Dividing up a huge nugget!!

[Hoser John]

ONLY GOLD???????????????? We're talkn' $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ loss due to blatent ignorance and greed=gold fever--mine Mine MINE and I want it NOW????????? Patience is a virtue much in demand in these trying times. Under such ungodly conditions that these people live you'd think that they'd be able to go for the MUCH larger payoff by selling whole?? The fever got'm John

[h20prospector]

John,

Did you read my post?

I'm not a student of middle eastern culture, but I have lived with these people while stationed in Turkey and other parts of that region. Those who are doing the dirty work of finding gold, only to give up a lions share to the person(s) who brokered the deal to get the top of the line Minelab's, aren't in a position to realize the gain of a nugget the size that's shown in the video - they just don't have the time to care or worry what we have to say on the subject. Those who are doing the dirty work, they are living a life of poverty and trying times right now, and have all there lives - most of us on this forum haven't. Baksheese is a way of life over there, and has been since the beginning of time. All they see are the $ signs gained by doing what there doing. As prospectors who know the value of such a rare and beautiful nugget we would never do what they are doing - Never. Put yourself in their shoes - only then will you understand what they are doing in that part of the world. Yes, it's gold fever for them, not us .

Pat

[Hoser John]

Been up the amazon,all over mexio and cen.amer. and never met a man who didn't understand the words MORE $$$$$$$$ means less work. But them natives in the dark continent are a different breed all right and the worst situations that occur there that my ol'white USA arse just cannot comprehend--nevertheless what a trajedy to desicrate righteous oro puro. Turned down a couple a projects in africa due to S.Africa relatives telln' me not only no--but LL no don't go--I'm still alive but the fella who took over the op got muched by a hippo!!!!!!!-John

[h20prospector]

John,

If I raised the hackles on the back of your neck, that wasn't my intention. Your right about a tragedy! Can't argue with the way they conduct themselves.

Pat

[lenster]

That was so stinkin painfull to watch. My head hurts.

[CalGoldDredger]

New way to look at this. Go right ahead melt, cut, smash, scratch, destory, or whatever to those nuggets you find, just makes mine more valuable and rare.

[Hoser John]

Damn man I love that righteous attitude--in the midst of adversity and stupidity you managed to find a ray of sunshine thanx and NO hackles H20---just nausea--John

[El Dorado]

They do the same thing to fine nuggets in Brazil. Just like miners have been doing for thousands of years...... If there was a nugget buyer there vs a gold buyer it might make a difference but I doubt it

[RiverGold]

Is it gold or is it a free copper nugget? I remember seeing something bigger than this a couple of years ago that was briefly touted as an enormous gold nugget, but it turned out to be almost all copper with only a tiny amount of gold in it, as you might find in many good copper mines. This is just a guess, but I am basing it on these things:

1. The audio on the clip has a very tinny sound to it when the metal is struck. Silver and copper have distintive tones to them when they are struck or bounced off of something. They have a certain frequency to them and, in the case of silver, it can be useful in detecting counterfeits. The audio has a more tin-like sound, like copper. Gold tends to have a dull "thunk" sound. It is very maleable and seems to absorb sound when hit. The one in the video has a tinny "ring" to it.
2. They are working very hard at chiseling through these nuggets. The material seems much harder than gold, which is very maleable. It is reacting to the chiseling more like copper, which is a relatively tougher material and used to make tools and weapons in ancient times.
3. Copper nuggets, unlike gold nuggets, are not enormously valuable beyond their melt value. They bring a slight premium for rock shops, but most serious mineral collectors do not get too excited about copper nuggets because they are relatively common. The gold values of a copper nugget containing low percentages of gold do not go much beyond the refinery value when melted and separated.
4. If they had real gold nuggets this size, you would probably see some armed guards around and they would probably be much more secretive about this activity and not posting it on U tube.
5. The color looks like gold, but copper nuggets, like gold nuggets, are seldom 100% pure. Other minerals like silver or nickel can impart a more gold-like color to copper.

The only thing I see contrary to my theory is that these nuggets seems to show wear patterns similar to gold. Copper nuggets tend to have a more sandy, grainy texture. But, under the right conditions, they can probably show a smooth-surfaced wear similar to gold. I would be curious to see what any mineral collectors on the forum think about this possibility.

Randy (formerly RivermanCO)

[CalGoldDredger]

They do the same thing to fine nuggets in Brazil. Just like miners have been doing for thousands of years...... If there was a nugget buyer there vs a gold buyer it might make a difference but I doubt it

I think there is something more to what Steve had to say.

Last year with the price of gold so high some of my nugget buyers had cold feet, Got me thinking if there weren't any nugget buyers at all, where would the gold go? to the gold buyers (refiners) for weight spot price and last year some did.