Ask The Experts: How do I identify gold in hard rock that may be mixed with other metals?

September 2016 by Chris Ralph

Q: Aside from the softness scratch test and other methods of identification, what feedback would you have on identifying gold in hard rock that may be mixed with other metals that affect its color?

Placer Channel Sampling

July 2013
Sampling gold placers can be rewarding, but remember to treat the samples so you are not high grading or low grading your results. Learn the rules and apply them so your samples are accurate.

Enrichment of Mineral Deposits by Weathering—Part I

March 2016

The exact minerals formed in the concentrated supergene deposits depends much on the type of country rock around the deposit and the chemistry of the deposit itself, but if conditions are right, this process will form some rich patches of bonanza ore, in some places valued at thousands of dollars to the ton.

Alternative Gold Leaching Methods

January 2014
The ideal leaching chemical would leave behind what we don't want or need in the ore and take only the valuable metals.

Making A Big Discovery

January 2019

We sent them a lot of information, including my presentation about the area and its potential. We were excited to learn a couple weeks later that the company was interested in the property.

Route Planning Using GPS

January 2019

My intention was to end this discussion with waypoints and routes, then I found USGS maps of the Plainfield Quadrangle.

Nevada Looks to Tourism to Fill Mining's Gap

August 1999
Lt. Gov. Lorraine Hunt and the Nevada Commission on Tourism have agreed to seek an unspecified amount of marketing funds to boost tourism in the Ely, Nevada area in the wake of a mine closing.

Ask The Experts

February 2016
Designing my own dredge...

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