So, who has made their own sluice box?

[Cave_Dweller]

Hi all, new to the forum and prospecting in general. I live in the UK and decent sized nuggets and just gold in general is few and far between, it's all fine gold or on land where the owners don't let you prospect. Luckily for me where I pan and have done every time I have been finding gold. No where near to the extent of you lot over in the States (yes, i'm jealous ) but it still feels nice to find it. What some of you pull out in one pan is what we normally find over here in one day, even using a small portable sluice we're lucky to come away after a full day with anything close to a few grams max. Anyway, I guess that's the fun of it and a good day out regardless.

Anyway, with having a family to support with forever increasing bills and work not going too great just now it's safe to say my wallet isn't exactly deep. Therefore the cost of making my own sluice is quite appealing, I may not get it right, but it's worth a try. Mainly for the cost and simplicity I was looking at making a portable drop riffle sluice box out of wood using a router. If I can get that catching gold then I can look into making it out of a different material. I know there's a lot of different factors that go into catching gold, like water flow, angle, so on and so on, but if I can get a basic design then I can work from there.

Just wondering if anyone here has made their own drop riffle sluice box, or any other kind that isn't too hard to make for someone with not a lot of money and minimal tools...that's asking a lot I know lol. I'm just in need of some general advice and any pointers in the right direction. There's not many sluice for sale here in the UK and to order one internationally for me the postage alone costs the same as the sluice.

Many thanks.

 

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[Cave_Dweller]

Hey Cave_Dweller, hows the construction going, or are you at testing and modification stage.

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Been really busy with work and kids so I've not got a lot done to be honest let alone enough time to even catch up on my own topics lol. I've cut the main riffles out, just need to give them a good sanding down, whack on some sides and waterproof everything. I've done some tests just with simple cut riffles on spare bits of wood and they seemed to work well, so hopefully with them all put together it does a good job. I'm still to make one that's very random and I'll see how the two compare before I finish them completely. After my holiday in a few weeks I might move onto making other different types of sluice box, like the bazooka or hungarian riffle. I like a good bit of DIY with trial and error. Also after my holiday the funds should start coming in better since my home workshop is nearly complete, so working with aluminium and proper tools won't be a problem. Money has been tight whilst everything else has been draining it.

The one that I've cut out so far has 3 deep V traps just after the slick plate for a quick guide to see if I'm on the gold, then 3 deep 3/4x3/4" riffles followed by several 3/4wide x 1/2 deep riffles. All just simple straight cuts, nothing fancy.

Still a lot of work to go and they won't be a permanent every day use sluice, more just for testing and for the fun of making one.
20160731_092630[1] by paul, on Flickr

20160731_092711[1] by paul, on Flickr

 

[KevinInColorado]

The wood grain sure is pretty in that first shot!

I predict the grooves you've cut will fill up with material fairly quickly. You'll have to clean out often and will end up with quite a bit of concentrates that, well, aren't very concentrated. Still, it'll catch gold

 

[johnedoe]

With the width of the riffles it is very close to being what could be considered a drop riffle design and may work surprisingly well.... Just my 2 dwt.

 

[Jason in Enid]

Almost any type of riffle system will catch gold, you just have to get the right water depth, speed and angle. Even sticks and lines of rocks will catch gold (just look at what nature does!). I think you have a great start with your sluice. Just watch the material really close. If the drops are packing up, you have to increase angle, flow or both. If you aren't holding anything, you need to run flatter or slow the water, or both. Material should be fluid in the drops, actively exchanging out the light stuff and holding the heavies (iron sand, lead, gold, etc).


One thing to think about if you build a different drop profile, the size of the riffle dictates the size of the gold it catches. Big riffles have big turbulance. They catch big gold but tiny stuff flushes out. Tiny riffles let tiny gold drop and hold but big gold will keep right on rolling out the end of the box.

This is more about the "art" of the sluice than the science of it. It's always a dance and nothing catches 100%

 

[Cave_Dweller]

The wood grain sure is pretty in that first shot!

