Fine and flake gold recovery Options

[nuggetstosmall]

Whats the best way to recover flake and super fine gold?? Since going to the Arkansas River and finding lots of fine and flake gold, its like herding chickens to recover it. So was wondering how to recover it?? Any help would be great.

[CP]

Very cool, glad you got out to find some yellow stuff and had a good lesson at the rock shop.

I'd like to add a bit about gold floating. In an ideal environment, gold will not float......but, gold will in fact float when the environment it's in allows it to happen!
There are several factors involved that can cause this to happen, but all effect the water/gold in the same way. The dirt and other contaminants gather in the water causing a rise in surface tension. Once this happens (and it will happen), the gold, such as in the pan above for instance, will all float on surface tension when the water is dirty.

This can be easily tried out at home by just taking some of that fine Colorado gold you just found, place it in a well seasoned/used pan. Make sure the pan, water and tub are nice and clean. Add just a drop of soap, jet dry or your choice of panning add in.
Now all that fine gold is sitting down and the chickens can be herded to the corner. Leave this pan sitting somewhere it won't get knocked or tipped over night and do not cover it. In the morning or the next afternoon, without adding anything else, see if you can keep that same gold down on the bottom. Once the gold breaks the surface or is exposed, the next time water comes near it the gold will be along for the ride. It will amaze you how large of a flake looking piece can be seen skatin' the surface.

Dust, oil from the air, cars, roads, and even your fingers all are trying to steal your gold......USE CAUTION! You can prevent that from happening, and if it happens so easily in the pan, it's gotta' make ya' wonder just how much it can be effecting the field work as well.
If addressing the water tension in the pan clean up process can make such a difference, just think how much it might help in the first processes to gather more of that super fine stuff from all the hard work done.

I was told once by a miner that "the gold you've just dug and is on your shovel is constantly trying to elude your grasp from that moment on, keeping it from that point on or lessening the chance of it's escape is really what counts in the end" Ie.....more gold in the final pan!
He also told folks all the time, "you have to use that thought at all times or your wasting your work by throwing the gold right back in the ground." I hate it when I do that!

Have fun experimenting with this both at home and in the field and good luck prospecting everyone.

CP