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Will a burnout kiln melt gold concentrate and/or precipitant

April 4, 2009

Hi,.I have as a new hobby melting gold. I just purchased a burnout kiln. I assume that this is good enough to melt gold. I have the appropriate crucibles. Can I melt gold concentrate with this burnout kiln. As reagents I have borax [affil links], silica sand and Sodium Nitrate [affil links]. Am I ok with these reagents and kiln.
Thank you so much for your co-operation in this matter.

[name deleted]
hobbyist - Quebec, Canada

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Ed. note: the inquirer changed her mind about this, and has requested that her inquiry be deleted. We did not want to delete Geoff's helpful response, so we deleted her name instead.

April 11, 2009

Wax melts at about 150 °C and final burnout temperature is usually about 675 °C. What does your kiln maker say?
Pure gold melts at 1063 C
I do not understand 'gold concentrate'
If you intend to make a business of this hobby, a very basic rule is 'Understand your materials'
I would suggest that you get a copy of Practical Casting by Tim McCreigh ISBN 0-9615984-0-9 or something similar.

Geoff Smith
Hampshire, England

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