How To
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November 2012 by Chris Ralph
How do I set up a small placer operation?Testing Ores for Free Gold
I get a number of questions from people about testing and treating hard rock ores. The simplest way, but also an expensive one, is to just have an assay test done by an independent assay firm. As an alternative...
How to Evaluate Mineral Claims—What to Know Before You Buy
Even though they have put down thousands of dollars, the buyers often stop paying on their claims part way through the process after they realize they’ve been duped, but the company just sells it again to another buyer.
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• Making a noisy dredge more quiet
The Smell of Gold—Part I
Some claim they can smell gold. This may be, but when I take a whiff of gold, I smell dirt, rotten eggs, garlic or just nothing: my nose is everything but sensitive.
Ask the Experts - proper mining claim procedures
Q: Can you offer any information on proper mining claim procedures?
Small-Scale Hard Rock Mining With Water Recycling
Once I have established the presence of gold in the sample, I collect five-gallon bucket quantities of the rock material for processing back at my shop.
New Research Tool for Miners in Wyoming
The Wyoming Geological Survey released an online interactive map...
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The Bawl Mill
• Ask the Experts
• Ask the Experts
• Ask the Experts
• The Portable XRF Gun
• Gold Dredging on Oregon's South Umpqua
• The Struggle to Reopen Alaska's Largest Gold Mine
• Prospecting With a Detector: Lessons Learned
• The Rush to Treasure Hill
• Tips on Crevicing for Gold
• Using Google Earth and Other Maps
• Proper Assaying of Placer Samples
• Mining, Health Care & Taxes
• Melman on Gold & Silver
• Mining Stock Quotes and Mineral & Metal Prices







