Thoughts on Crushing Samples

[Snipes]

Hi Everyone,

Bit of a newbie question here. I took a bunch (40lbs) of quartz breccia from a site the other day. I had full intentions of making a crusher (pipe) and panning it out to see if there was any gold in it (no visual gold). However, the next day I went to the natural resources propsecting center here in city. The head guy thought it was a waste of labor to crush and pan. HE said to take the best samples and have them assayed to get a real idea. Now this guy is extremely knowledgable and is 30 years in the industry. My only worry is he is a geologist and always worked for mining concerns before joining the government. So although he may be 100% right he may be more accustomed to working with a big budget. Thoughts? I guess I am wondering if I will really get valuable info from crushing and panning. Thanks!

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Minelab PRO-FIND 35 Waterproof Pinpointer Metal Detector for Experts with Tone ID & Adjustable Sensitivity - Grab it through Amazon!

[timberjack]

The assay will cost about 40 but will tell you what is there. Crushing and panning is just your time and if there are worthwhile values in your sample you should find it. I probably crush and pan stuff 3-4 time a week just poking around, learning. I would not be able to pay for all those assays,,i have had 3 assays done on the best ores i have come across...but i have crushed and panned many, many samples,,,,,my opinion,,good luck!

 

[Eu_citzen]

I also agree with the above. Assays are also useful when you are not only expecting gold but also copper, lead, zink etc.
Crushing and panning are good "budget" alternatives for "pure" metals, like gold.
And, well - if you find gold it means there is gold in the rocks. Just that info is worth a lot, in my opinion.

 

[TAKODA]

" I guess I am wondering if I will really get valuable info from crushing and panning ".


Yes .

 

[Snipes]

Excellent! Thanks everyone

 

[dave wiseman]

Snipes,sampling is the way to go unless your intending to have a large mining operation.In hard rock sampling,any color out of a vein is worth further checking.Take your samples from different spots and then go from there.Forty pounds is a lot of rock if it's just from one spot.

 

[snakejim]

Hi Everyone,

Bit of a newbie question here. I took a bunch (40lbs) of quartz breccia from a site the other day. I had full intentions of making a crusher (pipe) and panning it out to see if there was any gold in it (no visual gold). However, the next day I went to the natural resources propsecting center here in city. The head guy thought it was a waste of labor to crush and pan. HE said to take the best samples and have them assayed to get a real idea. Now this guy is extremely knowledgable and is 30 years in the industry. My only worry is he is a geologist and always worked for mining concerns before joining the government. So although he may be 100% right he may be more accustomed to working with a big budget. Thoughts? I guess I am wondering if I will really get valuable info from crushing and panning. Thanks!

If you can't crush it and pan out visible gold it's best to look for something better. A small miner cannot make a profit with microscopic gold that is only found with an assay. That fine stuff is better left for the big boys.

 

[prospect007]

make a small crusher out of a lawn mower engine and a 11" break drum, 1 1/2" square tubing 10 3/4" diam. 1/4"thick plate. 1 1/4"feed tube.
you will need a welder for this project. for best results weld the vertical lines on the in side of the drum. the one I built pulverizes to -20 mesh first pass, perfect for testing, and inexpensive.
prospect007

 

[prospect007]

I forgot to add, if you put a 3" thin gauge ring on the bottom of the drum the pulverizer fits in a bucket. action mining in Oregon has how too build type books.
I modified their plans to work better.

 

[Herby D]

Snipes...IMHO..For 95% of us, that guy is wrong..Crushing and panning is how I determine where I'm going to drywash most of the time..For me, it's a waste of money, time, and fun to run an essay..I've broke a sample in half and I sent half for assay and I crashed the other half (I've done this 3 times ) Each time their result has been the same as mine.. and I do mine on the spot.. I had to wait a month or so for their's.. Crushing rocks is one of the most important parts of prospecting for me.. I quit bringing samples home for crushing years ago.. Any time or any where I see a piece of quartz I want to crush it...

Most important two letter word sentence.. "If it is to be, it is up to me"

 

[Herby D]

Good points Bluedeer... love it.. If we ain't learnin we ain't livin.. so true...

Most important two letter word sentence.. "If it is to be, it is up to me"

 

[golden ray]

From an assayers point of view, sending in a piece of the suspected mineral bearing
ore along with any crushed down material gives the assayer an idea as to how to adjust
their flux to your needs.
Sending in the 'best' looking piece can lead to fault hopes. Correct sampling is importain
Send an assortment of the material for truer results of what your working with.(and what
may be working againist you.)
But, as anyone will tell you crushing & panning should let you know if your on the money.

 

[Mad Machinist]

Snipes,

Dutedyou, a member on here, came up with a way to cheaply crush samples. He used a cement mixer lined with old tires and filled it with pieces of steel. It works very well.

As a veteran miner I can tell you that assay costs can add up real fast and are really out of the realm of a small miner unless there is visible gold present. My crew and I spent a whole lot more than we should of last year in developing a claim, but it was with the intention of proving a resource in order to sell it to a bigger company so we could build capital to start our own gig.

