help me fine tune my A51 for Roaring Camp please

[sactosluicer]

Hi there, i finally joined!
Been using this site for reference for a few years now as I have been learning more about prospecting.

My friend and I are going on a week-long prospecting trip at Roaring Camp on the Molokomne River, and I wanted some advice to refine my sluicing technique.

Ive used my Keene A51 about less than 15 times now, and have gotten mixed results.
Ive recently watched a few youtube videos about proper flows and such, but its not always so easy in some places.

Anyway, Here are a few questions I have:

1- how much flow?
I know it varies with the river, but I usually try to get it so that I have very little water flowing thru, like maybe 1- 1.5 inches, and can see the water flowing/bulging/rolling up over the rifles.

2- How much angle?
I know the rule is 1in per 1ft of sluice, but in some places this is also difficult to do.

3- How well to classify?
Pretty straightforward, what size can my a51 process efficiently? Ive classified down to sand-only and also not classified at all(and pretty much everything in between), and have found some gold(not alot).

In our prospecting, we have never really found alot of gold at once, but my buddy and I have always found just enough to keep the interest alive.

Oh, and if anybody has any experiences to share about Roaring Camp, Id love to hear them!


Thanks for all your time!

 

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[B H Prospector]

Hi and welcome to the forum.
You still want to try to achieve the i" per foot rule if possible. I know it isn't always possible so what I did is I bought the adjustible legs from keene (I use the A52) then I can adjust accordingly. Next you want that v forming in the flare. Adjust your water flow by using this rule: when you drop material in the sluice it should clear out of the sluice in 15 to 30 seconds. Next classify to at least 1/2". Some like to go 1/4 but the a52 and a51 will handle 1/2" material just fine. Time and experiance will eventually get you to the point that you will just know when everything is set right, Hope this helps.

Good Luck!

B H Prospector

 

[Fullpan]

SS - the sluice is kinda hard to see but we classified to a i/4 inch and ran 40 to 80 buckets a day before clean-up. Averaged over 2 dwt (about three grams)/day.

I know we lost some gold but in the end its about moving material when you find a good spot. It was all flood gold from the
first 1 1/2 feet of overburden.

 

[TerryC]

The A51 will handle anything you can put on a shovel. The legs are a good idea. With legs you can put the sluice in deeper water and hold it down with a rock. Very shallow? No problem, just take the legs off fo awhile. If your sluice cleans out in less than 15 seconds, flow too fast. If it stays in the sluice more than 30 seconds, too slow. 63bckpkr has a good idea. Put another handle across the flared portion to have much better control of the unit. TTC

 

[sactosluicer]

Thanks guys, I appreciate the advice!
Some of it I just needed to hear from someone besides my buddy(who has as much experience as me)!

"The a51 will handle anything you can put on a shovel"-TerryC... Thats EXACTLY what i wanted to hear!

I started work on another project in anticipation of the upcoming trip.

 

[TerryC]

Tnx, Sac. Here is a tip worth mentioning.... As your sluice fills with black sand behind the riffles, clear them. Using heavy gloves for protection, and a bucket at the end for collection, start at the top riffle and "swipe" your fingers under the riffle and work down to the last one. The black sand will now be in the bucket for panning. By doing this while sluicing, final clean-out can be delayed for days, if you desire. TTC

 

[BadgerGold]

Thats a good idea Terry, I'm a newer prospector myself and have an A52. This was a good thread to read, and the idea Terry had of cleaning behind your riffles but COLLECTING what comes out is great. That way, you're leaving room for it to fill up with more material and having a bucket there youre not losing any gold. I've seen guys in videos all the time scraping and messing with their riffles which could be costing them gold...

 

[63bkpkr]

Check out the legs and attachment method from Terrible_one's post, cool!