Screener

[manxy]

Hi guys

Well I am just wondering if you would give your opinion on the soil screener/classifier I have created.

Basically this is a prototype and was wondering is it something you guys would be interested in when you are hunting for gold.

I have been landscaping/gardening for over 20 years and never really could find something to screen soil without loads of elbow grease.

Please tell me what you think?

 

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[DizzyDigger]

Looks like it works, but if I we're running that dirt then all those
dirt clods would have to be busted up and re-ran. It should do well
with drier soils though.

I have a hand-crank trommel that was low cost, easy to build and
is very easy to both operate and maintain. The plans were found
right on the web:

Mike's Hand Trommel

Going to be building another one for a friend, but this time instead
of the bent metal straps connecting the buckets to the center pole,
I'll use some 3/8" all-thread rods with large washers.

 

[goldenIrishman]

While it is a good idea I'm afraid it wouldn't work well for my area. We have tons of dried clay out here and it would just go bouncing into the waste pile. It takes a lot of force and water to bust that clay up and get the gold out of it. That's the reason most guys will run a wet trommel if they can.

Don't let my observations get you down though. There's lots of other areas where something like this would work very well. The Arizona desert just isn't one of them.

 

[loco oro]

well for gold prospecting , you would want a hopper at the top, and a water source,to wash the worthless (soil) leaving only classified (gravels), but your shaker seems to work quite well, we all build something like it sooner or later.

 

[russau]

This past summer i made one of these similar to yours except,i had a smaller screen mesh and i didnt put the vibrator motor on it and im kicking myself for it! i have 2 very similar vibrator motors sitting on a shelf in my garage that i (DUMMY ME) didnt use. after a LOT LONGER/MORE WORK use time on my device,i got the same results with my device! i can see by saveing time/work your saveing lots of money! great idea!

 

[manxy]

Well thanks guys for your views, basically this is only a proto-type, this is my 2nd real attempt to build one and really it was more to see what the motor could do and how much dirt it would shift.

I have looked at how you guys reclaim your gold and I think if it was to be used for gold it would have to have like you said hopper of some sort and also a water system to wash the stuff.
Would something like this be good in the field and do you guys use generators to power your stuff.

what I am thinking is to make my new machine bigger and have some of the features you guys said.

Do you guys do dry sifting in some areas and wet sifting in others?

 

[russau]

yes, classifing/sifting is done either wet or dry in different areas.

 

[manxy]

So is the process the same except one uses water and one does it dry ?

 

[russau]

YUP!

 

[KevinInColorado]

So is the process the same except one uses water and one does it dry ?

Right! Most will only do dry where water is unavailable. This would be a big help in the deserts of the SW US for example.

 

[loco oro]

i use a gen just about every where i go, i built a small battery bank to power all the amenitys that i like , i.e RADIO. phone charger, clean up pumps, and to charge my dewalt cordless stuff ,dont leave home without that stuff,18 vt everything from grinder,sawsall,trimsall, impact drill. i use these every time i am out for more than a day. i also carry a 400 watt inverter, for other things, hammerdrill. i also built a crazy generator system that i havent yet got just right yet,soon tho, it has a 1/4 hp 4amp elect motor,which i rigged direct drive to 2 40 amp altenators, idea is to charge battery bank plus juice itself, it works and charges just fine, but need a larger inverter to operate off the battery bank and not the gen,trying to get away from gas,and noise, i really enjoy the serenity of being (out there).if i find a need for something, i build it!if i had to buy everything, i would be screwed!

 

[manxy]

Thanks for the input guys, so would you say it needs to be twice as long and have a hopper ?

I guess some sort of funnel under it to catch the fines would be also ideal.

You could link it to some kind of sluice then maybe?

 

[KevinInColorado]

Thanks for the input guys, so would you say it needs to be twice as long and have a hopper ? I guess some sort of funnel under it to catch the fines would be also ideal. You could link it to some kind of sluice then maybe?

Yes,a bit longer is smart. Yes, an adjustable funnel at the bottom making it easy to connect to the buyer's sluice. The hopper should be removable to make gear hauling easy. The hopper should also have water spray around the top of it to help flush the material through and to help separate the clods of dirt, etc.

All that said, your market niche is best served by keeping the whole thing fairly small and portable. A friend of mine welded up a big one of these for a small commercial mine. It is 8 feet tall (!) and is pulled behind a truck on its own trailer wheels. That's a whole different market right?!