Small Mining Operations
Ask The Experts
March 2016 by Chris Ralph
Options for affordable crushers for small mining operationsHard 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.
A Model Mining Operation

What Do You Need For A Successful Micro-Scale Mine?
For simplicity, I will assume that you wish to make enough profit so that you can comfortably pay your bills using just the profits from the mine.
Montana Gold and Sapphires Revisited
I had a chance to visit the operation in person and talk with Neal. I was very impressed and I think our readers could learn a lot about building up a commercial placer operation from scratch…
The Miner’s Switchback
Common thought is the switchback slows the velocity of the rushing water and gold drops out from the cut bank to a fill gravel bar within or below the switchback. I am not going to disregard that model; however, I hope to improve upon it.
Sixteen to One Gold Mine: Going Underground - Pt II
We descended hunched over, down a long, steep, wooden staircase to the 1,000-level.
Ask the Experts
Ore testing and other advice for starting up a mining operation.
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