What Is/Was Pipeclay And How Is It Formed?

[Mackka]

Love ya work Goldierocks, absolutely fascinating.
Mackka

 

[Nightjar]

All the other mounds have been located in Leonora/Leinster region.
And one near Mt Celia off the Yarri Road.

 

[20x]

Im not a geo but I understand every word Goldie says.
I thoroughly enjoy his in depth detail

 

[Goldtarget]

Great question, great answers.

By sheer luck the forum gets visits from an educated geologist who does his darndest to explain things (mostly gold related) and then someone has the cheek to dismiss it as boring.

I know your all bored shitless but this stuff is well above my undertanding of basic geology. To me this is boring and a waste of our reading time.
KISS plse. This not a scientific forum it's a forum for people interested in the HOBBY!!not the in depth scientific and geographic specifics of the HOBBY.

Jog on cobber, not warranted. NJ, a bloke whos spent decades in the hobby asks a question and the bloke giving the answer is a geo with decades of specialised in feild knowledge.

For an enthusiast you sure have a lack of posts about the hobby. Seriously, just stop, this is why members leave.

 

[user 22230]

Thanks for your explanations Goldierocks.
Several of the mounds had a small indentation in the middle of the mound leading we geology uneducated to name them volcanoes.
Maybe I strayed considering the opening topic was about "pipe clay"
However did mention that one "mound" gave up 1 1/2 ozs of gold around the perimeter and that we did find gold in the clay base of a creek below.
My apologies if it is boring but it definitely is "gold related" and a mystery we have lived with since finding the first "volcano" back in the early 90's.
We have one we found very remote last season that hasn't been detected, this year we will see if it is a gold producer.

Not me who thought it boring - I found it a bit fascinating (as do the Azerbadjani locals in the video below). The indentation in the middle is one reason why i mentioned mud volcanoes (a formal geological term so perhaps not so geologically uneducated layful: ) and mound springs. But in that case the stuff in the middle could be expected to be much finer grained, as the water carries clay in suspension from depth and deposits it in the centre at surface - so related to the topic of clay. In that case as it dries, more upwelling water cracks it up and it rolls down the sides. I don't see those clay "prills" down the sides in your examples, just angular fragments of bedrock. When you say 1.5 oz, do you mean as many fine pieces or a couple of large ones?

https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/img/member-images/4386/1643877788_mud_volcano_iran.jpg

https://www.sharetopfive.com/mud-volcanoes-most-wonderful-nature-video-inside/

They often form along fault lines, involving artesian water from below In this case a fault striking northwest along the Oodnadatta track), and I have seen them as small as 2 m in diameter. The water is deep artesian water of the Great Artesisn Basin, barely warm as a rule (just due to depth of burial) and derived from the highlands of Queensland and NSW and travelling wet until it hits the fault and goes up it.

https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/img/member-images/4386/1643877712_mound_spring_map.jpg
https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/img/member-images/4386/1643877712_mound_spring_origin.jpg
https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/img/member-images/4386/1643877737_blanche_cup_spring.jpg

However my points in a prospecting sense are that they are:

(1) almost certainly not of the hot epithermal type of one of your diagrams
(2) instead either (i) of mud volcano or mound spring type, with gold carried up as pieces from older bedrock deposits below (less likely), or (ii) the remains of an old rock fragment soil that has largely been removed, and possibly developed over an older deposit in bedrock and concentrated at surface by weathering (more likely) - with perhaps the mounds only being removed last above min eralised fault zones etc which may be harder to weather away.

This is relevant in that if it is the last, the structure itself may be a mineralised one and may extend beyond the limit of any "volcano" if you can recognise it. So origin could be relevant to where to focus away from mounds.

Assuming the relationship between gold and the mounds is a general one.

Hope that is clearer.

Once again well done and thanks for your time. most appreciated :Y: :Y: :Y: :Y: :Y:

 

[user 4386]

Thanks fellas - reassuring that the time is not wasted.

 

[user 22230]

Pro knowledge for free ..................... I ain't complaining and as said keep it coming :trophy:

 

[user 4386]

Pro knowledge for free ..................... I ain't complaining and as said keep it coming :trophy:

Can't blame anyone for not understanding. but much geology is not rocket science. However it has a vocabulary built up over 300 years and which we are only slowly simplifying. Often diagrams make things much easier.

 

[user 22230]

Great question, great answers.

By sheer luck the forum gets visits from an educated geologist who does his darndest to explain things (mostly gold related) and then someone has the cheek to dismiss it as boring.

I know your all bored shitless but this stuff is well above my undertanding of basic geology. To me this is boring and a waste of our reading time.
KISS plse. This not a scientific forum it's a forum for people interested in the HOBBY!!not the in depth scientific and geographic specifics of the HOBBY.

Jog on cobber, not warranted. NJ, a bloke whos spent decades in the hobby asks a question and the bloke giving the answer is a geo with decades of specialised in feild knowledge.

For an enthusiast you sure have a lack of posts about the hobby. Seriously, just stop, this is why members leave.

Well said Sir and much more eloquently put than i could manage . Mine regards the comment consists of two words :argh:
Incidentally where's Mad Tuna gone ? Forum needs a few more of him :lol:

 

[user 22230]

Pro knowledge for free ..................... I ain't complaining and as said keep it coming :trophy:

Can't blame anyone for not understanding. but much geology is not rocket science. However it has a vocabulary built up over 300 years and which we are only slowly simplifying. Often diagrams make things much easier.

