Western Australia

[HarriL]

Share information about Gem/Mineral/Fossil fields in Western Australia here.

 

[Jed]

Hi All

What is the best way to find rough diamonds in a Kimberley dry/sandy water course.
I have a location (not on an EL) - now all I need is a how-to go about it

Grateful for any advice or links

Cheers
Jed

 

[Heatho]

Dry Sieving through 1/2 inch into 1/4" into 1/8th" I reckon, well that's how I'd go about it. Best of luck.

 

[boobook]

I have been told that diamond has an affinity to grease. The method told to me by an old Bingara prospector was to make a sluice from cut 2ft. wide pieces of Gal. iron with the corrugations running across the sluice.
The front and top of the corrugations was smeared with a heavy grease/tallow mixture and the gravels washed over it. Diamond stuck to the grease, all other material straight over.
That don't help much though if you ain't got water!
Mike

 

[Dughug]

Dry Sieving through 1/2 inch into 1/4" into 1/8th" I reckon, well that's how I'd go about it. Best of luck.

I'd also recommend adding a 1/16th " sieve - I've just been fossicking for diamond at Staggy Creek NSW and our group recovered diamonds in the 1/18th & 1/16th mesh sieves. nothing in any of the larges sieves which were used to remove the junk.

 

[tailormarc]

I got a few spots close to Perth for clear quartz, garnets etc. Anyone like to share some spots?

 

[Ded Driver]

found this online not so long ago. Its a 3MB pdf file so I will just put up the link. Download & save to your PC.
Gemstones in Western Australia (1994)
published by the Geological Survey of Western Australia
Dept Mines & Energy
http://lapidaryworld.com/pdf/gemstoneswa.pdf

 

[tailormarc]

found this online not so long ago. Its a 3MB pdf file so I will just put up the link. Download & save to your PC.
Gemstones in Western Australia (1994)
published by the Geological Survey of Western Australia
Dept Mines & Energy
http://lapidaryworld.com/pdf/gemstoneswa.pdf

cheers yep seen this link but like many other books written they only give very vague locations , no where exact. Most is on private property too

 

[mystiKel]

found this online not so long ago. Its a 3MB pdf file so I will just put up the link. Download & save to your PC.
Gemstones in Western Australia (1994)
published by the Geological Survey of Western Australia
Dept Mines & Energy

I recently purchased the book for $25 at DMP Office in Perth. Love getting a bargain

 

[BirdNerd71]

I can see no one has added anything to this post for over 2 years.
I am from Perth Western Australia and I am about to start in the world of fossiking.
Any comments for what I will need as a beginner and where I can start my search for the pretty shiny things would be appreciated.
I also understand that due to the Corona Virus situation I wont be doing anything in the immediate future.
Thanks in advance.

 

[Nightjar]

Thanks for the link Taylormarc,
Flicked through the pdf and recalled the diamond I specked at Nullagine in the 80's. Don't know why I picked it up, was detecting for gold and had no idea what natural diamonds looked like. Had a strange greasy (can't explain) feel to it so hung onto it. A jeweler identified it and wanted to buy it there and then? His excitement told me "Hang on!" It is now lost in the years of memorabilia/finds in my shed.

 

[Phil8303]

For those still checking, the below is from 1966, but I would think it still has some valid locations on it. I also heard recently that some have found a few of the rare pink diamonds (previously thought to only occur at Argyle, at Halls Creek.