# Nickel/copper in gold?



## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

Hi everyone, I'm new to recovering/refining gold. I've been reading as much as I can and lurking here, but the sheer amount of info here is daunting and I don't know exactly what to look for. 
So here is my problem:
On my most recent batch of partially plated non-ferrous pins (I assume the BM inside is nickel) I believe I may have been hasty and pulled the foils from the CuCl2 a day or two early, leaving small amounts of BM in the center of some of the foils. I tried melting it down but the chunk was way too big for my ghetto setup (2100o fire brick and cheap butane bernzomatic from home depot) so after over an hour the chunk had not melted down.

Eventually, i managed to heat the chunk and clip it into smaller pieces, and after like 40 minutes on each small piece they will melt. Now the problem is the ridiculously long melt time on the little blobs with BMs in them now. If i manage to heat the blobs long enough, the swirling blob has little spikes (i assume of BMs) sticking out. 

Is there any way i can easily recover my 20k gold? the small amount of BMs in the middle of the blobs obviously wont be removed by CuCl2.

I thought about just heating it until the stuff I dont want just floats to the top, then cool it and throw it into the CuCl2 until those parts dissolve, then repeat that process until the gold is clean. but that could take weeks and LOTS of propane.

I appreciate any help. And I appologize if this issue has been covered elsewhere.


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## Topher_osAUrus (Sep 30, 2016)

Not to nit pick... But, AP is copper (II) chloride, or CuCl2.

And why did you not refine the gold? Seems as if you just partially recovered it.

Much to learn, grasshopper.

Download hoke, take the guided tour, read the general reaction list. The more you study, the less gold you'll lose (i promise).


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

I havent been refining the gold because in the past i have ended up with 20k when i go to sell the stuff without refining. I cant afford any more equipment or materials. I just need a practical solution for getting the small amount of crap out of the mixture before monday. I need to pay rent. I'm not doing this for art or a hobby or whatever. I've been doing this for a couple months and understand the the basics, but i have no idea what to do when i run into these kind of mistakes.


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## FrugalRefiner (Sep 30, 2016)

futurama, welcome to the forum. It sounds like you're suffering from a common problem of starting to process things before you fully understand the process.

As Topher has mentioned, the HCl and hydrogen peroxide process is commonly referred to AP, copper(II) chloride, or CuCl2. That may seem very minor, but under different circumstances, errors in chemical formulas can be dangerous.

I've never seen pins that were nickel plated with gold, but many pins are a copper based metal like brass, plated with nickel, then plated with gold. The nickel is there to keep the gold from migrating into the brass. You'll read more about it as you study the forum.

You mentioned both butane and propane in your post. You'll really struggle to melt most metals with butane, but propane does just fine with the right set up. The problem many members have run into is heat loss from their melting dish while they're trying to melt. You probably just need some insulation around your dish to minimize the heat loss. Many use ceramic wool, but there are other materials that will also work.

Since you've now melted your gold together with your base metals, you'll probably need to dissolve them entirely, then precipitate your gold from a somewhat dirty solution.

Last, please keep your language at a G level here. We strive to keep our content at the highest level, suitable for readers of all ages. I edited your post to keep it clean. If you haven't read it yet, take a read through the Tips for Navigating and Posting on the Forum thread. It will help get you off to a good start.

Dave


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## Topher_osAUrus (Sep 30, 2016)

Thats my ghetto fabulous corning hot box.
Just a few pieces of corning fit together, with some awesome insulation i bought from TnDavid (traded actually)...but it works great.. Melt time went down from 7-10 minutes to like 3.

To make good money, one must spend money. Spending time reading the forum, you will find the cheap work arounds that work well.

I still think you would be much better served refining your product.
You already have HCl, 7$ for stump remover (KNO3), and 6 for precipitant will get you a much better % return...or it should at least.


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

My apologies on the language. SO i will have to AR and precipitate the gold? I believe the cuppelation process is designed to remove that same impurity, right? And I am working with very small amounts of material, around a quarter ounce. I have no scale and cannot afford one to accurately weigh what I have. Is there no way to make the gold salable without AR? I understand the hcl/bleach and SMB to refine, but it seems unnecessary for me who only cares about having a blob of gold to sell.

