Turning raw gold into gold suitable for use in making jewelery

[elbowgrease]

Hi Folks

Just wondering if anyone can offer some advice on where to start with getting the gold that I've found made into 18k gold suitable for making a ring or some sort of jewelery out of.

I've already been to the jeweler and they can do the casting and setting and all that stuff, but they don't have the equipment to actually melt the gold down and turn it into 18k. So I need to be able to bring them the gold melted down into an 18k button and ready to go.

Cheers
Adam

 

[Keen Ken]

Try another jeweller,
Find a "manufacturing jeweller".
All they have to do is test the carat value of your gold then alloy it down to 18 ct (75% pure gold plus alloy metals of copper and zinc or silver depending on what hardness and colour you require).
It's not rocket sience, pretty basic for any qualified jeweller to do this.
There may be problems with cracking if the impurity in your gold is not compatible with there alloy.

To save work and money some jewellers may be prepaired to exchange already alloyed gold for your gold.

Just a few options you can look into.

 

[shivan]

G'day Adam, i have been looking into this a little as i plan to make my own jewellery at a later stage.
I plan to do all my melting usung a propane torch. For me this was the cheapest way to go to get a quick start. I have done a few melts succsefully with just the torch and cruicble but it was hard to maintain pouring heat which is just above melting heat. So i will be looking at a setup like this:
[video=480,360]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_br3cu08mIs[/video]

You then can change the purity of your gold by adding some alloy, you can get this from most jewellery suppliers.

 

[Keen Ken]

He makes it look easy,
Nice little furnace though, I might have to try something like that out myself.
I have never found it easy to melt gold with a propane tourch, I have a propane / oxygen tourch that work better than straight propane.

 

[WalnLiz]

Need to have a serious look at something like that myself...got to turn some Oallen Ford flower gold into something that won't blow away in the wind. If anyone has seen a vid on how to make a backyard version of these I'd love to see the link...Cheers Wal.

 

[shivan]

I messed up when i got my tourch, just went to bunnings and grabbed one that looked good

That is what i used, NEVER get a plastic tourch and some Borax Sodium Borate AnalyticalGrade.

Slowly heat the crucible(do not turn the tourch up full ball or you will crack the crucible like i did) until it is red hot around the rim.
From a teaspoon sprinkle a little borax over the crucible (it will bubble up as you add it so dont be startled) to give the whole crucible a glaze(this will also stop the fine gold from blowing away) then re-heat again and add gold and roughly same size pile of borax (helps if gold is close to where you are heating the crucible so it warms slightly, not a good idea to add something stone cold to something red hot), start raising the temp of the torch, the gold will get red hot fairly fast (depending on amount) and then start pooling as it melts (its imortant to keep the heat even over what you are trying to melt, dont just focus on one spot).
You will see when it is ready to pour as all the gold will be in a bead that moves easily round the crucible. The two 1.5g pours i did, i just tipped onto a clean surface and dropped it straight into water to quench which also shattered the borax slag that had formed. The 3.5 pour i had a bit more trouble maintaining pouring heat and the first time it was dumped onto the concrete the secont time it went a bit smoother so think iam getting the hang of it.

 

[axeman]

lapidary clubs do gold and silver smithing, find a club and have a talk to them Mick

 

[WalnLiz]

Thanks Ian...Will give it a go...want to make a couple of 1oz ingots to start with ....might try to make a furnace that can handle 10oz ingots....will keep you informed on how it goes....Cheers Wal.

 

[elbowgrease]

Thanks Ian...Will give it a go...want to make a couple of 1oz ingots to start with ....might try to make a furnace that can handle 10oz ingots....will keep you informed on how it goes....Cheers Wal.

Holy heck Wal, 1oz... 10oz... you clearly have far too much gold Right about now I'd be only needing a 1/4 oz ingot mold for all the gold I've got LOL



I'm actually at the stage now where I have about 8.5g of fines ready to melt (yay I get to keep all my little nuggets!), so I need to swing into full gear either find someone to refine the gold for me or attempt doing it myself. Given the nature of what I'm trying to achieve I really don't want to bugger it up so my preference would be going to someone who knows what they are doing! If I can get the gold refined, the jeweler I got my fiancee's engagement ring made has agreed to do the rest (alloy to 18k, cast and make the ring and set the stones)


Adam

 

[Gold miner]

Hi mate,
If he'll alloy to 18, why wont he melt the lot?

When you start getting up a bit in grams, it does get harder to smelt as mentioned above. I think Shivans second torch is using 'mapp gas' as opposed to normal propane. mapp certainly does burn hotter!

 

[elbowgrease]

Hi mate,
If he'll alloy to 18, why wont he melt the lot?

When you start getting up a bit in grams, it does get harder to smelt as mentioned above. I think Shivans second torch is using 'mapp gas' as opposed to normal propane. mapp certainly does burn hotter!

The jeweler has said he can melt it down as is, but melting it won't refine the gold as such. So without refining it first there will be impurities in the gold when it comes time to alloy it down into 18k gold and with impurities in the gold it could potentially cause issues like the gold being difficult to work with or cracking etc. Its all waaaay beyond my expertise and as a jeweler I'm sure he has to go above and beyond to cover his own bum, but that was my understanding of why (I could be way off though)

Adam

 

[Gold miner]

Well melting it will refine it, if you add borax which will draw the impurities out, then seperate the dross after.
Unless you want the AR method to 'totally' refine the gold??
They are the only two methods I know of, and to be truthful have never used the AR method.
I've made jewellry and had rings made and never had a problem?
Only thing with rings from memory, is the jeweller cant/wont stamp the purity on them.