Small Mining Operations
From Curiosity to Mine Owner
August 2015 by Scott Harn
His brother’s friend showed him a vial of gold that originated from his family’s mine in Honduras. Within two weeks Ernie had flown to Honduras to get a first-hand tour of the historic mine and the primitive operation underway to recover the gold.
Placer Channel Sampling
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.
Extracting & Smelting Your Gold
Unfortunately, not all the gold that we prospectors find is pretty, or appealing to the eyes. They are not all nice, bright, shiny nuggets with lots of character that carry high collector value.
Modern Mining Reclamation
A study showed that between 1930 and 1980, only a quarter of one percent of the land in the United States was used in all mining applications combined, including surface mining, tailings disposal, underground mines, and all mineral processing facilities.
Resurrecting An Old Hard Rock Mine
There were nice sections of vein material at the end of several drifts, like they just stopped work one day and walked away.
Wyoming's Billion Dollar Nugget—The Trilogy Ends
The next hurdle to jump was whether the trommel motor would start again after sitting on the desert for six years without being started. The last time it had taken a three foot pipe wrench to bust it loose.
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.
Selecting A Low-Risk Region To Explore, Mine or Invest
“The evidence is clear—mineral deposits alone are not enough to attract precious commodity investment dollars...”
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The Bawl Mill
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• Ask The Experts
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• Surviving The Boom and Bust Cycle
• A Great Day On The Feather River
• Prospecting for Silver Deposits
• Give That Club Claim A Chance
• Gold and Rare Earth Elements in New Mexico
• Will El Nino Move Gold for Miners and End California Drought?
• Melman on Gold & Silver
• Mining Stock Quotes and Mineral & Metal Prices
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