Roughing up a new pan?

[oidium45]

How many of you guys purposely roughen up a new pan before use?

 

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[N-Lionberger]

I used to, now I just make sure to get any grease off of it.

 

[bobw53]

Do you mean "seasoning".. So that water doesn't bead?

I'd assume we all do, though I have seen some pics from really really green folks that haven't.

Having to season a huge pile of pans for the gold panning booth at the better half's elementary school several times...
Sand blasting is a quick easy way... Nice uniform surface, no water beading.. I'll never mess with scotch-brites and
sand paper again...

 

[oidium45]

Do you mean "seasoning".. So that water doesn't bead?

I'd assume we all do, though I have seen some pics from really really green folks that haven't.

Having to season a huge pile of pans for the gold panning booth at the better half's elementary school several times...
Sand blasting is a quick easy way... Nice uniform surface, no water beading.. I'll never mess with scotch-brites and
sand paper again...

It was expressed to me to be for the purpose of roughing up the pan so that gold sticks. But I suppose so.

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[N-Lionberger]

My concern is grease from the mfg process that will cause fine gold to float, water beading being a second concern which also helps gold float. Brand new plastic pan straight to the creek I instruct people to fill the pan with coarse gravel and then scrub it around as long as they can bear. I feel a good wash with detergent and a scrubby pad is enough to bypass the rockwash. The steel pans come greasy to prevent rust and your best bet is to burn it out on a stove. I'd be careful with sand blasting, some shops I know blast some greasy stuff.

 

[oidium45]

I am wondering if the same would apply to a shiny plastic sluice..

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[arizau]

The simple act of using your plastic pan or a plastic sluice will take the glaze off of them in pretty short order. If I bother with the pans at all I just swirl a load of minus 8 mesh sand/pebbles without and with water and the glaze disappears. I would not worry about grease or oil but if you are then just wash them in dish soap. I agree with burning out a steel pan but I just put them on a bbq grill. Make sure you dry them after use to minimize rust.

 

[mainegoldie]

Pans pretty much rough up themselves with use.

 

[juneaupanner]

Put some wet sand in your pan and wipe it around with a wet paper towel or some cloth until your pains dull.

 

[jsulateskee]

I am new to gold prospecting and started out with a plastic pan. I took it straight to the water from where I purchased it and noticed that I lost some gold - it floated away. From what I've seen, dousing it with Dawn dish soap and giving it a good scrub with the rough side of a spunge seems to be one of the most popular ways of 'seasoning' a new plastic pan. I just recently did so and will be giving it a try this weekend. I'll let you know if I notice a difference. I did give it a decent scrubbing with sand and rock from the creek but I still had issues with fine gold floating away. I'll see what happens.....

 

[augoldminer]

on steel pans i put them over a fire till the metal turns blue.

this takes off any oils and makes the gold show better.

 

[jsulateskee]

I am new to gold prospecting and started out with a plastic pan. I took it straight to the water from where I purchased it and noticed that I lost some gold - it floated away. From what I've seen, dousing it with Dawn dish soap and giving it a good scrub with the rough side of a spunge seems to be one of the most popular ways of 'seasoning' a new plastic pan. I just recently did so and will be giving it a try this weekend. I'll let you know if I notice a difference. I did give it a decent scrubbing with sand and rock from the creek but I still had issues with fine gold floating away. I'll see what happens.....

I finally took my pan out after giving it a good scrub with dawn soap and the rough side of a sponge. It did seem as though it held onto the gold better but I still had some very small pieces float away. My best advice would be to season it as best as you can and the more you use it it will end up naturally seasoning itself. Again, I've seen a couple of methods and decided to try the soap with a sponge. I just purchased a new pan and will be giving sandpaper, 200 grit, a try as suggested by some other users.

 

[Capt Nemo]

I'd go 400 grit.

 

[jsulateskee]

I'd go 400 grit.

Yeah? Do you think 200 is still a bit too rough?

 

[TerryC]

I season all new pans. OOOO steel wool is what I use then wash out with dawn dish soap. Why bother with steel pans when plastic works so much better (in my opinion). I really like the plastic pans that have three or four deep riffles and a 1/4 inch "recess" in the bottom. Garrett gravity trap is my favorite then the one that the GPAA (life member) sells. ╦╦Ç

 

[lookingharder]

Thanks for sharing this guys. I'm one of those GREEN guys too. I bought a set of pans a few months ago and would have never thought to wash or rough them before I used them.

 

[Capt Nemo]

Yeah? Do you think 200 is still a bit too rough?

200 takes too much off, and can cause gold to stick too well in the scratches. One of my Garrett's has a #250 permanently stuck in a fine scratch. At least I'll always have gold in that pan!

 

[TerryC]

I finally took my pan out after giving it a good scrub with dawn soap and the rough side of a sponge. It did seem as though it held onto the gold better but I still had some very small pieces float away. My best advice would be to season it as best as you can and the more you use it it will end up naturally seasoning itself. Again, I've seen a couple of methods and decided to try the soap with a sponge. I just purchased a new pan and will be giving sandpaper, 200 grit, a try as suggested by some other users.

Very tiny pieces tend to float away often. Watch for them and "pop" them with a finger tip to get them out of the surface tension. They tend to float because their surface (flat) area to weight ratio is pretty high. ╦╦Ç

 

[jsulateskee]

200 takes too much off, and can cause gold to stick too well in the scratches. One of my Garrett's has a #250 permanently stuck in a fine scratch. At least I'll always have gold in that pan!

Good to know! Thanks for the advice, appreciate it.

 

[Reed Lukens]

I season all new pans. OOOO steel wool is what I use then wash out with dawn dish soap. Why bother with steel pans when plastic works so much better (in my opinion). I really like the plastic pans that have three or four deep riffles and a 1/4 inch "recess" in the bottom. Garrett gravity trap is my favorite then the one that the GPAA (life member) sells. ╦╦Ç

Steel or copper pans have different uses and can also be used for cooking, drying or cleaning your gold over a fire. Plus, they don't break. I use different pans for different situations, but a good steel pan has many uses in the woods, including digging in these hands and pans areas that are appearing all over California.