In this InvestorNews interview with host Tracy Weslosky, John Carter, CEO and Director of Silver Bullet Mines Corp. (TSXV: SBMI | OTCQB: SBMCF), delves into the unique origin story of the company and its innovative approach to mining and silver production. Carter recounted a story linking their McMorris Mine to the legendary Lone Ranger series, shedding light on the mine’s history. He explained that the author of the Lone Ranger book “actually came out to the McMorris Mine and bought silver directly from the mine, which they used to make silver bullets for promoting the Lone Ranger series.” This historical tidbit not only underscores the mine’s storied past but also serves as a testament to its long-standing significance in silver production.

Further into the discussion, Carter highlighted SBMI’s unconventional strategy towards mining and financial sustainability. With over 40 years of experience, Carter has witnessed the cyclic challenges of the sector, including the need for continuous capital raising and its dilutive effects on shareholders. SBMI’s strategy circumvents these issues by reactivating past-producing mines and utilizing existing resources to fund further exploration and development, rather than relying solely on external financing. This model is currently being applied in Arizona and Idaho, with the company already “producing silver” in Arizona and planning to use the generated revenues to bolster exploration efforts.

Furthermore, the recent strategic business alliance with Countryman Investments and the appointment of Dave Richardson to SBMI’s Advisory Board signal a significant strengthening of the company’s financial and operational capabilities.

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About Silver Bullet Mines Corp.

Silver Bullet Mines Corp. (SBMI) is making headway in the gold and silver production industry. SBMI recently revealed a third potential revenue stream through a partnership to process around 900 pounds of high-grade gold concentrate at its Globe, Arizona facility, benefiting from its advanced gravity circuit. Besides this, SBMI’s primary operations focus on silver extraction from the Buckeye Silver Mine and silver/gold production at its Washington Mine in Idaho, to be processed at its fully operational mill. The company recently reported promising high-grade silver findings from the Treasure Room and is working on a financing strategy for its operations. An ambitious goal is to stabilize the Treasure Room for deeper exploration. Another highlight was the successful interception of a mineral-rich zone at the Buckeye Mine, known as “Zone1,” believed to contain higher-grade silver. The company plans to continue mining this vein and refine the material at its Globe mill. Recent developments position SBMI as a leading player in silver mining, suggesting a bright future for the company and its investors.

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Disclaimer: Silver Bullet Mines Corp. is an advertorial member of InvestorNews Inc.

This interview, which was produced by InvestorNews Inc. (“InvestorNews”), does not contain, nor does it purport to contain, a summary of all material information concerning the Company, including important disclosure and risk factors associated with the Company, its business and an investment in its securities. InvestorNews offers no representations or warranties that any of the information contained in this interview is accurate or complete.

This interview and any transcriptions or reproductions thereof (collectively, this “presentation”) does not constitute, or form part of, any offer or invitation to sell or issue, or any solicitation of any offer to subscribe for or purchase any securities in the Company. The information in this presentation is provided for informational purposes only and may be subject to updating, completion or revision, and except as may be required by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update any information herein. This presentation may contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and assumptions of the management of the Company as of the date made. They are inherently susceptible to uncertainty and other factors that could cause actual events/results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements. Additional risks and uncertainties, including those that the Company does not know about now or that it currently deems immaterial, may also adversely affect the Company’s business or any investment therein.

Any projections given are principally intended for use as objectives and are not intended, and should not be taken, as assurances that the projected results will be obtained by the Company. The assumptions used may not prove to be accurate and a potential decline in the Company’s financial condition or results of operations may negatively impact the value of its securities. This presentation should not be considered as the giving of investment advice by the Company or any of its directors, officers, agents, employees or advisors. Each person to whom this presentation is made available must make its own independent assessment of the Company after making such investigations and taking such advice as may be deemed necessary. Prospective investors are urged to review the Company’s profile on SedarPlus.ca and to carry out independent investigations in order to determine their interest in investing in the Company.