I've read/watched/heard TONS of info, but that's only perfect on an academic level, in reality i run into many more issues, some of which i just cant seem to discern the answer from the sentences given. This may just be a fault in my comprehension, but also likely is the information i've come across is just incomplete.

Isn't it possible to just melt the gold and use a graphite rod or something to just slag off the junk on top that i dont want?


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## anachronism (Sep 30, 2016)

Topher what in heaven's name is that contraption? 

Dude get a grip. That's so Heath Robinson it's unreal. 

Sorry but that's just terribad mate.


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## Topher_osAUrus (Sep 30, 2016)

Haha. Pshhhh, A, you know you love it!
:lol: 
I work with what i have, not wanting to frivolously spend money, especially if I can have a good work around from what I already possess. And for melting small bits of gold, it helps immensely.

Futurama140, cuppelation is a means of removing lead. It would not work for you. 

You DO need a scale though, when 1 gram is around $43, I know I wouldn't trust whomever is buying my stuff on their scale alone..
Stay away from youtube, it will get you hurt. Or broke. Possibly both. There are good videos by some members here that are sreetips, geo, palladium, lazersteve.

HCl + bleach works well on foils, but it sounds like with the abundance of base metals you have, it would be more trouble than anything. I still recommend poorman ar, then denoxx, then precipitate with smb or copperas (cement on copper if very dirty solution), then wash the gold properly, THEN melt. You should easily get 90%++ of spot. You just have to find the right buyer.


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## anachronism (Sep 30, 2016)

Well I was so flustered by that contraption that I went out grabbed a few items (from scratch) and built something. Done in the time between these posts too. If you want confirmation then feel free to ask Patnor as I was on the phone with him at the time.

Ten standard bricks.
1 small piece of plasterboard - you call it gyproc or something similar in the US? 
1 Stanley knife


You can use the fireproof board if you like as it last longer but the insulation from the plasterboard even after the card burns off is great. You're melting outside too so fumes are not a factor. 

Total cost- around $6, time 10 minutes. It's real backyard stuff but it does the job and I hope it helps.


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## Topher_osAUrus (Sep 30, 2016)

Im glad to have inspired you! Haha :mrgreen: 

You thing my pyroceram hotbox is bad... You should have seen my old one


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## anachronism (Sep 30, 2016)

Try this- it'll work better than that POS mate


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

this is what i'm working with. the chunk of cinderblock on top gets moved. the rest are firebricks.


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

Topher_osAUrus said:


> Not to nit pick... But, AP is copper (II) chloride, or CuCl2.
> 
> And why did you not refine the gold? Seems as if you just partially recovered it.
> 
> ...




Download hoke?



> hoke
> hōk/
> verbNorth Americaninformal
> verb: hoke; 3rd person present: hokes; past tense: hoked; past participle: hoked; gerund or present participle: hoking
> ...


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## FrugalRefiner (Sep 30, 2016)

The book in my signature line at the bottom of my post. It was written by C.M. Hoke.

Dave


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## Barren Realms 007 (Sep 30, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> this is what i'm working with. the chunk of cinderblock on top gets moved. the rest are firebricks.



See you fixed most of your problem by posting a single picture of your setup.

The fire bricks are acting like a heat sink and absorbing most of the heat you are applying to your dish. Get you a small piece of sheetrock like in anachronism's picture that is cut up and put that between your dish and the fire brick. Take your butane torch and receipt back to Home Depot and see if they will give you your money back and buy you a MAPP gas torch to melt your gold with.


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

i'm melting straight on the fire brick. i cannot afford a crucible or a new torch. my income is litterally ZERO. every penny i have comes from scrapping. Why was this setup working before, and is not working now? up until this batch, i have never had a problem melting the gold down. is it the BM in my gold making it essentially unable to melt? I dont care what karat the gold is, as long as i can sell it. I dont know if it can be sold like it is to the shop.

