Jason. I have done this process before. You pulled the zinc off of the lead too soon. Wait for the zinc to solidify completely on top of the molten lead. I used to poke the surface until it solidifies and then u can grab it with pliers. In my experience you will still have a small amount of lead come with the zinc but it isnt much. When you are doing this dont worry so much about the oxides. If you try to get rid of the oxides you can lose a lot of your silver. As an alternative you can also pour the lead and zinc mix out into tall skinny mold. Like a round stock mold. This will make lead be on bottom and zinc on top. Then u can find the place where each layer separates and cut them apart to get the zinc with most of the lead away from it.
@mbmmllc3 жыл бұрын
Thank you for the tips! Should I get the zinc molten first before adding to the lead? Also should I stir and agitate the zinc/lead for a while to get it mixed in? Once the zinc is added and mixed in slowly cool till the zinc solidifies and then pull it form the molten lead? I'll give it a try! Thank you!
@nicknewberry61753 жыл бұрын
@@mbmmllc so the way i used to do it was just throw it all together. Lead and zinc. U have to make sure the zinc becomes completely liquid. Otherwise it doesnt do well gathering the silver. If you have too much trouble with the zinc oxide lighting on fire you can put something over top of crucible. As for the amount of time stirring. I didnt stir for long. Only about 5 minutes and it seemed to work. I believe i got something around 90 percent recovery with my experiments. I like the thermometer technique u have. Here is what i would do. Heat lead and zinc up to about 900 fahrenheit. Stir it vigorously for about 5 minutes. Then let it cool down to about 700 and start checking to see if the zinc is solidifying. Once it goes solid pluck it off the surface.
@mbmmllc3 жыл бұрын
Awesome I will give it a try. Did you have a percent zinc to lead ratio you liked? The research i have done talks about 1-2%, next time I try I will be in the 3-5% I think. Thanks again for the tips
@nicknewberry61753 жыл бұрын
@@mbmmllc i was doing about 10-15 percent just because it is easier to handle. I had some trouble grabbing the zinc at some times so what i did was i just held the tip of needlenose pliers in the molten metal and let it solidify so it would stick to the pliers. My thinking was the more zinc the faster it captures the lead.
@OwlTech3333 жыл бұрын
@@mbmmllc 10% spread in 3 or more cycles
@OwlTech3333 жыл бұрын
Great video! The dross skimming you mentioned @15:54 I think this is were you lost most of the silver. When I process Parkes crust I'm melting it in stainless steel tray (large surface area) with NaOH then I I'm blowing air above the melt with constant stirring to oxidise the zinc, once all the zinc has oxidised (everything becomes like powder and has stopped producing blue zinc flames) I'm adding more NaOH which liquifies the powder, when that's done I'm left with slag, silver and a bit of lead which is cupelled in the usual manner.
@mbmmllc3 жыл бұрын
Great info. I will give this a try next time. Thanks for all your help
@OwlTech3333 жыл бұрын
@@mbmmllc Anytime mate!
@stevecasvan52253 жыл бұрын
I melt lead all the time to cast balls and bullets for my black powder. When my lead is melted and the dross is on top I throw in some wax. It kind of acts like a flux but it also reduces the oxides back into metal. I've seen fairly thick crusts reduced to very little and the surface become bright and mirror like. Helps to stir it around too. I also use a 50/50 mix of household vinegar and drug store hydrogen peroxide to remove the leading from my barrels. This works great! I think the metallic lead becomes lead acetate. A black slime that just wipes out of my barrel. Just a little food for thought! Keep up the good work!
@nickb54103 жыл бұрын
Great effort. The fact you recovered about half your silver back with such a cumbersome process was a success. Looking forward to you producing some silver from the Cerro Gordo ore. You have acquired a great deal of knowledge with your research and patient approach to experimentation.
@samw57673 жыл бұрын
I think by trying to melt small pieces of solid zinc in the lead in order to collect PMs, you are losing considerable values. At industrial scale, as I recall, molten lead containing PMs is introduced into a bath of molten zinc. On the scale you are doing it at, try first melting the zinc, probably 1/3 the amount by weight of the lead bearing the PMs. Then, pour in the molten lead containing the PMs--this will ensure a much better transfer of PMs from lead to zinc than by just stirring in some solid zinc. After the metals have been thoroughly stirred and drossed, as you've done, I would pour the molten metals into a column--even a soup can will work. Once cooled and peeled away from the can you will see a clear separation between the 'lead' layer on the bottom, and the 'zinc' layer on top: their crystalline structures are very different, Finally, you can hacksaw the layers apart very accurately (careful not to breathe the stuff), and dissolve away the zinc with HCl, leaving any PMs as residue. Looking forward to your next posts!
