acpeacemaker said:
Forgive me if it sounds rude but that last pic...Just how dirty is it? Its got a shiny bottom..but looks like a copper button contaminated with gold. If all these buttons or half are like that. How do you figure your estimates to not be off, even more than what your thinking??
acpeacemaker
It's not rude at all,let me see if I can explain the why's your asking about.The small button you referenced in the zoomed in picture is contaminated with palladium from purposely over using smb.The smb will pull down a small quantity of palladium if there is any in the over saturated solution.I do this when I suspect palladium in the material I'm running,the button in reference was from the 113.5grams of pins that showed positive stannous tests(twice to be sure)for palladium.Since this is a recovery drop and melt I used this to get a sample so I could visually confirm it during the melt.
My melt procedure for the test is quit simple,there's two metals that it could have been because they spark off in an oxygen rich environment(I say two only because I know what possible metals are the contaminants)one being iron and the second being palladium.I don't dry my powders like everyone else does,it goes in my ten inch pyroceram casserole dish and then to my dedicated griddle.Once it has all the water evaporated,then it gets moved over to my hotplate to calcine all the trapped sulfur dioxide gases out of the gold salts(or powders which ever you prefer to call them). Then I let the gold salts and dish cool.Since the pins had no solder and were partially plated in gold and had no traces of silver chloride(that rules out lead,tin,and silver). I used poorman's AR to dissolve the pins.So at this point I only suspect palladium.
This is when I use a stainless steel razor blade to scrape my gold salts out of my dish(yes I know yall would never ever do this).I then put my gold salts on my flat kiln plate and brush them into a tight pile with my dedicated gold brush.I start my neutral flamed torch on low(so not to blow my gold salts everywhere),I slowly start to go around the outside bottom of the pile and when I see that the bottom is hardened I move up the pile in the same manner until I'm at the top.Once the pile is semi slightly melted(so I know they will not blow when I turn my torch up)I turn my torch up in melting increments.I do so until it will no longer melt in increments,and it is then time to add borax and turn the oxygen on high,this is where I'm able to tell whether the contaminant is iron(first possible contaminant from razor blade shards,which only normally happens when I use previously used blade) or palladium.If it is iron,it will immediately spark off(just like lighting brilo pads on fire). If you have palladium it will rise to the surface of the molten button and upon putting the oxygen rich flame down in direct contact with it,will cause it to wildly spark off.You see the copper looking color because of me putting the torch head in the blow back flame during the test,which in turn oxidizes the copper on the torch tip.
The copper then becomes a surface contaminant that is then frozen when I put the last pinch of borax on right as I pull the flame away.This is why that button looks the worst of all.
I have since your post taken the time to put the buttons in a 5-10 percent solution of sulfuric acid to clean the borax off(just about five to ten minutes,so might not have had enough time to remove it all but enough to see the difference.These buttons are Not a finished Refined product so please do not expect them to be.If you look at the small one you'll see the palladium contamination.
I hope this will clear up any confusion you may have about why there so dirty.Stay tuned,the next round of yields for the 87 boards is going to be a good learning experience for all who want to learn.Thank you for your time and interest in this thread.
P.S Pictures will be at the bottom of this post.
P.S.S This is not a tutorial or instructions for use of any kind,This is simply an explanation of how I do things inside of my system.
GOLDbuyerCA said:
i, very much like this thread. it is about forum members, making a score, " getting some good, better electronic scrap / with gold value " and pointing out values, that are better, or not so good on boards. Myself,
i am always on the look out for better material, by the SUV full, or the good trunk full. and talking / chatting / forum discussing , on what is good, and how recoveries are.
myself, i pretty much think, members, know how to do the process. and the fewer distractions, on a thread, the better. with having some stuff myself, i will chime in and show a few pics of the better stuff,
So, in test gear, of HP type, the older stuff going back to ttl, chips, 74as, 5400 " better " and such, the boards have often a gold plate, of about 40 micro inches. 1978 or earlier. and is amazingly good value.
for some reason, scrappers that are not active on the forum, i get better connections with, and they scout for me, and i reward them, on the forum i have hand only two, that have helped out, " just saying "
i like the pictures on this thread, the stuff, from components, is rich, the connectors on some of the it stuff shown, are ten gigahertz connectors, worth 5 dollars each, salvaged. it is all hard work doing this.
i appreciate those of you , that have helped me out. rtg. yvr.ca
GOLDbuyerCA
Thank you for the kind words,and for taking the time to type out what this thread is truly about(You hit it right on the head good Sir). :mrgreen:
I have had the pleasure of owning two of those beautiful boards of yours(before I knew what I was doing,sadly enough :shock: ),I got them in a mixed batch from a guy I know.He gets a few goodies like that in from time to time.It's always a good unexpected treat,I guess you could say.I guess I could go back through my Picture portfolio and dig out some stuff that's done been here and gone now.Thank you for your contributions to this thread and for the time and effort that it took you to make this post.
kurtak said:
acpeacemaker said:
Forgive me if it sounds rude but that last pic...Just how dirty is it? Its got a shiny bottom..but looks like a copper button contaminated with gold. If all these buttons or half are like that. How do you figure your estimates to not be off, even more than what your thinking??
You are looking at a picture with
very poor lighting --- knowing Jerry as well as I do (& his "recovery" process) I think I can safely say his "recovered" gold is probably around 98 + % and at worst 97 + % --- Edit to add; - "
maybe" at the very worst 95 + %
Its certainly not copper contaminated with gold
Kurt
Kurtak
You are right on the bad lighting, and as the buttons sit in this new picture closer to 95-96 percent only because of the palladium contamination on the smaller button and yes I lost 2 tenths of a gram because of the borax.Thank you for your time and friendship over the past couple of years.You have set me forth on a great challenge of sorts with the next 87 boards,I remember how skeptical you were(when I first told you about the M44 process,and how many times I had to tell you what it could do before I finally got you to try it.). Do you remember me saying these words to you "I know how crazy this may sound to you but it really works".
To The Entire Forum!!!!
I owe you and every one else that has read this thread an apology for allowing this to turn into a pissing match instead of just sticking to my true purpose for this thread which GOLDbuyerCA has done any excellent job of putting into words.
I know how far fetched 4+oz of gold sounds,I really do.I just want to show yall what you can't see(absolutely NO offense intended to any one who can't see it). This is not about proving any one right or wrong,this is about education in where to find hidden values that's it nothing more.Am I going to be forced against my will to lower what little skill pride(refining) I have in my life,and beg yall for my opportunity to give back something of great value to this library of refining knowledge.I implore of you to Please let me finish what I have set out to do(Teach you what I know). Thanks in advance for every bit of knowledge you have given to me without it I would not be able to refine my dreams into reality.
P.S Here's a picture of an oldie but goodie you may remember.
modtheworld44