Also, I've had my torch for a couple months now, it was the only one i can afford. if i could just get this gold to a salable point, i could buy all the new junk everyone seems to want me to buy, but until i can sell the gold i already have, telling me to buy new stuff is completely moot and pointless. I'm not 100% ignorant or i could not have produced the half ounce of 20k gold i sold last month to pay my bills, but each new batch presents new problems that had not occured before.

the gist of what im being told is that there is no way at all to recover ANY gold to sell from what i have here, that i have just a lump of garbage unless i buy lots more crap. I don't accept that. i'm looking for some form of answer WITHIN the parameters that I issued. Sure i can beat a video game with cheat codes or an upgraded controller any day, but how do i do it with what i HAVE.


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## Barren Realms 007 (Sep 30, 2016)

Topher_osAUrus said:


> 0928161851a.jpg
> 
> Thats my ghetto fabulous corning hot box.
> Just a few pieces of corning fit together, with some awesome insulation i bought from TnDavid (traded actually)...but it works great.. Melt time went down from 7-10 minutes to like 3.
> ...



No offense but that is a lot of wasted material. A simple 4" to 6" square piece on top of a brick is all you need to accomplish the job. 

3 minute melt time. Hmm have you paid attention to how much gold you are blowing off the top of your powder in that short length of time?


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## Topher_osAUrus (Sep 30, 2016)

That isnt counting the time i preheat the dish.
I usually heat the dish good and hot, then put in the gold.
Slowly play the flame over the powder until it begins to sinter together. Then bring it closer and closer once its melting.

I may have exaggerated the 3 minute time. But, I know it has cut the melt time down in half.


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## anachronism (Sep 30, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> i'm melting straight on the fire brick. i cannot afford a crucible or a new torch. my income is litterally ZERO. every penny i have comes from scrapping. Why was this setup working before, and is not working now? up until this batch, i have never had a problem melting the gold down. is it the BM in my gold making it essentially unable to melt?



I'm sorry but in that case stop. 

If you can't afford a couple of bucks for a cheap crucible then wait until you can and do it properly or not at all. It's ridiculous to try and even do this if you're not going to have some kind of budget to do it right. I'm sorry if that sounds harsh but we're not talking about large budgets - my idea above costs virtually nothing, and the reduction in losses would pay for itself straight away. 

Go without lunch for one one day and you're sorted. If you're not that committed then this isn't for you.


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

anachronism said:


> Go without lunch for one one day and you're sorted. If you're not that committed then this isn't for you.



that implies i have money for food. I havent eaten today. or yesterday. you rich people with your 20 dollars in your pocket...

so why did my product made last month work? the money i made last month for the rent calls you a liar for saying i have to buy more crap to do this.


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## Barren Realms 007 (Sep 30, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> i'm melting straight on the fire brick. i cannot afford a crucible or a new torch. my income is litterally ZERO. every penny i have comes from scrapping. Why was this setup working before, and is not working now? up until this batch, i have never had a problem melting the gold down. is it the BM in my gold making it essentially unable to melt? I dont care what karat the gold is, as long as i can sell it. I dont know if it can be sold like it is to the shop.
> 
> Also, I've had my torch for a couple months now, it was the only one i can afford. if i could just get this gold to a salable point, i could buy all the new junk everyone seems to want me to buy, but until i can sell the gold i already have, telling me to buy new stuff is completely moot and pointless. I'm not 100% ignorant or i could not have produced the half ounce of 20k gold i sold last month to pay my bills, but each new batch presents new problems that had not occured before.
> 
> the gist of what im being told is that there is no way at all to recover ANY gold to sell from what i have here, that i have just a lump of garbage unless i buy lots more crap. I don't accept that. i'm looking for some form of answer WITHIN the parameters that I issued. Sure i can beat a video game with cheat codes or an upgraded controller any day, but how do i do it with what i HAVE.



Take you a piece of 1" x 4" or other type of untreated wood and drill you a shallow hole in it and put your powder in it and melt it. Even a lump of charcoal with a hollowed out depression will work.


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

Barren Realms 007 said:


> Take you a piece of 1" x 4" or other type of untreated wood and drill you a shallow hole in it and put your powder in it and melt it. Even a lump of charcoal with a hollowed out depression will work.




that sounds like a great idea! thank you for suggesting something reasonable for my situation!


