Placer Claim Mined Out?

[desertgolddigger]

I belong to a local club that owns a claim. This club has had this claim for many years, and acquired it after the old timers had mined it previously, and others after they commercial outfits closed up.
I walked quite a bit of the 160 acre claim, and noted that just about every wash had been worked. Most of the surface nuggets has also been detected by those with gold detectors. In other words, this place has been picked over and over and over.
But I m a stubborn type of person, and I figured, just watching how people ram their puffer and blower drywashers, that some gold was just being blown through them. maybe not much, but some small stuff that never got a chance to settle behind the riffles.
I know many of you would never go to the effort of digging for three to four hours through the tailings in these washes. Again, I'm a bit stubborn, and anyway, I just wanted to have some fun locally, instead of driving 300 miles roundtrip to something that gives a little more for less effort.
I've spent the last three weeks, digging a few times a week along about 30 yards of wash, and have recovered just about a gram of gold. That might not seem like much, but I have only dug up 5 grams, not counting this one gram in almost 20 years out here drywashing in the desert of southern California.
As you would know, things always seem to go wrong. My gas powered blower motor decided it was time for the repair shop, and haven't heard from the shop in two weeks. So I purchased a WORX WG521 corded electric leaf blower to use with my Royal Large drywasher. I'm using a portable generator to provide the power. And it actually is working better than with my old gas powered blower. I have to run the blower on the lowest speed, or I just blow everything through the riffles. Results are very good, as I am getting gold specks so small that I will have to use the Blue bowl in order to recover them.
I'm not only getting a little gold, I'm having some fun, and I am getting a good workout. I've lost 10 pounds since I started. So things are going well.
I'm still digging test holes around the old time hard rock mines in the hope I will find where the gold has drifted downhill below these mines. So far just a couple specks here and there. I figure I just have to move laterally one way or the other before I get something better Of course, I' don't really know if the old timers stripped the hillsides. Even if they have, they apparently aren't as thorough as I am. I hope that I may be lucky and find a larger piece of gold that the old timers, previous placer miners, and detectorists have missed.
Hope everyone is having as much fun as I have been having.

 

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[desertgolddigger]

With my lack of success in locating gold bearing ore, I decided enough was enough, and returned to placer mining. It's raining again, but I managed, in three days to dig up a little over half a gram of the yellow stuff. All of it coming from old dry washer tailing piles.

The first day got me very little, 0.03 grams, as I had to clear large gravel overburden. the second day netted me a tad over 0.3 grams, and yesterday got me a bit over 0.2 grams.

The reason for abandoning hard rock mining is simple, a month of frustration, netting just 0.011 grams of gold. I've finally realized that since most of the hard rock mines were a commercial venture, the companies worked those mines until they didn't produce enough to be economically viable. Then the modern day individual miners scoured the area of what those companies thought was worthless. I've been working what was left from all those previous miners, basically nothing.

So when the rain quits, and the ground dries out, I'll be hitting the old dry washer tailing piles that had netted me 16+ grams in about 8 months last year. It's nothing for all of you who live in areas where it was individual miners unknowingly tossed ore with gold in it. I would believe that if a commercial interest in your area mined, it made sure it got as close to 100 percent of the easy stuff as possible.

I'll keep my eyes peeled for possible float ore, but I'm guessing that was found by placer miners, and detectorists.

 

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[desertgolddigger]

QUESTION: Now that I have a large enough ribbed mat for my big sluice, just how do you hold it down without glue or any other adhesive?

I'd like to remove it easily, like with my mini sluice, roll it up, then dunk it in a container to clean it.

I've thought of clamps on the sides, but that doesn't keep the center down. I'm guessing that if you can keep the leading edge of the sluice mat firmly pinned down, the remainder will stay flat also.

I still have to cut the mat to size, a real chore, since this is a three part folding sluice. I've sealed all the joints to make sure the water isn't dripping at those joints

I also installed three magnetic riffles, plus the round hold down magnet in the upper third. I want to remove the magnetics, keeping the non-magnetic black sands, and any gold. clean of those magnetics as much as possible .

I've also installed a control valve so I can control the flow of water.

 

[southfork]

QUESTION: Now that I have a large enough ribbed mat for my big sluice, just how do you hold it down without glue or any other adhesive?

I'd like to remove it easily, like with my mini sluice, roll it up, then dunk it in a container to clean it.

