Sal and I are starting a new project.....

[mike(swWash)]

Someone once said, " A gold pan is a gateway drug to an 8" dredge".

That said, we're not going to try to reinvent the wheel, just want to make a self contained 12volt trommel with a 12" sluice on a cart to be able to process more material with a better recovery rate on small and large gold without spending hundreds of $ buying one.
Hoping to be able to shovel faster and still get all the fine stuff to go over the mat. It'll have replaceable( 1/8-1/2") screens, for different areas and different mats to match the screen/pump and gold size, and of course a cup holder for the beverage of choice......and maybe headlights, stereo, gas burner for food and coffee, cooler for ice and stuff, and my personal favorite, a Pendleton whiskey and ice dispenser.

And yes, I'm already working on a list of stuff for a 3" dredge project next winter

Headed for harbor freight for some supplies tomorrow.....and the liquor store


Pictures to follow as it happens.......

P.S. All the rain and wind we're getting is refilling my favorite haunts with fresh flood and beach gold

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Diving for Pleasure and Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[Jjhall68]

Hey Mike,

Have you looked at the trommel for the gold cube? It's a gear drive design.
I have been looking at building one for some time but this one looks simpler than anything I have seen. The motor looks like the ones on crab pot pullers. That and a fly wheel...have a look and let me know what you think.
All the best,
John

 

[mike(swWash)]

Looks like it'll do the job on the river but packing in a cube and trommel along with the hoses, pump and battery would be a real workout. I only use the Cube at the beach and my highbanker with vortex mat on the rivers. The highbanker is far easier to transport on a dolly in one trip.

 

[SunshineMiner]

Jumping in to save a seat for the upcoming fun build!

As to the trommel on the gold cube... Why not mount it to the cube.. then slap it on the dolly, then you just have two hoses and one pump and a batter on the dolley. Or a beach cart
I personally feel the gold cube trommel is a tad over priced.. BUT... I can totally see it in the craftsman ship and the way its all laid out. The video they have of it running at Lake Superior is.. well.. superior!! The unit runs, imo, almost perfectly there! It's a sweet little unit. It's definitely on the wish list in the next 20 years

I might as well throw in that I'm working on a small trommel myself. Starting with a 8" barrel that i'll be able to upscale easily if i want to.
Looking into one of these: https://www.servocity.com/html/45_rpm_hd_precision_planetary_.html#.VNKgkC5PeHs
They have all sorts of ranges of RPMs from 12rpm-1621 so you can match things up pretty close. That or a car window motor :P

May I ask as to what you're doing for yours? Belt or gear?

 

[mike(swWash)]

He's using a wiper motor and chain drive. I've decided to focus on a dredge build for my project. I'm still gathering material before I start.
In the mean time I'm working on improving my highbankers classifier to see if I can keep up with Sal's trommel at the river.
If your thinking of building a trommel, here's a good place for parts.

CALIFORNIA SLUICE BOX - Home