@ToddDunning3 жыл бұрын
How cool would it be to set up a working mount baker processing plant at Cerro in unpainted steel - so it would rust nicely and almost look original. Visitors could run some material and even smelt. Look at the popularity of tourist placer panning for example.
@ChrisRalph3 жыл бұрын
I'd suggest 1) heat the lead and zinc hotter, then cool. At higher temps lead and zinc will alloy, but as they cool they separate. Skimmings come off the cooling step. 2) do a two stem zinc addition and skim. Add a couple percent of zinc, then skim, then add another percent and skim in a second step. When I do this (one of these days) I am going to add about 10 percent zinc, then heat to well above the zinc melting point and allow the whole thing to cool slowly, hopefully giving me a two metal final solid where the zinc has fully separated from the lead like oil and water. I have some other info I collected, send me an email if you want more info
@mbmmllc3 жыл бұрын
Thanks Chris! I will give this a try next time. Thanks for all your info and help. Looking forward to you trying it one day. Thanks again
@StirlingLighthouse3 жыл бұрын
Excellent! 👍 Another cool process experiment! I'm looking forward to the Cerro Gordo recovery. Thank you Jason 🍻
@rpow113 жыл бұрын
Glad to see you making videos again. I love learning more about these processes.
@frankmonroe83203 жыл бұрын
I don't think Hewlett Packard ever dreamed their mice would be used for this. Like following your projects. Keep em coming.
@DavidSmith-zr3nd3 жыл бұрын
I was looking forward to this today.
@chadakacoldest15933 жыл бұрын
I would like to see srettips get involved in helping you take ore to silver
@okboomer62013 жыл бұрын
This channel, Srettips, Dan Hurd, Hard Rock University. I love all these channels.
@BackYardScience20003 жыл бұрын
Agreed. It would be great to see them collaborate on such a project.
@oltroutjunkman34713 жыл бұрын
Think off it like this, The old timers probably didn't always get it right the first time. Great video.
@jpsfish59663 жыл бұрын
“I’ll leave them in there for a little while and see what happens” *5 minutes later dumps it all in “Well I’m committed now” Dude either plan this perfectly or are unintentionally hilarious 😂 I love it
@ILove2Learn33 жыл бұрын
Becareful with zinc and acid man I had a bad experience with zinc and nitric once and it was a very close call.... Some metals and acids explode. Always have protective gloves and mask. May seem overkill sometimes but the time something happens you will be glad you were prepared.
@ralphpatrick30713 жыл бұрын
My first video and I found it fascinating! I’ll continue, thanks!
@rockbutcher3 жыл бұрын
Maybe if you set up some kind of retort rig, as the old timers did with mercury. You could re-condense the lead and be left with the silver (and whatever else). IIRC, the Romans used to get the lead up to oxidizing temps and keep skimming off the oxides until only the silver was left. They then recovered the lead by melting the oxides. The retort rig would be faster due to modern heating options, just remember to stay upwind no matter how good you think your seals are LOL. I have no idea how this is done by modern methods :)
@outdoorloser43403 жыл бұрын
I don't think you can retort Lead the same way as Mercury.
@TheStoned_Dwarf3 жыл бұрын
So, the skimming of oxides is the same process that is completed in cupellation really, except now you are being exposed to much more litharge when skimming.
@TheStoned_Dwarf3 жыл бұрын
@@outdoorloser4340 you are correct. You COULD make a reducing environment that could reduce the oxide vapors back to lead metal in one go, but it’s really just not worth it
@hellohello55503 жыл бұрын
Hello Jason, I actually have something that will help you, I can send you 5 kilos of this material. We collected old miners molten material found in our property back when the Spaniards and Indians were mining over 400 years ago. When melted and poured it actually separates into 3 layers, lead,rare earth metals and silver, gold and platinum group metals. Enjoy your kilo of silver gold and platinum group metals. Free. All I ask in return is a video of it. I have gathered over the years roughly 1 ton of this material found in our property about a foot deep plowing dirt for crop.
@outdoorloser43403 жыл бұрын
Why would the lead separate from the silver once melted together?
@hellohello55503 жыл бұрын
@@outdoorloser4340 the silver has high affinity for zinc
@jaronlopez46993 жыл бұрын
You need a higher temperature. The lead starts to solidify. Watch Jeff Williams video on Parkes Process.