I've thought of clamps on the sides, but that doesn't keep the center down. I'm guessing that if you can keep the leading edge of the sluice mat firmly pinned down, the remainder will stay flat also.

I still have to cut the mat to size, a real chore, since this is a three part folding sluice. I've sealed all the joints to make sure the water isn't dripping at those joints

I also installed three magnetic riffles, plus the round hold down magnet in the upper third. I want to remove the magnetics, keeping the non-magnetic black sands, and any gold. clean of those magnetics as much as possible .

I've also installed a control valve so I can control the flow of water.

I used silicone all along the edges easy to clean stand up in a plastic tub garden hose and spray nozzle.

 

[N-Lionberger]

I know some folks working waste rock at a mine outside Alleghany pretty crazy what they’re finding.

 

[desertgolddigger]

I used silicone all along the edges easy to clean stand up in a plastic tub garden hose and spray nozzle.

I know some folks working waste rock at a mine outside Alleghany pretty crazy what they’re finding.

Unfortunately the remaining waste rock at the various 30+ dig sites on out 160 acre claim are completely worked over by the follow up old timers, modern hard rock miners, and detectorists. There's just very little with any gold left. I was lucky a couple times, just picking up something that had a tiny smidgen of micro fine gold. My mast 100 or so rocks I've broken up with a sledge hammer have had zero gold of any size. That's the reason I've quit wasting my time, as the return for the effort is terrible, as noted previously.

 

[desertgolddigger]

I used silicone all along the edges easy to clean stand up in a plastic tub garden hose and spray nozzle.

Silicone is what I want to avoid. I need to be able to lift the mat out of the 4 foot long sluice. Taking it off the legs, and standing it up in a shallow tub would be a disaster for me, as the material would splatter all over when hosing the mat.

Sometimes the simplest solution is the best. The sluice box came with fibrous mats, aluminum grizzly, and sluice riffles. I'm going to use the two aluminum grizzlies to hold down the mats as there are two bolts embedded in the sluice boxes last two thirds. I just use wing nuts to hold down the grizzlies. Problem solved.

Now for the tedious task of cutting the two ribbed mats that will lay under those grizzlies, as well as locating the hole where those bolts stick up.

 

[arizau]

Silicone is what I want to avoid. I need to be able to lift the mat out of the 4 foot long sluice. Taking it off the legs, and standing it up in a shallow tub would be a disaster for me, as the material would splatter all over when hosing the mat.

Sometimes the simplest solution is the best. The sluice box came with fibrous mats, aluminum grizzly, and sluice riffles. I'm going to use the two aluminum grizzlies to hold down the mats as there are two bolts embedded in the sluice boxes last two thirds. I just use wing nuts to hold down the grizzlies. Problem solved.

Now for the tedious task of cutting the two ribbed mats that will lay under those grizzlies, as well as locating the hole where those bolts stick up.

Secure the front end of the mat to the sluice bottom so water can't go under it. Removable ribbed mat is best used with side seals, made from Gorilla tape like used on Gold Hog mats*. If water doesn't flow under the mat it will usually lie flat in use. I'm pretty sure that Gorilla tape would actually work as a single use/temporary method to secure and seal the front of the mat to the sluice....easy to remove then reinstall.
Good luck.
*Look at how they measure, cut and make side seals for their mats. Method can be adapted to make it easier for you.

 

[southfork]

Silicone is what I want to avoid. I need to be able to lift the mat out of the 4 foot long sluice. Taking it off the legs, and standing it up in a shallow tub would be a disaster for me, as the material would splatter all over when hosing the mat.

Sometimes the simplest solution is the best. The sluice box came with fibrous mats, aluminum grizzly, and sluice riffles. I'm going to use the two aluminum grizzlies to hold down the mats as there are two bolts embedded in the sluice boxes last two thirds. I just use wing nuts to hold down the grizzlies. Problem solved.

Now for the tedious task of cutting the two ribbed mats that will lay under those grizzlies, as well as locating the hole where those bolts stick up.

