Prospecting & Detecting
Prospecting for Diamonds
January 2013 by Chris Ralph
Let’s take a look at diamonds and diamond mining and see how they form, how they are used beyond just jewelry, and what leads geologists to find diamond deposits.Additional articles that might interest you...
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.
Eolian Placer Gold
February 2012
I would first like to mention that I am not a geologist. I have, however, spent the last 8 years intently searching for gold nuggets with a metal detector. I have found gold in numerous locations, and in several different types of gold deposits.
I would first like to mention that I am not a geologist. I have, however, spent the last 8 years intently searching for gold nuggets with a metal detector. I have found gold in numerous locations, and in several different types of gold deposits.
Endurance Is Golden
September 2011
Feeling through the mud, I felt the weight and shape of what could only be gold. Throwing my hand in the water revealed a sixteen-gram nugget oozing with character.
Feeling through the mud, I felt the weight and shape of what could only be gold. Throwing my hand in the water revealed a sixteen-gram nugget oozing with character.
River Dredging vs. Creek Dredging—Part I
December 2011
As I started walking down to the river one chilly morning, the mist was hanging over the calm portions of the water like a white cotton blanket. This scene got me to thinking about why the river was like that—the deep pools, boulder fields, gravel bars, the effects of how much water was moving at any given time along the watercourse—and most of all the relationship all these things have on where I will be able to find gold.
As I started walking down to the river one chilly morning, the mist was hanging over the calm portions of the water like a white cotton blanket. This scene got me to thinking about why the river was like that—the deep pools, boulder fields, gravel bars, the effects of how much water was moving at any given time along the watercourse—and most of all the relationship all these things have on where I will be able to find gold.
Detecting Basics: Lose the Bad Habits Not the Gold
February 2017
I will make the assumption that when any of you take a detector in your hand and head out prospecting for gold you are probably anticipating finding some gold. That’s the general idea, right?
I will make the assumption that when any of you take a detector in your hand and head out prospecting for gold you are probably anticipating finding some gold. That’s the general idea, right?
Arizona's Youngest...and Oldest Prospector
June 2014
I started with, "Hey, Rusty, tell me about the time..." and that was all it took.
I started with, "Hey, Rusty, tell me about the time..." and that was all it took.
Proper Assaying of Placer Samples
November 2012
The whole purpose of sampling mineralized ground is to measure the values in a small volume of material that would be representative of a much larger volume of similar material. The key word is representative. Chemical and fire assaying will not accurately represent placer deposits by themselves.
The whole purpose of sampling mineralized ground is to measure the values in a small volume of material that would be representative of a much larger volume of similar material. The key word is representative. Chemical and fire assaying will not accurately represent placer deposits by themselves.
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The Bawl Mill
• From the Editor
• Ask the Experts
• Iron Minerals, Your Detector and Gold
• The Robinson Mine—Big Things Happen Here
• Forty-Six Nuggets
• Customizing Your Dredge
• Small Miner Beats Forest Service in Court
• Using Vegetation and Soil Conditions as Prospecting Aids
• Green Valley Reconnaissance
• Gold Pour Signals Revival in the Mother Lode
• Melman on Gold & Silver
• Mining Stock Quotes and Mineral & Metal Prices
