Fibreglass riffle tray

[Occasional_panner]

Hi guys, I saw this in another thread and was thinking if I made a mould I could make a fibreglass riffle tray.
http://devingoldexploration.com/
I've never made fibreglass parts that got wear and tear on them and really don't know how much punishment it would cop, as I still haven't used the G11.
So the question is do you think it would be feasible? Considering it is a drop in swirling riffle type, so the water gravel flow will be different to std riffles.

 

[PT73]

I say go go for it. I think you should get a lot of use before there is serious wear, and the beauty is you will always have a mold to pop out some more riffles. Think about old fiberglass canoes, those hulls were able to cop a beating. Do some research, there may be certain materials you can add for strength such as carbon matting maybe?

 

[Occasional_panner]

Thanks for the reply mate. Yeah canoes do cop a thrashing, I've made a few fibreglass bits but never anything that copped a hard time.
Probably only $40 in material for re-runs, making the mould will be the tricky time consuming part.

 

[B5MECH]

Hey OP, what a dirty s#@t horrible diy job to think off, Maybe if you were a surfboard glasser and have consumed to much fumes and other things over the years, Contact GOLddigg@ and buy his DREAMMAT

 

[Occasional_panner]

Hahahahaha yeah glassing can be a bit nasty, a lot of fumes, whenever I do it in the shed I work next to the door and have a pedestall fan blowing out, no drama at all then.
The thing I liked about that aluminium one was the bigger deeper swirls.
Plus I like making stuff.

 

[B5MECH]

Hahahahaha yeah glassing can be a bit nasty, a lot of fumes, whenever I do it in the shed I work next to the door and have a pedestall fan blowing out, no drama at all then.
The thing I liked about that aluminium one was the bigger deeper swirls.
Plus I like making stuff.

How about something like a plastic chopping board cut to an insert size tapered hole's drilled, I'm still trying to think of a way to make the spiral after tapering the holes and run open miners moss under it, then?

 

[Occasional_panner]

Maybe make the mould on a 3d printer?
Also I don't think the idea is to have them open at the bottom, all the cons sit at the bottom of the spiral, which makes for an easy clean out.

 

[B5MECH]

What about this hole design in plastic open with miners moss, a quick sketch of 1 hole

I don't have a 3D printer so other ways must be found :lol: :lol: bit rough

 

[Occasional_panner]

Yeah, nice thinking, I was looking for an easy quick clean up method without the matting.

 

[B5MECH]

I made my sluice like a grizzly sort of mini anyway, on the end a have about a 15mm angled lip to stop any heavies from getting away that get through the miners moss so I really can only really loose if I'm overloading and rushing it, it's made from a small step ladder frame, but only tested it once it got all the black sand so it looks like it works just need a better riffles set up

 

[MikeB05]

The bloke that designed the original dream mat (vortex dream mat ) had a video out where he had a couple of these vortex things that had an opening in the bottom with something like a little sliding trapdoor to let out the gold and heavies. Dustin at Goldrat Highbankers might be able to provide that original video. You could use that approach to allow the heavies out the bottom of whatever hole you make.

 

[Occasional_panner]

Well, I would assume it wasn't a good idea as he didn't follow it.

 

[PT73]

I like working with resin and fiberglass, started early as a grommet doing ding repairs on surfboards for myself and mates. I later applied it to all sorts of projects. Is pretty toxic stuff but all ok if well ventilated. OP I'm with you on making stuff. I enjoy the challenge of nuttin out the best way to tackle a project. There is nothing like the satisfaction gained when something does what it is supposed to do, or even better, through your own ingenuity and thinking outside the box.

