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Ok so I got it to work ... Eventually.
I needed the lid slightly off and when I eventually used a fan it worked quite quickly.

No gold tho'
View attachment 60556


I asked the eBay seller and they said that it was 0.64% according to their XRF

View attachment 60557
Wouldn't an XRF only show the makeup of the surface, not the entire lot?
Are those your readings or the seller sent you the picture?
35gr of material should have yielded 0.22 gr Au according to the XRF picture.

Pete
 
Are those your readings or the seller sent you the picture?
35gr of material should have yielded 0.22 gr Au according to the XRF picture.

Pete
That's their XRF pic.

They're now saying they have 0.155555 microns per gram of precious metals. I'm saying that makes no sense whatsoever to me. Microns are a measurement of length and gram is mass. So depth of gold per gram is nonsense. If you took a gram of gold and rolled it to 0.155555 microns thick it would be, as they say, 0.155555 microns per gram but 100% gold. Massively different to 0.155555 micron layer over a sphere.

I used 10g of their product and got zero visible bead. I wasn't expecting much, but I was expecting something.
 
That's their XRF pic.

They're now saying they have 0.155555 microns per gram of precious metals. I'm saying that makes no sense whatsoever to me. Microns are a measurement of length and gram is mass. So depth of gold per gram is nonsense. If you took a gram of gold and rolled it to 0.155555 microns thick it would be, as they say, 0.155555 microns per gram but 100% gold. Massively different to 0.155555 micron layer over a sphere.

I used 10g of their product and got zero visible bead. I wasn't expecting much, but I was expecting something.
Then you have been probably scammed.
 
That's their XRF pic.

They're now saying they have 0.155555 microns per gram of precious metals. I'm saying that makes no sense whatsoever to me. Microns are a measurement of length and gram is mass. So depth of gold per gram is nonsense. If you took a gram of gold and rolled it to 0.155555 microns thick it would be, as they say, 0.155555 microns per gram but 100% gold. Massively different to 0.155555 micron layer over a sphere.

I used 10g of their product and got zero visible bead. I wasn't expecting much, but I was expecting something.
Anybody who measures weights by micron thickness per gram, doesn't know the business. It should have been a tip off to you, to stay away from these types. Of course you on the other hand, you may have realized this, and tried to take advantage of them. So you can't put the blame on either one of you. Chalk it up to the learning curve. Only do business with reputable, knowledgable types, and payment on larger quantities goes into an escrow account, until both parties agree on acceptable terms.
 
Anybody who measures weights by micron thickness per gram, doesn't know the business. It should have been a tip off to you, to stay away from these types. Of course you on the other hand, you may have realized this, and tried to take advantage of them. So you can't put the blame on either one of you. Chalk it up to the learning curve. Only do business with reputable, knowledgable types, and payment on larger quantities goes into an escrow account, until both parties agree on acceptable terms.
I didn't see the micron per gram measurement. It was buried in one of the specs on eBay, not in the title or description. I was just hoping for some measurable gold so that when I moved over to chemical refinement, I could compare yeilds.

But you're right. Buyer beware. Read the fine print. At least I now know I didn't lose any gold in the first (cracked) cupels 😀
 
Why are all the other elements in the XRF picture whited out? The price is a huge red flag - the white out is a second.

The XRF machines confuses elements sometimes. If I recall correctly, lead can be confused for gold - especially with an XRF calibrated for precious metal alloys where no lead is expected.
 
Why are all the other elements in the XRF picture whited out? The price is a huge red flag - the white out is a second.

The XRF machines confuses elements sometimes. If I recall correctly, lead can be confused for gold - especially with an XRF calibrated for precious metal alloys where no lead is expected.
That is exactly what I was wondering, what is being hidden because a potential buyer should know the exact makeup to determine if it is worth refining or not.

I would pass on this without a 2nd thought !!!
 
Interesting you even got it to work. When I tried it lid off, fan on, throwing tons of fuel at it I saw all the stages of cupelling and the flashing of the nuclear reaction which was way cool, but never any cupelling occurred. Even saw a gold button in the molten lead I decided that you must need a cupelling oven or an oxygen torch which Ive seen results from others in no time at all. Right now Im stuck with 15 or so lead ingots. If anyone cupels and wants to do a deal lemme know.
 
Interesting you even got it to work. When I tried it lid off, fan on, throwing tons of fuel at it I saw all the stages of cupelling and the flashing of the nuclear reaction which was way cool, but never any cupelling occurred. Even saw a gold button in the molten lead I decided that you must need a cupelling oven or an oxygen torch which Ive seen results from others in no time at all. Right now Im stuck with 15 or so lead ingots. If anyone cupels and wants to do a deal lemme know.
I put the cupel on top of an upside down crucible so it was at the top of the furnace. Maybe that's the difference
 
I put the cupel on top of an upside down crucible so it was at the top of the furnace. Maybe that's the difference
To cupel properly, you need 2 components for the reaction to happen properly. The first is temperature, 1850 F., the second is a bit of atmospheric Oxygen. The conversion of Pb (Lead), to Pb oxide. Metallic Pb will not absorb into the cupel, only PbO will absorb into the cupel, bringing other base metal oxides as well. The resulting bead will consist of only precious metals, if the proper procedure is done. It is easy to do with the proper furnace, difficult without it.
 
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