keene mat material

Brianfromsyr

Jr. Member
Oct 8, 2012
68
105
Mattydale, N.Y.
Detector(s) used
Minelab Equinox 800
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I don't know you Hoser John but I like your passion.
If you live in the North East, North Carolina, Idaho or Montana I would like to arrange a friendly trip where you put your money where your mouth is :)
I can tell you that whatever you use won't perform 100% better than an A 52 with keene miracle mat and the punch plate and I 100% guarantee that!
Here would be the bet. If I can process a whole 5 gallon bucket of unclassified material in less than 3 minutes through my sluice without a spec of gold in a tailings catch tub and I will let you classify your material and take as long as you want and it will take you longer. And you prove your system just worked 100% better you can have my 4" dredge!
 

Brianfromsyr

Jr. Member
Oct 8, 2012
68
105
Mattydale, N.Y.
Detector(s) used
Minelab Equinox 800
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Oh nice. My friends Dave Maxfield and Nathan Thomas use the setup. They are both brand new but very impressive prospectors. Some of their mentors are Jack Duggins and Roy Bourne.
I am new at sluicing but I had been mentored by Ken Dursteler at dredging.
I have been crevicing since 2004. I started learning in Arizona in the bradshaws but have done it in 3 countries.
My first dredge was a 3" goldvac dredge made in Omaha.
Nice people in Omaha.
 

Brianfromsyr

Jr. Member
Oct 8, 2012
68
105
Mattydale, N.Y.
Detector(s) used
Minelab Equinox 800
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Very close to the River Run. The guys brought the punch plate all the way to the end of the flare. And the punch plate goes all thd way to the end of the sluice. You can definately get a good look at the larger material as it goes slowly down. A nugget would sit on the punch plate like a weight. Also as you shovel over the flare it gives the fines the chance to work its way over the slick plate onto the miracle mat instead of this sluice where the fines start over the riffles. That why you can see lines of gold on the first 2 riffles. New Hampshire and Maine has tons of garnet sand ( ruby sand) . The miracle mat sluffs the lights and you then see the riffles turn red with the garnet san. A hard days dredging will leave you with a half cup to a cup of cons.
 

Ben Cartwright SASS

Bronze Member
Aug 7, 2012
1,618
1,537
Massachusetts
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I am a newbie, still trying to find the perfect gear. I was going to buy a Keene or Yellow Jacket sluice with the metal riffles and miners moss or I/O carpet and a friend recommended the Miracle Matt, self cleaning and won't lose the very fine gold we have here in New England. I have used the 6 inch sluice once on the river and several times in the backyard, both with pay to play paydirt and dirt I brought back from New Hampshire and some dirt that I salted myself. It caught fines that were so small I couldn't see them without a 10x magnifier.
I am still experimenting with it for the proper angle and flow in the backyard and am I getting enough water through it etc.

That being said I am still torn both ways as to whether to get a 10 inch "traditional" sluice with metal riffles and moss/carpet or a 10" with the miracle mat.
At least I have all winter now to agonize over it!

I wonder what the effect would be if one where to cut the first two riffles off a Keene A52 and remove the rubber mat and install miracle mat from where the current mat is to the 3rd riffle and then have the rest of the riffles and the moss/carpet the rest of the way down the sluice?

What are peoples opinions?

 

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JohnTefer

Newbie
May 24, 2013
2
0
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
isn't he talking about plain old ribbed carpet ? if so you can get it at any prospecting supplier , or even cheaper at home depot ......that is what i use on my dredge ,and have the same on several sluices . works fine and is cheap....... good ole blue !


I am also want to talk about ribbed carpet..Can anyone suggest me the best place to get it in Sydney?
 

Doitlaynstyle

Hero Member
Feb 21, 2013
683
352
Idaho
Detector(s) used
Rock Nose and sniffer belly
Primary Interest:
Prospecting
That Keene mat sounds exorbitant. Go to Gold Hog - Gold Prospecting Equipment - Sluice Mat run a 6" stretch of UR mat followed by 3 six inch stretches of razorback and two more 6 inch lengths of the UR mat. It will cost almost $90 for the two pieces of mat as they are 6 inches long and 36 inches wide but they are well worth it. Throw away all of your Keene's guts (riffles and mat) and you will be set perfectly for stream sluicing. For any of you that have seen my sluice/highbanker build I cannot run the gold hog for initial recovery because I process way too much material and my "BRANSON" riffles don't miss a flake. However we wind up with way too much material for the cons so we flatten out the highbanker slow the water WAY down (like you would find in a stream) and re-run the cons across the Gold Hog Matting and all we are left with is about an 1/8th of a pan of sand and real small gravel and it doesn't miss a flake either when it is run properly. (verified by running a Le'Trap after the main sluice to see if anything was blowing by)

I know this sounds like an Advertizement but It is no joke when it comes to recovery. Keene is selling stuff that only works "Pretty good".

Happy Prospecting


http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQDcMoBVTKzkPU99pkMKqcORAszHI2DEJ

(EDIT): Remember to follow Doc's instructions EXACTLY for gluing the mat pieces together and enjoy your gold.
 

Last edited:

Doug Watson

Sr. Member
Jul 29, 2010
330
154
One of my friends has a keene 4" dredge and after about 3 months of not so hard use the tips were breaking off the miracle mat. Maybe a bad batch, but it makes me leary.
 

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