M-3 GoldenIrishmans Monsoon Mining Thread

[Jeff95531]

ummmmmm...HELLO? A little more NOTICE next time you want me to go on one of your wildass adventures please.

 

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[goldenIrishman]

Well I didn't get the word until it was to late to fuel up the Saturn 5 to get up there. I'll check the orbital path and see when it is supposed to come back through.

 

[goldenIrishman]

Work on the new sluice is progressing slowly. I managed to find the adjustable feet and get them installed this morning and yesterday I made up a pair of 2" siphon tubes so I could increase the amount of water in the system to a full 55Gal. Still need the new 4000GPH pump for the system as well as some hose to fit the pump. I'm considering mounting a spirit level on the stand to make setups quicker but that will have to wait until I get my stuff picked up from down in Douglas on the 3rd.

Progress on the mobile setup has also been slow and now it's looking like it's going to be sometime next week before we can move in. We both sick and tired of having to wash clothes at the laundrymat and not having any counter space to cook a decent meal. Inspector was here today and signed off on the underground stuff so now the crews can get back to it.

 

[goldenIrishman]

Well today is shot bit not a total waste of time. Jan had to go to Prescott to file her paperwork for an internship with them to finish up her masters degree. We took the scenic route through Wikiup, Bagdad, Kirkland, Skull Valley and then into Prescott. Very cool drive as we were able to see lots of geology in action. Saw some areas that will require some research into so I will know if they are worth prospecting.

 

[Sample Pan Dan]

Beautiful area. Grew up hunting around there.

 

[goldenIrishman]

Oh I agree Dan! Beautiful country and a really wide selection of terrains. I was looking at the road cuts and drooling in many places. Everything from Alluvial to solid bedrock depending on the elevation we happened to be at. Saw a LOT of washes that almost screamed "TEST HERE YOU FOOL", but we didn't have time to stop today. (...and Jan didn't let me bring my pans.)

On the way back we took the northern route up to I-40 West and then turned off onto Route 66 in Seligman. Up to Peach Springs, through Valentine and back to Kingman. More beautiful country along that route but not as many areas that were talking to me. (Ya'll remember that I do hear voices from time to time don't ya?) The rest of this week is going to be spent working around the new homestead, getting it all finished up and then moving in at long last. We're getting cabin fever in this 5th wheel to say the very least. Still... It beats my tent even if it is 10 X 20 ft.

 

[goldenIrishman]

Bullets and Shot and Shards... OH MY!!!!

Well I managed to get over to an area that is about 2-1/2 miles (by crow) from the house to get some test samples yesterday. When I got back from grabbing a couple of quick buckets I ran one of them right away through the trusty old Hemlock drop riffle box. The samples were taken at the beginning of two flat sections of a small wash that had plenty of rocks built up in it. This section is free of claims, but the adjoining section each have several lode claims located in them.

Because it was easy to tell the this area had been used for target shooting for a long time I expected to find some lead in the samples. As I was digging I found a couple of .45 cal slugs in the 1/4" classifier and the area is littered with old shotgun shells and brass for various calibers of guns. A MAJOR cleanup will be required if I decide to file on this area. Besides the shells and brass there are a lot of improvised targets, broken glass bottles etc that will have to go. I refuse to work in an area with so much trash.

Anyway... I ran the first bucket through the drop riffle box and while I was doing so I noticed right away that there were some large lead shards stuck in the upper ribbed mat. Not complete bullets or pieces of shot mind you, but those mangled looking shards where it was easy to tell they had hit rocks and splattered all over. When I had finished feeding the first bucket through the box I cleaned it out and started panning the cons down. TONS of magnetic black sand which were removed via my magnet and almost a 1/4 oz of lead shards came out of that single bucket. I have NEVER seen so much lead in a single bucket of materials. The lead made it hard to spot any pieces of that yellow stuff that we all enjoy hunting but there were a few small pieces and some flour in the pan as well. I'll go ahead and run the second sample today and see if the results are the same. If they are, I'm going to be hard pressed to justify filing on this area. It's going to be a real mess getting all of the lead out and using a detector to locate gold is pretty much out of the question.

Some of you will be wondering why I used the old box to run the sample instead of the new Le` Trap system. Well I don't have the new pump yet so the new system would have to be run at a much steeper angle than would be good. Once I get the new 4000 gph pump and get it installed I'll be retiring the old Hemlock box that has served me so well over the last couple of years and switching to the new system. The pump for the new system will be ordered at the first of the month and I expect to have it all finished up by the middle of the month. Then the gold in the hills around N.W. Arid-Zona had better watch out, Cause I'll be coming for you!

 

[goldenIrishman]

Possible Dilema here?

As I was panning down the second sample I took from the location close to the house, I had a sudden thought. Since there is so much lead in the area it stands to reason that there is going to be copper from jacketed bullets as well. I may be getting ahead of myself here but I started worrying about fine pieces of copper getting caught up while I'm amalgamating the flour gold out of the cons.

I know that I can remove the mercury by retorting the amalgam with no problem but how should I go about getting the copper out of the sponge? I know that Mercury will amalgamate with both metals and that there's is bound to be some copper in the materials from this location. I can keep the amalgam produced from this area separated from all the other materials with no problem so as not to contaminate everything else. I'm not up on smelting and don't have the equipment (yet) to do it any way.

