Right tool to use??

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I know this forum is for gold prospecting but the principles apply to my area of interest.

Been digging a pit latley. Getting down about 2 meters following a quartz stringer. Hole is currently 1.5 diameter at the bottom. Found good tin and nice topaz but now I have hit the main quartz lead. This shit is solid!!! Any idea's on how to bust it up?

Can't get power down there and not quite enough space for a good swing on the sledgey. Hammer and chisel is taking for ever!!!

No good for explosives. I love a boom as much as the next man but I want the topaz and aqua crystals in tact.

Is it possible to drill holes in quartz using a cordless hammer drill? I've never tried before.
Will it even help to bust it up? Or is there a better way?

Any idea is a welcome one.
 
Fill the pit with wood ...let it burn all night....then thro a couple of buckets of water on it...will crack the quartz and make it brittle...much easier to bust up
 
Tathradj, digging on a friends lease with permission. He gets the tin I get the crystals. Don't worry, all of the Bureaucracy perverted desires have been satisfied.

Not intending on getting to serious, just really want to make it through the lead to see if the mineralising picks up on the other side. Top layer of dirty quartz yielded some nice pockets but I can't follow it as it goes uphill under a huge (size of a house maybe) granite slab. Way to difficult/time consuming to pursue by hand and the terrain is incredibly steep so no way to get a genny in there for power. Only way to go is down, or dig out the mountain side which is actually a bit dangerous for the area I'm digging in.

Good idea with using heat though Smoky! Not sure if a fire will be permitted but still a better idea than a bloody hammer and chisel.

Any other idea's?
 
Drill holes with cordless drill in a straight line where u want to break it up then use u hammer and chisel to get a crack through the quarts (normally brittle ) then drive a crow bar in as far as poss with a sledge . Put a rope on it to u 4x4 tow bar and drive off . U may have to do this several times
 
Drill holes with cordless drill in a straight line where u want to break it up then use u hammer and chisel to get a crack through the quarts (normally brittle ) then drive a crow bar in as far as poss ible with a sledge. Tie a rope to crow bar and tow bar of car and drive . U may need to do this several times .
If u on a mates lease with his permission u are legal in most states as long as u working for him
 
Smoky bandit said:
Fill the pit with wood ...let it burn all night....then thro a couple of buckets of water on it...will crack the quartz and make it brittle...much easier to bust up

good idea but.......

1 it will also shatter the crystals and make the whole lot worthless also burnt fumes are not so good in small spaces

2 this method is good for making kilns but not for mining as you have two problems 1 where's all the water go ? it stays in the pit then you gota bail it out 2 where dose all the ash go ?? it stays in the pit too until of course you dig it back out

im not trying to be against you in anyway just stating that there's better ways than this
 
SneakyCuttlefish said:
Tathradj, digging on a friends lease with permission. He gets the tin I get the crystals. Don't worry, all of the Bureaucracy perverted desires have been satisfied.

Not intending on getting to serious, just really want to make it through the lead to see if the mineralising picks up on the other side. Top layer of dirty quartz yielded some nice pockets but I can't follow it as it goes uphill under a huge (size of a house maybe) granite slab. Way to difficult/time consuming to pursue by hand and the terrain is incredibly steep so no way to get a genny in there for power. Only way to go is down, or dig out the mountain side which is actually a bit dangerous for the area I'm digging in.

Good idea with using heat though Smoky! Not sure if a fire will be permitted but still a better idea than a bloody hammer and chisel.

Any other idea's?

genie you can't get into there ?? hum what about if I told you can buy a 3000wat inverter genie that weights just 30kg take breaks carrying it on a trolley its do able have 2 people one as a brake and the other to stabilize it going up and down hills then you can run a decent 1200 wat jack hammer off it to do your work and with a small windlass and platform over the pit/shaft and a few steel backets you will be able to work the mine easier and deeper
 
Hey SneakyCuttlefish,

You said that explosives were not an option but you did like a boom. How about a point focal charge? A small amount of explosives in a shaped charge can be directed into the area you need to fracture. Some of my old military training coming out. Explosives can be a science/tool if used correctly. :) :) :)

Cheers

Doug
 
also if you have a atc quad bike or just a motor bike you could connect a small trailer up to it to put your tools and other gear in instead of carrying it in im sure its not that rocky or steep to do that ?
 
Dig a hole on the other side of the Quartz reef, if it turns into a Holterman, I will help you lift it out of the hole ;)

(Drill and crack open a face, then sledge/pry off large blocks is a backup plan)
 
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