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## anachronism (Sep 30, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> anachronism said:
> 
> 
> > Go without lunch for one one day and you're sorted. If you're not that committed then this isn't for you.
> ...



I'm not trying to be harsh I'm trying to be honest here. Excuse me if you read it as harsh. Here take a look at this. 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Crucibles-Melting-Dishes-Ceramic-5-Size-Casting-Torch-Melt-Jewelry-Gold-Silver-/301836869739?var=&hash=item4646e1206b:m:m2S6BTAcHJjszXiZraLpr9w

$1.99

ps. I'm many things that I could improve but a liar isn't one of them. To do this properly you do have to buy stuff. Anyone on here would agree. You're probably losing more more money than it would cost you to do it right I promise you.


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## glorycloud (Sep 30, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> this is what i'm working with. the chunk of cinderblock on top gets moved. the rest are firebricks.



I had problems melting because I didn't understand what I was doing. In and effort to not burn
the top of my table I was using aluminum heat sinks from computers to rest the melting dish
on which was drawing a lot of heat away and never allowing the gold powder to get hot enough
for a good melt. (Silence Frank! :lol: )

I am sorry for your troubles in life. I hope that you eat soon. It's easy to forget hard times
and the people who are going through hard times when you have so much - like me. Forgive
us for not being compassionate about your struggles. We intend no harm. We just may not
have understood the gravity of your situation. 

I truly hope that things will turn around for you and quickly!


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

i understand it doesnt take a huge amount of money to buy little things like this. i cannot use any form of plastic money, however, everything i use must be sourced locally. unfortunately, there is nowhere to buy said items locally. this still doesnt tell me why this batch wont melt, yet all the other batches i did last month melted just fine.

i wish to make this my income, but im in a spot where i CANNOT spend any more money until i make some money. is 8k gold worth selling?

just as some background: i inherited the electronic infrastructure of a 150 man call-center, and have scrapped all the copper and aluminum already, and now i have seemingly limitless numbers of IC chips, gold plated pins i removed from cables like IDE and SCSI cables, and some small amounts of fingerboard left over from last month.

I have a couple gallons of used cucl2, some fire bricks, and a torch. can i not do anything with this?


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## anachronism (Sep 30, 2016)

Ok, also could you please stop editing your posts multiple times after people have replied because it changes the context of our replies totally.


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

it's just very oddd that it worked WITHOUT A HITCH last month, and now I have problems. I will continue reading, but i'm still just not seeing what happened to screw up the process. what about just heating the gold until the BMs surface, cool it down, toss it in the cucl2 until the crust dissolves, and then keep repeating the process?


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

anachronism said:


> Ok, also could you please stop editing your posts multiple times after people have replied because it changes the context of our replies totally.



sorry, i'm not used to talking to real people.


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

it seems to be of an apparent nature to me that i'm just fighting against the stream, either my communication is poor or the comprehension of this community is poor, so as it seems I am not welcome here, I will leave.


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## Topher_osAUrus (Sep 30, 2016)

Last month you probably let the CuCl2 run to completion, or much closer to it anyways. This month, impatience got the better of you. It happens. When I started doing this, if my wife had not been working, I surely would have starved to death...but, this stuff takes a long time to learn, and can be costly to start up or get to a point of efficiency to provide steady income.

I wouldn't put all my faith in/on one horse in the race, especially if my livelihood depended upon its success. Because it's success, is determined by how prepared it is.

And no, you cannot easily separate base metals from gold like that.

Do you have a picture or two?

Nobody here is trying to pull the rug from under you. We are trying to help. Sentiments are sometimes lost in text, which are easily communicated by body language and tone. So, try to keep that in mind too. That everyone here wants you to succeed. But, I believe all of the questions asked, have had the best possible answers given.

This community, has a refining collective knowledge that you couldnt possibly find anywhere else in the world.


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## FrugalRefiner (Sep 30, 2016)

Wow! I leave for a while to watch the local homecoming parade, and this thread explodes.  

Even as I tried to type a meaningful reply, there are 3 more posts. Let's stop throwing stones, and everybody stop editing their posts, and that includes you anachronism!