Whatever is easiest for you it takes me a couple of minutes to clean up. And get running again my box is just laying on one end of a plastic tote no legs. The other end sits down a few inches into the tote to catch anything that gets by the rubber mat. Nothing to unfasten all I have is the rubber mat Just stand at an angle and wash out into a plastic tub final cleanup at the end of the day. Happy mining

 

[JohnWhite]

I am no expert at this but when I can’t get duct tape to work on something, I try this stuff… https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=velcro+tape&_trksid=p2380057.m4084.l1311&_sacat=0

It is not as good a duct tape in certain situations but it does work at times…

Ed T

 

[Reed Lukens]

A small piece of aluminum door stop with a couple wing nuts in the front will hold the v-rib just fine.

 

[JohnWhite]

Whatever you do…Don’t try this stuff…https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nk...84.l1311&_odkw=velcro+tape&_osacat=0&_sacat=0

It can be pretty messy…lol

Ed T

 

[desertgolddigger]

I tried using Gorilla Duct Tape on the sides. I followed the Gold Hog video about this tape installation, and it was a miserable failure.

southfork, yes, the mat doesn't stay secured in the front even with the flimsy aluminum grizzly. It worked fine with the fibrous mat, aluminum grizzly, steel riffle unit combo held down with a wing nut, the sluice box came with.

I just dislike working with silicone. I've never been able to get a bead put down, even on bathtubs. I just end up making a big mess., even when trying to follow the instructions in a YouTube video. But I'm going to give it a try with this matting, and try to clean it like you do. I just hope I can handle a 4 foot sluice without dropping it, or having the concentrates spew out side the washing basin.

By the way, the Blue Bowl Dream Mat I tried was also a miserable failure. There was no way to remove the gold with the mat when secured with silicone. Using a snuffer bottle with so many crevices was just impossible.

I pretty much gave up trying to use the Blue Bowl and Miller Table once I learned how to pan micro fine gold. So I now have those sitting around, gathering dust. I'll probably try to sell them to a club member. I'm going back to basics. All this additional equipment I've purchased over the years was a big waste of money. The old timers did very well with basic equipment like a sluice and gold pan.

 

[southfork]

I tried using Gorilla Duct Tape on the sides. I followed the Gold Hog video about this tape installation, and it was a miserable failure.

southfork, yes, the mat doesn't stay secured in the front even with the flimsy aluminum grizzly. It worked fine with the fibrous mat, aluminum grizzly, steel riffle unit combo held down with a wing nut, the sluice box came with.

I just dislike working with silicone. I've never been able to get a bead put down, even on bathtubs. I just end up making a big mess., even when trying to follow the instructions in a YouTube video. But I'm going to give it a try with this matting, and try to clean it like you do. I just hope I can handle a 4 foot sluice without dropping it, or having the concentrates spew out side the washing basin.

By the way, the Blue Bowl Dream Mat I tried was also a miserable failure. There was no way to remove the gold with the mat when secured with silicone. Using a snuffer bottle with so many crevices was just impossible.

I pretty much gave up trying to use the Blue Bowl and Miller Table once I learned how to pan micro fine gold. So I now have those sitting around, gathering dust. I'll probably try to sell them to a club member. I'm going back to basics. All this additional equipment I've purchased over the years was a big waste of money. The old timers did very well with basic equipment like a sluice and go

I tried using Gorilla Duct Tape on the sides. I followed the Gold Hog video about this tape installation, and it was a miserable failure.

southfork, yes, the mat doesn't stay secured in the front even with the flimsy aluminum grizzly. It worked fine with the fibrous mat, aluminum grizzly, steel riffle unit combo held down with a wing nut, the sluice box came with.

I just dislike working with silicone. I've never been able to get a bead put down, even on bathtubs. I just end up making a big mess., even when trying to follow the instructions in a YouTube video. But I'm going to give it a try with this matting, and try to clean it like you do. I just hope I can handle a 4 foot sluice without dropping it, or having the concentrates spew out side the washing basin.

By the way, the Blue Bowl Dream Mat I tried was also a miserable failure. There was no way to remove the gold with the mat when secured with silicone. Using a snuffer bottle with so many crevices was just impossible.

I pretty much gave up trying to use the Blue Bowl and Miller Table once I learned how to pan micro fine gold. So I now have those sitting around, gathering dust. I'll probably try to sell them to a club member. I'm going back to basics. All this additional equipment I've purchased over the years was a big waste of money. The old timers did very well with basic equipment like a sluice and gold pan.

I clean the blue bowl the same way I tip it sideways with a large gold pan to catch the concentrates. And use a light spray to wash out. The blue bowl cons still need panning then the sniffer. I don't like to pan so I'm always up to try another way lol.