I predict the grooves you've cut will fill up with material fairly quickly. You'll have to clean out often and will end up with quite a bit of concentrates that, well, aren't very concentrated. Still, it'll catch gold

I ran a few tests with the same sized cuts on a different bit and it worked surprisingly well to be honest, or it could have just been a fluke lol. Even though the riffles were packed with material it still caught all the gold flakes I was putting through it because the material that was getting held in the riffles was getting replaced by heavier stuff. Sort of like a bazooka type sluice, it always has material in it, but that material just gets replaced by heavier material instead of flushing it out completely.

If this attempt of mine works then I'll be happy, it it doesn't I'll try again, if it fails after that I'll build another lol. All the joys of trial and error

 

[Cave_Dweller]

Almost any type of riffle system will catch gold, you just have to get the right water depth, speed and angle. Even sticks and lines of rocks will catch gold (just look at what nature does!). I think you have a great start with your sluice. Just watch the material really close. If the drops are packing up, you have to increase angle, flow or both. If you aren't holding anything, you need to run flatter or slow the water, or both. Material should be fluid in the drops, actively exchanging out the light stuff and holding the heavies (iron sand, lead, gold, etc).


One thing to think about if you build a different drop profile, the size of the riffle dictates the size of the gold it catches. Big riffles have big turbulance. They catch big gold but tiny stuff flushes out. Tiny riffles let tiny gold drop and hold but big gold will keep right on rolling out the end of the box.

This is more about the "art" of the sluice than the science of it. It's always a dance and nothing catches 100%

Cheers. It performed alright on a test in my garden with a pump set up, but it might be different when I get it out there in the rivers. At the bottom of each drop I was thinking of making a tiny groove all the way across to hold fine stuff, either that or it will just hold more gravel lol. I also thought about making a small step on each drop to help it clear, but I haven't tested that type yet. I've been doing tests then modifying this main sluice as I go along.

 

[Jason in Enid]

Cheers. It performed alright on a test in my garden with a pump set up, but it might be different when I get it out there in the rivers. At the bottom of each drop I was thinking of making a tiny groove all the way across to hold fine stuff, either that or it will just hold more gravel lol. I also thought about making a small step on each drop to help it clear, but I haven't tested that type yet. I've been doing tests then modifying this main sluice as I go along.

Look up Gold Hog sluice mats and look at all the different styles they have. That should be enough to keep to busy in your wood shop for a while! LOL

 

[Cave_Dweller]

The options are endless. It's going to even worse when I take delivery of my new metal work equipment next week lol

 

[Cave_Dweller]

Look up Gold Hog sluice mats and look at all the different styles they have. That should be enough to keep to busy in your wood shop for a while! LOL

I've attacked it with a pen. Do you think modifying the first few V riffles to something like this I'd more likely be able to keep the fines from washing away?

20160731_185129 by paul, on Flickr

 

[Jason in Enid]

I think it looks like a winner. Never know unless you try.

 

[Cave_Dweller]

I think it looks like a winner. Never know unless you try.

There is that lol. I'll have to make some cuts on another bit and give it a test before I attack the main project.

 

[KevinInColorado]

I ran a few tests with the same sized cuts on a different bit and it worked surprisingly well to be honest, or it could have just been a fluke lol. Even though the riffles were packed with material it still caught all the gold flakes I was putting through it because the material that was getting held in the riffles was getting replaced by heavier stuff. Sort of like a bazooka type sluice, it always has material in it, but that material just gets replaced by heavier material instead of flushing it out completely.

If this attempt of mine works then I'll be happy, it it doesn't I'll try again, if it fails after that I'll build another lol. All the joys of trial and error

If you are getting material exchange, you are on the right track for sure!

I've attacked it with a pen. Do you think modifying the first few V riffles to something like this I'd more likely be able to keep the fines from washing away?

20160731_185129 by paul, on Flickr

Yes, I think it will! Good approach.

 

[Au dave]

If you are getting material exchange, you are on the right track for sure!