Everybody take a breath. Walk away for a few minutes. Then come back and try to help our new member. For those who have provided good suggestions, thank you.

Dave


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

one is leftover gold that i tried to melt the new stuff into to see if that worked, and the chunkier piece is the stuff that won't melt.


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## Topher_osAUrus (Sep 30, 2016)

That would be quite the task for CuCl2. Definitely not something that would be a quick fix. It could probably be done, but would take forever and a day. Ap is more of a slow working etchant than a powerful oxidizer...

Besides running it in nitric...
Poorman Nitric (cold nitric post by lazersteve)
Poorman Ar

Im not sure what else you could do. I hope someone can work something up for you, but I'm really not too confident there are any other remedies that are closer to your grasp than those.


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## FrugalRefiner (Sep 30, 2016)

futurama, there are many different kinds of pins, made of many different kinds of materials. Some are copper based. Some are iron based. You didn't mention where these particular pins came from.

Melting directly on the firebricks is difficult because they conduct much of the heat you're applying away from your pins. Barren gave you a couple of good suggestions for melting on a budget. I'll add another. Drywall manufacturers use scrap pieces between pallet loads of sheets. They're a few inches wide. Hardware stores will give you some for free if you ask. You can hollow out a spot in a piece and use that to melt in.

No one has said you have a lump of garbage. They're trying to provide suggestions that might help, but we didn't fully understand your circumstances till you explained them. 

Do note that it is against forum rules to edit your posts to change the content or tone.

Dave


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## Barren Realms 007 (Sep 30, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> it's just very oddd that it worked WITHOUT A HITCH last month, and now I have problems. I will continue reading, but i'm still just not seeing what happened to screw up the process. what about just heating the gold until the BMs surface, cool it down, toss it in the cucl2 until the crust dissolves, and then keep repeating the process?



It could be a combination of things such as your copper chloride being loaded with base metals and not working as effectivly as it was working. 

Do you have air bubbling into your copper chloride?

You butane torch is probably getting low on fuel and not burning as hot.

It could any number of things adding to your problem.

The biggest thing I can see right this moment is your impatience to let things run their corse as they need to because you are in bad need of funds.

Impatience is your worst enemy.


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## FrugalRefiner (Sep 30, 2016)

I just saw your pictures. You need some insulation. Try one of barren's suggestions or mine.

Dave


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## Barren Realms 007 (Sep 30, 2016)

FrugalRefiner said:


> Wow! I leave for a while to watch the local homecoming parade, and this thread explodes.
> 
> Even as I tried to type a meaningful reply, there are 3 more posts. Let's stop throwing stones, and everybody stop editing their posts, and that includes you anachronism!
> 
> ...



I did that, I went and ate dinner. :lol:


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

OK well thanks for the lucid reply. I guess it's back to picking up pop cans for now. My appologies to all of you as it seems the miscomprehension is at least on my part. Sorry dave!


here is what i know: 
the pins were non-ferrous.
i may have pulled the pins a day early.
the propane is new
i have an aquarium pump pushing air into the stock pot and the batch in a coffee pot i am trying to reduce.

can gold in the condition mine is in still be sold?

im sorry if my tone sounds antagonistic. truly i am. i'm just frustrated trying not to let my family down in a situation where i am not able to work a job.


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## FrugalRefiner (Sep 30, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> can gold in the condition mine is in still be sold?


I'm afraid I can't answer that. Only your buyer will be able to tell you. But if you try one of the suggestions and remelt it, you may have better luck. At least your buyer will be able to test it better/



> im sorry if my tone sounds antagonistic. truly i am. i'm just frustrated trying not to let my family down in a situation where i am not able to work a job.


Don't let it add to your woes. We'll all get over it.  Desperation is a terrible enemy. I've faced it myself. Start a new batch of pins. Let them run their course. Take what you can get on this one.

Better yet, what other scrap do you have available? "Fingers" are one of the fastest and easiest types of ewaste to process. If you have any of those available, get them into your AP. They'll finish up a lot faster than pins. Let us know what you have and we'll try to steer you in the best direction. If you have anything interesting, other forum members may be interested in buying them without you having to process them.

