Placer Claim Mined Out?

[desertgolddigger]

I belong to a local club that owns a claim. This club has had this claim for many years, and acquired it after the old timers had mined it previously, and others after they commercial outfits closed up.
I walked quite a bit of the 160 acre claim, and noted that just about every wash had been worked. Most of the surface nuggets has also been detected by those with gold detectors. In other words, this place has been picked over and over and over.
But I m a stubborn type of person, and I figured, just watching how people ram their puffer and blower drywashers, that some gold was just being blown through them. maybe not much, but some small stuff that never got a chance to settle behind the riffles.
I know many of you would never go to the effort of digging for three to four hours through the tailings in these washes. Again, I'm a bit stubborn, and anyway, I just wanted to have some fun locally, instead of driving 300 miles roundtrip to something that gives a little more for less effort.
I've spent the last three weeks, digging a few times a week along about 30 yards of wash, and have recovered just about a gram of gold. That might not seem like much, but I have only dug up 5 grams, not counting this one gram in almost 20 years out here drywashing in the desert of southern California.
As you would know, things always seem to go wrong. My gas powered blower motor decided it was time for the repair shop, and haven't heard from the shop in two weeks. So I purchased a WORX WG521 corded electric leaf blower to use with my Royal Large drywasher. I'm using a portable generator to provide the power. And it actually is working better than with my old gas powered blower. I have to run the blower on the lowest speed, or I just blow everything through the riffles. Results are very good, as I am getting gold specks so small that I will have to use the Blue bowl in order to recover them.
I'm not only getting a little gold, I'm having some fun, and I am getting a good workout. I've lost 10 pounds since I started. So things are going well.
I'm still digging test holes around the old time hard rock mines in the hope I will find where the gold has drifted downhill below these mines. So far just a couple specks here and there. I figure I just have to move laterally one way or the other before I get something better Of course, I' don't really know if the old timers stripped the hillsides. Even if they have, they apparently aren't as thorough as I am. I hope that I may be lucky and find a larger piece of gold that the old timers, previous placer miners, and detectorists have missed.
Hope everyone is having as much fun as I have been having.

 

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[Assembler]

Great find! I wonder if that aluminum cone can be welded to the base steel plate. I envisioned my local welder taking then steel plate, and adding something on the outside he could easily bend into a circle. Add that cone, and you have the trap area for grinding. Add material and water, and start the motor. Of course my welder would also need to cut a nice central hole for the shaft, and then add a bearing for the shaft.

I.ve various diameters steel round stock that are 12 inches long that might work, though a foot might be too short.

The project is fun thinking and planning, but not sure if it is cost effective. Of course, my shaker table ended up costing me about 2K, most of the materials I thought would work being useless. I chalk the mistake purchases to being inexperienced.

One should be able to drill and tap holes around the edge if thick enough to pull the two parts together. That is both the aluminum to the steel bottom wear plate with a center cone to keep the materials where you what them.

 

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[desertgolddigger]

I've thought on this for a few days, and decided, while an interesting project, I won't pursue it. Cost for just the steel bottom plate is $600, and the high torque, slow motor, about the same.

I'll stick with my mini cement mixer ball mill.

Any other project will have to wait until cooler weather comes. My just doing my landscaping project, and running a little material through the mill and sifters is taking a toll on me. I just can't handle the 90F something temperature around 9AM. I'll just concentrate on finishing up milling, sifting and sluicing my material from the club claim. So far that's producing oodles of super fine gold. That'll keep me busy for a month or so.

 

[Assembler]

I've thought on this for a few days, and decided, while an interesting project, I won't pursue it. Cost for just the steel bottom plate is $600, and the high torque, slow motor, about the same.

I'll stick with my mini cement mixer ball mill.

Any other project will have to wait until cooler weather comes. My just doing my landscaping project, and running a little material through the mill and sifters is taking a toll on me. I just can't handle the 90F something temperature around 9AM. I'll just concentrate on finishing up milling, sifting and sluicing my material from the club claim. So far that's producing oodles of super fine gold. That'll keep me busy for a month or so.

