Found a new spot...need help with some questions

[DizzyDigger]

Found me a new spot that seems to be holding an awful lot of
very small gold. By small, I mean in the -50 to -200 (and maybe
smaller) range.

I'll post a pic below of some of the gold, but first it might be
best to tell you how it was found..

Went down to my beach (aka: backyard) on Sunday, and
dug/classified 2 buckets to 1/8- of the sand/gravel from behind
a large boulder. Then, I panned that down with the large
super sluice pan to where the black sand with some light material
remained, and then dumped it off into a bucket. Didn't look for
any gold while panning, and the 2 buckets panned down ended
up at about 2 quarts of black sand.

Brought that in, classified it to 30+, 30- to 50+, and 50-.
Panned down and found nothing in the +30, and took the
rest to the Miller Table. Found one speck found in the 30-
to 50+, but, the 50- material had anywhere from
6-12 pieces in every teaspoonful. Some of the specks
were so small I could only see it with the magnifying glass,
but there's no doubt it was gold.

So, quick dig, quick pan down to cons and then on the
miller table...not much "concentrating" done at all.

Here's the results from that quart or so of black sand:



Q. Decided that the best tool for mining this would be the
Gold Cube, BUT, can it handle scoop after scoop of what
is essentially little more than black sand?

Q. Do you think the volume of gold is worth the effort?
Keep in mind the above came from just 2 buckets classified
to 1/8"-, and using my trommel I could easily run 50+ buckets
of this material a day.

I'm worried that the matting is going to load up with that
heavy black sand (there's TONS of it to be had) and the
gold will flow out. Never used a GC, but do hear it's an
awesome piece of gear.

Don't have the cost of a Gold Cube laying around, so
I plan to sell my Gold Bug Pro and use the proceeds for
setting up with a complete Gold Cube outfit. The GBP is
an awesome gold machine, but unfortunately nuggets
are about as scarce up here as 25 yo. virgins in So. Cal.

So, do ya think it's worth pursuing?

 

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[Jeff95531]

My 2 cents? The location is excellent. The digging is easy. Your equipment and miller table is exceptional for this type of gold. There's gold in every sample. And I just learned not to long ago people will buy all the black sand you can find. I'fn I were you, I'd do it

 

[johnnysau]

If it were evenly distributed, I could give you a round about number of OZ per ton or yard. Their are 480 grains in an OZ of gold, just tell me how many grains on average per bucket, then give me the weight of a bucket. You can PM if you want.

johnnysau

 

[goldenIrishman]

Not sure about the Gold Cube Mike. I've only seen one once and never in action. The amount of gold is worth going after in my book. Have you tried digging deeper to see if there's anything larger in that area yet? You can't beat the location at all. Not many people can walk out their back door and prospect. Have you considered a "poop tube" instead of a Cube? Would be a lot cheaper for sure and if they'll hold Alaskan flour gold they should hold the stuff you've found there with no problem. Sometimes old school is the way to go.

jeff

 

[KevinInColorado]

the gold cube will definitely handle the material you are describing. that is exactly what it was designed for...straight black sand with gold in it! Mike Pung and Red Wilcox tested it by running the black sands on the beach at Lake Superior....heavy sand and very fine gold too.

 

[Lanny in AB]

Are you on a beach on a lake or on the ocean?

Look up the plans for a beach box for fine gold. It's a very wide sluice with a lower volume of water. It catches that beach gold great.

You can build one yourself. I used one in Nome years ago, and that beach is loaded with black sand and garnet sand as well.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[DizzyDigger]

My 2 cents? The location is excellent. The digging is easy. Your equipment and miller table is exceptional for this type of gold. There's gold in every sample. And I just learned not to long ago people will buy all the black sand you can find. I'fn I were you, I'd do it

Thanks for the input Jeff. Not sure about selling the black sand just yet..at least not
until I've gotten every speck of gold out...

Johnny: Might be awhile before I can get an average, per bucket weight. Not sure
if my scale will even weigh that small an amount..

Not sure about the Gold Cube Mike. I've only seen one once and never in action. The amount of gold is worth going after in my book. Have you tried digging deeper to see if there's anything larger in that area yet? You can't beat the location at all. Not many people can walk out their back door and prospect. Have you considered a "poop tube" instead of a Cube? Would be a lot cheaper for sure and if they'll hold Alaskan flour gold they should hold the stuff you've found there with no problem. Sometimes old school is the way to go.jeff

Been watching several video's of the Gold Cube, and it sure looks like it'll
handle the material. Thought about a Henry's style Poop tube, but instead
I'll probably just set up the A52 with V matting and two layers of 1/2" expanded
metal. That set-up doesn't require much water flow, and it'll save all the super
fines. Problem is it can't run the volume of material I'm wanting to put through it,
while the Gold Cube seems to be able to process material just about as fast
as it can be fed. That would equate to about 2x the amount of material that
the sluice could handle in a day...more classified material run = more gold..

Kevin: That's just what I needed to hear!

Are you on a beach on a lake or on the ocean?
Look up the plans for a beach box for fine gold. It's a very wide sluice with a lower volume of water. It catches that beach gold great.
You can build one yourself. I used one in Nome years ago, and that beach is loaded with black sand and garnet sand as well.
All the best, Lanny

Lanny: I live on the Skagit River about 35 mi. east of Mount Vernon, WA.
Right at the base of the North Cascades, and about 10. mi. SE of
Mount Baker.

Here's the "backyard":



The Skagit ranks #2 in water flow in the state with the Columbia River being #1.
Average flow is about 15,000 CFS. I can access several hundred yards of beach
just right out the backdoor; enough to keep me busy for a lifetime. Material is
in constant movement, and when the river really gets cookin' at flood time it's
not unusual for the beach to be entirely cleaned of loose sand, and then the
river will put it back again the next high water. Easy diggin' and I'll never run
out of material.

Too cold and rainy right now to do much, but as soon as decent weather
arrives (May...June?) I want to be ready to go. This will be my first
adventure into actual mining , and hope is to work the beach all
Summer. If that fine gold is consistent across the beach it should be my
best year for gold yet..

 

[KevinInColorado]

With the Skagit in your backyard, I'd run a power line down to that "beach" and go shovel into a gold cube for a couple hours every day!