Dave


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## Topher_osAUrus (Sep 30, 2016)

Heck, from that avenue. (more scrap) that's your best bet to get some money in hand.

Sell it. Quick flip, make some money then take the time to reclaim your hard earned gold.

Fingers and pretty pins sell quite well...


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

yea I ran gold fingers last month. all those cards that slide into server racks, plus TONS of NIC cards for desktops. Is it even worth tossing solid plated pins into cucl2? i have TONS of milspec pins, but there's no way i can set up a sulpuric reverse electroplating cell right now.

will the BMs in my blob eventually make an alloy with the gold?


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## Barren Realms 007 (Sep 30, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> OK well thanks for the lucid reply. I guess it's back to picking up pop cans for now. My appologies to all of you as it seems the miscomprehension is at least on my part. Sorry dave!
> 
> 
> here is what i know:
> ...



Can your gold in that condition be sold, my most realistic reply would be that it is not advisable. If you do make sure you get a kiss from the buyer and ask them to use some vaseline because you most likely will get screwed. Not meaning to sound harsh but that is just the cold hard facts from looking at what you have in your pictures.

Your tone is not antagonistic. It is just a tone of desperation.

The long time members of the forum have seen it many times and most of us understand it because we started in the same position you are in. 

What you have become to realise the hard way is that this field of work is not a get rich quick job. And the key word there is job because just like anything else that is what this field is, is just another job and you have to pay for your education one way or another.


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

i've been getting 70% melt price for quantities less than 1 ounce at the pawn shop, if i bring in over an ounce, they will pay me 90% melt price because at that point there is enough material for them to use the xray on, making it less risky to purchase. Or so they have told me.


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## FrugalRefiner (Sep 30, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> yea I ran gold fingers last month. all those cards that slide into server racks, plus TONS of NIC cards for desktops. Is it even worth tossing solid plated pins into cucl2? i have TONS of milspec pins, but there's no way i can set up a sulpuric reverse electroplating cell right now.


If you have plenty of time and enough inexpensive HCl, you can do pins in AP. But you have to think in terms of weeks, not days.

Pins sell well on eBay. I know you said you don't have plastic, but there are places that will sell for you. Maybe there's one near you. Our members are also very knowledgeable on such material. You could list some in the Sell or Trade section. Members here won't pay what folks on eBay would, but there aren't any fees here and you'll probably get a fair offer or two.



> will the BMs in my blob eventually make an alloy with the gold?


It's already an alloy of sorts, just not homogenous. If you get them to melt fully, you'll have a more homogenous alloy which will be easier to test.

Dave


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

what would you suggest for the partial plated non-ferrous pins? I've read many suggestions, but i still dont know.


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## FrugalRefiner (Sep 30, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> what would you suggest for the partial plated non-ferrous pins? I've read many suggestions, but i still dont know.


Sell them. Low grade pins can eat up as much AP as you'll get back out of them. But that's just me. I'd look for something better to process. Ewaste is a lot of work. Low grade eWaste is the last thing to spend money on when funds are limited.

Dave


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

sooo.... how about IC chips and processors? i have a half dozen CRT tvs, a bucket of connector ends from cables, and tons of populated circuit boards from telecom servers with the fingers already removed. im pretty sure theres no gold in the tvs... the milspec pins are high-yield, but is there any way to do them without a sulphuric cell?


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## FrugalRefiner (Sep 30, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> tons of populated circuit boards from telecom servers with the fingers already removed.


Pictures please. That may be where your money is.

Dave


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

a sampling of the different types of boards... HDD controllers, server boars of many kinds, a few motherboards, etc. All these PROM and EPROM chips are the removable ones, all the IC chips soldered on have not been removed yet. i saved the processors and processor linked bios proms seperately, as well as the looong motorola telecom eprom processors with gold pins.


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

the rest


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## FrugalRefiner (Sep 30, 2016)

I see value in the first, fourth & fifth pictures. I'm far from an eWaste expert, so I hope some others will add their guidance as well. How many do you have like the first, fourth & fifth?