Any ideas on how to go about removing the copper that's cheap and effective?

 

[KevinInColorado]

M-3 GoldenIrishman's Monsoon Mining Thread

Hydrochloric acid (pool acid, muratic acid, brick cleaner) will dissolve the copper and leave the gold intact. Bubbling air thru the acid will make it work faster. Even so, plan a week or two for all the copper to dissolve.

The resulting green liquid is toxic to some water creatures. Instead of dumping it, remove the gold(a coffee filter works well for this) then put a piece of rust free iron in the solution. The copper will precipitate out as a sediment and the fluid will change from green/black to rusty. This you can dump down the drain without guilt. However I suggest adding baking soda first so the acid doesn't eat your pipes.

Also eye protection throughout of course since eyes don't grow back

Disclaimer: don't use acid without proper training and don't be an idiot

 

[goldenIrishman]

Hydrochloric acid (pool acid, muratic acid, brick cleaner) will dissolve the copper and leave the gold intact. Bubbling air thru the acid will make it work faster. Even so, plan a week or two for all the copper to dissolve.

The resulting green liquid is toxic to some water creatures. Instead of dumping it, remove the gold(a coffee filter works well for this) then put a piece of rust free iron in the solution. The copper will precipitate out as a sediment and the fluid will change from green/black to rusty. This you can dump down the drain without guilt. However I suggest adding baking soda first so the acid doesn't eat your pipes.

Also eye protection throughout of course since eyes don't grow back

Disclaimer: don't use acid without proper training and don't be an idiot

Ok sounds good Kev. Silly me for not remembering that gold is a noble metal that most acids won't effect. I must be going brain dead from the heat here.

Don't worry about me not doing it right. Full lab protective gear is the only way I'll do something like this. I spent too much time working in an industrial lab to not take the proper precautions. I ALWAYS treat acids and caustic alkali materials with mucho respect!!!!

As far as the air bubbling goes, do you think an aquarium air stone and pump would do the job without the air stone disintegrating?

 

[KevinInColorado]

Yes I think an air stone is likely to work...can't hurt to try that.

...and I recall your background in lab work...my comment is for the other 200 people who will read this thread ;-)

 

[Nitric]

Yes I think an air stone is likely to work...can't hurt to try that.

...and I recall your background in lab work...my comment is for the other 200 people who will read this thread ;-)

Kevin will heat speed it up also? It's been awhile, but I do remember some reactions happen faster with heat.

 

[KevinInColorado]

Kevin will heat speed it up also? It's been awhile, but I do remember some reactions happen faster with heat.

It should but I've never tried that myself.

 

[goldenIrishman]

Add heat to it? Here in the desert? That is one thing I won't have to do. hot enough here already!!! Heating any acid is usually not good outside of a full lab with proper vent hoods. Too many extra fumes are generated and since the "Lab" will be in a 10 X 12 shed that's not a real good idea.

 

[Hard Prospector]

Jeff, having a great time reading about your journey these past several months. Drove through Gold Valley recently and the place has a good feel to it (seems like a good place for a miner to sink roots). Good luck sampling and I hope you find your pile....Rob

 

[goldenIrishman]

Thanks Rob. Next time you're in this area let me know man! Stop on by and we can do out part to deplete the Guinness population of the world. Really glad you're enjoying the adventure. I try to keep my posts humorous but informative. Golden Valley is a nice place. Cooler than down by the river by a long shot and lot of areas that are very high in mineralization. Plenty of areas to go out detecting in as well.

 

[Hard Prospector]

The wife and I occasionally go to Laughlin for some adult time away from the kids. Having only so much "casino endurance" I gotta get out for a break and will often drive around the desert and mountains exploring the area (my wife's idea of of adventure is going into a new casino....whatever). Anyways a Guinness sounds great and thanks for the invite Jeff. BTW, it must have been 10 degrees hotter by the river compared to your town.

 

[goldenIrishman]

Got that right Rob. Bullhead is usually 10-12 degrees hotter than here. It's also got a lot more bugs at night!!!! Here we can sit out and enjoy the cool night air without having to fear being carried away by the smaller skeeters so the big ones can't drain us dry in place.

There are a few places near Union pass that I've been researching terrain, history, current claims and geology all look good. Only problem I see is in accessing these areas. Checked out one area near Secret Pass and found out it is a wilderness area now. We can work it but can't stake a claim.

We're located on the east side of the valley, just below Coyote Pass (lots of passes around here it seems) that goes over to Kingman.

 

[Hefty1]

Ya know GI, the thing I remember the most taking that route to Laughlin was that their was nothing built on that route, but now it looks like it has turned into some kind of Metro. And on the south side of 68, more towards Laughlin was a high rocky range. And in that range was huge rocks in the shape of someone flippin ya the bird. Almost perfect shape.

 

[Nitric]

I've been reading your thread a little at a time. I finally made it the whole way through! Thanks for taking us along on your adventures!! Sounds like way too much fun! Can't wait to hear more!