Newbie prospector with sluice build questions.

[jpc8636]

Hi everyone. My first post here so sorry if I am beating a dead horse here. First a little about me. I'm new to the prospecting scene. I moved to Anchorage AK a year and a half ago and my only experience is some panning at the local streams. I quickly got discouraged with the lack of material (quantity) that I was processing. I love to tinker and build stuff so I am making my first power sluice and I am looking for some experienced miners inputs. The goal is to have a system that I can setup in my garage so I can come home with 4-5 buckets of material that I've classified down to 4 (1/4") mesh, enjoy a adult beverage, and not be standing in freezing glacier fed streams.

Heres the plans:

Starting out with a 10" wide x 48"long x 5" high aluminum shoot. I plan on using .080 aluminum that I am having the local sheet metal shop bend for me. I plan on using a 1500 gph pump that will attach to 3/4" - 1" PVC pipe spray bar. That's going to make a "Y" shape over the first 12" of the sluice to create a slurring zone. The last 36" I plan on using gold hog UR and Razorback mats.

Does anyone see any flaws in my plans... Do I need a larger pump or expanded metal? From what I can tell most of the gold around here is fine/flour with the rare chance for a small nugget. I want to make sure I'm pumping enough water but at the same time not having a raging river in my garage. If anyone has a design or plans for a spray bar I'd greatly appreciate it! Thanks a million!

 

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[AlaskaGold]

Welcome to AK jpc! Sounds like a great winter project. Sorry I'm no help as I'm in the planing stage of building one myself.

 

[jpc8636]

It's going to be a good project. My mrs is just shaking her head because it is yet another hobby for me. I'm already looking into building a miller table for my clean ups to. My goal (which is probably unattainable) is .5 oz by the end of summer. A solid half oz should pay off my equipment cost.

 

[AlaskaGold]

Get her involved, my wife is my mining prospecting partner. I'm gonna pick up another detector this spring for her so she's not just digging my hits. I have way to many hobbies as well, but she is part of all of them and it sure makes her understand why I do them, it's fun! I have been gathering parts for a miller table as well. Im changing this years ways, gonna bring more cons home instead of finishing everything at the creek. I think I may pick up a bazooka gold trap as well. If they work like everyone says it would sure speed things up not classifying so much. Now if this snow would just go away we'd be digging.

 

[jpc8636]

AlaskaGold what part of the state are you in?

 

[AlaskaGold]

South central. Yourself?

 

[jpc8636]

Anchorage bowl area! Woot woot!