What do You Want on your 'Zooka?

[Goodyguy]

I'm sure thinking of incorporating these ideas Goodyguy.

I'm thinking of trying the angled box for sure. And the drawer.

Are you talking about the angled deck with flat grizzly?
The trade off for less time clearing the grizzly by hand is that when rocks get hung up on the uphill grizzly it gives them more time to get washed.

Since I don't run that much bank material and I mostly use mine as a highbanker with a spray bar in the hopper it's a no-brainer to go flat for me.

The drawer will make it so easy to do clean ups and also easy to experiment with improving the trap design to gain optimum fluidization for different velocity flows and materials. Different style traps for different conditions. Just slide in whatever trap you want to use.

I can see using a stainless steel draw clamp on each side to pull the drawer in tight against the bulkhead.





Go for the Gold
GG~

 

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[jcazgoldchaser]

Do you know the law at play with magnets and gold?

It's known as Lenz's Law. Simply, its any conductor that moves through a magnetic field will generate a counter electromotive force that will oppose it's motion through that magnetic field.

So a magnetic field will provide a braking action to any piece of gold moving through it. This would slow it and drop it to the mat in a sluice. Only problem is that our black sand is also magnetic and will stick to every magnet in sight and attenuate the field.

 

[Goodyguy]

This is more the fuzzy caterpillar law.

View attachment 1437746 View attachment 1437749

Between the above video and these photos...............

You've got me thinking to try a magnetic strip under the top of the trap cover to act as a combination diverter baffle and gold brake, caterpillar style.
I'll put a hinge on the lexan trap cover so the magnetic strip can easily be cleaned off as needed and when nails and such get stuck to it.
Worth a try!


GG~

 

[goldog]

Ok. I never thought of that. It might do something. I have trouble imagining a test for that. My gate at the end was a sort of fail. More trouble than it was worth more than anything. I forgot it at the cleanup. So I couldn't empty the trap. Once I figured it out I still felt the trap wouldn't wash out completely.

Too much trouble. It's gone.

 

[johngfoster]

So I ask again. For this post I want to focus on the trap. I have been brainstorming some mods involving the tubes or maybe I should say scraping the tubes. Are there other ways to fluidize? I'll share my idea in a bit.

I think you keep the tubes, but make an access port across the bottom that you can open with an Allen Key or screwdriver that allows not only access to the tubes, but also will allow installing some kind of pressure hose contraption if you want to run it as a high banker. Trying to line up pipes all the way from the end on the lower deck is a headache.

 

[Goodyguy]

I think you keep the tubes, but make an access port across the bottom that you can open with an Allen Key or screwdriver that allows not only access to the tubes, but also will allow installing some kind of pressure hose contraption if you want to run it as a high banker. Trying to line up pipes all the way from the end on the lower deck is a headache.

When using it as a highbanker there is a way that you dont need to line up any pipes. But you need a water tight way to seal off the open end of the scoop so that you can flood the scoop chamber through a hose fitting and connect the other end of the hose to your pump.

Easy enough to do with a little fabrication.

GG~

 

[jcazgoldchaser]

Between the above video and these photos...............

You've got me thinking to try a magnetic strip under the top of the trap cover to act as a combination diverter and gold brake, caterpillar style.
I'll put a hinge on the lexan trap cover so the magnetic strip can easily be cleaned off as needed and when nails and such get stuck to it.
Worth a try!


GG~

 

[Goodyguy]

Thanks jcazgoldchaser

That second video pretty much confirms what I was suggesting. I'm looking forward to putting that concept into use. It may even eliminate my plan of utilizing a wider trap to slow the flow down in order to make a more efficient drop zone. Then again using both methods in conjunction may be even more effective.

GG~

 

[goldog]

Here's a small sized just completed.



Permanent magna-deck. More or less. .

A little larger than a BGT Mini.

 

[Goodyguy]

Goldog,

Just curious as to what size opening you are going with from top of deck to bottom side of trap cover?

GG~

 

[goldog]

Mostly an inch on the grownup sizes. 3/4 in the smaller ones.

 

[goldog]

Feeling groovy.

This is looking like it'll turn out nice. I thought I'd try the grooved deck. It should be a good indicator.

 

[Goodyguy]

Be interesting to see how that chevron style works out in the field.
Seems like it may run everything into the center and then self clean.

Looks cool, I was thinking wavy lines across mine but will wait to see how yours works out.



GG~

 

[goldog]

The Accountant showed up.

 

[goldog]

Can't decide. The combo deck.

This is going to be a nice little sluice. Small but mighty.

 

[goldenmojo]

It does look like the grooves will channel down then flush out. You might want to run some straight across and higher up the deck. Three or four straight across would be good. If you had that it would be a good Bear River setup. The Bear has hardly any elevation drop and low flow so the magnet while a great idea would probably be a hindrance. We are scraping the deck on every shovel load to get it to clear. It's fairly easy to see the amount of gold you are catching just by watching the deck but four grooves in low flow might be a good catcher. If the gold is riding in the groove I am not going to send it down to the trap. Hopefully the one your are sending North gets here quick.

 

[goldog]

I've got the little one ready. I think a so cal refugee is swinging by next week. No grooves on that one.


O the groovy sluice I didn't want to interfere with feeding area. But I'll put em wherever you want. The mags I'm using aren't that strong. In running water they're only holding a quarter inch or less. In low r level flow you obviously wouldn't need them.

 

[Goodyguy]

Having trouble with an unacceptable percentage of gold surfing out of your Bazooka or DIY fbgt?


The standard diverter baffle has problems. Scouring is a problem if the flow is fast and if the flow is slow it does nothing.
I solved the problem on mine by using a damper flap that works well with any speed flow.

But I just had a thought that may be a super improvement over my single damper flap idea.

Think of a staggered series of damper flaps hanging down under the trap cover running the entire length of the trap that are cut into strips. Any material entering the trap must pass under the gauntlet of flaps like a car going through a car wash. I do not see how any self respecting shape or size of gold would not be slowed down and knocked out of suspension by that configuration.



I can picture retro fitting any size bazooka with a pre made flap assembly mounted onto a thin piece of abs and installed through the trap exit port.


Go For the Gold
GG~

 

[russau]

Back when I used to high bank , I built a B.S. magnet device that trapped the B.S. before they got to the mats or riffles. It consisted of 2 pieces of plastic pipe filled with rare earth magnets that crossed the sluice at the start of the sluice and had "U" shaped hangers that allowed me to remove the pipe as the B.S. grew in size. I made 2 of these pipes to make sure that I was trapping the B.S. at all times and only pulling 1 pipe at a time. I was happy it removed the B.S. instead of me panning it out!

 

[goldog]

I like both ideas.