gonzalesna 0 #1 August 1, 2012 I was diggin' a hole to put a support post in and when I got just below 32 inches, As I dug down, the soil went from red dirt and clay to rock to very very dark soil mixed with a very shiny silver metal looking substance. The silvery substance, when I rubbed it between the fingers of my gloves, it was very very soft and it seemed to make a thin layer and spread, almost like a paste would. I'm currently located about 70 miles west of Charlotte (as the crow flies) in the foothills of North Carolina. DZ.com rock-ologists, did I just make my buddy rich or did I just find him a worthless metal mine? Again, it's very shiny, in pinhead sized flakes and extremely soft metal.Some people refrain from beating a dead horse. Personally, I find a myriad of entertainment value when beating it until it becomes a horse-smoothie. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Remster 24 #2 August 1, 2012 You wore gloves? Good, because it sounds like mercury (or sodium, but since you didnt lose your finger in the explosion, it's probably not it). What you may have found is that your buddy lives on top of a industrial waste pile.Remster Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gonzalesna 0 #3 August 1, 2012 Doubtful about the industrial waste pile. Not much industry anywhere near here and the barn I'm helping to restore was built back in the 1920's or so. Doubt it was sodium since it's only about 36 inches down or so... I figure it would've popped long ago due to the quantity of rain they've had out here. It's not liquid, so I didn't suspect mercury. It's very soft though. The soil that is dark in color is riddled with the flakes. There's a lot of Granite in the area. Could it be lead?Some people refrain from beating a dead horse. Personally, I find a myriad of entertainment value when beating it until it becomes a horse-smoothie. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Remster 24 #4 August 1, 2012 Lead is normally found as galena, and is not a paste, but brittle crystals, and it would definitely not be found in soil, but in rock.Remster Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gonzalesna 0 #5 August 1, 2012 After a touch of research, it can't be sodium, since sodium is found as a compound due to it's reactive properties. It's usually derrived from molten Table salt (Sodium Chloride) through the use of electrolosis, which creates chlorine gas as a by-product.Some people refrain from beating a dead horse. Personally, I find a myriad of entertainment value when beating it until it becomes a horse-smoothie. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gonzalesna 0 #6 August 1, 2012 I'm gonna grab a magnet to see if it's magnetic.Some people refrain from beating a dead horse. Personally, I find a myriad of entertainment value when beating it until it becomes a horse-smoothie. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gonzalesna 0 #7 August 1, 2012 Nope. No magnetic properties.Some people refrain from beating a dead horse. Personally, I find a myriad of entertainment value when beating it until it becomes a horse-smoothie. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Southern_Man 0 #8 August 1, 2012 Grab a camera and post some pictures, too."What if there were no hypothetical questions?" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Remster 24 #9 August 1, 2012 Dude. Stop playing with the -toxic- mercury.Remster Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnMitchell 14 #10 August 1, 2012 Quote After a touch of research, it can't be sodium, since sodium is found as a compound due to it's reactive properties. Exactly. Sodium is so reactive you would never find metallic sodium in that environment. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wolfriverjoe 1,340 #11 August 1, 2012 Quote Dude. Stop playing with the -toxic- mercury. Like it's going to make any difference. The damage is already done. "There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Remster 24 #12 August 1, 2012 Quote Quote After a touch of research, it can't be sodium, since sodium is found as a compound due to it's reactive properties. Exactly. Sodium is so reactive you would never find metallic sodium in that environment. Hence my joke about the explosive fingers.. Geeze, you guys are slow! But don't listen to the mining engineer... wtf does he know... Remster Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gonzalesna 0 #13 August 1, 2012 Quote Quote Dude. Stop playing with the -toxic- mercury. Like it's going to make any difference. The damage is already done. Soooooo, I shouldn't be using it as war paint then? I are... I mean were Marine.Looked up mercury and it's found in rock form, frequently red in color. Turns out it's a lot easier to determine what it's not, than what it is.ETA, doesn't mean it's not mercury, just means it doesn't match the pictures google has. Wait, that must mean it's not mercury, since google knows everything.Some people refrain from beating a dead horse. Personally, I find a myriad of entertainment value when beating it until it becomes a horse-smoothie. