Small Mining Operations
All About Hard Rock Drills
July 2021 by John Norman
There are three basic power sources for rock drills—electricity, gasoline and compressed air. Before we go into big pneumatic drills, we’ll start with a quick rundown of each.
Hard Rock 101: Small-Scale Blasting
…the process remains much the same: Drill holes, load explosives, close up the holes, blast and muck out the resulting broken rock.
PLP and MMAC Update
Persistence Leads to Over a Pound of Gold
I have figured out over the years that the winning combination is hard work, persistence, knowledge, and a little luck. This leads me to describe one of my best finds ever, a “honey hole” of placer gold, if you will.
A Third Generation Small-Scale Hardrock Revival
One of his friends had 700 feet of small-gauge mine track and a hundred-year-old track bender laying out in his back 40; plus he also wanted to join the team. Perfect.
Critical Minerals Update
The critical metals are essential to the modern lives we lead. The prices of critical metals are moving up even faster than government published rates of inflation, with little sign of slowing down.
Cyanide-Free Gold Separation
Some ores—mostly those with a high free gold content—are very amenable to gravity concentration. Well oxidized ores containing coarse gold are usually best for non-cyanide processes. Ores with significant sulfide content may require the...
How to Field Evaluate A Placer Property
If there is misleading wording anywhere, it will be in the sample data and in reserve/resource estimates.
Subscription Required:
The Bawl Mill
• Legislative and Regulatory Update
• Ask The Experts - What percentage of the gold price can I get from a buyer?
• Ask The Experts - Is a hookah battery setup legal in California?
• Ask The Experts - Are friends and relatives regulated like employees?
• Ask The Experts - What do you use for flux for melting gold?
• Ask The Experts - Why Isn't There A Dual Coil Detector?
• Ask The Experts - Who has the rights to a vein that goes under a neighboring claim?
• Ask The Experts - Is platinum usually magnetic?
• Ten Detecting Tips for the Savvy Desert Prospector
• Gold Prospecting for Better or Worse: When a Gold Prospector Goes to a Diamond Mine
• Why So Much Gold in Nevada?
• A Golden Past
• Fire Assay Finish by Silver Nitrate Fusion for PGMs
• Do Gold Nuggets Come Out At Night?
• Melman on Gold & Silver
• Mining Stock Quotes and Mineral & Metal Prices
Free:
Judge Rules Against Dredger in Idaho Civil Case
• PLP Update
