Check out my experimental storage method

[icejj]

So, I've been experimenting with ways to store my gold without melting it, and I decided to compress some of the gold dirt into blocks with a homemade hydraulic press. Not sure if this has been discussed here before, but let me know what you all think!

The blocks are pretty sturdy... I figured that by storing it this way, it wouldn't be in loose dirt form so I could avoid potential loss if a drop/accident occurred, and I could avoid theft since it doesn't look like solid gold bullion....

 

[4metals]

I've been experimenting with ways to store my gold without melting it

Very nice problem to have! Do they crumble when they dry completely?

 

[icejj]

Very nice problem to have! Do they crumble when they dry completely?

Thanks! The gold was already dry before compressing it. There's some slight crumbling on the edges after pressing it, mainly from the force applied to it to push it out of the mold, but the block holds well when I lightly tap it on something hard.

 

[gregory-d]

That's pretty cool really.
By home made hydraulic press are you basically talking about a car jack based idea?

 

[icejj]

That's pretty cool really.
By home made hydraulic press are you basically talking about a car jack based idea?

Yes, that's exactly what I'm talking about.

 

[galenrog]

Long term, the method will fail. for short term, the method works. How long will the compressed gold powder hold together? The three major factors are pressure, time under pressure, and total moisture content, so it could be days, months, years, or even decades.

You already witnessed spalling on some corners, confirming my above opinion. Advice? Store in a sealed container. This helps ensure gold is not lost during transport, even from one shelf to another in your workshop.

I never thought about doing this with gold. I wish you well with this method.

Time for more coffee.

 

[tmj883]

Innovation! Consider that the first step to Sintered metal is compression of the metal powder. The second step is heating to fuse the object, not necessarily melt. I believe gold is easily fused. You should get the outside the box award. Great thinking!

 

[icejj]

Long term, the method will fail. for short term, the method works. How long will the compressed gold powder hold together? The three major factors are pressure, time under pressure, and total moisture content, so it could be days, months, years, or even decades.

You already witnessed spalling on some corners, confirming my above opinion. Advice? Store in a sealed container. This helps ensure gold is not lost during transport, even from one shelf to another in your workshop.

I never thought about doing this with gold. I wish you well with this method.

Time for more coffee.

Thanks for this. Some of these factors were already taken into consideration, and some weren't, so this helps a lot! So I do have some of them stored individually wrapped and in a sealed container to see how long it will last. I never thought about increasing the time under pressure though... that's good to know. I also believe another major factor is the size of the mold/block. I believe that a smaller size mold/block would help a lot.

 

[icejj]

Innovation! Consider that the first step to Sintered metal is compression of the metal powder. The second step is heating to fuse the object, not necessarily melt. I believe gold is easily fused. You should get the outside the box award. Great thinking!

Thanks! Yes, it's essentially the first step of the sintering process, while forgoing the heating step.

 

[Shark]

Just curious if vacuum sealing them in plastic would help preserve them longer?

 

[anachronism]

f theft is a concern remember they still look golden and they are heavy.

If you want to go completely left field then hide them in plain sight. Cast them into a door handle or fixing or something similar that's in plain sight. something that can be painted with emulsion but looks so innocuous that it will be completely ignored.

 

[BShan]

^bonus benefit to anachronism's idea: the outer coating can also help contain any future spalling!

 

[Yggdrasil]

f theft is a concern remember they still look golden and they are heavy.

If you want to go completely left field then hide them in plain sight. Cast them into a door handle or fixing or something similar that's in plain sight. something that can be painted with emulsion but looks so innocuous that it will be completely ignored.

There is a story from Denmark about Gold being hid from the Germans during the war.
I can't remember who told it, but I believe it was here on the forum.
Short story, they dissolved the Gold put it in a bottle and set it on the top shelf in the lab.
It was then sitting there during the whole war, nobody recognized it for what it was.

My point is, that when it goes to the ordinary thief, it may be invisible in many forms, even powder.

 

[icejj]

Just curious if vacuum sealing them in plastic would help preserve them longer?

I'm thinking it would, as that was my thought processas well. I wrapped them tightly in plastic but didn't vacuum seal it.

 

[icejj]

f theft is a concern remember they still look golden and they are heavy.

If you want to go completely left field then hide them in plain sight. Cast them into a door handle or fixing or something similar that's in plain sight. something that can be painted with emulsion but looks so innocuous that it will be completely ignored.

I do think hiding in plain sight is a good idea. I always say that even if something doesn't look valuable, storing it in a way in which only valuable things are stored in (i.e. a safe) could be counterproductive as it would make one wonder why it is stored that way in the first place...

 

[anachronism]

I do think hiding in plain sight is a good idea. I always say that even if something doesn't look valuable, storing it in a way in which only valuable things are stored in (i.e. a safe) could be counterproductive as it would make one wonder why it is stored that way in the first place...

Nickvc once told me of a guy who cast his silver into doorstops in the shape of bunnies and painted them black

 

[4metals]

It will be interesting to see if they lose weight when melted. I have customers who dry the gold as powder and weigh it and settle the job. They find the "dry" powder always has some moisture so they lose a small percentage on melting. They do this to avoid having to melt every little lot.

 

[GoIdman]

So, I've been experimenting with ways to store my gold without melting it, and I decided to compress some of the gold dirt into blocks with a homemade hydraulic press. Not sure if this has been discussed here before, but let me know what you all think!

The blocks are pretty sturdy... I figured that by storing it this way, it wouldn't be in loose dirt form so I could avoid potential loss if a drop/accident occurred, and I could avoid theft since it doesn't look like solid gold bullion....

Biscuitssss......

 

[GoIdman]

So, I've been experimenting with ways to store my gold without melting it, and I decided to compress some of the gold dirt into blocks with a homemade hydraulic press. Not sure if this has been discussed here before, but let me know what you all think!

The blocks are pretty sturdy... I figured that by storing it this way, it wouldn't be in loose dirt form so I could avoid potential loss if a drop/accident occurred, and I could avoid theft since it doesn't look like solid gold bullion....

If theft is your biggest concern......make some coin shape circles, tie them with fishing line and hang it up on your chandellier.....no thief will look up when looting, they dont even get the lights on....

Pete

 

[icejj]

It will be interesting to see if they lose weight when melted. I have customers who dry the gold as powder and weigh it and settle the job. They find the "dry" powder always has some moisture so they lose a small percentage on melting. They do this to avoid having to melt every little lot.

Interesting...if I melt them down then I'll get the weight before and after