Yes, I think it will! Good approach.

personally I would leave a couple of "v" at the start of your sluice just to get the turbulence started.and then put a couple of backward cut, (1/2 a dovetail), on the leading edge of a couple of riffles then the double and triple drops, this should keep exchange happening and catch the fines...but yes you're on the right track - just like mother nature totally random [emoji4]

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[stephen583]

The best sluice depends on whether you are talking about a "production" sluice, or a "prospecting" sluice. For prospecting an area I use the popular "poop" tube sluice. It's simply a two foot piece of flexible ribbed plastic drainage pipe (cost $3 dollars a foot at WalMart garden department). To make it more sturdy you can drop it into PVC pipe. Cut both pieces in half. Brush in some Gorilla Glue and drop in the ribbed pipe. Total cost under $12 dollars. weight is negligible, which is good for packing equipment into the back country. I was prospecting on Rose Creek in Arizona about six years ago when I came upon my first "poop" tube sluice.

A teenager across the creek was using one. I was immediately impressed with the number of V's visible in the bottom of the plastic "poop" tube. About eight of them per 2 foot. Curious I challenged him to a contest against my $200 dollar Keen "Stream" sluice box with both of us processing an equal amount of dirt he had collected from one spot. The kid whooped my behind, and I've been a fan of the "poop" tube prospecting sluice ever since. BTW. I'm no nubbie. I'm 60 years old, and I've panned all the way from Georgia to Utah. So I've seen a lot and learned a lot in my time.

If you are going to build your own custom production sluice, I recommend you obtain some "Razor Hog" gold mats. They are the very best quality rubber gold mat I've found on the market. Whatever you build, the Razor Hog mat will absolutely improve your production and pay for itself many times over. You might consider buying a three foot long, 8 inch wide, 1/16th inch thick piece of iron, or steel sluice box you can obtain from any metal shop. Yes it's a little heavy, but the advantage is, I've never had one float away on me, and you don't have to pile heavy slabs of rock on it to keep it in place. Drop in a couple of Razor Hog mats, set a metal catch pan, or bucket at the bottom of the sluice, and you are good to go.

 

[Goldfleks]

Build your sluice to the size of the most common gold in your area. Most is probably fine flood gold. GoldHog mats are great if you can afford them, seem to be the best in the market if you're looking to run a stream sluice. Doesn't take much to catch fine gold. Any VMat will do. Some catch more than others if you're willing to pay the premium for the higher quality mat. I think most people catch 90% of their gold in the first 6inches of their sluice.

There is a latino guy at my river who converted an aluminum ladder to a sluice by bolting a aluminum panel to one side of the ladder and then gluing VMat down the length of it. The whole thing is probably 2 feet wide by 4 feet long. He classifies to 1/2" before shaking his bucket out onto the matting. The guys gets gold, but I think a lot of that has to do with the level of production he does. He's a work horse. I'm sure if he had a better quality sluice he'd pull a little bit more fines.

Seen another guy run a huge wooden sluice framed with aluminum on the inside and matting and miners moss and all sorts of stuff. It was probably 8' long and after the water soaked it after running for the day it took two guys to haul it back to his truck. Most of his gold was at the top of his sluice too. Not sure what he caught farther down other than gravel. He had a ton of concentrates when he was done, probably at least 2.5 gallons worth or more. The bucket he hauled out was pretty full.

I think end of day concentrates are an important thing to consider when building your sluice. Do you want a 5 gallon bucket of mostly gravel to pan out or a few cups of concentrates? The better your design exchanges lights for heavies in a smaller space the less finish work you're going to have to do at the end of the day.

 

[KevinInColorado]

Wisdom!

 

[stephen583]

Whatever kind of sluice you decide to build, I recommend you incorporate Razor Hog gold mats into the design. These mats are the only gold recovery system on the internet I wholeheartedly endorse. 100 % recovery.. even very fine flour gold doesn't escape them. Look at their web page and you'll be impressed with the way they explain how and why their product works. I've been prospecting for over 30 years, and have never found anything that compares to Razor Hog gold mats. Their mats are also surprisingly affordable, considering how well they work.

 

[Oregon Viking]

Yep! I'am building a sluice with exclusively Gold Hog mats, and as Doc suggested I'am using a variety of Gold Hog mats.

 

[russau]

OV Im doing the same thing with my dredges and a sluice.