RE: GOLD AND CEMENT

Has anyone tried recovering a target from conglomerate cement with a wreckers drill ?

If you are talking about an impact drill with a chisel on the end, then yes i have tried it. It was really hard work . A combination of using hand chisels and a mallet and the impact drill broke it down enough after a lot of sweat and tears before putting the pieces in a dolly pot and eventually ending up with fine powder. Was too much work for the amount of gold in it. Just my experience.

I got a dwt size signal in a large boulder of conglomerate near the Talbot Racecourse. My pick has a impact chisel tip mig welded for the pointy end. After a lot of big swings with eyes and face covered I removed it from the conglomerate but after searching many yards around the conglomerate I decided to leave it for someone else to find it.

Hi, thanks for your replies. Yes, I got a signal and I dont know how big the target would be but I do know that my detector's pick would blunten to all hell if I persisted. So ideas started to float though the brain and I wondered about a wreckers drill which hammers away with point or blade. And then a electric power plant is a necessitary. Obvious its not as easy as thought.. Thanks fellers. Saved me really hard work which I have an aversion for..

The bigger the rock , the harder it is to break down. I personally found the mallet and chisel was hard work , but still easier than the impact drill with chisel ends. You tend to get more force into the chisel with a big hammer . I wonder if a 3 ton hydraulic wood splitter would do the job ?

Hi Dundiggin. I think if you described fully your situation. Eg big signal in conglometate still in ground, small signal in a chunk of conglomerate ect ect or actually post some pics of the challenge you face then I'm sure the members here could give you more detailed advice to fit the actual scenario.

Hi GB, the situation consists of a layer of cement on a hill side which the early miners tunneled under but the layer is not of uniform thickness, deepest where they tunneled which is about 6 feet or so. It has fallen in. I got a faint but definite signal further up. I suspect from the start of the early digging that the deep section is a rather narrow gutter which spreads out much thinner up the slope which is where I got the signal. but getting it out is another problem as the cement is hard as... I'll pay bunnings a visit for a cold chisel and hammer and if I can get some cement out and then see if the signal gets stronger, that will determine next move.. It's a situation making me detest the hand tools only law but at the same time I don't want to be a lawless person.. There is enough of them already. dundiggin. P.S. I don't know how to send a picture over the waves.

Why don`t you try to use a Block splitter ? Not generally made for smashing concrete , but i have been splitting wood including very hard wood for many years with the same block splitter and never had to sharpen it. Might be worth a try.
This is something like what i have https://www.bunnings.com.au/saxon-block-splitter-axe_p0241820

I agree on the hand tools comment. That is all i have ever used in the bush .

Dundiggin check out this vid I saw on you tube. It might get you a bit more enthused reward for effort as they say.

https://youtu.be/IaqlamR_tdk

Hi GB liked your video and what came up certainly paid for the effort. I'll be down to bunnings tomorrow and see what temptations I will get for cracking cement. Thanks for the shot.

Hi soldier of fortune I'll sleep on your idea. When I go out on monday I'll have a few ideas in the truck. Surely a target signal in cement can mean only one thing so the sleeves will be rolled up. Thanks . dundiggin

Good luck Dundiggin. You would expect it to be gold but don't bet on it. I once cracked open a large ironstone rock and found lead inside it. I was sure it was going to be gold because that's what you find inside rocks.

My option would be a 300mm cold chisel or similar and a sledge hammer. You will definitely need a heavy hammer like a mash hammer at the minimum. A claw hammer just won't cut it. If you have someone to hold the cold chisel while you hit it with the hammer will be ideal and very entertaining for you if you miss the chisel. They won't be laughing though.

You could also try a cordless angle grinder to cut grooves in the cement to fit the chisel in to support it so it won't slip. If the cement is exposed then it may not be considered mining, I don't know.

Regards Axtyr.

If you are using a chisel and want to keep it straight while hammering it , possibly try drilling a hole in a block of wood big enough for the chisel to fit and use that to hold the chisel rather than your hand. You might even get more power into the hammer because you won`t be afraid of smashing your hand. Just a thought.

And what was the outcome. Did you get back to extract the target?

I have dug several nuggets from cap rock. The best option I found was a crow bar. The pointed end is better than the chisel end. But since then I have seen a driver similar to those used for steel droppers used and it seemed faster and easier to use.

When we used to dig cable trenches and 66kv power pole holes by hand (back in the day) we broke large rocks using sledge hammer and used chisel tongs to hold the chisel (big chisels).
One bloke would hold the chisel and the other (usually me ) would swing the hammer. We swapped once and I copped a glancing hit from the sledge..so I did the swinging after that. When we advanced to a Jack hammer things got a lot easier.
Tongs like these only longer n heavier.