Dave


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

i have maybe over a dozen of the hard drive controller boards (1st)
and all i have of the other ones you can see right there in 4 and 5.
i also have about a hundred hard drive platters, some of which may have gold plating, half of all which are the LARGE 1980's disks.


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

i have seen many, many videos of someone called "ewaste ben" on youtube, who shows how to grade all the boards as far as total scrap value, and he has some videos on AP/cucl2 processing, and some really cool tips i learned about the fingerboard, but i dont see anything about really processing the various bits from the boards themselves other than the fingers.
So i'm sure the value is there, but the knowledge gathering that must occur in order to proceed is staggeringly arcane! it's almost like trying to prise alchemical secrets from an old scientist.


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## FrugalRefiner (Sep 30, 2016)

All of the information on how to process the various bits is here on the forum, but it takes a long time and a lot of effort to learn it. But since you need money fast, your best option is to sell it. 

Let's hope some of other members can give you some suggestions.

Dave


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## jason_recliner (Sep 30, 2016)

The box of chips in the third photo will contain gold but are quite a low yield for a great deal of work. These may sell on eBay for far more than their gold value.

The ceramic 386/486 chips can be processed quickly in AR or PMAR, but a pair of them won't amount to much. I struggle to recall precisely, but I recovered about half a gram from three of them and that's with "something else" in there too. They might be better to sell as well.


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

if i can produce 7 grams of 19/20k gold by sometime next week i will be in good straights.


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## futurama140 (Sep 30, 2016)

heres the collection of pins ive pulled so far


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## FrugalRefiner (Oct 1, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> if i can produce 7 grams of 19/20k gold by sometime next week i will be in good straights.


I'm sorry to say that I don't think that's possible. I don't see 7 grams of gold in the pictures you've shown, and with your current equipment I don't think much could be done by next week. AP is good because it's relatively inexpensive and it's pretty much a "set it and forget it" process, but it is slow. As I said before, think in terms of weeks or months, not days. Sorry to be the messenger, but I don't want you to spend valuable time pursuing an unrealistic goal. 

When you said tons of server boards, I had hopes for you. But having just a few hard drive controllers and singles of the 386/486 ICs isn't tons of server boards. 

The only way I see you getting anything much by next week is to sell it as is, but even that will be difficult as eWaste buyers that pay decent rates are few and far between. There are a couple who are members here, but the process takes time to ship, have them evaluate your material and issue payment by mail.

I wish I had something more encouraging to offer, but that's my opinion based on what I've seen.

Dave


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## futurama140 (Oct 1, 2016)

well thats a moderately fair assessment i suppose. I dont have too many of the little hdd controllers, but i do have litterally hundreds of these large 1 1/2'x2' server boards.

I have some other questions about those but i'm thinking this is the wrong forum.

now thinking ahead, how badly do i need to monitor pins in the cucl2? it seems that when i run a batch in a rock tumbler it gets saturated with the (aluminum, brass, nickel?) as a gray powder just overnight, and the AP turns clear again, or sometimes milky. that was just an experiment, but is this a real threat to two gallons of cucl2 that has been used on 2lbs of fingerboard with a new batch of about 1lb partially plated pins into, using the traditional process?

i do not mind thinking of what i can do to the more elaborate scrap in the future, as i would like to get to the point i can produce half an ounce a month, which really doesnt sound horribly unreasonable with enough effort and time, and i have nothing but time. eventually, i'd like to buy a delft clay kit and produce small gold jewelry items, as i have dozens of places to insert said jewelry.


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## FrugalRefiner (Oct 1, 2016)

The AP process is excellent at dealing with copper. If you were processing only fingers, where copper is the main base metal being dissolved, it can be regenerated over and over. Pins are very different. They're almost never just copper. Usually, they're brass, which is an alloy of copper and zinc. The zinc is dissolved in the AP as well as the copper, but because it is more reactive than copper, it eventually displaces the copper and you are left with a zinc chloride solution instead of a copper chloride solution. That's what you saw when the solution turned clear.

You can probably process a pound of pins in two gallons of AP. I'm not sure because I don't process such quantities of pins. Others may be able to answer that better than I can. Just remember, there's not a lot of gold on partially plated pins, so you will eventually produce a lot of waste for a little gold. That waste must be properly treated before disposing of it, and that adds more cost.