 

[gold tramp]

Snipes,

Dutedyou, a member on here, came up with a way to cheaply crush samples. He used a cement mixer lined with old tires and filled it with pieces of steel. It works very well.

As a veteran miner I can tell you that assay costs can add up real fast and are really out of the realm of a small miner unless there is visible gold present. My crew and I spent a whole lot more than we should of last year in developing a claim, but it was with the intention of proving a resource in order to sell it to a bigger company so we could build capital to start our own gig.

I can assure you that contraption will not do what you need it to do, and hardrock mining is not a joke, just you saying something like that will work, is just insulting the inteligence of real hardrock miners the folks who bust rock gold for a living, im not talking about tractor miners, or trophy gold hunters, or company miners, but folks who do this every day and depend only on the take at the end of each month to pay the bills.

 

[Mad Machinist]

I can assure you that contraption will not do what you need it to do, and hardrock mining is not a joke, just you saying something like that will work, is just insulting the inteligence of real hardrock miners the folks who bust rock gold for a living, im not talking about tractor miners, or trophy gold hunters, or company miners, but folks who do this every day and depend only on the take at the end of each month to pay the bills.

First off, I am a PROFESSIONAL miner. In other words, mining is my day job.

Second off, in my official capacity as a PROFESSIONAL miner, I repair and rebuild some rather large Marcy ball mills. I know and understand the concepts and operation of balls mills far better than you ever will.

Third, it is people like you who insult the intelligence of miners. This gentleman asked for a cheap way to crush samples and he was given one. The cement mixer as a rudimentary ball mill has been proven many times. The tire tread as a liner is simply to keep from beating the drum to crap.

I tell you what, I'll find and post a few links from this very site for you to read.

http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/h...all-mill-ohh-soo-quiet-total-cost-me-5-a.html

 

[gold tramp]

First off, I am a PROFESSIONAL miner. In other words, mining is my day job.

Second off, in my official capacity as a PROFESSIONAL miner, I repair and rebuild some rather large Marcy ball mills. I know and understand the concepts and operation of balls mills far better than you ever will.

Third, it is people like you who insult the intelligence of miners. This gentleman asked for a cheap way to crush samples and he was given one. The cement mixer as a rudimentary ball mill has been proven many times. The tire tread as a liner is simply to keep from beating the drum to crap.

I tell you what, I'll find and post a few links from this very site for you to read.

http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/h...all-mill-ohh-soo-quiet-total-cost-me-5-a.html

Not trying to start a war just giving mining advice, i have used a cement mixer ball mill for better than 20 years the same one, they dont beat themselves they have round balls, mine just recently wore a hole in it.

Knowing ball mills as you do you would know that the machine wouldnt do the job as a ball mill is used to grind the ore to talcum powder in order to release values not beat the crap out of the tool, and passing on info like that waste of 5 $.

I my self am a proffesional Prospector / miner/ miller, i have MASTERED the ART of fine gold recovery, its the only way i get paid, from mining gold or silver. I dont work for a company i prospect the gold myself, i mine it. i mill it, and i recover the values and turn it into my payday,



Bigger dont mean you know more than the next guy, as i recover fine gold for a living !!!!!! I am not some weekend warrior playing miner, Its my job day and night,
Thats all from me.
View attachment 1004045 View attachment 1004046 View attachment 1004047

 

[Mad Machinist]

Snipes asked for a way to cheaply crush samples. And what I posted will work. Is it ideal, no. But it doesn't cost and arm and a leg either.

He also stated that there is no visible gold in the samples. Everyone has a different definition of visible. While there may or may not be fine gold in the samples, the only way to find out is to crush as fine as possible.

The whole purpose of the info was to crush as cheaply as possible, not longevity. At $30 to $50 bucks a pop for an assay here, it doesn't take long to add up to the price of a Harbor Freight cement mixer, a few old tires, and some scrap steel. If valuables prove to be present then an assay becomes more necessary.

I do ALOT of hard rock in my off time. And if you don't want to start a war then you really shouldn't come with a statement like "insulting the intelligence of miner's"

 

[DizzyDigger]

And if you don't want to start a war

Oh GMAFB..we're talking about a method of crushing ore here, not
arming the Taliban.

Sounds to me like you're both right, but yer both so set in your
ways that yer too damn stubborn to agree on anything.

 

[Mad Machinist]

Oh GMAFB..we're talking about a method of crushing ore here, not
arming the Taliban.

Sounds to me like you're both right, but yer both so set in your
ways that yer too damn stubborn to agree on anything.

My apologies, DD.

I've been busted up a few times before mining, but for some reason this last time effected me more some reason. Even my wife says I get a little more testy about some things. Maybe it's because I know I don't have a whole lot more time to mine since I turn the big 4-0 this year and some of my injuries are catching up with me.

goldtramp,

My apologies brother. Sometimes we lose sight of why we have this forum. And that is to help those who want to do this for one reason or another.

 

[Herby D]

Oooh..you poor baby..The Big 4-0..??..suck it up..and thank the Lord it ain't your Big 7-2...You ain't seen nothin yet kid..Keep crushin those rocks..

Most important two letter word sentence.. "If it is to be, it is up to me"