All Articles
Recovering Values from Black Sands
May 2007 by Chris Ralph
Every placer miner has to deal with it in one form or another, and some locations have it far worse than others, but nearly every placer has at least some of it: black sand. It collects in our concentrates and gets in the way of recovering our fine gold.
Guinea Africa: Gold, Ebola, and a Monkey Barbecue
With great relief, the equipment I chose worked well, and after shoving into three days what should have been ten days of set-up and testing, we were up and running.
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.
Pros and Cons of Big Detector Coils
Years later I returned with a new detector with a smaller coil and detector technology more sensitive to smaller nuggets. I found my first nugget within five minutes. I had a second five minutes after that.
18 Acquitted in Massive Brussels Diamond Heist
The massive 2013 theft, in which tens of millions worth of gems were stolen from the hold of a departing Swiss-bound plane, had all the hallmarks of an “Ocean’s Eleven” operation. And it still might still get a Hollywood ending.
Digging It Dry
I believe dry washing is an underappreciated prospecting method. There are plenty of places where there is some pretty decent gold to be had, but the spot is a long way from any water and dry processing may well be the best way to go.
Salted Mining Properties—How to Properly Evaluate a Claim
Sometimes there are good mining claims on the market available to purchase, but there are also folks out there who are willing to take your money under false pretenses. Don’t fool yourself into thinking that these wolves in sheep’s clothing are few and far between.
Crandon Mine Decision Still Years Away, Says State
Nicolet Minerals expected to be mining zinc and copper from an underground quarry in Wisconsin by now. Instead, a state review of the project is only 75 percent completed after seven years, a top state regulator said.
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