I need help.

[Eaheisler]

Good day everyone,

I would first like to give you a little bit of background information about myself. I'm an active duty soldier with 5 combat tours. I have PTSD so bad that I am afraid to go outside because everything I see, smell, feel or, sense puts me into a panic attack. So in trying to find a hobby I decided to try my hand at gold salvaging. Over the past 2 weeks I've spent over $2,000 in scrap of all kinds, and the kits found on this home page. I know I've made some bad buys but, I have also made some good ones as well. Since I have over 12 lbs of watch bands (1,200) invested in those that is where I would focus my energy on & sell the rest on eBay.

I have the DVD tutorials on the way along with all the mats (except for the chemicals I'm going to need) I was wondering if someone would be kind enough to give me a step by step breakdown of what to do, how to do it, chemicals I'm going to need &, materials I may be missing. I hate to sound slow but, I'm looking for Barney style so there is no way for me to screw this up.

Thanks in advance
Big Sgt.

 

[FrugalRefiner]

Big Sgt.,

I want to thank you for your military service. I hope you can, at some point, put your demons behind you.

I don't have any links to step by step procedures, though I have seen such lists on the forum. The problem with such lists is that to be a list, it can't provide enough detail. To provide enough detail it becomes a book instead of a list.

I can provide some links that will get you started in the right direction. First, be safe in everything you do. Before you start any chemical processes, be sure you understand the potential hazards and do everything you can to minimize the risks. Read EVERYTHING in the Safety section of the forum, especially the Dealing with Waste topic.

Take a look through the Guided Tour created by LazerSteve. It will provide an introduction to the forum and numerous valuable links including the General Reactions List. Be sure to follow the link to his web site as he has many outstanding videos, a collection of great reference documents, and he sells a lot of the supplies needed to get started including detailed instructional DVDs. Samuel-a also has a lot of videos, guides and tutorials at his web site Gold-N-Scrap.

Download C. M. Hoke's book. There is a digital copy you can read on screen here: Refining Precious Metal Wastes. If you prefer a printed copy, you'll find a link to a printer friendly version in my signature line below. You'll see her book mentioned repeatedly here on the forum for good reason. It is probably the best book ever written for the beginner who wants to learn refining. It is written in layman's terms and will provide a solid foundation that will help you understand everything you read here on the forum. You'll also find a tremendous amount of information in the two Forum Handbooks compiled by aflacglobal, Forum Handbook Vol 1 and Forum Handbook Vol 2.

While you're reading, you can get ahead of the game by disassembling all of those watch bands. Most of them only have gold-filled caps. The majority of the bands are base metal bottoms, springs, pivots, etc. Pop the caps off and separate them from the rest. You won't waste acid later when you're ready to start some small, test batches.

If there's something you don't understand or you get stuck, there will be someone here to help you.

Best of luck,
Dave

 

[nmlfreitas]

Hi there Sarg. I m not American but I have tons of respect for those who served their country.
After you read Hokes like Dave said you should watch Lazersteve videos and dvds.
Make sure you are ready with all safety gear before you can perform a test.
Start with the process you think its more easy for you and the one you feel more comfortable with.
After some tries you should be able to get some gold and become addicted to it

All Best


Nuno

 

[etack]

and the kits found on this home page.

What is this? is there a link that is missing? I have never seen a kit posted.

I hope you will now invest in reading. watch bands can be tough so befor you start sort and remove all the SS it will make it 1000X easier in the end.

Good lucEric

 

[bswartzwelder]

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE TO OUR COUNTRY.

Most of the recovery and refining of gold cannot be done indoors without extremely good safety equipment. Mainly, I'm referring to fume hoods (not range/kitchen hoods) and fume scrubbers. Without investing in these, almost any work you try to do indoors will be very dangerous, even fatal to you, your family, friends and pets. Please keep us informed of how you are doing.