 

[JohnWhite]

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If you ever find your lode deposit…You might want to try one of these…Prices just keep going up…

Ed T

 

[desertgolddigger]

Gold Shaker Tables - Best for 2023

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If you ever find your lode deposit…You might want to try one of these…Prices just keep going up…

Ed T

There probably aren't anymore surface lode deposits that haven't been discovered in our area. That doesn't mean there aren't some buried under feet of rock or soil. But you can't just haphazardly dig hoping you'll find one. It probably takes high tech ground penetrating whatever to discover these buried deposits.

While a shaker table is really neat, it really isn't for the small time miner like myself. If I ever did find a small ore deposit, I would do like many old timers, pick, shovel, hammer and chisel, , and breaking the ore into small pieces with that sledge hammer, then running it through the mill, and finally panning it, or possibly putting it through a sluice.

I made the mistake of thinking a lot of these modern gizmos would be helpful, and they probably are to people with the patience to figure out how to work them properly. I'll stick with time tested methods, the simple stuff.

 

[JohnWhite]

There probably aren't anymore surface lode deposits that haven't been discovered in our area. That doesn't mean there aren't some buried under feet of rock or soil. But you can't just haphazardly dig hoping you'll find one. It probably takes high tech ground penetrating whatever to discover these buried deposits.

While a shaker table is really neat, it really isn't for the small time miner like myself. If I ever did find a small ore deposit, I would do like many old timers, pick, shovel, hammer and chisel, , and breaking the ore into small pieces with that sledge hammer, then running it through the mill, and finally panning it, or possibly putting it through a sluice.

I made the mistake of thinking a lot of these modern gizmos would be helpful, and they probably are to people with the patience to figure out how to work them properly. I'll stick with time tested methods, the simple stuff.

I still use a mortar and pestle and a gold pan…I too believe in the keep it simple stupid method…kiss for short…

Maybe one day I just may decide to try to work a ton of ore per year…That is IF I can find some really nice ore to work…

Ed T

 

[desertgolddigger]

Yesterday was not the worst day I've had placer mining, but the take wasn't like the previous three days where I dug up over a gram of the yellow stuff. But I did get 0.09 grams to add to my January take. I describe the varying takes like Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. One day a wonderful return, and the next scratching my head at the paltry take for all that hard work.

This area I'm working is mostly gravel. It takes a lot of classifying work to get half a bucket. I dig up 12 half buckets each day, usually taking me around six hours. That includes my rock sorting for the various road repairs I'm doing, and the time it takes to drive to those areas and lay down the material.

Today it was too cool, and windy to do anything outside, so I worked the little bit of mesh 75 and smaller material I'd been collecting. I removed as much of the magnetics as I could, and then panned, getting a nice little line of gold. It's gold I never knew was there, as I couldn't see it when I originally worked material from dry washing.

I pretty much have gotten tired of the miners suffer bottle, and tried something else. It's called a transfer pipette. It's made of plastic with a thin tube ending in a squeeze bulb. I nipped an angle on the tube like those on the snuffer bottles. It worked like a charm, never leaving gold behind. I just squeezed to pull up the gold, then put the tube in a vial and squeezed the material into that vial. I'd had these laying around from the old free flight model airplane building of years past. Always nice to repurpose something.

 

[JohnWhite]

Has anyone tried this instead of silicone

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Ed T

 

[southfork]

Has anyone tried this instead of silicone

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Ed T

I've used it on RV roofs to seal joints and seams works ok. Don't think it would work on a ribbed mat no flat surface to adhere to. Clean and flat surfaces is what it likes

 

[desertgolddigger]

Has anyone tried this instead of silicone

Flex Tape Clear 4" x 5' - Super Strong, Rubberized, Waterproof - BUY DIRECT! 852808007909 | eBay

FLEX TAPE is a super strong waterproof tape that can instantly patch, bond, seal virtually anything. It can be applied on dry or wet surfaces and it even works underwater! Has a thick, flexible rubberized backing that conforms to any shape and object.

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Ed T

It's butyl rubber. It's exactly what I used to seal joints in my trailer to stop water intrusion. It's way too thick for sluice matting. I ended up doing just what southfork said he did, silicone down the mat, then sealed all the sides with a small bead. My sluice is ready to go whenever I discover enough material to run in this big sluice.