You have a good point about the cost in general. With that being said how about what some others do out side of the U.S.A. say using wood with metal on top with sheet metal cones as the material deflectors to really keep the costs down?
The wood with metal setup is not designed to last a long time in general however still can get the job done.

 

[russau]

$$$$$$$$$$ is a killer to a DIY project ! I've been in several project's myself that I stopped on because of it and or found a cheaper / EZ'er way to do it ! I'm doing a small project that this just happened and I'm kicking myself right now for NOT going this new /cheaper /EZer way in the first place !

 

[Assembler]

How about buying second hand exercise weights such as 40 - 100 weights that are steel and have a 1" shaft hole in the center as the core parts of the wet pan?
Use thick wood for the bottom with sheet metal covering the bottom with some sheet metal cones to divert the materials to the working bottom of the wet pan.

 

[Jim in Idaho]

Here's a thought, people. How about a mini sandblaster that blasts the material against a hardened steel plate to break it into tiny pieces? Could rerun it as many times as you want until arriving at the desired size. All it would require is a small and sandblast nozzle. Size the nozzle for the material to reduce the amount of air needed. Would be too expensive for a large operation, but might work for a smaller outfit.
Jim

 

[Assembler]

Here's a thought, people. How about a mini sandblaster that blasts the material against a hardened steel plate to break it into tiny pieces? Could rerun it as many times as you want until arriving at the desired size. All it would require is a small and sandblast nozzle. Size the nozzle for the material to reduce the amount of air needed. Would be too expensive for a large operation, but might work for a smaller outfit.
Jim

Good idea. Some may not like the noise and amount of dust. If the system is mostly self contained will help a lot.

 

[Jim in Idaho]

Could attach a vacuum to handle any dust.
Jim

 

[ConceptualizedNetherlandr]

The idea was broached years ago on this very site. Blast it horizontally into a hole in a pipe or box tube. Cap the top and flood the bottom in water. Like a barely filled pail so it doesn't spray around. The problem turns out you have to scrape the gold off the wall, so you need to make your device open-able.

 

[desertgolddigger]

Finished with milling and sifting of my material from the club claim old timers waste pile. I worked about 900 pounds of the dirt/pea gravel material.

After five buckets of sluicing 120 mesh minus material, I came up with a gold/mercury amalgam ball of 2.2 grams. Since most of the gold is 500 minus mesh, I'm assuming there's more mercury than gold. I am guessing then gold content at about 40 percent. that gives me 8/10ths of a gram of gold in 275 pounds of that material. Would that be considered good return for the effort? I'm guess monetary value at around $30, as I don't know the purity of such fine gold.

 

[ConceptualizedNetherlandr]

Finished with milling and sifting of my material from the club claim old timers waste pile. I worked about 900 pounds of the dirt/pea gravel material.

After five buckets of sluicing 120 mesh minus material, I came up with a gold/mercury amalgam ball of 2.2 grams. Since most of the gold is 500 minus mesh, I'm assuming there's more mercury than gold. I am guessing then gold content at about 40 percent. that gives me 8/10ths of a gram of gold in 275 pounds of that material. Would that be considered good return for the effort? I'm guess monetary value at around $30, as I don't know the purity of such fine gold.

Perhaps weigh your merc before the adventures?

 

[desertgolddigger]

Perhaps weigh your merc before the adventures?

I've tried that, and found my scales never give me the same reading twice. I basically have to accumulate quite a lot of the gold, then suck out all the mercury I can with a plastic squeeze pipette. before weighing.

I just am guesstimating things, but won't know until the fall, when the temperatures cool down, and I can take my retort, and other stuff out into the desert to see what I have. I don't want to retort in the area where I live (residential).

I figure the club claim in an area devoid of anything other than rock and sand should be safe. Right now I have almost 20 grams of gold/mercury amalgam. Hope I can manage a few more grams by October.

 

[ConceptualizedNetherlandr]

I've tried that, and found my scales never give me the same reading twice. I basically have to accumulate quite a lot of the gold, then suck out all the mercury I can with a plastic squeeze pipette. before weighing.

