Gold dust found how would you proceed?

[arthos]

Grabbed a couple pieces of nice looking quarts out side a old mine portal on unclaimed FS managed land, forest service has collapsed the portal leaving only a 10" corrugated black pvc pipe with a steel grate bolted on the interior. Later at home i washed and scrubbed the grab sample in a gold pan and found some gold dust had washed off or out of the vugy quartz. Now the material that washed off the 2 baseball size chunks was probably a table spoon or less. But the gold is so fine I'm not sure how to proceed. So fine it would get blown out of a drywasher and the mine is up on a steep hill side with no trail, making carrying bags/buckets of dirt both exhausting and dangerous.

How would yall proceed?



Fine Gold dust with some wire strands from the brush I scrubbed with.

 

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[IMAUDIGGER]

I'd crush and pan out the quartz to start with.

 

[Clay Diggins]

Crush and pan.

Heavy Pans

 

[Bodfish Mike]

I agree crush and pan out the quartz to start with -- however don't count out the Drywasher as mine catches gold that fine.
Washing and scrubbed the rocks on site might be an option - carry in a big and small pan and a few Gatorade bottles full of water to test.
If it's a high bench with lots of workable material I would hike in the Drywasher.
Cheers Mike

 

[Reed Lukens]

I'd look up the mines history on Welcome to Land Matters just because... You might be able to find the original name of the mine, it's history, and maybe even the amount of gold produced if you follow the leads. 3 of the old mines that I used to get lots of gold from ended up like this thanks to the forest circus in that state also... I had made a complete movie on it and when I came out, the camera died, taking all of the footage with it. So we went down a couple months later to remake the video and found all of the portals collapsed with the grate stuck in so only the bats and rats could get in. One of them was beautiful, with exposed gold in the quartz, and the tunnel wound back inside the mountain to where you could hear the backside of the waterfall that was on the outside 100 feet from the opening. I raised my kids in those safe old mines, just like I was.
You're not going to get much gold out of that quartz, so I would toss it in the yard unless you really want the gold out of it or it looks like this
http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/members/51084-albums2895-picture1336765.html

 

[arthos]

I'd look up the mines history on Welcome to Land Matters just because... You might be able to find the original name of the mine, it's history, and maybe even the amount of gold produced if you follow the leads. 3 of the old mines that I used to get lots of gold from ended up like this thanks to the forest circus in that state also... I had made a complete movie on it and when I came out, the camera died, taking all of the footage with it. So we went down a couple months later to remake the video and found all of the portals collapsed with the grate stuck in so only the bats and rats could get in. One of them was beautiful, with exposed gold in the quartz, and the tunnel wound back inside the mountain to where you could hear the backside of the waterfall that was on the outside 100 feet from the opening. I raised my kids in those safe old mines, just like I was.
You're not going to get much gold out of that quartz, so I would toss it in the yard unless you really want the gold out of it or it looks like this
http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/members/51084-albums2895-picture1336765.html

Well I'm not expecting a bonanza ore like the glorious stuff you linked! But I wouldn't turn down a pile of golden dust either if I could get it! The only reason I'm even asking is because it seems to me a fair amount of gold for a table spoon of dirt washed off a couple small rocks.

I did look up the MRDS records, i use plural because there are 2 records quite close together. The CALIF. JOUR. MINES AND GEOL.. report wasn't to helpful, the mine looks to have been primarily scheelite with gold listed as other commodity, or other record number indicated galena. But the mine dump is pretty small I don't expect it was more than 75 feet of tunnel anyway.

 

[arthos]

I agree crush and pan out the quartz to start with -- however don't count out the Drywasher as mine catches gold that fine.
Washing and scrubbed the rocks on site might be an option - carry in a big and small pan and a few Gatorade bottles full of water to test.
If it's a high bench with lots of workable material I would hike in the Drywasher.
Cheers Mike

I'll definitely have to give it a try when things dry out again. Thanks.

 

[IMAUDIGGER]

You're not going to get much gold out of that quartz, so I would toss it in the yard unless you really want the gold out of it or it looks like this
http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/members/51084-albums2895-picture1336765.html

I realize that was tongue in cheek..but I've found you really can't tell what's in a rock till you crush and pan. I've seen some bland looking rock produce a nice string in the pan..then some really mineralized rock has nothing in it.

 

[firebird]

Have you seen how powerful cordless angle grinders are these days? Just saying...

 

[DizzyDigger]

Arthos, you might want to get in touch with Gold Tramp, as
he's been mining that kind of stuff for years. If there are
good recovery methods, he knows 'em.

 

[arthos]

Have you seen how powerful cordless angle grinders are these days? Just saying...

I saw someone make a small chain mill out of one. But as for opening up that portal the pipe is only like 10 or 12", a couple inches to tight of a squeeze. But shoot for gold as good as Reed Lukens linked I'd dig vertical connecting shaft with my bare fingers. lol

 

[Reed Lukens]

If you don't have a mortar and pestle, you should get one because you can throw it in a pack and crush the gold out and pan on the spot instead of carrying it home.

 

[Johnnybravo300]

Hike the proper tools in and stash them close by under camo where no one would find them.
Stake a claim of it's something good but if theres no one around probably no rush.
Do some dry pans and fill big bags of black sand cons. Carry those big bags in a rucksack down to water and pan it all slowly.
Eventually you'll probably want the dry washer so just hump it up in trips and then stash it all somewhere for future work. Is that possible?

I have a prospect with a campsite and tools stashed there.
I will usually bring my sleeping bag and trash back out but I can get water there so makes it easy. It's also very remote and cut off from people. I dont think anyone would find my stuff for 100 years.
Being cut off from people is key to feeling safe leaving tools. For me it's just not possible to carry it all everytime and I need to camp there anyway with a little hike in.
I have my stuff in dry bags, rolled up in the tent, rolled up in a tarp and camouflaged in bushes.
I leave some clothes, rubber boots, jet boil, san angelo bar, shovel, pick, sluice, gloves, pans and classifier, buckets, canned goods, most everything.
Some things i dont leave there. I take my sleeping bag so I know its dry. Take my trash so bears dont shred my tent. Dirty clothes, coffee stuff and honey, loupe. I keep my fire kit and first aid stuff with me. Also water filter/life straw.

 

[Johnnybravo300]

Also I always have a dog with me so dont leave dog food stuff. Bears really love dog food!

 

[arthos]

So took the crushing advice. Crushed about a 20 oz. sample. Here are the results; anyone good at estimating grams per ton?




This location is not remote in there is a frequently traveled 4wd road not far off. Some placer claims a couple pls subdivisions away. Wouldnt stach gear there.

 

[IMAUDIGGER]

That gold is extremely fine for having come from crushed rock. Unless you took extraordinary effort crushing it...to see such fine and evenly graded gold liberated from quartz without having any partially attached to quartz...it’s odd from my perspective.

Your going to have to do some more investigation to determine if the gold is coming from the quartz, or the soil it has been laying in. You got fine gold washing the sample...I’m thinking it may be in the soil. Still very fine gold.

Maybe some hard rock experts out there will contribute.

Definitely more sampling and testing warranted.

 

[arthos]

That gold is extremely fine for having come from crushed rock. Unless you took extraordinary...

That was panned out of the -40 mesh classification.
The rock is pretty clean. Here is what it looks like. Not really extraordinary tbh.

I just panned the -20 and got nothing.🤔