Sometimes the best-laid plans don’t go the way you had hoped. It makes me think of the old adage “if it was easy, everyone would do it”. This seems especially true in the world of mining. Nothing ever seems to work out on the timeline anticipated and quite often it isn’t on budget either. Nevertheless, all those steadfast entrepreneurs involved in junior mining soldier on, and hopefully someday they will reap the rewards of their efforts for themselves and their shareholders.

When I last wrote about Silver Bullet Mines Corp. (TSXV: SBMI | OTCQB: SBMCF) it was a story that was seemingly going from good to great. In July 2022, Silver Bullet announced it had successfully completed the commissioning of its wholly owned 125-tonne-per-day (MTPD) state-of-the-art mill, to process material from the Company’s flagship Black Diamond Property. By mid-July the Company announced it had successfully produced silver, which is remarkable considering they spent less than C$3 million building this fully functional mill. However, after processing only 60 tons of Buckeye Mine material, they encountered challenges in pouring proper silver dore bars. Further review of what caused these challenges led to samples from its concentrates being sent to a third-party lab (Lone Pine Analytical), for further analysis. That analysis revealed significant quantities of Platinum Group Metals (PGMs) and gold in the mineralized material. Hence my comment about the story going from good to great.

PGMs and Gold or Not, That is the Question

Based on this new information, the Company temporarily stopped processing materials at the mill while it reviewed with metallurgical consultants, the best way to extract the PGMs and gold along with the silver. As far as problems go, this is a pretty good one to have to explain to shareholders. But that’s when things took another twist, and this time it wasn’t as good a story for investors. On March 2, 2023, Silver Bullet reported it had received results from six referee/check samples submitted to a second independent third-party lab (Activation Laboratories Inc.) which put the previous results into question. These new results indicate there is virtually no gold, palladium, and platinum versus that reported by Lone Pine Analytical.

Check Assay Results Not Syncing – Further Verification Required

The March 2, 2023 press release states that Lab #2 assayed these samples using ICP (induced coupled plasma) followed by OES (optical emission spectroscopy) analysis versus Lab #1 which used Mass Spectroscopy (MS), which is very technical for those not in the mineral analytical industry. Silver Bullet is investigating whether the difference in the process could explain the discrepancy in results so samples have been sent to a third independent certified lab for further verification and the results will be disclosed to the public immediately upon receipt.

Magnet Separates Iron from Mineralized Material to Resolve Silver Bar Issues

Whatever results from the mystery of the PGMs, Silver Bullet is moving forward and is back on track to start generating cash flow from the processing of mineralized material at its 125 TPD pilot plant. The Company identified the presence of a highly magnetic iron alloy in the mineralized material which led to malformed dore bars. This was addressed by using a high-intensity magnet to pull the iron alloy from the concentrate prior to the smelting process and just like that, Silver Bullet was back in business and photographed a silver dore bar poured after the iron alloy was removed. The Company has stockpiled approximately 750 tons of mineralized material at the surface at the Buckeye Mine site, for shipment and processing at the mill site in Globe, Arizona. The Company is currently mining 150 to 200 tons of mineralized material per day, although rates will vary.

Upper Main Vein Assays up to 270.6 Ounces per Ton

Additionally, the Company began extracting mineralized material from a different section of the Buckeye Silver Mine, about 380 feet (116 metres) from the entrance to the adit as it works behind an area known as the “Treasure Room“. The first significant assays from this vein were 43, 178.6, and 270.6 ounces of silver per ton (opt), which did not include material from the footwall. Grades like that will quickly make you less concerned about whether there are PGMs and gold sprinkled in for good measure.

Cash Flow Around the Corner

Depending on how quickly Silver Bullet can start generating free cash flow from the renewed silver operations, there’s a chance the Company can start self-funding future working capital. It could be a fine line given there was only C$347,000 in cash and cash equivalents and working capital of C$285,000 available at the end of 2022, but, once the mill is producing silver at a regular clip, there is always the potential for off-take agreements that could provide cash advances. As a junior miner, you always seem to be walking a tightrope between positive and negative momentum, but it appears Silver Bullet is swinging the pendulum back to the positive side of the ledger with the potential of cash flow just around the corner and pending resolution on the PGM and gold mystery.