Goldie rocks I don't even understand it all, but it certainly gives me a clearer picture of what i do understand :Y: :Y: :Y:

 

[Nightjar]

Can't blame anyone for not understanding. but much geology is not rocket science. However it has a vocabulary built up over 300 years and which we are only slowly simplifying. Often diagrams make things much easier.

This brought up a flash back when a couple of geos were checking and old mineshaft on our lease. Was sitting on a heap listening and watching them cracking a few rocks, talking in a very foreign language. (Geology)
Happened to mention, could they speak in a layman's language. The wag in the duo turned to me and said; "Don't concern yourself with our lingo, you fellas just scratch around on the surface, we are men and we go down where the real gold is." :lol: layful:

 

[user 4386]

Can't blame anyone for not understanding. but much geology is not rocket science. However it has a vocabulary built up over 300 years and which we are only slowly simplifying. Often diagrams make things much easier.

This brought up a flash back when a couple of geos were checking and old mineshaft on our lease. Was sitting on a heap listening and watching them cracking a few rocks, talking in a very foreign language. (Geology)
Happened to mention, could they speak in a layman's language. The wag in the duo turned to me and said; "Don't concern yourself with our lingo, you fellas just scratch around on the surface, we are men and we go down where the real gold is." :lol: layful:

It is all relative, but actually it is more than 6000 km to the centre of the Earth, but essentially all economic gold was deposited in the top 15 km (not all we can get to, but probably nearly all that there is). We mostly mine the top 1 km of that (max 4 km in Western Deep Levels near joburg).

 

[wiley coyote]

I opened this topic asking about pipeclay. I got numerous responses to my query which were very helpful in my understanding of it. It has wandered off topic slightly, but is still very Interesting to me, as the mounds Nightjar mentioned are in the G.T. as well. So every bit of information I can glean from others is very helpful in my knowledge of gold formation. To receive information from Nightjar, an experienced prospector, or, Goldierocks, an obviously very experienced geologist, who is able to explain to me, in layman terms, not Geobabble, how things are formed. I joined this forum to increase my knowledge in prospecting. So anything I can learn here from anyone is most appreciated. wiley

 

[OzzieAu]

I opened this topic asking about pipeclay. I got numerous responses to my query which were very helpful in my understanding of it. It has wandered off topic slightly, but is still very Interesting to me, as the mounds Nightjar mentioned are in the G.T. as well. So every bit of information I can glean from others is very helpful in my knowledge of gold formation. To receive information from Nightjar, an experienced prospector, or, Goldierocks, an obviously very experienced geologist, who is able to explain to me, in layman terms, not Geobabble, how things are formed. I joined this forum to increase my knowledge in prospecting. So anything I can learn here from anyone is most appreciated. wiley

Stick that up your pipe and smoke it Jaros... :Y:

 

[RM Outback]

I know your all bored shitless but this stuff is well above my undertanding of basic geology. To me this is boring and a waste of our reading time.
KISS plse. This not a scientific forum it's a forum for people interested in the HOBBY!!not the in depth scientific and geographic specifics of the HOBBY.

Well we all now know how bored you are Seriously a comment like this from a Mod definitely questions your ability to perform the task. Not only this comment mind you, you are a repeat offender. Can I suggest you pull your head in and use your boring time in a constructive way by reading up on the meaning of Forum.

My take on the whole thread, thanks goes to the Geo's for their valuable contributions :beer:

 

[Mike678]

Well said !

 

[user 22230]

Wrote plenty and deleted a lot, but still trying to fathom what could possibly make a mod from a prospecting forum come out with the comment made ? :8

 

[user 4386]

Appreciate the support guys, but lets get back to gold etc - 'nuff said now I think.

 

[kingswood]

Better pics:
https://www.prospectingaustralia.co...2/1642559128_screenshot_2022-01-19_132504.jpg
https://www.prospectingaustralia.co...2/1642559129_screenshot_2022-01-19_132443.jpg

Excellent illustrations UnderEmployedGeo and I love the colours but where is the gold? layful:

If you find any of these around your area MB, you have a good chance of finding AU.
We named them "Volcano's" small low mounds that appear to have formed from a fissure. The rocks are unlike any surrounding them.

https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/img/member-images/1414/1642982329_volcano.jpg

https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/img/member-images/1414/1642982329_volcano2.jpg

I have seen a couple too over my way in the Murchison. I must admit that I always thought they were dry-blow mounds where the old fella's had just chucked their rocks....Of course my assumption could be and likely is 100% wrong

 

[UnderEmployedGeo]

Regards Jaros' strange intervention. To remove threads where Goldierocks has contributed such knowledge and experience would be criminal. Don't like it, don't have to read it. It's not wasting anyone's time.
I made my small contribution on the grounds that if you're into gold you might also be into the stuff associated with it (geology). But if that's not wanted then I wont waste MY time writing the posts.
Unfortunately if you have no interest in geology you are demonstrating little interest in finding gold or any other cool stuff that comes from the earth. The two go hand in hand. Sure, some of it is complicated and needs a university education, but I promise you you won't catch me or Goldierocks "speaking down" to you about it. There's a lot I don't know either... and if I can help out with what I DO know, well, I'd be proud to have helped.