New to the Hobby, Location Issues

[EtherealCatalyst]

Hello! I'm new to the hobby of gold prospecting and have met two main points of interest which I want to expound upon to see what I can do with them. Namely, these are...

1: I am currently attending university in northeast Missouri, in a region which, according to my (admittedly limited) knowledge of mineral deposition and general geological conditions, is not the most rich in gold or other precious materials. This is okay, as I am also into metalworking and smelting as a hobby, and the broken farm equipment in my general area is more than enough to sate my needs. I also still enjoy the general processes of panning and sluicing, even if the end results are minimal. However, I am interested in knowing if there is anything I can do, such as rudimentary mineral assays of local samples, to potentially learn more about where to pan and sluice in my general area.

2: Due to my interest in metalworking, smithing, and smelting, I am naturally curious about uses for the large quantity of black sand I accumulate over time. I get the feeling that I could smelt it, as the magnetic portions are just finely ground magnetite with impurities, but that requires a bit of investment into some things that my university is slightly wary about me using (as it turns out, smelting as a student brings with it a bunch of legal paperwork). Are there any other functional uses for this slurry that are a bit safer and less likely to turn some legal minded heads my direction? It feels like such a shame to just toss the black sand back...

Thanks for listening! Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

 

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[russau]

Welcome to the site ! Black sand is good for around Rose plants and great for bed rests for target shooters. Also the guys that do sheet metal work like the heavy duty bags for forming metal with their mallets , then further straighten them with a English Wheel or other tools.

 

[Terry Soloman]

Welcome to the forum!

Join a club https://www.showmegoldprospectors.org/ This will help you learn more about the gold in your area, and save you a lot of time and money deciding what gear you need - and don't need! I used to sell black sand to pet stores to be used in fish aquariums.

 

[russau]

Terry , thank you for the plug for our club ! That link page don't have a lot on it . Infact it has never changed ! Im not finding the correct link for the club.....

 

[Clay Diggins]

The club link is down. It used to work but no more.

There is another prospecting club in Missouri.

All the prospecting clubs contacts I know of in the United States are available on the Land Matters -> Library -> Resources -> Prospecting Clubs.

Just type in the State name or abbreviation in the search box to see all the clubs in the State. Or leave the search box blank to see all 121 clubs.

Heavy Pans

 

[okbasspro]

The club link is down. It used to work but no more.

There is another prospecting club in Missouri.

All the prospecting clubs contacts I know of in the United States are available on the Land Matters -> Library -> Resources -> Prospecting Clubs.

Just type in the State name or abbreviation in the search box to see all the clubs in the State. Or leave the search box blank to see all 121 clubs.

Heavy Pans

Clay with all that is available on Landmatters how long before the site just sends me gold and I can just sit in my easy chair. Thank you for all you do for us miners.

 

[Clay Diggins]

Clay with all that is available on Landmatters how long before the site just sends me gold and I can just sit in my easy chair. Thank you for all you do for us miners.

You didn't get your package yet?

You are welcome okbasspro. Thank you for your support!

Heavy Pans

 

[russau]

Clay , Thanks also for the plug on another of our Misery clubs! They are a group of great people and these 2 clubs alternate on activity's and go to each others meetings!

 

[minerrick]

As for uses..... I went with a friend to go visit some friends of his, and once we got to meet them and they found out I was a gold miner, they wanted any black sand I could give them. I asked them why, and apparently they said they were "white" witches and they use the black sand to amplify whatever they use it for. I'm not into that kind of stuff, but for some enterprising person, there may be a undiscovered market for the black sand.