Hanging up the bgt

[Goldwasher]

You have been given great advice from some guys who really know...guys who Chris and Todd know are great ambassadors for their product. We have been to the shop and Todds house....I have used every major sluice on the market today and the bazooka is better than them all. The all have the same problem when they hit the lower limits of flow. In your picture I can see that you need to dam both sides. Don't use just rocks. Get moss or grass make it so the majority of the flow is going through the sluice.Once you see it work right you won't take as long to set up next time. Giving up so easily will surely lead you down the road of less recovery, and therefore confidence...as you are feeling and expressing now. Remember the prospector finds the gold not the sluice. Don't give up...make it work you will not be disappointed.

 

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[TheGoldProspector]

You have been given great advice from some guys who really know...guys who Chris and Todd know are great ambassadors for their product. We have been to the shop and Todds house....I have used every major sluice on the market today and the bazooka is better than them all. The all have the same problem when they hit the lower limits of flow. In your picture I can see that you need to dam both sides. Don't use just rocks. Get moss or grass make it so the majority of the flow is going through the sluice.Once you see it work right you won't take as long to set up next time. Giving up so easily will surely lead you down the road of less recovery, and therefore confidence...as you are feeling and expressing now. Remember the prospector finds the gold not the sluice. Don't give up...make it work you will not be disappointed.

. Trust me, I have been finding gold.
Thank you for your assistance

 

[NeoTokyo]

I had the Miner (Wish I never sold it, now I am looking for another) and it ate water like a hurricane.

The BGT is a high performance machine and most high performance machines require gobs of fuel, in this case, H2O.

I ran my deck water level at just below the top of the edges and I made sure that none of it was fully under water and that it had a very slight angle.
I ran a Keen behind it and never lost any gold from the BGT, that day I collected a lot of nice fine gold.


If you want to sell yours you could just PM me.

 

[NeoTokyo]

This was from 1 5gal bucket that I filled, it never even showed the slighted sign of clogging.
I have ran it dumping shovel after shovel in it though, and again no problems.

I don't have any vids of it running though.

 

[triple d]

With a BGT you have to be a dam builder. And keep building one to you get the flow needed. When its running right in the right light. You can see small particles coming out the end of the trap. And always need a little angle. I believe the angle keeps the trap fluid.When flat I can"t get the trap to be fluid. Hope this helps.

 

[TheGoldProspector]

I had the Miner (Wish I never sold it, now I am looking for another) and it ate water like a hurricane. The BGT is a high performance machine and most high performance machines require gobs of fuel, in this case, H2O. I ran my deck water level at just below the top of the edges and I made sure that none of it was fully under water and that it had a very slight angle. I ran a Keen behind it and never lost any gold from the BGT, that day I collected a lot of nice fine gold. If you want to sell yours you could just PM me.

Im not looking to sell. Thanks for the help NeoTokyo

 

[goldog]

I sure hope you don't give up. You're "TheGoldProspector" dammit. What chance have any of us got

TGP the shot on the left looks like the water is just barely going over the deck. You have alot of fin showing. I would run the water up near the top of the fins, pitch it a little more and move that big rock that is a foot away from your intake compltely out of the way. It is splitting the flow and the water is going around the sides of your BGT. That's a pretty low situation.

I agree that boulder as well as the big chunk downstream have got to go. (Take away is important too. You want the exit clear to handle all those tailings when you shovel like mad.) Don't be afraid to run it deep. Water is usually close to even with the edges. It also appears to be running at an angle to the water flow. For anyone having flow BGT of other sluice problems try laying a tarp just up from and under the sluice. I think it helps with the under flow. It doesn't need to be real big. I use a 4'X4' piece of vinyl.

One last thing. Once you've set it and started shoveling it may try to "float". A couple good rocks will hold it until you can get it settled. I discovered it is not really floating but the trap is actually falling in a hole raising the opposite (upstream) end. Some flat rocks under the trap will fix the problem.

Of course 95% of the material is going out the back end. Don't worry the gold will stay.

 

[TheGoldProspector]

I sure hope you don't give up. You're "TheGoldProspector" dammit. What chance have any of us got I agree that boulder as well as the big chunk downstream have got to go. (Take away is important too. You want the exit clear to handle all those tailings when you shovel like mad.) Don't be afraid to run it deep. Water is usually close to even with the edges. It also appears to be running at an angle to the water flow. For anyone having flow BGT of other sluice problems try laying a tarp just up from and under the sluice. I think it helps with the under flow. It doesn't need to be real big. I use a 4'X4' piece of vinyl. One last thing. Once you've set it and started shoveling it may try to "float". A couple good rocks will hold it until you can get it settled. I discovered it is not really floating but the trap is actually falling in a hole raising the opposite (upstream) end. Some flat rocks under the trap will fix the problem. Of course 95% of the material is going out the back end. Don't worry the gold will stay.