@TheStoned_Dwarf3 жыл бұрын
He was at a good temp, only needs to reach above zincs melting point (as long as iron is present)
@joshredding95883 жыл бұрын
if you pour the molten lead into a large tub of cool water, it will form little lead pellets called lead shot (you may know this already)...then you can use the quantities of lead you want more manageably. ;-)
@jtamsett3 жыл бұрын
Glad you're working on Brent's stuff.
@iolithblue3 жыл бұрын
Hey Jason, love the videos, thanks for showing us you using your ppe, and keeping safe with lead and other heavy metals. Smelt on!
@welbhloud3 жыл бұрын
Absolutely amazing "crossover series" and i will be amazed by both the lead and silver coming out of the ore for the first time. You know, we normies deal with premade metals, but seeing them coming out of the ores, that's where it's at. I myself want to make some bog iron one day and ofc get more gold out of the Norwegian rivers, enough so i can play with it and form it into something and explore it's mechanical properties myself.
@GOLD_FEVER2 жыл бұрын
Amen to that ! There's something so special about holding a chunk of gold in your hands that you spent years prospecting and then hours melting into a bead that you can now wear around your neck or on your finger... You will never get that feeling from a cold piece of jewlery that you bought at the mall!
@thomascraddock86973 жыл бұрын
i dont think i would have tried to do a parkes process, jason. there is a better way that boosts ore recovery and gives a product you know how to manage as well as i do right in the crucible with flux. here is what you do: grind your ore to 40 percent or so @ 50 mesh and 60 percent 200 mesh.... set it aside. it doesnt have to be 60 percent 200 but get close to that number. but in your hands it should feel like really fine all purpose flour. go buy an aerator head for a high speed drill (hand drill, but not a screw gun.) or fabricate one, and get a 2 gallon bucket to set inside a five gallon bucket. *OR...cannibalize an old milkshake machine for a small batch recovery system (assay lab stuff). then, go read/watch about flotation systems, and the solution they use to float the precious metals over the edge in a froth. the concept is pretty simple and making your own is pretty straight forward after you see one work. the process: froth flotation. most froth flotation systems are ginormous. but youre just a small guy who wants to make a small amount, so i think that you could really benefit from designing your own froth flotation machine, and building it too. it could be a good video too. :) lab flotation machines are horrendously expensive. DIY 100%
@JasonSmith-we5ls3 жыл бұрын
You explain this process so well. Your videos are so enjoyable because you do something that, if you’re watching these videos you’re obviously interested in, and you explain it thoroughly and it’s easy to follow. Keep up the good work bro!
@hardrockuniversity72833 жыл бұрын
It always looks easy in the instruction manual.
@mbmmllc3 жыл бұрын
Its funny when you start a process and you have done "all your research". Then you look back on your experiment and realize there are a ton of things the instruction manual didn't tell you or forgot to include. Leaves you with more questions than answers
@hardrockuniversity72833 жыл бұрын
@@mbmmllc It happens all the time. :-)
@seymourpro60973 жыл бұрын
This is when I would want to do lots of XRF tests to determine exactly where the silver is going
@piecartbox3 жыл бұрын
This geologist agrees, even a quick zap should show enough
@stevetreloar66023 жыл бұрын
I love that you share all this with us. Thanks Jason. I'm at a loss with silver, I have a pile of galena grading around 4500gm/tonne but there is so much arsenic. I'd love to be able to drive the arsenic off in a bomb still but can't bring myself to just vent it.
@annekabrimhall10592 жыл бұрын
You’re a kinesthetic learner like me. That’s why I get more from you than my high school chemistry teacher!
@klausnielsen15373 жыл бұрын
I have enjoyed the video as well as all your other videos. And I like your way of thinking and how you go about all these processees that you try out and iterate over and over while documenting and giving all of us a peek into this dangerous and fascinating world. I dont know exactly why - but you seem like the kind of guy who will wear it out, use it up, make it do or do without. So you make it do what you want with all your knowledge and testing. I just like to follow along for your successes 🙂
@shaneyork3003 жыл бұрын
I hope to see that again soon. Very cool.
@HUGHMCCAFFERY3 жыл бұрын
Great Experiment Jason.
