Home Sluice Thoughts

[TXKajun]

Okie dokie, folks, I have the new Eureka Gold detector, new pans, tub, buckets, crevice tools, etc and have been practicing for getting out into the field. One common theme seems to be going around is taking concentrates (or promising samples) home from the field and finishing them off at the house. Sooooooo......
I been thinking (yeah, I know, dangerous stuff!! LOL) There's tons of little sluices for sale from $20 - $150. I've been looking on all kinds of DIY (Do It Yourself) sites and found quite a few plans on how to build sluices out of items that can be purchased at local hardware/building supply shops for $10 - $50. I'm not exactly "Tim the Toolguy" or anything, but I'm reasonable familiar and can use most of the common hand tools. Sooooooo......
I've been thinking about making my own little sluice out of some plastic corrugated flexible piping (ala poop shoot sluicer), some rubber mat material (like those heavy rubber foot mats used in entry ways) and some carpeting (what's it called right now, I can't think.....it's the woven plastic stuff) and using a pump we have for a fountain as the water pump source, a large black plastic mixing pan for the water reservoir and that's about it. Nothing fancy, nothing to handle cubic yards of dirt in the field, but something that will reasonably concentrate the dug stuff I bring home from the gold country (usually 3 - 5 five gallon buckets) and have some fun watching it run in the week(s) that I can't make it up to the gold country. I'll probably have to end up panning the concentrates to finish them off, right??
Anyway, if anyone has some input, it'd be greatly appreciated.
HH, ya'll!
Kajun

[warsawdaddy]

Kajun,you first need to screen it down to less than 1/4 in.(50 mesh?).I would suggest just using a 3ft piec of rain gutter with fine-ribbed rubber mat.Flour gold will get lost in that miner's moss stuff,and just trickle a hose to wash it.If you could find a spiral wheel used that would be even better,new ones are pricey.GPAA has those gutter type cleanup units with the hose and valve conn for either 30 or 39 bucks.Goodluck.

[Boogeyman]

If you build a gutter sluice, get a couple of extra pieces of gutter and mat, and a few long spikes. build up a couple extra sluices, and spike em into the bedrock or a crack that will hold it. Next good rain or flashflood, and then ya retrieve them and with the help of mother nature ya got some color in them.

[Joe Dirt]

I think too that you need to get a mat that has sharp angles, like a stairs laid flat, rather than rounded ribs.

[bigjohn]

i'd look for a old used highbanker less engine. just hook a hose up to the spray bar.

[Gatorguy]

If you will be getting alot of fine gold you think, you need a different type sluice if you expect to recover any! You need a sluice without riffles, it has to be slick plate, moss with small grid diamond plate over it.

Look at DFS(**** fine sluice) for sale as an example or use theirs. Don

[getndusty]

heres one that i built out of a flat peice of alum. used alum angle(sides for riffles)carpet "z" channel for riffles,750gpm 12vdc pump,,works really good for fine gold,,

[Boogeyman]

Nice job on the sluice & riffles! Looks as good as the store bought boxes. If you have a Harbor Freight Tools by you or can get it on the web, take a look at them they have brakes, electric sheet metal shears, small brakes etc. You can build up a pretty good sheet metal shop for under $300 if you do a lot of building & experimenting. Not to mention pumps! Got a real nice 2" for $169 (Had a coupon) its a direct knock off of the hondas the friend that bought one before me found out that Honda parts fit exactly, so no worries about gettin something that you can't get parts for if needed.

[Boogeyman]

Almost forgot! If you use the ribbed mat, such as used for the gutter sluices take it out in the driveway or throw it in the bathtub and scrub it with a brush and some "Dawn" dish soap. The stuff I bought for my homebuilt gutter sluice had a mold release on it, and it would float fines right off the end. Scrubbed it real good with Dawn & it works like a champ.

If anyones interested, I can throw together some pictures of one I made from materials laying around the "stuff" pile.

Boogeyman

[Steve in PR]

I hope to be prospecting some day so any pics you want to throw on would be much appreciated!