Im not giving up..i hope that shows through...

I will attempt most anything that feels correct; its just that So far, using the bgt alone/with amateurs such as myself that have no experience with a bgt has been quite a task. Running material we know is gold rich and coming back with near nothing for the work put in.

As i have said time and time again, I know this system will work (In the correct situation/flow). I have wanted this to work perfectly sonce i have held it in my hands. I raved and raved about getting the opportunity to use this professional setup; it just hasnt worked out for me is what it has come down to - even with the hours of videos i have watched, the two trips to see todd and chris, the flow charts for the setup and trap collection points within the actual patent...

I feel as if I am not one of hardest rocks around, however I feel like a child working this box. especially with everyone cheering me on, and me failing this equation singlehandedly. :/

Again, thanks all for your support

 

[goldenmojo]

TGP. Keep the spirit strong. Went through the same stuff just learning to find gold at the level I now do. It is natural to return to what we know works when faced with challenges. Like the man said you are The Gold Prospector. Now go out and make us proud.

 

[Prospector70]

You'll get it. Wish I was close or I'd show yer.

Best!

 

[KevinInColorado]

Try going to the other extreme...steep and deep. You'll be amazed at how well that works and it will shift your thinking (I hope!)

Steep means the grizzly is sloped downward!
Deep means there is NO plastic above water level...none!

Really, try it.

 

[Oregon Viking]

Hang up the BGT...or not.
This (hobby) is not easy!
These guys here will school you on the 'zooka. hey...you are getting time on the river!
My first sluice was a keene A52. It worked allright. The first time I saw a 'zooka...I actually told the guy...way to fast of a flow! He smiled and set it up. He shoveled into it...and said..grizzleys not cleanin' fast enough!.
I watched as he diverted so much flow into that thing, that it kept floating away! What? he finally built a dam, winged that 'zooka (as he said) and shoveled ...and shoveled. i swear, there was a current goin' thought that thing that good spin a hydro wheel!!

 

[Armchair prospector]

Has anyone run a sluice behind to so to see if it is losing any gold or has that been tried?

 

[Prospector70]

hard to do AP, it would have to be able to handle unclassified material. Or you would have to classify first, and that would muddy your test results as the bgt would catch everything you expect it to. (Like it does anyway)
I've test panned and test panned and test panned my tailings, never saw a speck.

 

[Duckwalk]

if its not in this thread its in another. im pretty sure TGP had mentioned running his a52 behind the BGT and the A52 was catching gold that the BGT was throwing out. i think thats why he is getting frustrated with it

 

[Aufisher]

I too have re- ran tailings and found no gold. Even heavy blue clay. Clay is best run after thorough mixing in the bucket.

 

[goldenmojo]

Mixed it in my pan but a bucket would have been easier.

 

[3xflyfisher]

TGP,
I have had my BGT several months now. At first I was very frustrated with the learning curve. Do not be afraid to flow some volume of water through it. The BGT is a beast. With it running well you are able to pass 4-6" river rock right over the grizzly with the -3/8 fraction dropping into the catch box. Similar to a traditional box there is somewhat of a balance of water volume versus water velocity. However, the BGT is MUCH more forgiving than a traditional riffle style box when considering volume and velocity.

Good luck!

 

[Sideways Sherry]

I have a BGT Super Mini and my friend has a CalSluice. We went to my hole together, dug the exact same spot. I ran 3 times as much material classified to 1/2" than he did unclassified and he got 3 times as much gold as I did. I adjusted steep and deep got barely any gold then went slower and level and then finally got some gold but I had to drop to only 1/2 scoop of material on the deck at a time.

I am disappointed too, I almost feel like I got more gold with my 4in x 4ft homemade sluice...

 

[Goodyguy]

I have a BGT Super Mini and my friend has a CalSluice. We went to my hole together, dug the exact same spot. I ran 3 times as much material classified to 1/2" than he did unclassified and he got 3 times as much gold as I did. I adjusted steep and deep got barely any gold then went slower and level and then finally got some gold but I had to drop to only 1/2 scoop of material on the deck at a time.

I am disappointed too, I almost feel like I got more gold with my 4in x 4ft homemade sluice...

Sounds like he may have one of the Calsluice undercurrent models #2B. In my opinion the BGT super mini is not much for production as it can easily be overloaded and overwhelmed if the flow is too slow. A better comparison to the Calsluice #2B or one of the drop riffle models would be against a BGT prospector. But then no BGT will operate correctly if the flow is too slow to properly fluidize the trap.

The other thing is that even if you both dug material from the same hole your individual results could still vary greatly even if you both used the exact same model of sluice.

GG~