@Jkauppa3 жыл бұрын
ionizing matter, then electric/magnetic field trajectory separation, mass spectrometry filter, different mass/charge ratios strike different target surfaces, effective atom/ion level separation
@Jkauppa3 жыл бұрын
must be using ion acceleration field, like tooth-brush high voltage, to sling the ions in motion, assume this type of sling is free, no additional powering needed, just initial power-up
@JimFinlayson3 жыл бұрын
Very educational. Thanks for sharing. I look forward to your weekly posts.
@thuphuneone3 жыл бұрын
Hey Jason absolutely love the videos.I discovered them because of my own interest in smelting.I just wanted to share a cool method i discovered for making cement cupels. I found that a 22oz aluminum can cut about 2 in from the bottom makes a great mold when you flip it over you get a almost perfect shallow cupel and they stack good. Hey thanks again for doing the exact experiments i wanna do but just dont have the resources or equipment to pull them off.
@dezertraider3 жыл бұрын
YOU ROCK! THIS IS MIND BLOWING..CANT WAIT TILL YOU DO THE GALINA..STAY WELL
@jamisontaylor8783 жыл бұрын
The owl tec guy blows air on his Capel
@mikehawley433 жыл бұрын
Great video. I have a bunch of lead that I use to cast bullets. Some of it is contaminated with zinc which prohibits good casting. I understand that adding sulphur to the melt can get the zinc out. Any ideas with clearing zinc from lead?
@user-Sleepy3 жыл бұрын
Great start, all part of the learning process.
@TheWolfster0013 жыл бұрын
For your cone mold, as long as you preheat it before you pour in it, that alone will stop most of the sticking to it.. Good job though.. Trail & Error
@goldminer49niner423 жыл бұрын
That was a good home experiment Old-Timers really had it down good
@josephcormier59743 жыл бұрын
Good video Jason I was wondering when you were going to work on that silver two thumbs
@pixelpatter013 жыл бұрын
What an interesting video. I cast lead bullets and zinc contaminated lead is a big problem; it causes 'skin' to form when you pour the alloy. I saw some of it while you were pouring the lead. I was interested that lead and zinc don't mix and was hoping for a way to separate them by watching this. Perhaps allowing the mix to cool more slowly would allow better separation?
@KD0CAC3 жыл бұрын
Would like to see a list of books you use ? Thanks again
@butziporsche86463 жыл бұрын
Hey Jason, I was going to ask what was steaming in the cone mold when you mentioned the WD-40
@AIM54A3 жыл бұрын
They may a fair amount of antimony in that lead.. Not sure how much of that is in the in Galena.
@piecartbox3 жыл бұрын
Thanks for posting these, super informative since I like experimenting with this stuff
@escrapchannel3 жыл бұрын
Looking at the title ... pure alchemistry! Very useful! Thank you! 🌟 👍
@SinguLarityNow3 жыл бұрын
Thanks for sharing your experiments. It is so interesting!
@daz412620103 жыл бұрын
awesome video Jason I was wondering how the lead separation to silver for Cerro Gordo was going :) nice job :)
@mikeknutson4153 жыл бұрын
That was a great video Jason but I'm still waiting to see you grind up some stainless steel submersible pumps through the hammer Mill... this is my request number 7 I think
@chuckcrunch13 жыл бұрын
my thinking would be to have an excess of zinc . do 2 "extractions "with 5% zinc . sometimes adding water to your acids can make them work better
@greedygringoprospecting69413 жыл бұрын
do you ever have pure silver ore ? any pics have a good day
@HansFormerlyTraffer3 жыл бұрын
Isn't Zinc oxide far less susciptible to muriatic acid?
@richardrobertson13312 жыл бұрын
Jason, be sure to save all that dross lead oxide to be used as a collector metal in Calcium Phosphate crucibles when purifying gold.
@gettingtheinsideout96833 жыл бұрын
I have been looking everywhere for a pyramid mold to pour copper in... I see you have one... where did you get it from? Ps, love the video. Very informative.
@outdoorloser43403 жыл бұрын
Any metal shop could make one for you.
@xmachine70033 жыл бұрын
I would use borax to clean the lead. Then clean the dross off the top. Add your silver and zinc after the lead is cleaned up. I use borax for flexing lead before I cast bullets. Should help your process as well.
@rockman5313 жыл бұрын
Hey Jason, Great experiment! Looking forward to your next step! Jim in Phoenix
@chriscmoor3 жыл бұрын
You're just noodling around with a good knowledge of chemistry and metallurgy... I FREAKIN' LOVE IT. Just keep doing what your doing. BTW, the portland cement cupell is really interesting. I wonder if there's a way to standardize the process.