With a market cap of C$12 million and a chart that appears to have found a good base in the C$0.17-C$0.18 range, there could be some exciting times ahead for SBMI.

I really like the story behind the company I’m going to discuss today. Now don’t confuse this with investment advice or a recommendation to rush out and buy the stock. I’m simply talking about the history of the property and the derivation of the company name as it relates to its flagship mining asset. The company is Silver Bullet Mines Corp. (TSXV: SBMI | OTCQB: SBMCF) and it actually has a traceable history to the Lone Ranger and his calling card, the silver bullet. If you want more fun and interesting historical facts about the company’s flagship Black Diamond Property please go and have a read here. If that has no appeal to you then no worries, we’ll get on with what’s attracting investor interest today.

As interesting as the back story is, the latest news out of Silver Bullet has far more appeal from an investor’s perspective, although a little operational background may be useful here. The Black Diamond property is located in Gila County, Arizona about ten miles north of the town of Globe and is centered on the mining area referred to as the Richmond Basin. The property covers approximately 4,793 acres (1,940 ha) and is host to several past producing underground primary silver mines. The Buckeye patent is contained within the east central part of the Black Diamond claim block and hosts the past producing Buckeye Mine, which was re-opened and test mined in 2017. Fast forward to July, 2022 and Silver Bullet announced it had successfully completed commissioning of its wholly owned 125 MTPD state of the art mill. By mid-July the Company announced it had successfully produced silver, which is remarkable considering they spent less than C$3 million building this fully functional mill.

However, after Silver Bullet processed roughly 60 tons of Buckeye Mine material at its 100%-owned mill, they encountered challenges in pouring proper silver dore bars to satisfy the outstanding sample run order. Further review of what caused these challenges turned into the kind of problem we all wished we could have. To help identify the possible source of the issues, the Company sent samples from its concentrates to Lone Pine Analytical, a third-party lab, for further analysis. That analysis revealed significant quantities of palladium and gold in the mineralized material. Like I said, as far as problems go, that’s a pretty good one to encounter.

For reference below, note that one ppm (part per million) is equivalent to one gram per ton and there are 28.34 grams in one ounce.

Source: Silver Bullet Mines Inc. September 26, 2022 Press Release

Early on Silver Bullet made the decision to build their mill in Arizona to high standards, and as a result they were able to immediately recognize there were significant amounts of elements other than silver in this material. Standard exploration techniques would not have found the gold or palladium without the expenditure of millions of exploration dollars, thus the company was able to achieve this more quickly and for much less money. Silver Bullet has found a potential buyer for the concentrates, who is likely able to process the palladium in addition to the gold and silver, but before making final decisions the company is waiting on further assay data and input from metallurgists, engineers and others.

Another exciting aspect about these newly discovered materials, aside from the fact that both gold and palladium sell for a significantly higher price than silver, is that palladium, platinum and most of the other materials identified above are on the critical minerals list. Readers can correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe the only significant producer of palladium in the U.S. is Sibanye-Stillwater in Montana, so this has broad reaching ramifications as “on-shoring” and security of supply increase in importance. There is anecdotal evidence of Pt-Pd production as a by-product of porphyry mining in the Globe area which could be a possible game-changer, not just for Silver Bullet but for mining in Arizona. And we all know how a rising tide lifts all boats when a specific geographic region becomes the focal point for an area play. Even better if it’s a critical mineral.

It’s exciting times for the team at Silver Bullet Mines. Stumbling upon high values minerals contained in your already high grade silver (a recent grab sample returned one assay graded 2,214.4 oz/t silver and another at 2,363.8 oz/t silver) is about as good as it gets for a junior miner. With a market cap of just under C$13 million it will be interesting to see how much cash flow the company can start generating when it figures out what to do with those pesky but incredibly valuable bonus materials.

