Golden Legends Tales of Buried Treasure

I envisioned this as a way to wash more material faster than panning. I got this far and had to quit. I am hoping that the concept will spark an idea from those interested. The point is that the cost was minimal. The funnel was one I used to change oil. The electric box cost about a buck at a hardware store. The bucket was free. The little kids "U" shaped table or stand or chair or whatever was 2 bucks at Goodwill. The screen was part of a set I bought at a gold prospecting show. Use any 1/8 " mesh and make your own. The container I "stole" from my wife! I was able to pan the concentrate left in the container and find fine placer. How much I lost is a good question. But compared to what I was finding by  panning, the result was ok. More tweaking may make it better? If you are in the desert, you might want to use a Rubbermaid type container to put the whole unit in to save water for re-circulation. Just click on the photo to enlarge and read the text. Hope t...

Everything you could want to know about how big to build your riffles. We use them in rocker boxes, high bankers, sluices, etc. This site has all the facts and details. For instance, did you know that the deeper the riffle, the more water force required to keep it from getting packed up? Turbulence is created behind the riffle so the material should be dancing. You need to pay close attention because if the material at the bottom of the riffle isn't, you need to increase water pressure or make the riffle shorter. When you increase the water flow smaller flake doesn't settle out as well, therefore shortening the riffle is usually preferred. It isn't a plan, but it is valuable information if you are contemplating building a machine that uses riffles. This comes from the New 49er's Gold Prospecting True Life Gold Prospecting Adventure. http://www.goldgold.com/the-size-of-riffles-2.html

Here is a wealth of free information as interesting as you can get. Included are Interpreting Visual Prospecting Clues, Turning the Mining Behavior of the Old Timers to Your Advantage (4 parts), and much more. You need to look at the photographs too - awesome. The 2013 posts are clickable on the left hand side of the website. http://www.bedrockdreams.com/search?updated-min=2013-01-01T00:00:00-07:00&updated-max=2014-01-01T00:00:00-07:00&max-results=50

FYI: http://www.infobarrel.com/Testing_the_Characteristics_of_a_Mineral_Streak_Cleavage_Luster_Hardness_

Just saw this and wanted to share the link. Hardrock mining details. Fascinating.  It's an old educational film, romantic perhaps, but very interesting persective.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=o0K8jKr8iyc Credit  http://www.deadwood.searchroots.com/photographs.htm