 

[iamagoldenoldie2]

It has been said that gold has a positive charge as per aluminium , so the heavy metal is repelled , fibreglass counteracts this claim and there is a fibreglass sluice out there in the market place but is expensive.
Making fibreglass products is a process that makes you think and work in reverse order. that is the finish coat called gel coat is applied to your mould, then a tie layer, a very fine fibreglass matting is applied to bond to the gelcoat, the rest of the body is built up using laminating resin and the right matting , would suggest plain matt matt and not chopped strand matt, for the reason its easier to poke into the shape of the ripple design, when you have built up the desired thickness then its time to apply the flow coat , wax in styrene, this hardens to the dry finish. now you can release the finished product from the mould , you would need to slide it out sideways. Back to mould construction, needs to be very smooth as the surface reflects the outer surface of your product , needs to be thoroughly waxed with wax to act as a release agent so the gel coat don't stick to the wooden mould. last time i bought flow coat it cost $35 for a litre can , glass matt is not cheap surfboard makers don't give away the offcuts and there may be a price attached, MEKP $6, laminating resin is about $30 litre, mixing sticks ice cream container paint brushes and acetone. so the process follows specific measurements and is not cheap, what is good is the glass dries in about half and hour and requires heat to set it off either by chemical reaction or with a heat lamp. side dags can be trimmed off with a sharp knife in what the call green trim state, in-between half dry and dry
I learned the basics by doing a reinforced plastics course at Tafe when it was available , a handy skill to have today. Perhaps I might still make a couple when I decide on the riffle design mould material will be polystyrene but that has as an issue with reacting with chemicals so a pvc coat needs to be applied to stop this or use a new material that is compatible with polystyrene , I coat poly profile moulds used in exterior building profiles but used a polyurethane resin with sand, just gets hard, to much thinking backwards, found it easier to buy 2nd hand wall banker

 

[ken2m]

Warning : when using MEKP (MethylEthylKetonePeroxide) be extreemly careful as any eye contact will cause blindness, if not immediately at some stage in the future. This is not reversable or treatable. eye contact = blindness . Also MEKP mixed with resin, fumes are not good especially in your eyes. Ken.

 

[Occasional_panner]

Yes it can be nasty stuff, I'm used to working with chemicals so PPE is second nature to me.
Just thinking about the design, it may be tricky to get any air bubbles out from the contouring of the riffle mould, normally you run a roller over the surface, but not an option here. It's quite a tricky shape to work with really. I haven't vacuum bagged before but that might be an option.

 

[iamagoldenoldie2]

air bubbles in the laminating process is always an issue, vacuum bagging is not for the novice who wants to build a one off design and you need a mould first. Before you start to laminate , it is advisable cut all your bits because once you mix your resin you got 15 to 20 minutes , I used to poke out the air bubbles with the stiff bristle brush . The riffle design I was looking at followed the straight across water flow design and not the vortex cup design , looks like I will be sleeping on that design with regard to the design of a mould. Fibreglassing is a tricky process and has its hazards, like the exothermic heat generated , so disposing of waste mix is into water , too much mekp and it will heat up and may catch fire, the exposure to fumes and some may say that the fibreglass matt can be as deadly as asbestos, but the tafe notes indicated that minute glass fibres can be broken down by the human body where asbestos can't, no further comment on that , Im not a doctor. My contribution to this thread is to show that the fibreglassing process is a precise practice to obtain the best results and the cost factors to consider but i did not venture into the hazards area, the polyurethane resin method is even more deadly, it can be absorbed by touch, breathing in the fumes and even the fumes in contact with your eyeballs, all needs to be explored before one starts buying the raw materials to experiment with.

 

[Old Fred]

Maybe build one from cut and glued perspex . If no metal used could u run a stc 2300 over it to see if u colecting any thing . Will a stc 2300 detect a build up of small gold .
For example has any one got a reading from a gold pan with gold dust in it

 

[DrDuck]

As I understand it, fiberglass has been used to make sluices and pans in the past (ie the Martin Marks versions). Apart from the surprisingly high prices Martin used to charge, one of the issues is that fiberglass is more brittle than modern plastics and tends to break. Fiberglass is also heavy compared with plastic. I will rustle up some sources later, but at the moment I am enjoying a Boxing Day Martini and snack!

 

[Albundy]

As I understand it, fiberglass has been used to make sluices and pans in the past (ie the Martin Marks versions). Apart from the surprisingly high prices Martin used to charge, one of the issues is that fiberglass is more brittle than modern plastics and tends to break. Fiberglass is also heavy compared with plastic. I will rustle up some sources later, but at the moment I am enjoying a Boxing Day Martini and snack!