Gold Recovery/Refining for Beginners (Me)

[Goldfish]

Greetings all. This is my first post in this forum. I came here seeking advice. I've never tried to recover/refine gold, but have a growing interest in giving it a try. References to some accurate reading/research material would be a good start. I'm not so sure that my studies at the 'University of Youtube' are the best source for sound advice & education. I'd also like to know what the 'average' yield from gold filled scrap would be, ball-parked of course. I know that is a vague question due to many variables, however. I'm concerned with yield vs. cost of chemicals, time, etc.. Equipment costs are not a concern, as I am fairly well equipped, already. Being a small scale hobbyist, at this point, I'd hate to spend $50 dollars on gold filled scrap plus $30+ dollars in chemicals to realize only $10 dollars worth of refined gold. While that would be the true definition of a 'hobby', that's not what I'm after. I'd like to learn how to actually profit from this. Just looking for some sound advice to point me in the proper direction for success.
Many Thanks...

 

[FrugalRefiner]

Welcome to the forum Goldfish. Take a look at the Tips for Navigating and Posting on the Forum thread. Be sure to follow the link to lazersteve's Guided Tour of the forum. Then visit the Library section, where we gathered some of the best threads.

As far as gold filled yield, as you said there are too many variables. Is it 1/10 14K, 1/20 10K, etc? Is it old, heavily worn jewelry, or nearly new eyeglass frames? I'm not asking for answers. Even then, yields can be all over the place. Once you process some of your material with your choice of processes, you'll have something to go by.

Dave

 

[Darkness Falls]

The best way to look at this is, "it's just a hobby". Can someone make money? Absolutely. Can this be a profitable venture? No, unless you have low overhead cost and a reliable supply of material.

For me personally, after I came back from Iraq, I had heart issues and was deemed disabled. I'm 33 years old so I needed something to occupy my time. That was the hobby of scrapping. I spent last summer posting ads on Facebook groups looking for broken electronics. I actually got so many replies that I had to buy a 16ft trailer from Home Depot to haul it all. I would have about 4-6 pickups per trip every other day. Now that winter is here, I have my garage stacked full of electronics and plastic drums of different types of scrap. The one thing I learned about this hobby is don't just go after the gold. These electronics has platinum, gold, silver, copper, aluminum, palladium, and all kinds of other stuff that you can make money on. When I first started, I would take out the electronic boards and toss the rest. Then I found out that a junkyard 5 miles from me will pay 10 cents per pound for the steel I was tossing.

In regards to overhead, the most expensive chemical for me was the nitric acid. It cost me $218 for approx. 3 gallons. Then there's the fume hood I bought for $400. All of my Pyrex glassware, a Corning hot plate, and tons of other stuff you may not consider at first. The only thing I have going for me is my electric is included in my rent, so it's a set price.

For me, this is a great hobby. I enjoy the science behind it, it keeps my mind occupied, and I don't mind sitting at my desk watching Netflix while I depopulate the boards and separate the components.

Look at it like this, if this was an easy money gig, everyone would be doing it.

 

[Anonymous]

Darkness a tip if I may?

You would do well to investigate more sources for your Nitric, or check with a couple of your colleagues on here about where to source it. That's an extremely expensive price you are paying for it sir and as you rightly pointed out adds an unacceptable amount to your overhead.

I agree that you need an efficient overhead and a regular supply of material to make it profitable. However, you also need to be ruthless enough to apply a triage process to the material you get. Trade on the stuff that's going to take more time and have low yields and keep the stuff that's going to yield high. Too many people waste their time and re-agents processing crap when they could have sold it and used the money to buy better raw product. Keep the money turning over regularly, and keep buying and selling, as that is way to make a profit at this game.

Where I do have to disagree with you is the point about "if it was easy everyone would be doing it." It IS easy to make money at this but most people seem to have a problem with listening to, and applying the advice given by those who are already making good money doing it. :wink: :wink:

Jon

 

[torscot]

Quick and easy reply. When processing GF. I expect 3-4 grams AU return from 100 grams scrap in. I normally process a mixture of 1940's watch bands and cases with good heavy plate pocket watch cases. For scrapping that's good stuff. I cleaned up some left overs and got 1.2 grams from a 100. That's a total waste. The weight in is free of springs, steel or anything not having gold plate. Don't waste your time with anything marked 1/20th GF You wont get good results using the GF recovery methods shown on the forum here. Remember good stuff in, Good stuff out. Crap in, Crap out.

 

[Darkness Falls]

Darkness a tip if I may?

You would do well to investigate more sources for your Nitric, or check with a couple of your colleagues on here about where to source it. That's an extremely expensive price you are paying for it sir and as you rightly pointed out adds an unacceptable amount to your overhead.

I agree that you need an efficient overhead and a regular supply of material to make it profitable. However, you also need to be ruthless enough to apply a triage process to the material you get. Trade on the stuff that's going to take more time and have low yields and keep the stuff that's going to yield high. Too many people waste their time and re-agents processing crap when they could have sold it and used the money to buy better raw product. Keep the money turning over regularly, and keep buying and selling, as that is way to make a profit at this game.

Where I do have to disagree with you is the point about "if it was easy everyone would be doing it." It IS easy to make money at this but most people seem to have a problem with listening to, and applying the advice given by those who are already making good money doing it. :wink: :wink:

Jon

You're right about the price. Thankfully, this was my first ever purchase of Nitric Acid. I will definitely need to find a cheaper source for when I need more. I think I just wanted it and I wanted it now. <-poor impulse control on my part. On the plus side, it was free shipping. Lol