I could use a push in the right direction.

[Rawhide]

The last few years my schedule has opened up due to some old injury's. I started just taking trips into the desert in southern New Mexico and you can guess at what I am finding. While I havent entered any old mines I am finding some slim pickens outside the mines. The hobby hasnt paid for itself and I picked up a few pans to sample dirt I bring home occasionally. Now on other threads Im chasing signs and symbols which lead to more signs and symbols and never put anything in th pan. But slowely after reading and practicing I actually found what I believe to be silver. Its in a red granite/quartz looking vein, very sharp, and the rock is covered with black spots which I believe hold the silver. I am not a hard rock miner. I dont want to mine, just confirm what I have without paying someone to do it for me. That defeats my purpose of looking. Most known deposits are on record but I have stumbled (literally) upon one that isnt listed. I also was shown a spot of crystals that I would truely love to know what they were digging but can come back to that later. I have the ancient workings of some sort of stone device to grind the ore. Why that was left out is beyond me. But a quick sample and I am hard pressed to find much more than fine silver in my pan. Im not even sure its silver. I do believe I found some ore that was hidden and can smash it and pan it. I just dont see to many folks pan silver, so is there a way I can test? I will post pictures of this lesson to better explain myself. I know a bunch of you are still snowed in, its gonna be 80' degrees this weekend. Im working with dime to quarter sized stone. Dirt samples below the workings and the entire site is amazingly very clean. I will have to work directly with the vein.

 

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[russau]

Refering to ones self as a "hobbiest" will only give the wacoenviromentalists ammo to shot back at us and help keep you from being under the 1866/1872 mining laws! calling ones self a "recreational or hobbiest" has already kept us from winning one of the most important lawsuits going and we thought it was a forsure deal untill the presiding judge reveiwd all the written comments and each of the people said they were recreational. we lost because of it!

 

[Lanny in AB]

Perhaps you've found an old arrastra that the Spanish used, or some Old-timer perhaps: Arrastra - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

If you need a little push, why not join a club and sign up for some outings to some claims where the club knows there's some gold. Unless you want to be out on your own. And, if that's the case, I totally understand.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[Goodyguy]

Testing ore for silver content is a little more complicated than determining gold from pyrite.
You may even have found a lead ore instead.

Here is a sure fire way to not only determine if the ore contains silver but also to determine it's purity.




Instructions

• Testing for Silver Ore
  • 1 Gather a test-concentrated portion of the suspected silver ore. A bean-sized sample is ideal to get a visible result from the test. From the ore, you can either chip off a portion of the silver or scrape off the equivalent amount of powder.
  • 2 Collect a sample of chlorine-free water for the silver ore test. Chlorine test strips can be found at home improvement or pool supply stores. Once the water is filtrated and tested free of chlorine, the test can begin.
  • 3 Add 2 cubic centimeters of chlorine-free water to a test tube and 1 cubic centimeter of nitric acid with the specimen collected from the silver ore. Boil this solution until the silver specimen is dissolved.
  • 4 Add a few drops of hydrochloric acid to the dissolved mixture. If silver is present, the solution will turn milky in appearance, which indicates it is a low-quality specimen. If the acid is added and the result is a thick, curdy mass, then it is a high-grade specimen of silver.
    
    Hope this helps.
    If it seems to be more than you are comfortable with then you could always have it assayed at a refiners.
    
    GG~

 

[Goodyguy]

As far as anyone calling their small scale mining venture a hobby is concerned...........

Those of us who have been following the concerted efforts by radical so called environmentalists to end our ability to prospect for and mine precious metals and gems are faced with a semantics dilemma.

Even though this may not be a way of life for you..........
We ask that you please replace the words "hobby" or "recreational" with the words "small scale miner" or "small scale mining"

Fact is, hobbies and or recreation have no protection in court under the 1872 mining laws. We are fighting an uphill battle the way it is without giving the wackos any more ammo to use against us.

There is nothing wrong with having a good time or enjoying small scale mining even though it may not be paying off for you as a second income.

I'm not trying to do anything here but educate and raise the awareness of other small scale miners about what we are up against in court for the good of all of us.

Please, we all need to work together on this and be part of the solution and not part of the problem.


Respectfully,
GG~

 

[Rawhide]

Lanny I plan to do just that. I have found a chapter in El Paso but thats a bit far away. Now the days are a little longer Ill be able to get out more here. GoodGuy, Im not set up for that yet. But that is exactly what I was looking for. Handling of the acids before and after is my main concern. I have already dissolved some gold by accident as I was recycling computer memory sticks. The gold is still there, I just need to complete the process. I am going slow with the chemicals, I have a shed I am able to secure all the stuff I dont want near the house. russau, I am very lucky to live in New Mexico, we have lots of places to look, and I have not met with any problems. I have only been asked to leave once and that was when I was fishing on a water levee and someone called the sheriff. After researching I found the sheriff in error. As we talk about this, they want to turn the Organ mountains and surrounding area into a national monument. Im pretty sure that spells bad news for me. But it is a sign of the times, you either adapt or go away. I like looking and finding, not mining as a second income. Rarely has my hobbies ever paid me back, so I dont put any more into it than I need too. I will honor your request and not call it a hobbist anymore, but thats the wording in BLM rules and regulations. I do see the problem, I am new and just accepting what is being done while you are fighting for what is a not just a right, but a entitlement. I dont get into politics, it leaves me angry and upset.

