Internet Bought Paydirt

[Joeyboots]

I wanted to try my hand at panning and fine gold recovery so I bought some paydirt. Three differnt kinds to be specific. In one all 8lbs yielded me nothing except pyrite. The second had pickers ond fine flour gold in about the first 1/3 of the 2lb bag. Another of the same vendor the exact same. The third one hasnt arrived yet but I have a sample.
My question and point of the post is that the way the gold is in the bags seems suspicious. Its like exactly the 1/3 that has (some pickers flour gold and a copper nugget) and the rest has absolutey nothing in my second vendor. The other bag of same vendor the same results. And the small sample from the third vendor with two pickers then nothing not even nano gold.
For you guys that have worked with this material do you think it is seeded? Are most PayDirt a scam in one way or the other? Is this the way gold comes up so classified? Or in the wild its nuggets, pickers or flour in whatever amounts?
I do plan on getting my own paydirt and these sales are only to refine my technique and identification before I go to the field. Opinions Anyone? BTW no more bought material for me.

 

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[Oakview2]

Salted, most all, rip off if you had a good time, then perhaps it was worth it. Tnet member used to sell dredge cons, all great reviews, gold hog sells dredge cons as well.

Gold Concentrates for Sale

 

[bill-costa rica]

the guys selling pay dirt do it as a business, some are more generous than others. they do need to make a profit. you as a general rule will not get your money back in gold found in the bags. not a scam, just a business.

bill/cr

 

[preshrunkmilk]

In nature I have found nuggets with fine gold before but most of the time the bigger gold will be in one place and the streak will have very degrees of course gold as it get smaller and fizzels out.

That said paydirt that you buy from a company or buisness is for fun and salted to make money.

 

[goldhog]

Guess I’ll “chime in” a bit.

The Paydirt / concentrate business is a strange business, and many consumers don’t understand it. (Until they buy lots of it.) I’ll try and explain a bit.

First… buying paydirt and concentrates should be done for FUN… and is a great way to pass the time in the winter. (As well as test your equipment.)

Also, understand the difference between “PAYDIRT” and “CONCENTRATES”. I will only talk about concentrates.

A large number of companies work down the cons and remove the majority of the gold.

Next, after drying, they measure out the pounds / amount you order and add an “amount of gold” back in. (Often referred to as seeding.)

This ensures you are getting gold, and they are not over loading.

Basically, if you want all “happy customers” it’s the only way to do it.
It’s too risky to “blindly” ship it out.

So, for the most part, you can order over and over and over and get close to the same amount.
It’s really the “smart way” to do it, but to me it seems a bit boring. So... in a way, the consumer has driven the business to become “controlled”.

We do ours a bit different and we STRONGLY state this on our website.
Ours are “mystery cons”. They are pulled from equipment, test panned in the field.
If they rate “B” or higher, they are sellable, below that we do not.
They are dried, or semi-dried, bagged and sold without ever being worked again.
We do not add gold or remove it.

It’s a “gamble”, just like prospecting, but it’s what makes them fun. NO ONE knows what’s inside.
We tell customers that some bags will be “OK”… some good… some great… some crappy…
But… if they want to play the “game” it’s a fun way to do it.

So, besides prospecting on your own, that’s the level of excitement I wanted to have with them.
When customers email us and ask us “how much gold should I expect”… or “can I find more gold than the price I paid”……
I encourage them to buy elsewhere, or at least go back and READ what is so clearly stated on the website.
EBAY customers are the worst I think; most look at the pictures, don’t read the listing, and place bids.

I will make a few notes…

DRY cons have a tendency to settle gold sometimes during shipping.

If you’re not finding black sands… garnets… pyrite… and other natural materials, then you are not buying real concentrates.

If you’re not finding fine gold along with “pickers and small nuggets”… you’re probably not buying real cons.

Buying cons is fun when you have the right mindset, and there’s 14” of snow outside.

Hope that helps.

Doc

 

[Joeyboots]

Thanks for all the responses. My questions were well answered. I have to say yes, I did have fun with the paydirt and it was exciting to pan my first gold.
From the nano gold in one bag, I am trying a blue bowl recovery. Also I think one bag did have a garnet but I have to look it up in a gem book. Working the gold out of these materials was great practice. Gives me a good picture of what will be needed to get as much as possible out of the material and subsequent concentrates. I appreciate all who took the time to answer my questions. Wishing you all a little extra color in your panning.