@sirfishslayer51003 жыл бұрын
Maybe get a graphite rod to stir next time.
@GrooberNedJardine3 жыл бұрын
Very interesting Experiment Jason , The technic is fascinating , good effort though , obviously the more you do it the better you get .
@JerrycanWanderers3 жыл бұрын
Ya,I think i would stick with the free milling gold ,less headaches, and closer to home. Better hurry the snows on its way to reclaim the mountain.
@readoryx3736 ай бұрын
I am finding that strong muriatic can be much less powerful than diluted for different metals
@RalphReagan3 жыл бұрын
That's an amazing amount of lead!
@bloopbloop56633 жыл бұрын
Yeah leads awsome I've been collecting from random lead I find it's nice for drawing on wood just be carful not to boil it when melting
@adamschat36573 жыл бұрын
Your lead and silver protect the zinc in acid. For this to work you would need to have a 75 to 25% ratio. Watch sree tips in quartation videos. He uses 75 % silver to 25% gold when he refines karat scrap. This way the acid can reduce the silver and leave the gold behind.
@debiesubaugher3 жыл бұрын
For your very first attempt I think that went well
@Watchandcommenti9g4 ай бұрын
Are they pure silver 🥈?
@StevenSchoolAlchemy Жыл бұрын
Are you actually making silver as the title says or are you just extracting it?
@djpitr3 жыл бұрын
Very good video
@frankzahn77733 жыл бұрын
You might get a better silver return if you work the zinc in longer. Really work it in. Just a thought. I like all your vid's.
@garymyers66383 жыл бұрын
since lead has such a low melting point, cant you just heat it until it is liquid and pour it off and leaving only the non melted silver. Your method really seems like the long way around. Have you tried chemicals, like acids, etc.
@Enjoymentboy3 жыл бұрын
You may have lost around half of the silver but look on the bright side: You have a few kilos of very clean lead now.
@scottdawson78053 жыл бұрын
That was a learning first attempt
@bretnielsen55023 жыл бұрын
>>>>> I LOVED IT !!!
@JohnCampbell-ho8qz3 жыл бұрын
I would keep hydrochloric acid away from silver. That's probably where half of your silver went, converted into silver chloride in the hcl. It can be recovered, when it's isolated from the lead.
@TheStoned_Dwarf3 жыл бұрын
Nah. HCL won’t dissolve silver on its own. Nitric won’t even dissolve silver on its own until you give it some heat.
@ChatterontheWire3 жыл бұрын
good first step!
@dnrjentertainment42043 жыл бұрын
You more than likely gained purity with the acid. Did you know the purity of the original?
@svenp65043 жыл бұрын
Great stuff, thanks!
@dewardtaylor41923 жыл бұрын
Thanks Jason great video
@oussamalasfer48603 жыл бұрын
cooking time!
@Ele.1323 жыл бұрын
Looks like Brent Underwood and MBMM could run the Cerro Gordo mining process again, if MBMM learns this process of silver extracting under heavy contamination of ore with other impurities present.
@richardbradley9613 жыл бұрын
THANK YOU JASON, VERRY INTERSTING , LOOKING FORWARD TO THR REAL THING. REGARDS RICHARD .
@javierchuarellano87073 жыл бұрын
Excelente
@RalphReagan3 жыл бұрын
Rats! I've seen a lot of arsenic with galena
@tkeo123 жыл бұрын
dude, with amount of lead you should cast bullets and sell them online for those who are reloading
@basavarajchabbi86092 жыл бұрын
How to make gold ? Brother please tell me please
@andrewadams87173 жыл бұрын
why couldnt you just cupel the silver from the lead?
@jeffkablock32293 жыл бұрын
good deal bubba
@CICADA20592 жыл бұрын
Sliver also vibrate on that operation 🤷🏻♂️
@whatthefunction91403 жыл бұрын
KZbinrs unite
@huntingtreasure88553 жыл бұрын
dude what the f,,,k its like watching a child in his sand box that was rely messy dude
@seasonallyferal14393 жыл бұрын
If you heat your acid it will be more reactive
@WilliamTMusil3 жыл бұрын
Hiya
@reverendtfg68023 жыл бұрын
How To Make Silver *Disappear*. 😏
@silverlover58173 жыл бұрын
Thanks for the video.......
@user-pu8hl7zc8f2 жыл бұрын
I love 💕 your country so freedom as hobby 👏. In my country Singapore fine $$$ 😔😔