Smelting Without Borax

[RoobyRoobyRoo]

A bit more expensive than using a potato but cool video none the less.

 

[Valens Legacy]

Glad you posted this video as it is very interesting.

When I get back into gold detecting and panning I was looking for an easy way to melt it down.

I think this method would fit the bill for what I want.

Thanks Caleb

[GollyMrScience]

This method will work fine on clean gold but a major function of fluxing agents like borax is to break down and remove impurities from the metals you are melting. Clean gold can be worked without flux but placer or first run hardrock cons still have impurities as mineral grains that came along with your gold that you cant easily seperate or actually alloyed, admixed or trapped in the gold in some way. In that case, those impurities must be dealt with and various fluxes with primarily borax act to soak up and hold those impurities and thereby clean and purify the gold you are working with. As the melt progresses the crud you don't want has to have a place to go or it will just end up contaminating the new pour. Floating it all up and away into the flux does that. Along the way you can clean the gold even more by adding additional fluxing agents to break down minerals and unwanted metals and allow they to get caught up in the main flux- again usually borax. A pinch of sodium or potassium nitrate added to the melt at the right time, for instance, to oxidize metals like copper mixed in the gold and get them out and into the flux. 

[RoobyRoobyRoo]

18 minutes ago, GollyMrScience said:

This method will work fine on clean gold but a major function of fluxing agents like borax is to break down and remove impurities from the metals you are melting. Clean gold can be worked without flux but placer or first run hardrock cons still have impurities as mineral grains that came along with your gold that you cant easily seperate or actually alloyed, admixed or trapped in the gold in some way. In that case, those impurities must be dealt with and various fluxes with primarily borax act to soak up and hold those impurities and thereby clean and purify the gold you are working with. As the melt progresses the crud you don't want has to have a place to go or it will just end up contaminating the new pour. Floating it all up and away into the flux does that. Along the way you can clean the gold even more by adding additional fluxing agents to break down minerals and unwanted metals and allow they to get caught up in the main flux- again usually borax. A pinch of sodium or potassium nitrate added to the melt at the right time, for instance, to oxidize metals like copper mixed in the gold and get them out and into the flux. 

OMG!!!!!!! Is this Tom, the GMS I use to chat with on GPEX (Larry’s forum) in BC? I still have a copy of your book kicking around, great book, where have you been?

Jen

https://www.amazon.com/Modern-Goldseekers-Manual-Tom-Bryant/dp/0969391218

 

[geof_junk]

For those that don't have the good gear or only wants to melt a small amount it is possible to grind a hole in a fire brick and use those cans of camping gas with blow torch to do the job. Pure gold melting point is 1064 most lower purity gold melts at a lower Temperature

Similar small blow torch

5 lumps melted total weight 17 ounces

Some of the course gold, crushed via a dolly,  from a 3½ Kilo Specimen that was melted with the fines.

The largest melt that the butane would make was about 4 Ounces. I hope this helps those that don't want to get a furnace. Borax was the only chemical that was used with the gold when melting it..