Vortex Sluice Mat- wow

[X4FRNT]

I got some vortex matting online for my Royal Compact Sluice, it came in 6” width and my sluice is 7” wide so I had to add some 1/2” boards on each side of the mat. But I got the chance to use it today, and wow. Using 1/4” classified material, the sluice cleared just about as fast as I could hand scoop it in, went through a 5 gallon bucket in minutes and left only the black sands, pyrites (and heavy iron stones), and gold in the cells. I cleaned up twice, after one 5 gallon bucket I wanted to see how it was catching the gold so I cleaned it up and went back to sluicing. The cons were about half a cup of material, which amazed me. Ended up with about a cup of material after 10ish gallons of pay.

All I have to say about that mat is that it works, quite well actually. Tested it by using the pan under the sluice method and didn’t find a single spec. Ended up with 6-7 nice sized flaky gold, and lots of fine gold. (Which is good for only 10 gallons of material in my area). Very please with the mat. Now I’m looking to get a bigger sluice and the larger mat so I can simply shovel the dirt into the sluice instead of spending 85% of my time screening material.

Watch this- https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8T3dFFDzcwU

The results speak for themselves. I follow a few well known prospector channels on YouTube and am seeing more and more of these mats on their sluices, dredges, and highbankers. Figured I’d give one a try and I’m sure glad I did.

 

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[KevinInColorado]

I use their small version of Dream Mat on one tray of my Gold Cube. Works great there too!

 

[Reed Lukens]

I have it also but it's called Dream mat like printed on the top in your pic. Real Vortex matting is totally different. Did another company change their mat name to Vortex? There's like 5 different brands calling their mat Vortex already...

 

[N-Lionberger]

I wanted one when it first came out, I was curious how it would work in a dredge undercurrent but then I had an experience with the maker of dream mats on a DIY prospecting group on FB and now I will never give that snowflake any money. Any sluice will run fantastic running 1/4 minus material, how is it with unclassified?

 

[Mine Shaft]

I wanted one when it first came out, I was curious how it would work in a dredge undercurrent but then I had an experience with the maker of dream mats on a DIY prospecting group on FB and now I will never give that snowflake any money. Any sluice will run fantastic running 1/4 minus material, how is it with unclassified?

I just bought 35" X 10" wide dream mat last month and run it unclassified but it needs a good heavy flow to push it out. I came away with 4 specks my first time lol hope i do better this year and find some good streaks. We have only scratched a little part of our 20 acre claim.

 

[Idahodutch]

I saw a video a few years back, and it was all about setting up a good vortex, at each of the rifles. It went into detail on the size, shape, tilt angle, and spacing. Any mat, was completely unnecessary. It really caught my attention. I am hopefully getting to a place in my life, that I can do more of what I want to do, even if only on a semi-regular basis at first.
This thread is a good reminder to start checking out anything that can help the activity to be more like recreation. I'm not getting any younger.
Idahodutch

 

[Idahodutch]

I saw a video a few years back, and it was all about setting up a good vortex, at each of the rifles. It went into detail on the size, shape, tilt angle, and spacing. Any mat, was completely unnecessary. It really caught my attention. I am hopefully getting to a place in my life, that I can do more of what I want to do, even if only on a semi-regular basis at first.
This thread is a good reminder to start checking out anything that can help the activity to be more like recreation. I'm not getting any younger.
Idahodutch

So I guess my question was about sluice boxes and the use of mats and if vortexes can really be set up where mats are not needed?
Maybe nothing ever came of it and mats are the way to go, I just thought it would be good to see what the consensus is.

Feedback would be welcome.
Idaho Dutch

 

[N-Lionberger]

Mats are needed under traditional removable metal riffles to seal the riffles to the floor of the sluice to prevent scouring, if the riffles are solid like in a gold hog mat or a molded plastic sluice there's no need for a mat the gold is caught by the riffle action, not by getting stuck in a porous media.

 

[Idahodutch]

Mats are needed under traditional removable metal riffles to seal the riffles to the floor of the sluice to prevent scouring, if the riffles are solid like in a gold hog mat or a molded plastic sluice there's no need for a mat the gold is caught by the riffle action, not by getting stuck in a porous media.

