Scrap pile fluid bed sluice.

[Gold Rover]

Thanks to russau and KevininColorado and this forum, I was introduced to the high fallutin' technology of fluid bed suspension and gold traps. After some research and scrounging, I came up with the materials and plans for a 30 inch FB sluice. After a few hours of labor in my laboratory, I fabricated the gizmo and rushed down to the Colorado River for a test run!

The results were mixed. Using my paint roller grid grizzly I found that the trap filled up with rocks rather quickly. When I classified the material, the bed stayed fluidized, and watching the action with the grizzly and top plate removed really allowed me to see how the whole system works. I either have to make my grizzly screen smaller or I'm going to have to up the water inflow into the bed, or both, to make it run properly. Although there is little color where I set up, I was impressed by the how the bed would release the lighter material once heavier stuff was introduced to take its place. It caught a lot of black sand, that's for sure, so I'm assuming that any gold would have been trapped as well.

So, I'll continue to tweak it until I have something that works better, but I really enjoyed the crash course in fluid bed suspension. It's fun to learn things through doing. Thanks for the inspiration! Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

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[ALewis]

Very Nice GoldRover....Your sluice is lookin good....

For my first griz I used 1/4 inch mesh, doubled up...worked to keep out the big stuff, but rocks got stuck between the two layers...

I have just finished a 2nd version, similar to yours, I built w scraps that I had left over.. (trying to work out some bug's from first design) I used punch plate for Griz, much happier, but do need to buy a better piece, mine currently has holes lined up, would like to turn sideways so holes are more staggered....(recommended by GG ) Also found my griz was way too long, timmin it down a little...



One change I made on my 2nd is to attached the fluid tubes, if you see what I mean from the below pic ?
I read or was told that connecting those three tubes allowed for better flow, no air surge, or something ? maybe one of the experienced memebers will chime in on that ?




Love seeing your Sluice, thanks for showing it off. Lot's of great info on here, keep updating your efforts & most important show off some of your finds....

 

[Gold Rover]

Thanks ALewis! Your thread and pics helped in the planning of my project. Mine is made of 3/16" heavy plastic screwed to a 1/2" square oak frame. I think that the first thing I'm going to do is decrease the volume of my trap a bit so the ratio of water to material is increased and tighten up the grizzly.

 

[Gold Rover]

After improvements I took it to the river and to my surprise some guys were doing some digging on the boat pullout with an excavator. It's a town park and they were town employees who were interested in my project. They used the machine to get down much deeper into the gravel than I could, and to my surprise the clean out revealed 5 nice little flakes of color. I didn't expect to find gold and left my snuffer at home!

 

[KevinInColorado]

Gold rover, that sluice looks good. Regardless of grizzly size the fluidbed will fill quickly...it's supposed to! The trick is getting the tubes right so the bed is loose while not kicking out gold.

Meanwhile, go back to that dig site!

 

[Gold Rover]

Gold rover, that sluice looks good. Regardless of grizzly size the fluidbed will fill quickly...it's supposed to! The trick is getting the tubes right so the bed is loose while not kicking out gold.

Meanwhile, go back to that dig site!

I will this weekend. The foreman also told me where all the material they were trucking out of there is being dumped. It's a block away from my home and he told me to have at it! I wish that it had been there all winter. That would have helped satisfy the need to prospect during the doldrums.

I'm going to try some more experiments with the design and size of the trap. I think that my tubes are doing a decent job.

 

[KevinInColorado]

I will this weekend. The foreman also told me where all the material they were trucking out of there is being dumped. It's a block away from my home and he told me to have at it! I wish that it had been there all winter. That would have helped satisfy the need to prospect during the doldrums. I'm going to try some more experiments with the design and size of the trap. I think that my tubes are doing a decent job.

...a block from your house? Sweeeet! Lucky guy for sure. Sounds like time to hold a western CO prospectors' party there

 

[Gold Rover]

...a block from your house? Sweeeet! Lucky guy for sure. Sounds like time to hold a western CO prospectors' party there

I really do need to link up with some like minded folks around here. I need a mentor to show a knucklehead the ins and outs of this business. There is a group in Grand Junction but I've not been able to get to any of their meetings. Maybe the next one.

Until then I'll continue to muddle along the learning curve.

 

[Gold Rover]

Here's the pile of pay dirt:

 

[russau]

Nice rounded washed river rock. now youll need a bobcat loader and a decent wash plant to get something done. then sell those washed rock to a landscapeing business, and use the waste dirt for some reclamation to keep the greenies/gubermint off your back!

 

[Gold Rover]

Nice rounded washed river rock. now youll need a bobcat loader and a decent wash plant to get something done. then sell those washed rock to a landscapeing business, and use the waste dirt for some reclamation to keep the greenies/gubermint off your back!

So a 50 inch riffle sluice, a homemade fluid bed gold trap and a shovel isn't going to be enough?

 

[ALewis]

I'd say that depends on your level of commitment.....

 

[KevinInColorado]

LoL well said! ...and boy oh boy does that paydirt ever look good!!

 

[Gold Rover]

I found a some more color yesterday after decreasing the volume of the trap, which is cool, because according to one of the first books I read on prospecting after getting the bug, the Colorado River in my area really isn't a place to look for gold.

It's interesting how gold follows the rules about where to look for it and then breaks those rules.

 

[KevinInColorado]

I found a some more color yesterday after decreasing the volume of the trap, which is cool, because according to one of the first books I read on prospecting after getting the bug, the Colorado River in my area really isn't a place to look for gold. It's interesting how gold follows the rules about where to look for it and then breaks those rules.

yup! Even downstream from you in the CO there were (briefly) commercial placers worked in SE Utah back in the day. Find the pockets of gold, they are out there

Happy for you!

 

[Gold Rover]

Today I'm going to get the grizzly worked out as I'm still having to classify the material. I had an "Ah Ha" moment an realized I can make my own punch plate out of the plastic that the sluice is made of. So, we'll see if by the end of the day if it's rocking an rolling.

 

[Gold Rover]

Here it is in the river. More color today, about as much as yesterday, so the grizzly seems to work. It feels very liberating to just dump the material into the box with out classification! I really need to get into some higher quality gold deposits to see the potential of the box. It took a lot of material to come up with those little specks of gold!



I have to say, although I made this and had fun doing it, if I had the money I would buy a Bazooka right now. Had I known about them when I got my first sluice, I would have bought one then. However, I only learned of the gizmos last month. If anyone reading this is considering a sluice, I would strongly recommend the Bazooka Gold Trap, even though I don't own one.

Oh, the travails of a greenhorn.

 

[goldenmojo]

Shoveling and collecting the rewards, the name of the game......

 

[Gold Rover]

After increasing the size of the grizzly and leveling it to the plane of the sluice bed (it was at a slight angle upward on on the down stream end) I caught the best gold yet. Several flakes in 2/3 of a 5 gallon bucket. I'm not familiar with the different mesh sizes folks use to describe the size of flakes, but they are not too bad. I used some advice given by Lanny in AB to another forum member as to were to hunt for the small gold in gravel. I looked for fist size gravel in the cut out for the boat ramp and dug out material from 6 to 10 inches down. Color every time!

 

[KevinInColorado]

Wow, sounds like you are doing just great, congrats!

...starting to think I might "need" to make a trip west ;-)