The test goodguy describes is something easily done. Once I can do it safely I will start slow and small and go from there. I have been using a old coffee pot to heat acid for stripping memory sticks. I have not tried the refinement process yet, and may just sell what I collect at this stage to someone else more suited for refinement. I am not comfortable with some of the acids needed, so will collect some more knowledge on it before I bring stuff like that home. I used to use chemicals for our pool many years ago and some of that stuff will do a number on you.

Talking about hot acid to clean or strip gold. I used to clean cast iron parts like that for a repair shop I worked for. Cant say enough about ventilation and saftey gear. But it works.

 

[Goodyguy]

Excuse me Casca,

I have not seen the words hobby or recreation used in any blm rules and regulations when it comes to mineral prospecting or mining. I have seen the words small scale and casual use used however. Also prospecting is the act of looking for gems and minerals. Mining is when you remove them from their resting place using a tool such as a pick, shovel, sluice, dredge, etc.

Could you please post a link to the blm rule or regulation that includes the words hobby and or recreation at your convenience?
I would greatly appreciate it.

And thank you for your co-operation and understanding of what we are up against.
Also some of us are refusing to look at what is being done in the name of environmentalism as a sign of the times and we refuse to adapt or go away.

We will fight this injustice on every front and will not go quietly into the night. Some things are worth fighting for. In the words of Patrick Henry "Give me liberty or give me death" I also believe that we have an inalienable right to Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. And nothing makes me happier ond more alive than pursuing the rights given to us by the 1872 mining laws to extract valuable minerals from the Earth.


All the best,
GG~

 

[Rawhide]

I will do my best to find a copy of what I am referring too. But it had to do with hunting meteorites. Now your thinking what does that have to do mining and prospecting.

I dont like folks to know my business. Meteorite hunting is perfectly legal on BLM land. So if anyone ask me what Im doing, I am meteorite hunting, those five gallon buckets ....

http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/info/re...ns/national_instruction/2012/IM_2012-182.html

You will see the word recreation at the top. I see New Mexico becoming a red state. We have some very active representitives who are fighting for our rights here. There is a land grab going on right now and it is pushing folks out of the use of a lot of areas. I do understand what you are talking about.

 

[Goodyguy]

I will do my best to find a copy of what I am referring too. But it had to do with hunting meteorites. Now your thinking what does that have to do mining and prospecting.

I dont like folks to know my business. Meteorite hunting is perfectly legal on BLM land. So if anyone ask me what Im doing, I am meteorite hunting, those five gallon buckets ....

http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/info/re...ns/national_instruction/2012/IM_2012-182.html

You will see the word recreation at the top. I see New Mexico becoming a red state. We have some very active representitives who are fighting for our rights here. There is a land grab going on right now and it is pushing folks out of the use of a lot of areas. I do understand what you are talking about.

Just as I thought. The word recreation was only used in reference to meteorite collecting in a recreation area.
However, if you will notice "casual collection" is the term used to differentiate casual collecting from commercial collection. And there is no mention of the word hobby at all. Only the words casual or commercial when it comes to the act of collecting meteorite specimens. An easy mistake to make when you are not mincing or parsing words such as in a court of law.

The term "casual use" is also used in defining whether or not a permit is needed for moving a certain amount of material where mineral mining on a claim is concerned.

Between agenda 21 and the wildlands project along with the other land grabs disguised to promote green technology we are losing ground at an alarming rate to the tune of millions and millions of acres of land that used to be open to the public and are now closed.

If the envirowackos had their way no humans would be allowed to set foot on anything that wasn't paved and they would also be fighting to have that pavement removed as well and would not rest or be happy until the planet was completely rid of all human inhabitation.

Here is a prime example of the mentality of some of the wacko's that we are up against........


GG~

 

[Rawhide]

As always your are correct and entertaining too goodyguy. TY for the help.

 

[Lanny in AB]

Good luck and post every once in a while to let us know how things are going.

All the best,

Lanny

http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/metal-detecting-gold/69-bedrock-gold-mysteries.html

 

[Rawhide]

This is for lanny.

I am unable to dry and weight the gold yet as I loose gold every time I touch it. Some of it is very fine. I need more practice.

 

[Hefty1]

From that notice...

Meteorites do not meet the definition of a mineral resource under the generalmining and mineral laws. Therefore, mining claims cannot be located for meteorites.

This just goes to show all that the Mining Laws are still used.

 

[Goodyguy]

Good Point Hefty