Shine

[Au dave]

went out to the same spot i have hit 4 times previous..cleaned out 2 crevices in the creek and finished off one i started last week. whilst panning down the second zook cleanout the big guy appeared and with the third cleanout the odd shaped flake appeared...maybe that bodes well for the cons i have to run during the week plus i still have a zook cleanout i just dumped into my spare bucket

 

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[Au dave]

cleaned out the spare bucket and picked up 2 more little pickers...this creek is looking better as i slowly move upstream even though im moving away from the mineralised area...its also interesting to see that there is very little black sand in my pans but there is 1/16 to 1/8 sized black gravel that is as heavy as the gold, ive crushed some but no result. I have 3 more crevices to clean there then have to move 50 foot up to the next outcrop....heavy pans all

 

[delnorter]

Good Job Dave, nice nuggets. Is the black gravel magnetic? I'd like to see a picture of the black gravel with a piece of gold among it?

Mike

 

[Au dave]

i will take one for you when i pan my cons down and it isnt magnetic

 

[Au dave]

here you go Mike (delnorter) the last 2 things left in every pan from this spot has been flour/speck/picker gold and this material..its ebony in colour , non magnetic and cubic in shape , when its dry the faces reflect light....any ideas. I class this as my black sand - its usually with the gold and quite often in the base of cracks and crevices.Im gonna keep a sample and ask my local lapidary mob about it later this month

 

[johnedoe]

I would guess it is Hematite. It appears to have traveled some so it looks somewhat naturally tumbled.
Have you tried a neodymium magnet against it? Hematite is pretty non-magnetic by most standards but there are exceptions.

 

[Au dave]

thanks johnedoe thats one that the wife didnt think of looking up...she was researching while i was panning...i will still check with the local mob (100km away) because i want to see what lnfo they have on my area as there seems to be a lack of info on the internet...not many i terested in goat country i guess..in the 1860s it used to take them 2 days to travel what i can now do in 1.5 hr the old road is still traversable and runs next to the new rd - in some places old rd is straighter and smoother...lol

 

[Au dave]

well just finished panning cons from last trip (30/10) grand total 3 pickers, 1 flakey,18 specks and quite a bit of flour. weight .18 g... not bad for a 7 hr dig best result so far heavy pans all

 

[delnorter]

Thanks for the photo Dave. Please keep us posted on the Id of the black rocks. The gold as well.

Mike

 

[Au dave]

i checked them with a neodyium magnet and all but one were non magnetic ..the one that was was only just hanging on...will keep you posted im going to town next fortnight

 

[Au dave]

sorry it took some time but the black rocks are hematite as previously suggested