There are some occasions where digging deep into regulatory filings and doing your due diligence on a company can be downright entertaining. Not to take any significance away from ringing the bell to open the TSX yesterday, but Silver Bullet Mines Corp. (TSXV: SBMI) actually has a traceable history to the Lone Ranger and his calling card, the silver bullet. For those not familiar with the legend of the Lone Ranger, he was a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend, Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture, portrayed on radio, television, books and film. So before we take a look at the investment thesis for Silver Bullet Mines I’m going to take you on a trip through history with respect to their flagship asset, the Black Diamond Project in Arizona.

It all begins in Texas in 1868 with the Chilson family starting West to settle in California with cattle to exchange for land. By the time they reached Arizona, they were barely alive with all their cattle, provisions, and horses stolen by the Comanche Indians. They were grateful to be alive and were given refuge by Colonel King Wolsey on his ranch next to the Gila River Southwest of current-day Phoenix. Wolsey told the family a story of his scouting party that had a skirmish with a group of Apaches and discovered they were being fired upon with hammered silver bullets. The site was said to be about 12 miles (19.3 km) north of present-day Globe, Arizona near Apache Peaks. Six years later, one of the Chilson sons recalled the tale and sought to find the source of the Apaches’ silver bullets. He headed the 12 miles north to Apache Peaks where he found native and horn silver nuggets in a basin near the peak. He also spotted Apache Indians later that day and returned quickly to Globe after staking the initial claim.

Members of the current Silver Bullet team acquired the subsequent mine and surrounding mining claims from a Globe, Arizona resident in 1984. The paperwork for the property is said to have included a letter from Francis Striker, the original writer of the Lone Ranger radio series, and addressed to the former owners of the mining claims requesting permission to incorporate the high-grade silver mine and the silver bullet story into the Lone Ranger Series. Mr. Striker actually visited the mine when it was still in operation and was astounded by the native silver he observed being mined there. I think this is all pretty fascinating and one of the benefits of doing a little extra homework when reviewing a company. But an entertaining story doesn’t make an investor money unless Silver Bullet has some legacy rights to the Lone Ranger copyright, which they don’t, so we’ll move on.

Silver Bullet Mines Corp. has only been trading publicly since December 6, 2021 and upon listing released an operational update. With respect to the Black Diamond Project, covering 4,900 acres and hosting five former producing silver mines, the Company announced plans to put the Buckeye Silver Mine in pilot production in Q1/22, followed by full-scale production; finalize plans to have the McMorris Silver Mine back in production within 24 months; and carry out exploration programs elsewhere on Black Diamond to enable a decision on the order in which the remaining former producers will be put back in production. Then last week the Company announced they had begun extracting mineralized material from its Buckeye Silver Mine with the intention to produce an initial total of 10,000 tonnes of mineralized material at a rate of 125 tonnes per day. All of this will occur at Silver Bullet’s wholly-owned, state-of-the-art, modular pilot plant. The plant is designed to maximize the recovery of both gold and silver, although its modular nature means it can be adjusted to recover other metals. This is important as the Company also plans to investigate Black Diamond’s potential to host a copper porphyry.

The commissioning of the pilot plant will put Silver Bullet in the enviable position of being a junior mining company with the ability to actually generate free cash flow, thus reducing the number of potential financings required while continuing to build a resource. And where this gets exciting is that there is another 100% owned property that has had some truly spectacular results already. The Washington Mine on patented lands in the prolific placer gold district in Idaho (I’m not sure what the story behind this confusing naming is but I bet it’s not as interesting as the Lone Ranger story), has recently reported an average of 55.5 oz/ton silver (1,902 g/t) from an 80-kilogram bulk sample. On December 15, 2021 the Company announced 6,174 g/t silver and 18 g/t gold at its Washington Mine from sampling on the property.

As a potential investor, you have a lot of moving parts to keep an eye on, but that’s a good thing in this situation. The Company has a current market cap of C$23 million. If Silver Bullet can start generating free cash flow and self-finance future resource expansion, the current shares outstanding of 55.4 million won’t grow by very much. And to quote the Lone Ranger Creed, Silver Creek Mines “should make the most of what equipment they have”.