Sample and crush or not

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Found this quartz seem in an old mine.
Do you think it be worth picking some out and crushing it to see if there any gold.

There is a 1.5 meter quartz reef about 5 metres away from this. I'm guessing the old timers gave up because the there no gold in the big reef but is it worth picking some out of the picture below?

1524985501_screenshot_20180429-170312.jpg
 
I recently crushed 3 samples from a barren mine that they dug on indicators hoping to hit a rich vien , i got 3 specs from slag like crust , 2 from black/rusty type quarts and1 from white qaurts.
Took photos etc but the yeilds werent worth posting as inconclusive result.

Crushing is learning :Y:
 
ben2363 said:
Found this quartz seem in an old mine.
Do you think it be worth picking some out and crushing it to see if there any gold.

There is a 1.5 meter quartz reef about 5 metres away from this. I'm guessing the old timers gave up because the there no gold in the big reef but is it worth picking some out of the picture below?

https://www.prospectingaustralia.co...291/1524985501_screenshot_20180429-170312.jpg

its got potential looks mineralized and minerals are a good indicator only way to be certain is to crush it up.
 
this is about 5 metres away this huge quartz reef is in the mine.
i did a little bit of sample last year out of this reef only 1 kg all up but got nothing out of it..

any one know where gold forms most in a quartz reef as i sampled right in the middle..

1525313477_screenshot_20180503-121004.jpg

1525313523_20180503_120913.jpg
 
Someone with more experience in reef mining may be able to give you a better indication but i would be taking my samples from the contact zones between the quartz vein and the host rock or junctions in the vein and the most mineralised/altered looking parts of the quartz.
 
A few pieces I have picked up with the detector and then crushed up have been exactly what Roddosnow describes - gold between the quartz and the host rock. Why is it there? Someone with more knowledge will answer that :D

Gold isn't always there of course. Much gold is right in amongst the quartz with some big speccies showing gold all the way through - nothing to do with host rock.

Crush it :Y:
 
Smash it and pan off then see what you have ...
You have nothing to loose.....

Cheers Nanjim
Jim
 
Northeast said:
A few pieces I have picked up with the detector and then crushed up have been exactly what Roddosnow describes - gold between the quartz and the host rock. Why is it there? Someone with more knowledge will answer that :D

Gold isn't always there of course. Much gold is right in amongst the quartz with some big speccies showing gold all the way through - nothing to do with host rock.

Crush it :Y:

same as above, the main thing i was getting at was to check it thoroughly and check all parts of it that are accessible as the gold can occur in any part of it or not at all.

All prospecting is exactly that checking prospects, the best way to find out if something is there is to put in the time and effort to thoroughly go over the area, whether that be from sampling and crushing, panning, digging and or detecting. If your research as landed you somewhere be thorough before moving on. Persistence Pays!

Good luck
 
Northeast said:
A few pieces I have picked up with the detector and then crushed up have been exactly what Roddosnow describes - gold between the quartz and the host rock. Why is it there? Someone with more knowledge will answer that :D

:Y:
its like a sandwich sometimes you have to remember it was once in a liquid state ( melted ) before it got in there and in a way any quartz reef you see has filled up a gap that was once a crack/fissure in the rock so if its brings in minerals such as antimony arsenic and pyrite chloride copper etc. your more likely to find gold near or next to these minerals because they are always most of the time associated with gold and in certain parts of Victoria they are an indicator of locating high grade ore
 
ben2363 said:
why would you take them form the contact zone of the host rock?
im new to this.

no havnt ran a detector over it yet

I would be running a detector over it as this saves time and effort taking samples home and crushing it. but be sure not to bother too much with the floor of the mine as there's always old junk like rusty nails steel spikes that you'll pick up. you know there's nothing but gold if its in the walls and roof but be careful no gold in the roof is worth dying over if you can't get it out safely or if the roof is very weak

as for gold structural controls e.g. geology look for 2 main things one is called an anticline other syncline you'll always get them together but sometimes they are about 1km apart its basically folds in the rock/strata Google them if you have never heard of them remember a syncline is a smiley face and a anticline is a sad face look for them when underground or in road cuttings near these folds or in them you will find quartz reefs in those reefs you will likely find gold a good example is Bendigo goldfield very rich due to these types of folds.
 
ben2363 said:
this is about 5 metres away this huge quartz reef is in the mine.
i did a little bit of sample last year out of this reef only 1 kg all up but got nothing out of it..

any one know where gold forms most in a quartz reef as i sampled right in the middle..

https://www.prospectingaustralia.co...291/1525313477_screenshot_20180503-121004.jpg
https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/img/member-images/7291/1525313523_20180503_120913.jpg

dose that quartz reef pinch in and out ? go's wide then really thin over its length ?
 
One thing to remember is that what was not payable at 1/2 oz per ton, is now looking a lot better, the old miners also had to make a living from what they found, and with the inflated goldfield prices they needed better than 1/2 oz per ton to make ends meet. If you only prospect on the weekend you don't have to get a couple of ozs to have a bit of fun. Ken.
 
I'm no expert on these things, but from what lve seen/read the main reef may be near barren but it may intersect with other reefs at an angle that have the gold. So you might be following a big thick white quartz reef but only really be interested in the thinner horribly dirty looking quartz (heavily mineralised) reefs that cross the larger reef. In some areas relatively small reefs or stockworks(spiderweb looking quartz) will be quite small but quite rich, but only some of them will be so while one may be rich the next may be worthless. As pointed out countless times by others, hard rock mining requires lots and lots of sampling, the more samples you do the more likely you will understand what's going on in that spot/area. If you just wanted to see if there is anything at all in there then your best bet is to look for the most disgustingly dirty horrible looking quartz or heavily mineralised area next to the Quartz and try that.
 
hey guys been awhile i plan to go look at the mine this saturday and get a few samples.

how do you guys sample?
just a hammer or pick and hit the rocks out or use a drill bit and that way the rock has turned into powder so no need to crush?
 
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