NoviceSmith15 Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 OK, so, last month I was rummaging through some scrap metal in my great-grandpa's man-cave, and--WHOA!! I found actual iron ore! It had a almost black surface, so at that time I thought it might be coal. I whacked it with a hammer hard enough to break it into three chunks, and found not coal, but iron veins inside. So, with that said--WHAT THE HECK DO I DO WITH THIS???! Like, can I burn it down to extract just the ore with my small brake drum forge and bathroom vent fan? If anyone has any idea what to do with iron ore, please tell me! Thanks! Matt~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CurlyGeorge Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Try searching thru this link. It may answer some already asked questions.http://www.iforgeiron.com/forum/91-foundry-and-casting/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoviceSmith15 Posted May 2, 2012 Author Share Posted May 2, 2012 Thank you! Matt~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 So how do you know it is iron veins inside? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoviceSmith15 Posted May 4, 2012 Author Share Posted May 4, 2012 Well, firstly because two very smart men (Dad and Grandpa) <_< told me so. Secondly, because I did some research on iron ore myself B) . Third, because I found it in my Great-grandpa's shed area; and he never kept a rock unless there was something to it :ph34r: . Plus, I couldn't think of anything else it could be :wacko: Matt~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K. Bryan Morgan Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 Put a magnate on it. If it sticks then you know for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmoothBore Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 Here in Southern Pennsylvania, many old stone house and barn foundations are made from the native "Iron Stone".There are several Iron Furnaces around the area, that date from before the American Revolution. This Iron Ore is literally "rusty" on the surface, or has rust streaks. A friend of mine has a 3 story stone house built from this ore, ... and it's impossible to get a radio, TV, or cell phone signal, without an outside antenna. :o . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoviceSmith15 Posted May 5, 2012 Author Share Posted May 5, 2012 Wow, that's cool. Well, no, the magnet didn't 'stick' to my chunk, but let's just say there was a very obvious magnetic pull :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K. Bryan Morgan Posted May 5, 2012 Share Posted May 5, 2012 Thats excellent! I think the next step is to roast it. But I may be wrong about that. Google or search "Roasting iron ore". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coolhand Posted May 6, 2012 Share Posted May 6, 2012 Hey smooth bore where u from? I live next door to hopewell furnace personally Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 7, 2012 Share Posted May 7, 2012 Some iron ores are magnetic---like magnetite other are not magnetic---like goethite, limonite or many of the bog ores, only takes few percentage points of iron in a rock to get a red rust colour to it and especially if you plan to do a bloomery run you want as good of an ore as you can get as the amount of iron must exceed the amount that goes into the slag to get any output as reduced iron. Thomas, who has a degree in Geology, been smithing 31 years and worked as part of a bloomery crew for about 20 years now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoviceSmith15 Posted May 14, 2012 Author Share Posted May 14, 2012 Thanks all! I'll be sure to think more about this--I really am not sure if I either want to keep the ore just as part of my rock collection or roast it and turn it into a work of art.....hm... B) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kendrick Posted May 15, 2012 Share Posted May 15, 2012 Is there anywhere someone can buy ore? I'd love to get some for a historical project I have in mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 15, 2012 Share Posted May 15, 2012 Kendrick---WHAT CONTINENT ARE YOU ON? (Makes a difference unless you are happy to pay international shipping for rocks!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 Looks like a limonite/goethite ore, roasting is a good idea; probably won't need flux if smelted in a small bloomery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CEmory Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 Looks like a limonite/goethite ore, roasting is a good idea; probably won't need flux if smelted in a small bloomery. I gave a little shout of glee when I saw this! What I have and wanted to get confirmed as ore looks alot like that. Is there a way to estimate the quality from a cross section like Jammer's first pic? I'd like to be able to sort out my stock somewhat without having to post a bunch of pics up if anyone could help me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 Well hard to get the % iron from such a heterogeneous type; however if you want to see what high grade ore looks like look at the scale you produce forging steel---magnetite a nice clean high % ore without the rutile you can get in iron sand ores Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 From Wikipedia Botryoidal hematite A botryoidal texture or mineral habit is one in which the mineral has a globular external form resembling a bunch of grapes as derived from the Greek. This is a common form for many minerals particularly hematite where it is the classically recognized shape. It is also a common form of goethite, smithsonite, fluorite and malachite. This includes chrysocolla. Each sphere (grape) in a botryoidal mineral is smaller than that of a reniform mineral, and much smaller than that of a mamillary mineral. Botryoidal minerals form when many nearby nuclei, specks of sand, dust, or other particles, are present. Layers of mineral material are deposited radially around the nuclei. As more material is deposited, the spheres grow larger and eventually overlap with those that are nearby. These nearby spheres are then fused together to form the botryoidal cluster. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 I would like to point out to you that most people starting out get miniscule amounts of iron out of their first runs---they talk about axes and maybe get enough to make a fish hook or two. You can profit by all the others who have gone before and you may get lucky; but don't weigh your bloom before it's smelted! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CEmory Posted May 23, 2012 Share Posted May 23, 2012 This should be Hematite since that is what this area has. It was even near to Hematite Lake. Also, when I cleaned some of with the hose it turned blood red, which is how it came to be called Hematite. I had not done the hose test, but hemitite was what I had originally guessed my ore to be. Geology was never my strong point, but I'm working on it, like many other things atm lol. I really need to get batteries for my camera. From Wikipedia Botryoidal hematite A botryoidal texture or mineral habit is one in which the mineral has a globular external form resembling a bunch of grapes as derived from the Greek. This is a common form for many minerals particularly hematite where it is the classically recognized shape. It is also a common form of goethite, smithsonite, fluorite and malachite. This includes chrysocolla. Each sphere (grape) in a botryoidal mineral is smaller than that of a reniform mineral, and much smaller than that of a mamillary mineral. Botryoidal minerals form when many nearby nuclei, specks of sand, dust, or other particles, are present. Layers of mineral material are deposited radially around the nuclei. As more material is deposited, the spheres grow larger and eventually overlap with those that are nearby. These nearby spheres are then fused together to form the botryoidal cluster. This was helpful as always Thomas, finding a small nugget that looked like that in a gopher mound was what had gotten me investigating the iron content of this county. I have yet to find another, but was pleased to discover that my area has ore in general. I am working my way to my first smelt, but working on refining my charcoal making methods though as of yet no success. Looks like its the old way until I have the funds to put together a little monster machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CEmory Posted May 23, 2012 Share Posted May 23, 2012 I would like to point out to you that most people starting out get miniscule amounts of iron out of their first runs---they talk about axes and maybe get enough to make a fish hook or two. You can profit by all the others who have gone before and you may get lucky; but don't weigh your bloom before it's smelted! Didn't see this until I posted the other one, but I loled big time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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