So this spring when it gets warm I intend to assay some of the gold ore Ive collected without using a collector metal. Lead is a pain and very difficult
to work with. Cupelling is hard and I dont have the right setup. And dissolving lead in Nitric is fumy and messy with a lot of lead chloride to deal with. And so somewhere back on this thread someone in the UK I think mentioned that some people there are just assaying their ore without a collector metal. They just bring it to temp then pour off the slag, add more material, pour off, rinse & repeat until all the gold is at the bottom. This sounds like a great way to compile a nice size gold button in the bottom of a crucible without the hassle of a collector metal. I'd like to use a one quart crucible with about 60 grams of material, 40 grams of borax and 20 grams of soda as thinner---per pop. Has anyone ever tried this method? Any pointers appreciated. The tricky part must be the pour, not to pour out any of the gold but just tilt it ever so slightly. I want to do like a 6 hour session. For lack of any terminology I called it the continuum method, but if it exists already advise. I also have questions on using copper as a collector metal then dissolving it in boiling nitric. Anyone done this? Does it work?
to work with. Cupelling is hard and I dont have the right setup. And dissolving lead in Nitric is fumy and messy with a lot of lead chloride to deal with. And so somewhere back on this thread someone in the UK I think mentioned that some people there are just assaying their ore without a collector metal. They just bring it to temp then pour off the slag, add more material, pour off, rinse & repeat until all the gold is at the bottom. This sounds like a great way to compile a nice size gold button in the bottom of a crucible without the hassle of a collector metal. I'd like to use a one quart crucible with about 60 grams of material, 40 grams of borax and 20 grams of soda as thinner---per pop. Has anyone ever tried this method? Any pointers appreciated. The tricky part must be the pour, not to pour out any of the gold but just tilt it ever so slightly. I want to do like a 6 hour session. For lack of any terminology I called it the continuum method, but if it exists already advise. I also have questions on using copper as a collector metal then dissolving it in boiling nitric. Anyone done this? Does it work?