N-Loinberger
…..to prevent scouring... I want to understand, you mean to kind of fill any small gap underneath any of the riffles?
The video I saw many years ago talked about the vortexes are what the riffles can do it set properly. That the vortexes produced almost a humming vibration and each riffle lost almost no energy than the previous, hence the pan could be adjusted so that even very fine gold would be caught in the vortexes. The only material left was gold pickers, and flour with a tiny bit of cons and then nothing for about the last 1/4 of the sluice. The clean up was lifting out the riffles and a quick rinse into a bucket.
Maybe this same action is what the Vortex matts provide, since it sounds like the riffles are built into the molded mat? Maybe it is easier than getting the riffles put back in just right, maybe lighter too?

 

[N-Lionberger]

The mat is question here is called a dream mat, its a piece of rubber you lay in the bottom of the sluice, it like gold hog and other rubber mats are the riffle media, in a more traditional sluice with a metal or wood riffle ladder you need to seal the bottom of the riffles to the bottom of the sluice, ribbed rubber, carpet and miners moss are common underlays that have debatable abilities of catching and holding fines, the point is to prevent scouring which is material flushing out from under the riffles. if the riffles show light under them they will scour out, you lose your fines.

 

[Reed Lukens]

N-Loinberger
…..to prevent scouring... I want to understand, you mean to kind of fill any small gap underneath any of the riffles?
The video I saw many years ago talked about the vortexes are what the riffles can do it set properly. That the vortexes produced almost a humming vibration and each riffle lost almost no energy than the previous, hence the pan could be adjusted so that even very fine gold would be caught in the vortexes. The only material left was gold pickers, and flour with a tiny bit of cons and then nothing for about the last 1/4 of the sluice. The clean up was lifting out the riffles and a quick rinse into a bucket.
Maybe this same action is what the Vortex matts provide, since it sounds like the riffles are built into the molded mat? Maybe it is easier than getting the riffles put back in just right, maybe lighter too?

the video that you're talking about was a set lab test if it's the same one that I have, with tall riffles and lots of water. Getting a sluice set up in a lab is one thing and it took them weeks to get it set up right. They tried all different angles and all different water flows with a clear sided sluice. Was it the Clarkston video that you're thinking of? That was years ago and we've come a long way since then. I have Dream mat, but I run Gold hog because of all of the different riffle configurations that allow the sluices to catch all different sizes of gold efficiently. Getting the correct flow, the correct angles and feed rates are all set up perfectly with the new styled mats that are matched to the right pumps. The Dream Mat is fine, but I'm old school and prefer all of the different configurations. I always have. Watch some of Gold Hogs videos and see all of the tests that they have done.

https://www.goldhog.com/

 

[Idahodutch]

The mat is question here is called a dream mat, its a piece of rubber you lay in the bottom of the sluice, it like gold hog and other rubber mats are the riffle media, in a more traditional sluice with a metal or wood riffle ladder you need to seal the bottom of the riffles to the bottom of the sluice, ribbed rubber, carpet and miners moss are common underlays that have debatable abilities of catching and holding fines, the point is to prevent scouring which is material flushing out from under the riffles. if the riffles show light under them they will scour out, you lose your fines.

N-Lionberger, thank you for the clarifications. your post is very helpful.

 

[Idahodutch]

the video that you're talking about was a set lab test if it's the same one that I have, with tall riffles and lots of water. Getting a sluice set up in a lab is one thing and it took them weeks to get it set up right. They tried all different angles and all different water flows with a clear sided sluice. Was it the Clarkston video that you're thinking of? That was years ago and we've come a long way since then. I have Dream mat, but I run Gold hog because of all of the different riffle configurations that allow the sluices to catch all different sizes of gold efficiently. Getting the correct flow, the correct angles and feed rates are all set up perfectly with the new styled mats that are matched to the right pumps. The Dream Mat is fine, but I'm old school and prefer all of the different configurations. I always have. Watch some of Gold Hogs videos and see all of the tests that they have done.

https://www.goldhog.com/

Reed,
You're right, it was set up in a lab with clear sides etc. That was quite an impressive video. The mats now, look like they have really come a long ways.
Great feedback Reed, much appreciated. I going to check it out.
Idaho Dutch