I just am guesstimating things, but won't know until the fall, when the temperatures cool down, and I can take my retort, and other stuff out into the desert to see what I have. I don't want to retort in the area where I live (residential).

I figure the club claim in an area devoid of anything other than rock and sand should be safe. Right now I have almost 20 grams of gold/mercury amalgam. Hope I can manage a few more grams by October.

would merc take gold plating off things?

 

[russau]

DGD ..........DON"T USE your retort on the club claim !!!!!!!!!!!!!! ANY SPILLS AND YOUR CLUB WILL GET NAILED !! I've seen / heard of this happening before ! some club member get a case of %$#$%% and report it to the wacoenviromentalists and the club would be swamped with gubermint wacos for sure ! This happened to the New 49ers and Dave Mac had to handle it ! NO FUN !!!

 

[desertgolddigger]

DGD ..........DON"T USE your retort on the club claim !!!!!!!!!!!!!! ANY SPILLS AND YOUR CLUB WILL GET NAILED !! I've seen / heard of this happening before ! some club member get a case of %$#$%% and report it to the wacoenviromentalists and the club would be swamped with gubermint wacos for sure ! This happened to the New 49ers and Dave Mac had to handle it ! NO FUN !!!

Where do you recommend I retort then? I can't do it safely on my home property, as it nis residential.

Maybe one of you guys can do it for me. I'll send the retort, and other stuff as payment for doing it, and melting the stuff into a button. I wish Gold Tramp was still active, as I could as him for help.

 

[arizau]

Where do you recommend I retort then? I can't do it safely on my home property, as it nis residential.

Maybe one of you guys can do it for me. I'll send the retort, and other stuff as payment for doing it, and melting the stuff into a button. I wish Gold Tramp was still active, as I could as him for help.

I think I remember someone mentioned the potato method in a response to this thread. Anyway, Jeff William's utube vid titled "Placer gold smelting revealing the secret art of using potato and mercury" may give you some ideas...I didn't watch just saw the title.
Good luck

PS An inactive member may respond to a PM.

 

[southfork]

Where do you recommend I retort then? I can't do it safely on my home property, as it nis residential.

Maybe one of you guys can do it for me. I'll send the retort, and other stuff as payment for doing it, and melting the stuff into a button. I wish Gold Tramp was still active, as I could as him for help.

You're working with a small amount anytime with a breeze will be no problem.

 

[russau]

Personally I'd go off the claim to do this and keep the claim available to club members and the liability of contaminating the ground. Think about it for a minute and what happens to the hot Mercury fumes when the condense................... where will it go when the cool they will drop to the ground and the land would be Mercury tainted then! maybe I'm wrong on the amount of how much Mercury would escape with the water vapor fumes. I certainly am NO EXPERT on this and that's why I don't fool with Mercury myself ! Maybe some that does know for sure can correct me ?

 

[southfork]

Personally I'd go off the claim to do this and keep the claim available to club members and the liability of contaminating the ground. Think about it for a minute and what happens to the hot Mercury fumes when the condense................... where will it go when the cool they will drop to the ground and the land would be Mercury tainted then! maybe I'm wrong on the amount of how much Mercury would escape with the water vapor fumes. I certainly am NO EXPERT on this and that's why I don't fool with Mercury myself ! Maybe some that does know for sure can correct me ?

That's what a retort is for it captures the mercury vapor cools it and condenses back to mercury liquid and leaves the gold sponge behind. You can reuse the liquid mercury over and over.

 

[russau]

yes I agree on the retort's op. but "could" minuscule amounts of Mercury escape with the steam when heated ? and when cooled by the atmosphere would drop to the ground. I'm not sure if it will BUT if some greenie would come along and see what your doing and "assume" you were doing something illegal and assume you were on a claim and wanted to start trouble with these miners (which I believe is possible) then you would keep the BLM/ Forest Service or some other from ruining the day! It may not be a problem but I just thought it may stop any problems before it got rolling ! Rather be safe than sorry ! BUT then again this is just my way ! I'm not tring to ruffle anyone's feather's !