Do mats/expanded metal count as riffles?

[NeverBeta]

Looking to purchase a Highbanker/PowerSluice. Being in WA state I am limited in the amount of "riffled area" to 3sqft.

1. When mineral prospecting without timing restrictions,
you may use only hand-held mineral prospecting tools
and the following mineral prospecting equipment:
(a) Pans;
(b) Spiral wheels;
(c) Sluices, concentrators, mini rocker boxes, and
mini high-bankers with riffle areas totaling 3
square feet or less, including ganged equipment.

Does Miner Moss/Carpet count as riffled area? What about Expanded Metal or Gold Hog mats? Here is the definition from the WDFW Gold and Fish pamphlet.

Riffle – The bottom of a concentrator containing a series
of crevices and grooves to catch and retain a mineral such
as gold.; or a short, relatively shallow and coarse-bedded
length of stream over which the stream flows at higher
velocity and higher turbulence than it normally does in
comparison to a pool.

By that definition, it seems Gold Hog mats and expanded metal would be considered a riffle, what about Miner Moss/Carpet?

Thanks.

 

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[wildminer]

I'm not sure on that, but I would like to meet and have a conversation with the idjit that came up with that one. I'm sure someone will come along with the answer for you.

 

[Goldwasher]

Ive already talked to them...they say riffles but consider it "recovery" area....slick plates don't count. A bazookas "recovery" area is the diminsion of the traps bottom.
Any thing that used gravity and flow to "recover" is considered in their formula.
Having said all of that I would myself classify matting and expanded as "Riffles" If you read old placer mining reports the authors and miners considered manny types of things " riffles" and it wasn't alays something perpendicular to the flow of the slurry. Blocks ,lengthise logs...logs on end...cobble lined boxes. Belive it or not these types of recovery were used all the way into the depression. Hungarian style riffles catching on late in the game.

You have riffles and your stuck ith it....feel free to tweak them in size and style for the best recovery. Heck you don't even have to call them riffles. The state of Washington is gonna though. Your best ay to reduce the size they can measure. by making a fluid bed and nugget trap at the end of your run. remember they dont count slick plate.
hen I talked to the guy he asked me about material throughput even though its not in the pamphlet. I could tell as I asked uestions his wheels were turning as I was mentioning forms of recovery he hadn't heard of. So be cautious calling up "regulatory" agencies and answering some of their questions with yours I felt icky hen I got off the phone..lol

 

[OwenT]

Goldwasher I'm confused. Seems like your w and q keys might still be out but you're slipping a few "w"s in there. You pasting those or just made a habit of leaving them out?

 

[NeverBeta]

Ive already talked to them...they say riffles but consider it "recovery" area....slick plates don't count. A bazookas "recovery" area is the diminsion of the traps bottom.
Any thing that used gravity and flow to "recover" is considered in their formula.
Having said all of that I would myself classify matting and expanded as "Riffles" If you read old placer mining reports the authors and miners considered manny types of things " riffles" and it wasn't alays something perpendicular to the flow of the slurry. Blocks ,lengthise logs...logs on end...cobble lined boxes. Belive it or not these types of recovery were used all the way into the depression. Hungarian style riffles catching on late in the game.

You have riffles and your stuck ith it....feel free to tweak them in size and style for the best recovery. Heck you don't even have to call them riffles. The state of Washington is gonna though. Your best ay to reduce the size they can measure. by making a fluid bed and nugget trap at the end of your run. remember they dont count slick plate.
hen I talked to the guy he asked me about material throughput even though its not in the pamphlet. I could tell as I asked uestions his wheels were turning as I was mentioning forms of recovery he hadn't heard of. So be cautious calling up "regulatory" agencies and answering some of their questions with yours I felt icky hen I got off the phone..lol

Thanks for the lengthy and detailed reply.

Wow, anything except slick bottom, that's worse than I thought.

I am new to sluicing, but not to panning (for fun). Is 3 sq/ft really limiting 1 man with a shovel)? Would 6 sq/ft really make a huge difference? It is my understanding that in a properly setup sluice, the gold should fallout within the first 3ft anyways.

Is it possible to make an alluvial sluice work with slick bottom? (maybe Rhino-Lined for corrosion resistance *Wink Wink*)

 

[winners58]

3sq ft is a standard sluice like the keene a52 that's for anytime of the year.
check the G&F pamphlet for "with timings section" for the stream you'll be on, then it goes to 10sq feet.

 

[NeverBeta]

3sq ft is a standard sluice like the keene a52 that's for anytime of the year.
check the G&F pamphlet for "with timings section" for the stream you'll be on, then it goes to 10sq feet.

Ah, I see. I did not notice the 10sqft thing. Some of these places are very restrictive timing wise, others not so much. I guess the best thing to do is have 2 setups? One for initial prospecting of good locations and another for coming back later within timing regulations.

 

[OwenT]

I think 3 sq ft is pretty good. I think most small sluices are something like 8" wide usually so that gives you 4 ft of catching which is probably enough but if you really want to be shoveling and not worry about the sq footage get a bazooka

 

[winners58]

the best gold can be found in the hardest places to get into.
its good to fine tune your sluice, keep it light, when you find a good spot
you can come back to, have a setup to put 2 or 3 sluices together.

 

[et1955]

First 3 sqr. ft. is more than enough for mining in Wa. unless you are beach mining and there you can use 10 sqr. ft. year round. Before spending a lot of money on equipment make sure you have place to mine that will pay for it. Do your research and then go out into the field with your pan. Experience and knowledge will then help you determine what equipment to buy.

 

[Goldwasher]

Goldwasher I'm confused. Seems like your w and q keys might still be out but you're slipping a few "w"s in there. You pasting those or just made a habit of leaving them out?

Lmao....I have a wireless keyboard I occasionally remember to use..or at least edit with....and I obviously suck at that.....

 

[wtetro]

From my experience, and I use a 10x60 high banker, 90% of my gold is caught in the first 18". I get some fines here and there at the bottom mat, but most up top. This holds true to most sluices, even hog mat, which I've noticed that the first 12" seems to catch the most of it. That's plenty of area unless you're running a lot of pay. I run all day on my HB, but when I used my Angus Expedition, I emptied every 4th bucket due to black sands. Again, I've inspected my riffles there too and similar result. It was a 10x36 I believe. It's a very odd regulation in my opinion but if anything, it saves your back on packing in huge equipment or like a buddy of mine who uses a 12x120 longtom. You're good bro, just empty more often and make sure your sluice is tuned and set good...man I love living in AZ, it's nothing like the west coast...the man just keeps trying to keep us down. Keep diggin'

 

[Bonaro]

If you want to prospect WITHOUT timing restrictions (year round) you are limited to 3 sq/ft.
If you are working within the "seasons" listed in the Gold and Fish book you can use up to 10 sq/ft

Start reading on page 11
Gold and Fish