Steel Gold Pans

When steel pans are new they are generally covered by a thin protection coating of oil to protect it from rust before being sold. It is advisable to clean up the oil in the pans before using it. There are ways to clean up the oil from the steel pans. One of them is to rub it outwards with a cloth wet with thinner or acetone. The best way and probably the most used method is maybe to clean up the oil from the steel pan by heating it very slowly on an oven or open fire until it turns dark red and sink into fresh water afterwards. The process leaves the pan with a shaded dark bluish color, which gives a great dark bottom so as to let the gold particles to be highlighted. One must be careful to use this process to avoid overheating the steel pan which would make it bend.

Any pan for gold that is regularly used tends to collect a certain amount of fat from the body. This fat is also harmful for recovering gold, so it would be advisable to clean up the pan periodically, no matter if its steel or plastic. A plastic pan can be cleaned by rubbing it with a clean cloth wet in isopropilene alcohol or acetone.

New plastic pans sometimes have to be worked before using them. The test is to determine whether the pan remains wet after being submerged in clean water. If drops of water concentrate in the surface of the pan, the smooth and oily surface will still have to be cleaned again using a soapy Brillo pad on the new plastic pan. This is the best method to have it ready for field work.

One of the main differences between pans for gold is that existing between a “drop center” pan and the “straight angle bottom” pan. The difference is in the shape of the side angle and in the bottom of the pan.

Drop center pans are more common than those of plastic although it is possible to buy some steel versions with dropped center. The dropped center acts as a protection trap for gold that has drifted into the pan, preventing it from drifting again when working with it. The straight-angle bottom can be bought in plastic or steel. Some gold seekers prefer this type of pan because it allows them to separate completely the heavy black sand of gold while working in the field washing.

The trap in the drop center pan tends to accumulate some of this heavy black sand along with gold. This can make the final step of separating to take a little longer. When one is in the field, it is not uncommon to listen to people argue over which type of pan is better. However, due to the diversity of pans in the market, be them of steel or plastic, drop centered or straight-angle bottom, each one has its advantages depending on the use. That is why many gold-seekers have not one type, but more than one, and they use them according to their needs.

The main pan will be the one more frequently used by the gold-seeker in his daily work. But that is a personal matter. If you are just starting and do not feel qualified to choose the best pan for you, do not worry. Once you have understood the basics about washing gold, you will be able to make any pan a useful one, and at the same time you will develop your own washing system. After all, some of the first miners even made knitted baskets to work properly! Gold pans come in many different sizes, from 6 to 18 inches diameter, and possibly even bigger. The average size that is usually seen at the fields is round 14 to 16 inches diameter.

Square/Rectangular Gold Pans
One of the most innovative gears in gold mining in these days is the development of square/rectangular pans. They work with the same basic principles the conventional round pans do, only that they are easier to use they are more efficient due to the water that constantly flows over the straight edges of the rectangular pan, while the speed of water flow in a rounded edged pan behaves differently. This allows the washing to be done faster and more efficiently with the new square and rectangular designs.