy/acetylene works best but you can do it with MAPP gas available at any hardware store. Propane is not quite hot enough.

The gold will be discolored when you are done, probably black. Rub it briskly on your jeans or tumble with salt and vinegar for for a few hours and it will be golden