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnMitchell 14 #14 August 1, 2012 Quote Hence my joke about the explosive fingers.. Geeze, you guys are slow! But don't listen to the mining engineer... wtf does he know... I got your joke. I've never worked with metallic sodium but I've sure heard the explosive stories. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MikeJD 0 #15 August 1, 2012 Does it look anything like this? If so, bury it again and don't post any more - or the men in black may be turning up with their flashy things. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gonzalesna 0 #16 August 1, 2012 Quote Does it look anything like this? If so, bury it again and don't post any more - or the men in black may be turning up with their flashy things. Ummmm... It doesn't not look like that... I'll be back in about 30 minutes...Some people refrain from beating a dead horse. Personally, I find a myriad of entertainment value when beating it until it becomes a horse-smoothie. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NewGuy2005 51 #17 August 1, 2012 I've seen a lot of mica in North Carolina. Mica is not a metal, but it is thin and shiny. I don't recall if it is soft enough to smear. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
faulk04 0 #18 August 1, 2012 I don't think mica will smear. It is just extremely flaky Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
airtwardo 6 #19 August 1, 2012 KNEW i shoulda dug that hole deeper...Do me a favor Gonz, if ya find any teeth in there...smash 'em with a hammer. ~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnRich 4 #20 August 1, 2012 Look up "mica" and see if that's it. The flakes can look just like silver. It's made me look twice laying in the sand at the edge of a river. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mica I don't know if mercury occurs in liquid form in nature. It's usually made by processing cinnabar (mercury ore), which occurs as red crystals, usually embedded in quartz. You grind it up, heat it, let the vapors condense, and you get mercury. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gonzalesna 0 #21 August 2, 2012 It does look a lot like glitter. I blame LisaH.Flakes are very small. Doesn't resemble the wiki pictures and research on other sites say it's most often found in sheets or veins. Guess I'd have to have a sample sent in to determine it. The stuff I've found best resembles silver glitter. I kept a sample just in case he wants to have a sample tested. Right now, he just wants the barn back up and usable, so we've concreted the hole in. If the test comes back as something valuable, I'm sure he'll tear the barn down, mine it out, and use the money to make a bigger, better barn. As for me, now I just wanna know what it is. Damn you, curiosity!!! Some people refrain from beating a dead horse. Personally, I find a myriad of entertainment value when beating it until it becomes a horse-smoothie. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gonzalesna 0 #22 August 2, 2012 As soon as I posted my last... uh... post, I read later on that scrap mica is very common around this area. So, it's local, it doesn't have magnetic properties, it's shiny (ooooh! shiny!), flaky, and as far as I'm concerned, i think we have a winner. the test will tell. From what I've read, they use it a lot in electronics. Not sure if there's any value in what he's got or not.Some people refrain from beating a dead horse. Personally, I find a myriad of entertainment value when beating it until it becomes a horse-smoothie. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnRich 4 #23 August 2, 2012 QuoteFlakes are very small. Doesn't resemble the wiki pictures and research on other sites say it's most often found in sheets or veins. Yes, it is often found that way. It comes in sheets of many very thin layers. In the old days sheets of mica were sometimes used for window "glass". But when it breaks down, it crumbles into small shiny flakes. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
faulk04 0 #24 August 2, 2012 can you scratch it with your fingernail? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gonzalesna 0 #25 August 2, 2012 Too small to scratch. The flakes are all the size of glitter. I don't have a camera except the one on my phone, but I don't have inter-webs to my phone, so all I could do is text it to someone for them to post on here.Some people refrain from beating a dead horse. Personally, I find a myriad of entertainment value when beating it until it becomes a horse-smoothie. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
