Charlie Fox 6 Posted March 12 Found a small nugget,1.6 grams.I thought it was a piece of lead and stuck in my bullet bag. Thought I was skunked that day, until I got home to inspect some rocks with my magnifier. The piece of lead turned into a nice nugget! Should I soak it in nitric acid to uncover the gold inside or save it as the specimen? It shows gold in a few spots, but has most inside. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Au Seeker 2,684 Posted March 12 1 hour ago, Charlie Fox said: Found a small nugget,1.6 grams.I thought it was a piece of lead and stuck in my bullet bag. Thought I was skunked that day, until I got home to inspect some rocks with my magnifier. The piece of lead turned into a nice nugget! Should I soak it in nitric acid to uncover the gold inside or save it as the specimen? It shows gold in a few spots, but has most inside. Please post a good photo, hard to say what is best to do with it without seeing it. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Charlie Fox 6 Posted March 12 28 minutes ago, Au Seeker said: Please post a good photo, hard to say what is best to do with it without seeing it. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nugget108 1,408 Posted March 12 Maybe a little salt in vinegar to start. Shake it around and the salt will act like an abrasive and the vinegar should shine it up. Just to start off. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Charlie Fox 6 Posted March 12 Here's a picture of the Nugget on top of a possible meteorite. It's hard to see without magnification. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Charlie Fox 6 Posted March 12 2 minutes ago, nugget108 said: Maybe a little salt in vinegar to start. Shake it around and the salt will act like an abrasive and the vinegar should shine it up. Just to start off. Thanks for the help. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Charlie Fox 6 Posted March 12 6 minutes ago, Charlie Fox said: It's the strangest nug I've ever found. Must be close to a source? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Au Seeker 2,684 Posted March 13 Get some "Whink Rust Stain Remover", it containts a low percentage of hydrofuloric acid, very nasty stuff in high percentages, but as long as you wear gloves you will not be at any risk using the Whink, it's made for household cleaning, rust stains in toliets, etc...BUT do follow the instructions on the bottle, you really don't want it to get on your skin, and don't breathe any vapors, and avoid it getting on any glass as it will etch the glass, so use a plastic container to soak your nugget in, also to be on the safe side do this outside. Since it's low percentage of hydrofluoric acid it will eat away most everything but the gold but very slowly, so you can easily judge when you want to stop soaking the nugget, it can take several days to a week or more. Whink makes other rust remover products but be sure this is what you get as the others won't do much if anything to cleanup your nugget. https://www.rustoleum.com/product-catalog/consumer-brands/whink/rust-stain-and-removers/rust-stain-remover https://www.walmart.com/ip/Whink-Rust-Stain-Remover-16-fl-oz/15716648 More safety info on hydrofluoric acid. https://ehs.princeton.edu/laboratory-research/chemical-safety/chemical-specific-protocols/hydrofluoric-acid https://www.rustoleum.com/MSDS/ENGLISH/1291.pdf 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Charlie Fox 6 Posted March 13 Thanks for the info. I'm going to find some tomorrow. Can't wait to see it transformed! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andyy 1,011 Posted March 13 I would have thrown that in the trash, too. Who'd have thunk. I can't wait to see what it looks like clean. It just doesn't have a typical nuggets shape. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Charlie Fox 6 Posted March 13 I've got it soaking. It'll probably take a few weeks to clean it up. I'll post some pics when it's ready. I'm biting at the bit!! 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
adam 2,890 Posted March 14 15 hours ago, Charlie Fox said: It'll probably take a few weeks to clean it up Wow ! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Uncle Ron 1,407 Posted March 14 Do a streak test and check to see if it's magnetic...interesting find! WTG...Cheers, Unc Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Morlock 1,247 Posted March 14 On 3/12/2019 at 7:24 PM, Au Seeker said: Get some "Whink Rust Stain Remover", it containts a low percentage of hydrofuloric acid, very nasty stuff in high percentages, but as long as you wear gloves you will not be at any risk using the Whink, it's made for household cleaning, rust stains in toliets, etc...BUT do follow the instructions on the bottle, you really don't want it to get on your skin, and don't breathe any vapors, and avoid it getting on any glass as it will etch the glass, so use a plastic container to soak your nugget in, also to be on the safe side do this outside. Since it's low percentage of hydrofluoric acid it will eat away most everything but the gold but very slowly, so you can easily judge when you want to stop soaking the nugget, it can take several days to a week or more. Whink makes other rust remover products but be sure this is what you get as the others won't do much if anything to cleanup your nugget. https://www.rustoleum.com/product-catalog/consumer-brands/whink/rust-stain-and-removers/rust-stain-remover https://www.walmart.com/ip/Whink-Rust-Stain-Remover-16-fl-oz/15716648 More safety info on hydrofluoric acid. https://ehs.princeton.edu/laboratory-research/chemical-safety/chemical-specific-protocols/hydrofluoric-acid https://www.rustoleum.com/MSDS/ENGLISH/1291.pdf That Whink really does the job albeit very slowly. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bsumbdy 102 Posted March 14 The nugget might only need some CLR and a light tooth brushing. The meteor looks interesting, like it was an oriented fall. Chris 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