As you said, with enough time and effort, you can learn to process most items, but now you have to think in terms of months and years. It took me about a year and a half to read through the entire forum, and that was a couple years ago. The forum continues to grow, so it would take me longer now.

Read Hoke's book. While it does not deal with eWaste, it will give you a sound foundation in dealing with precious metals. Study what has already been written on the forum. It's all here, but it will take a long time. While I'd like to help guide you and every other new member on your journey, we all have other responsibilities in our lives. Study the Safety section. Study how to deal with waste. We created a Library section that holds some of the best threads from the forum. Read, read, read. The longer you study, the more it will all start to make sense.

I wish you the best of luck,
Dave


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## goldsilverpro (Oct 1, 2016)

Why did it work before and not now? The extra copper might raise the melting point a bit but I would say your biggest mistake would be not running the magnetic pins separately. Most of these are made of Kovar, a 29Nickel, 17Cobalt, 54Iron alloy, whose melting point is 2640F. I would guess that the Kovar would be the last to dissolve and, therefore, there's enough Kovar in the material you tried to melt to raise the melting point beyond the capability of your setup. Also, you stopped the process too early, before all the base metals had dissolved.


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## kurtak (Oct 1, 2016)

futurama

Where do you live ? ("general" location) Example - I live in Central Wisconsin --- I ask because maybe there is a member that lives close to you that would be willing to come to you (if you can't afford to go to them) & buy what you have for a fair price (& not screw you because you are in a tight spot)

Example again - if you lived within an hour to an hour & a half of me I would come & buy everything you have for 50 - 70% of the listed price of the company I sell to (50% for really low grade stuff - 60% for mid grade stuff & 70% for high grade stuff) that would at least help you out AND at the same time come close (+/- a few dollars) to covering my gas & time to come get it 

Or - if you were close enough & able to deliver I would buy what ever you brought to me at 70 - 80% of my buyers list price

So tell us your "general" location & "maybe" there will be somebody close that can help you out --- & if so you can then work something out as far as contact info &/or terms by way of private message &/or phone

In other words - don't post your contact info on the open forum - just give a general location & see if that leads to a deal you can work out privately

Kurt


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## futurama140 (Oct 1, 2016)

i'm in northeastern colorado


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## Barren Realms 007 (Oct 2, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> i'm in northeastern colorado



If Kurt was closer than he is to you I would not post this information I am fixing to post since he made the first offer on your material.

Now that being said you have possibly already received PM's making offers for your material. now weigh that against this information.

check with Boardsort.com and http://www.cashforcomputerscrap.com/ for prices on your boards to generate some quick cash ( quick as within 10-14 working day ) timeframe. I offer more for CPU's that than either of these buyers but have not been persuing this because of certain factors that are currently changing and have not updated my price list in a while https://goldchipbuyer.wordpress.com/

This gives you alternatives to trusted sites and buyers and takes care of you immediate needs for cash.

You currently have a lot of reading and investigating to do on the route you want to take and what you need to currently accomplish for your need of funds.

You should feel fortunate in the amount of information given to you over the last day or so. Not many new members are shown this patience you have been offered.

Best of luck in either route you take.


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## kurtak (Oct 2, 2016)

futurama140 said:


> i'm in northeastern colorado



I know we have some members in Colorado but don't know if any of them actually buy boards (a lot of our members only take what they can get for free) so hope someone is able to help you out

Have you checked with your local scrap yards - around here some scrap yards take boards & some don't - the problem (at least around here) is that most the scrap yards don't pay much though there is one that pays more then the rest

Hope you are able to work something out

Kurt


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## Tndavid (Oct 2, 2016)

anachronism said:


> Well I was so flustered by that contraption that I went out grabbed a few items (from scratch) and built something. Done in the time between these posts too. If you want confirmation then feel free to ask Patnor as I was on the phone with him at the time.
> 
> Ten standard bricks.
> 1 small piece of plasterboard - you call it gyproc or something similar in the US?
> ...


All you need A is some of my thermal mat to line that bad boy with and you be good to go yo :wink:


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