Gold Ore

[southfork]

A little sample that was found with a metal detector. Crushed by hand then panned to wash away some of the dirt and clay? The photo is macro so real small particles, but the quartz shows and what looks like iron and free gold. I think we need a small smelter to retrieve the values trying to speed up the recovery what's your thoughts ?

 

[Clay Diggins]

Maybe too much moisture in the cupel.

Bingo!

Are you using bone ash or calmix cupels?

For bone ash I have always preheated the cupel when I start up the furnace. Pull it before it gets much above 800 F and let it cool a little near the furnace before you use it.

Calmix doesn't require drying but costs more. It's also a lot softer than bone ash when at temperature so easier to break.

I don't have much experience with magnesia cupels. They also need to be dried before use. I think those are all made in China now?

Cupels are less than a buck apiece in volume. I never saw any sense in reusing them and risking contamination. If you can get more than one smelt from them more power to you.

Heavy Pans

 

[southfork]

Bingo!

Are you using bone ash or calmix cupels?

For bone ash I have always preheated the cupel when I start up the furnace. Pull it before it gets much above 800 F and let it cool a little near the furnace before you use it.

Calmix doesn't require drying but costs more. It's also a lot softer than bone ash when at temperature so easier to break.

I don't have much experience with magnesia cupels. They also need to be dried before use. I think those are all made in China now?

Cupels are less than a buck apiece in volume. I never saw any sense in reusing them and risking contamination. If you can get more than one smelt from them more power to you.

Heavy Pans

Advertised as bone ash I preheat also normally melt a little borax then load and place back in furnace, Yesterday I lifted out of furnace with tongs to add more flux maybe I squeezed too hard when hot.

 

[southfork]

I smelted/ melted my failed attempt ran all the slag using a new cupel. Preheated then added borax and the gold/slag that ran through the crack's success. I have a nice button 17.5 grams seems like all the rocks off the new pile have small amounts of gold. We have been milling test batches and doing better than shoveling all day on the river.

 

[southfork]

My son ran a sandwich baggie of hot rocks off the old pile though the crusher. Washed through the #30 screen and panned the fines are still waiting in the blue bowl the pump died new one on the way. But nice clean gold so far 8 grams on top of the 30-mesh screen. It will pay for the slightly used Nox he just bought the old one had a short every time you bumped something it sounded off. Seth is on the way down the hill to test new machine.

 

[Tesorodeoro]

My son ran a sandwich baggie of hot rocks off the old pile though the crusher. Washed through the #30 screen and panned the fines are still waiting in the blue bowl the pump died new one on the way. But nice clean gold so far 8 grams on top of the 30-mesh screen. It will pay for the slightly used Nox he just bought the old one had a short every time you bumped something it sounded off. Seth is on the way down the hill to test new machine.

Usually the false signals when bumped is just a bad coil in my experience. Annoying as can be.

 

[southfork]

Usually the false signals when bumped is just a bad coil in my experience. Annoying as can be.

switched coils cords still the same spare parts now.

 

[southfork]

My son Seth bought a slightly used NOX 800 to replace one with a short. Seth ran a test on it last night for an hour on mine tailings $400 bucks for the detector might have paid for itself first hour. Crushed four or five little bits he found last night not weighed yet but looks healthy.

 

[Tesorodeoro]

My son Seth bought a slightly used NOX 800 to replace one with a short. Seth ran a test on it last night for an hour on mine tailings $400 bucks for the detector might have paid for itself first hour. Crushed four or five little bits he found last night not weighed yet but looks healthy.

Good deal!

 

[southfork]

I made it down to the diggings today on my quad a lot of low hanging branches and brush. A couple of spots where you lift a wheel or two off the ground slow and easy no problem for me. The spot my son and a friend were working looked like the remains of an old ore shoot rake and detect my son had six little pieces with gold showing. His friend was working the bottom of a ravine/ seasonal drainage with his detector and showed me a few placer pickers after a short hunt. My son gave me some lessons on the NOX and I managed to find a little bit with gold showing. I like the milling and smelting part the digging and raking part is too much work. I split a few rocks and hauled some big samples up to crush my son has a pile waiting for me to haul up. Forgot my camera so no boring photos of gold ore.

