Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

[alpha105]

Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

Hey....i've been panning, and in my pan im getting small very shiny golden flakes.....but is it gold? It doesnt seem any heavier than the other material, when i pick it up and rub/squeeze it will break into flakes. I can cut it in half with my fingernail. From reading what i have, its not real gold....but i figure ill get a direct answer to my thoughts here. I will also use this "Topic" to put down other questions i may have, so if u see my name please take a look.

 

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[AU Seeker]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

Alpha,

What you are finding is mica.


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[alpha105]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

thats what i was afraid of =P ....thanks for the fast responce!

 

[alpha105]

Question 2!

It seems there are aLOT of little purple clear stones in here....and suggestions as to what they are?

 

[AU Seeker]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

Alpha,

Not know where you are makes it hard to be able determine what you maybe finding in your pan, but from your description I'm almost 99% sure of the mica.

The clear purple stones you are finding are most likely purple quartz A.K.A. amethyst. does the pictures from this link look like what you are finding?

http://www.gemhunters.com.au/uncut_Amethyst


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[alpha105]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

Those pictures are similar.....but about 10000 size the times of what im finding. I'm sure thats what they are, thats what i was thinking as well. Also the concentrates are bought on ebay for practice purposes. Not much up here im afraid..... Planning a trip to Nugget Lake Wisconsin...wish me luck

 

[alpha105]

Question 3

If i wanted to build my own sluice.......what would i have to coat it in so that the wood doesnt degrade over time?

 

[Goldwasher]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

could also be garnet is it round and more purple red than violet? whatever you coat your wood with is gonna wear off but, id use polyeuethane. for the cost you could buy replacement wheelbarrow tup or a trash can or storage rubbermade cut it into pieces and make a sluice thats how i made a flare for my keene.

 

[Bumpstick]

Re: Question 3

If i wanted to build my own sluice.......what would i have to coat it in so that the wood doesnt degrade over time?

Have you seen the post by Astrobouncer Some good picks of some of his home made sluices
http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,310884.0.html

 

[eureka77]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

^^^^.

 

[bigwater]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

The secret to panning is to first find a stream that you know bears gold. You can dig sand out of any stream, but if the stream doesn't bear gold you're wasting your time.

Take a maximum size #4 screen and put it over the top of a five gallon bucket, dig down to rock, and just start washing the bottom sand through the screen. Carefully inspect the gravel that won't pass through the screen before you toss it, because often there will be gold bearing rock or even pure nuggets in the screen.

Once you've got a full bucket of sand, if it's a pretty day and you don't mind splashing around in the creek for a few hours... start panning. Take a pan full of sand and just dunk it repeatedly in the stream. All of the light stuff will wash out immediately... heavier stuff will stay. Keep dunking until dunking doesn't evacuate anything else. Now you start swirling. Depending on your pan, you may have large riffles on one side and small riffles on the other. If you have large riffles start swirling on that side and dumping out the larger debris. Once you get down to the small stuff turn the pan and start swirling on that side and dumping out the smaller debris until you get down to nothing but those lovely golden flakes. It'll be tough to separate the gold from the heavy sand, but the gold will settle in those riffles in the pan as you wash the rest of the debris out. If you're in a hurry because it's a cold day or the wife is expecting you to mow the yard, just take all of the heavy sand home with you and pan it later in a 20 gallon galvanized wash tub fed by a garden hose.

Most days you'll splash around and be lucky to bring home a gram... but other days you'll find those big nuggets that just make the whole hobby worth it.

 

[Astrobouncer]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

Here's some pictures to show how tricky mica can be just based on its first appearance.

However, once you see real gold glinting in a pan you will never get them confused again.

 

[alpha105]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

I still get them confused, i've found both, but as for the small specs that cant be picked up by hand i cant tell at all.....maybe more practice....i really need to find an area...lol....wisconsin is horrible =P

 

[EggyOG]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

You really need to get up to Greenbush for one of our meetings. It is a lot easier to show what to do than it is to explain it on here.

 

[alpha105]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

Hey....eggy, send me an email. I heard about something at nugget lake next month.

 

[Bumpstick]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

Here in Wisconsin I take 2 five gal. buckets, my shorty shovel, a little painters hand held touch up bucket quart size with handle and a magnet glued in it; to rinse with and a 3/16" sifting sieve.
I pick a spot down stream side of a big bolder and fill the five gal. bucket to the top with water.
place screen sieve on top and dig 2 or 3 shovels of material into sieve and shake side to side. Rinse with fresh water several times then inspect whats left for shinny rocks that I take home for the rock polisher.
I just tell curios people I am looking for stones for a rock polisher.
When I get about a half bucket full I take it back to the truck; Bad arm and all can't carry to much.
Head back and get a second fiver of screened material. I am about worn out from digging by then.
Back at home I classify this material through a #30 mesh screen. 5 Gal. bucket filled to top and some dish soap to help any gold fall out. I do a quick look over of the tailing's and save for later.
I then run the classified material through my Desert Fox blue spiral wheel adding some jet dry to the water. I pan what is separated out and snuffer bottle out the good stuff. When you are down to here you have to practice tapping the pan with the swish motion. This will get the goodies to walk up the pan.
I save my black sands for another process. It is tough to get this flower gold we have here to separate but it can be done. When I clean up the spiral wheel in the sun I can see the light mica glitter at the bottom of the box.
I have yet to find a nugget in Wisconsin so that is why I skip using 1/4" mesh screen at the creek.
I scan my 3/16" screenings for pretty rocks and stuff them in my pockets when I find them. When I find some nice chunks of quartz I toss them in the bucket to inspect at home and ready for the crusher.
That is another angle I have been working and will get with you on that. Here is a pick of the hand rock crusher I made if it posts.

 

[greydigger]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

OK this might be a place for this question.
What is a "Poop tube"?
Prospecting related.

 

[Bumpstick]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

OK this might be a place for this question.
What is a "Poop tube"?
Prospecting related.

It is a corrugated plastic drain pipe; You can buy a piece at Home Depot in the garden section.

http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,117680.0.html

 

[greydigger]

Re: Help a Newb....They need a course "Gold panning 101" on here

Thanks Bumpstick.
I just threw away the chunk that I had for another project.
Well, I know where to buy more.

Grey