Is this a diamond I found while panning ?

[GoldMine21]

Is this a diamond ? I found it panning and I am not sure if it is or not as I have never seen one while panning before. I figured it could either be diamond or quartz. Although i have never seen my quartz look like this. I tried to zoom in as much as possible so you can see it better. Thank you !

Its fairly small like a pebble size

 

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[smokeythecat]

Doesn't look like a diamond, looks like iron stained quartz but I could be wrong.

 

[galenrog]

Under zero grams? Really?

In any case, the item pictured is either an iron stained quartz or an amber colored agate. There are other possibilities, but diamond is not one of them. Rocks similar to yours can be found on any gravel bar in western Oregon, where I live, ranging in size from sand to a few pounds.

If you want a better opinion, I would suggest you take it to any lapidary shop, or lapidary club. If diamond is still in the back of your mind, please take to a gemologist or a gem cutter that works with diamonds.

Time for more coffee.

 

[filthylucre59]

Take it to someone that has a diamond tester....a jeweler or a pawn shop....just to test it of course.

 

[Hitndahed]

Nope,,, not a diamond from what was presented here.
Best way to test is to buy yourself a diamond tester.
OR take it to a respectable, trustworthy jeweler.

 

[Eu_citzen]

Likely quartz. Diamondtesters are to be taken with a grain of salt. Get a piece of ruby/sapphire, only diamond will scratch it.

 

[DDancer]

I agree most likely quartz. If you have any carbide tipped drill bits you can see if you can scratch it. I've panned plenty of gemmy rock crystal myself. Let us know

 

[GoldMine21]

I actually bought a diamond tester online and waiting for it to come. Are they not accurate ?

 

[Simon1]

If it was a diamond, I would be rich by now.

 

[DDancer]

Diamond testers test the thermal conductivity of the mineral they are pressed to. Diamond has a very high thermal conductivity, its considered the best, and testers give a good idea of whether your dealing with a diamond candidate or not. Certain artificial diamonds will read good as well but testers are generally used for cut material so I would be ok accepting a test on raw material. Clean your bit up to remove the apparent iron to assure a better test.

I gotta ask where it was in the pan when you found it? Another possible candidate, though I'm not seeing much shape or and fracture patterns, is topaz. Density test and a hardness test would help there.

 

[Eu_citzen]

I actually bought a diamond tester online and waiting for it to come. Are they not accurate ?

Not 100%, as said they are used on cut pieces. I've seen topaz & Quartz read as diamonds during my time in a gemmological lab.
Any professional will most likely take those as a indication with further testing before being 100% sure it's a diamond.

If you couple that diamond tester with Specific Gravity testing & the hardness test you'll be on the safe side.

 

[GoldMine21]

Great advice Thank you !

 

[IAMZIM]

I am thinking also that if it were diamond it would not have ANY iron staining on it. Diamonds are weird little buggers, and wick away water. If they do that, then they cannot really be stained by iron or any other material, moisture is what usually causes staining on minerals. That is why some people describe them as having a "greasey" appearance as one of their attributes. If I am wrong on this, someone please chime in, I again don't claim to be an expert!

 

[ivan salis]

highly unlikely to be a diamond unless your panning in Arkansas near the only diamond bearing area known in the USA * --it is much much more likely to be clear quartz -- very commonly found in gold bearing areas

 

[IAMZIM]

highly unlikely to be a diamond unless your panning in Arkansas near the only diamond bearing area known in the USA * --it is much much more likely to be clear quartz -- very commonly found in gold bearing areas

Actually there are a lot of area's in the U.S. that are diamond bearing. Arkansas is the only place that has a fee area where the public can mine their own diamonds, but many states have diamond bearing areas, and diamonds have been found in many states. Amateur miners in Wyoming have been know to find diamonds when panning for gold. Idaho and Montana both have had large diamonds found. That is only a few of the states that have been known to have diamonds found. There have been some mining companies exploring Wyoming, Montana and Alberta (Canada I know) to see if some of the kimberlite (sp?) pipes they have found would be viable as new diamond mines.

 

[CoinFetcher]

Learn about the scratch test...

 

[PinchedDreamer]

If I may, I'd like to ask a quick side question....
If one didn't have a diamond tester, could a multimeter be used instead. Would a cheap multimeter be better to use than a cheap diamond tester?

 

[The_Piratess]

If I may, I'd like to ask a quick side question....
If one didn't have a diamond tester, could a multimeter be used instead. Would a cheap multimeter be better to use than a cheap diamond tester?

No it would not. Cheap diamond testers are fine especially for use in the field as nobody is trying to pull a fast one on you with moisannite (silicon carbide which is used in synthetic diamonds) as it will test positive on an inexpensive diamond tester due to the similar heat signatures between that and diamonds. It is also a very hard gem like a diamond and can sometimes even fool the trained eye looking at it through a jewelers loupe. The very important thing to remember when using an inexpensive diamond tester is to properly calibrate it first. Directions for doing this come with them and they are pretty straight forward and easy to follow. Plus you will also know that it is working properly before you even use it. You will need a diamond to calibrate it, but it can be a very small one. Hope this helps.

 

[DDancer]

PinchedDreamer diamond testers are not like multimeters. They test for thermal conductivity, of which diamond is very high, where as a multimeter tests for conductivity of electricity, diamond being not so good but its cousin graphene is a wonder.