# the New guy



## Roy (Mar 25, 2010)

hello all I'm new to all of this lol. I've just started gold panning a few years ago before I became unemployed. I want to get a furnace so I can smelt my own gold and what not. I've looked up a lot about the gold process of refining but it seems I'm going to need to build a workshop for all the acid and stuff that's needed just to make the gold pure, since smelting alone won't do it by the reading i've been doing from this forum.

So what are the things I need to get everything going besides the basics:
Workshop
Furnace
Gold
And dunno what else.

Thanks.


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## nickvc (Mar 25, 2010)

Welcome to the forum Roy the real work now begins.The best advice i can give you is to read C.M.Hoke and the forum handbook both available as a free download , also check out Lazersteve who does some fantastic videos.Spend the next few weeks reading and researching,virtually every aspect of refining has been covered here on the forum and a few weeks reading will save you a load of money and give you an understanding of whats involved.You get stuck or dont understand anything post a question, were here to help,there are some real experts on hand here who are only to pleased to advise but please do some reading first it saves so much time if you have a basic understanding.Have fun and stay safe what we use to refine can be very toxic.


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## Roy (Mar 25, 2010)

oh ya i plan to read till my eyes bleed and my brain explodes LOL. :lol:


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## nickvc (Mar 25, 2010)

Roy said:


> oh ya i plan to read till my eyes bleed and my brain explodes LOL. :lol:


 Just take a break now and again while this is fascinating as a subject unless your a chemistry buff it can become mind blowing, as i said theres some real experts on here who talk Martian to me :lol:


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## Roy (Mar 25, 2010)

nickvc said:


> Roy said:
> 
> 
> > oh ya i plan to read till my eyes bleed and my brain explodes LOL. :lol:
> ...



ya lol until I read some of the stuff i didn't think that getting pure gold took so many steps I though it was just: smelt, pour, and cool. 

Then I read some of the stuff here and it's like ummm bad time for having a learning disability lol.


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## Richard36 (Mar 25, 2010)

Roy said:


> nickvc said:
> 
> 
> > Roy said:
> ...




lol, Take your time. 
The pm that I sent you should help.
Read Hokes Book, and if you can get a bound copy or PDF of C.W Ammens Book "Recovery and Refining of Precious metals", get and read it as well.

Sincerely; Rick. "The Rock Man".


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## nickvc (Mar 25, 2010)

To be serious for a while read Hoke its about as simple a refining guide as you will find, it might have been written in the 1939s but the chemistry hasnt changed and if you can follow her you can understand most of whats discussed on the forum,new processes may be available but virtually all are freely presented here in depth and with expert advice for anyone who wants to try them.Do read the health and saftey section of the forum if your knowledge of chemicals and reactions is limited we dont want anyone injured or dead........nick


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## Harold_V (Mar 25, 2010)

Roy said:


> until I read some of the stuff i didn't think that getting pure gold took so many steps I though it was just: smelt, pour, and cool.


Start off with correct terminology. One does not smelt gold, not unless it is being extracted from an ore. It is melted. 

Second. Don't melt your gold. If it is placer, and already quite fine (small particles), you can process it directly with AR without melting. Once melted, you will be required to inquart. 

This is likely beyond your understanding at the moment, but if you'll read Hoke as you've been advised, you will come to understand the wisdom of the words you've been given here. Make that your top priority, and don't touch your values until you have at least a basic understanding of the process. You'll save yourself a considerable amount of grief, and maybe even the values themselves. 

Welcome to the forum.

Harold


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## Roy (Mar 25, 2010)

Harold_V said:


> Roy said:
> 
> 
> > until I read some of the stuff i didn't think that getting pure gold took so many steps I though it was just: smelt, pour, and cool.
> ...



Ya i'm reading hoke was we speak.


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## olddannyboy (Apr 18, 2010)

Roy said:


> hello all I'm new to all of this lol. I've just started gold panning a few years ago before I became unemployed. I want to get a furnace so I can smelt my own gold and what not. I've looked up a lot about the gold process of refining but it seems I'm going to need to build a workshop for all the acid and stuff that's needed just to make the gold pure, since smelting alone won't do it by the reading i've been doing from this forum.
> 
> So what are the things I need to get everything going besides the basics:
> Workshop
> ...



Hi Roy I'm a new guy too, I found this website BackyardMetalcasting.com he's got some cool projects, the coffee can works great ( I made one with an empty 1 gallon can of paint) and the "Oliver-upwind propane burner" works even better I added compressed air to it and I'm very happy with it, now getting the gold from ore that's a different story ( doesn't seem to be working for me), I just hope I didn't break any rules posting his site.


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## blueduck (Apr 18, 2010)

Learning is something everyone needs to do to remain young, reading is better in this feild than just jumping in and making a mistake that can cost you a body part or your life..... trust the folks on this form who have been there and done that, they are VERY helpful folks and EXTREMELY knowledgeable and though them may seem a little crusty at times few of them they are some of the nicest folks "without egos" ive ever come across on the net... and they know who i am talking about! they are helpful and not condescending, it is amazing that given a forum like this that cream of the crop seems to have gravitated to help others succeed in their "hobby" refining.

the knowledge base alone of these folks is priceless, learn terminology, and when you start processing, WRITE everything down in a notebook as you do a step, cause if something goes awry, these fellas can help you fix your process.

I found this forum a couple years back looking to learn Pt refining after purchasing information that was supposed to be complete, the FREE information here far exceeds what i "purchased" and this forum got me excited enough to check into going back to college in metallurgical engineering [no i did not but i checked into it] a couple years back.

I ended up with a couple different irons in the fire and opened up an online prospecting supply store, and go out and play in the creeks and rivers, but these folks still have information that I read concerning melting and refining and refer other folks to as well.

I hope you find what you are looking for, chemistry is fun and can be made safe if you think first.

William
Idaho


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## manorman (Apr 19, 2010)

You might find you will make more money just selling your placer gold on a site like E-Bay, you offten get a premium price and no cost of acids and other items you need for refining. or you might sell some, and refine some for the fun of it.
Mike


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