 

[desertgolddigger]

Question? You crush your rocks. I looked at a drum type which comes in two sizes with 2.5 and 3 inch feed openings. Just how do you deal with rock larger than your crusher opening? I've tried breaking rocks with a sledge hammer, and the experience nearly broke me. :-)

 

[southfork]

Question? You crush your rocks. I looked at a drum type which comes in two sizes with 2.5 and 3 inch feed openings. Just how do you deal with rock larger than your crusher opening? I've tried breaking rocks with a sledge hammer, and the experience nearly broke me. :-)

We use the sledge also place rock on top of a thick steel plate in a wheelbarrow tub to catch the pieces. Then they go into the chain mill I wish we had a jaw crusher to deal with the big pieces. Half the size of the feed opening seems to work good to big and it will jam. We feed slow and let run until it's all dust and fine sand Hard rock mining is hard work

 

[desertgolddigger]

We use the sledge also place rock on top of a thick steel plate in a wheelbarrow tub to catch the pieces. Then they go into the chain mill I wish we had a jaw crusher to deal with the big pieces. Half the size of the feed opening seems to work good to big and it will jam. We feed slow and let run until it's all dust and fine sand Hard rock mining is hard work

Thanks, I'm starting to burn out Placer mining, and maybe I need to explore the possibility of doing what you're doing, going through the Old Timers tailings. The big problem is the initial investment.

 

[southfork]

My son crushed his finds from yesterday another great day for Seth and his friends. I'm falling behind on my part because of other never-ending projects but I stop long enough to crush and wash rocks for my gold fix.

 

[desertgolddigger]

My son crushed his finds from yesterday another great day for Seth and his friends. I'm falling behind on my part because of other never-ending projects but I stop long enough to crush and wash rocks for my gold fix.

Fantastic!! Glad you have help. I know about having that gold fix. You're fortunate to live so close to a mine. Do you own the mine? I would go everyday if I lived closer. Gas is way too expensive right now. I really need to learn just what is needed to do what you're doing. I keep thinking what you're doing is the smarter way to go, over Placer mining.

 

[southfork]

Fantastic!! Glad you have help. I know about having that gold fix. You're fortunate to live so close to a mine. Do you own the mine? I would go everyday if I lived closer. Gas is way too expensive right now. I really need to learn just what is needed to do what you're doing. I keep thinking what you're doing is the smarter way to go, over Placer mining.

We don't own the mine from yesterday its public land / BLM

 

[ConceptualizedNetherlandr]

We don't own the mine from yesterday its public land / BLM

then we all own it, right?

 

[Tesorodeoro]

then we all own it, right?

Possibly. Just have to find the mine then take the risk of stepping in between a miner and their mine.

 

[southfork]

Back to crushing rocks after the sun comes up, I've had a run of breakdowns in our mini mill. First the ribbed mat in my sluice came unglued repaired and operational then the pump in the blue bowl died ordered new pump. Then yesterday one of the chains in mill gave up the ghost repaired but out of balance lots of vibration. I'll run a bucket of rocks today to see if it will mellow out, I have some ore to smelt for a change of pace and a gold fix Happy mining.

 

[desertgolddigger]

Back to crushing rocks after the sun comes up, I've had a run of breakdowns in our mini mill. First the ribbed mat in my sluice came unglued repaired and operational then the pump in the blue bowl died ordered new pump. Then yesterday one of the chains in mill gave up the ghost repaired but out of balance lots of vibration. I'll run a bucket of rocks today to see if it will mellow out, I have some ore to smelt for a change of pace and a gold fix Happy mining.

At least it's all happening at once. When you get things fixed, you hopefully will be good for a few months.

I imagine that working with rock to extract its god, is really hard on any equipment.

Enjoy this thread. It's inspiring me, but M-O-N-E-Y is in short supply at this house. Maybe I should at least dig in the O-T tailing piles to see if they left anything. That way, if nothing found, I haven't spent that scarce resource for nothing

 

[southfork]

At least it's all happening at once. When you get things fixed, you hopefully will be good for a few months.

I imagine that working with rock to extract its god, is really hard on any equipment.

Enjoy this thread. It's inspiring me, but M-O-N-E-Y is in short supply at this house. Maybe I should at least dig in the O-T tailing piles to see if they left anything. That way, if nothing found, I haven't spent that scarce resource for nothing

All you need to do a little rock testing is a steel mortar and pestle gold pan and water. I have a T-post pounder I turn upside down and a blunt digging bar to pound the rocks to dust. Ok on little samples but I don't last long lol. We test samples all the time to see where the gold is hiding splitting giant black oak rounds for firewood and rocks for gold.
Finding small amounts of micro gold.