High-Banking Simply Stated

[G0lddigg@]

awesome mate that pump will serve you well, nothing wrong with the old rocker mate it all about having fun at the end of the day

 

[Jemba]

Fantastic informative thread, but what I find missing in here for banker beginners is 'Size' of Highbanker.

I'm sure many highbanker beginners like me would love to have a 12" model and probably with an extension. Bigger looks better, right?
But, I can't find any threads or even single posts about benefits/pitfalls of different sizes of Highbankers.

- Is 8" too small for a healthy energetic person wanting to feed it bucket after bucket all day long?
- Is 12" too big for the occasional hobbyist?
- Is 12" only for a LOT of material?
- Is 10" the nice medium to start with?
Regardless of Pump size and water flow which IS covered in here (obviously a bigger banker needs a bigger pump).

These are all samples of the type of questions about 'size' from the Newbie to highbanking.

I personally have no idea what size to start with or what benefits one has over the other. I'm sure others don't know either.

Any help would be greatly appreciated regarding the Size of Highbanker to use

- 8 inch - you'd be surprised how much dirt you can wash with the added befit of being easy to carry, but yes width and length = volume and with added volume comes added water requirement to move waste product faster, with an 8 inch you'll get away with a 3000 gph or 12000 litres tmc3000 or thornado 1.5inch pump fit that brief.
- 12 inch - Thats a hard one to answer, i'll say this when i use to go out at minimum 3 times per week for 15 odd hours it was no big deal for me to carry a 36kg pump with hoses and a gear to run the 12 inch pioneer series. I could easily pay my rent each with taking from in and around Ballarat vic. Being further away from the Goldfields no living in qld i tend to drive 3 hours to good ground and for me 3 hours in the car slows me down some, i tend to take my 8 inch these days because i know my capabilities and don't want to bust my hump its a personal preference i have two kids (2 and 3 years old) that expert dad to be full of energy when he gets home.
The benefit of the 12s really is volume and if you have low yield pay and a good back you cna make it work and take good gold home and the fact you can buy a 2 inch pump for sub $300 that will put out allot of water very far if needed.

- the 10 inch this is where things get complicated and its sucks, Australia has one of the worst quality pumps on offer for the low to mid range output that's around 14,000 litres and the only pump that hits the mark perfectly is the Honda GXH50 or Honda WX15 (Australian model) these pumps are hands down the best on the market there is no other 4 stroke pump in this size and weight that can put out 7000rpm to produce the flow. it has a price tag to suit at $699 from most honda dealers. the 10 inch is great for people who already ahve access to this pump its a no brainer and you'd be surprised how often you can pick one of these up on ebay for $400 . I've recently been approved as a dealer by BLA Australia who are the distributor for most bilge pumps and will be testing a new bilge that puts out 4000 GPH I believe this will suit the 10 inch as well but wont say unless ive flogged it for a few months myself.

Put simply the right banker will accommodate your average session and what you have access to already, guys who travel on motorbike tend to run the 6 inch recirc, guys with 4WDs and plenty of room tend to lean towards gear that will process more gravel and that's the 12 inch. but thats not always the case as you ahve to balance carried gear beer, food etc etc

a simple guide for standard size Dream mat cell (2 inch cells)
8 inch - min 3000 GPH / 12,000 lt per hour petrol pump
10 inch - min 3700 GPH / 16,000 lt per hour
12 inch - min 3700 GPH / 18,000 lt per hour min for a petrol pump works best but with less pressure resistance 16,500 will run the material well at a loss of cleaning pressure.

There are variants to this rule with classification and gold size but these really are the values that work well. I hope this helps some.

Spot on good advice. :Y:

 

[Dragon Man]

Well, I did end up getting one of Dustin's fantastic Gold Rat 12" Highbankers. :Y:
I've had it a few months now and have made a couple of modifications to it.

I must say that even after about 3 months I still get more impressed with the build quality every time I use it.

I did change pumps though. The 8hp pump I bought on Ebay spat a seal after about 40 hours of use. ]
This time I bought a 6.5hp pump locally from a pump dealer so anything goes wrong it's only a 20 minute drive to get it fixed, not argue with some sheila in Singapore for an $11 seal kit that they want the whole pump sent back to Sydney to 'investigate' the problem!

The mods I have made to the Gold Rat are: a Clay Claw, a Crash Pad, a bubble eliminating flap, reverse spray bars, and a Rock!
All have improved my capture rate.

Here's my Video showing what I have done: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yxx2qi0Opjc&feature=youtu.be

 

[user 11578]

Nice video and what a great setup Dragon Man ickshovel:

 

[Mackka]

A great vid Dragon. Thats the first time I have seen one working, most excellent.
Regards
Mackka erfect:

 

[jethro]

A very well made High banker that. Does that particular rock follow you around or will any local do.

 

[Mackka]

Jethro, I think it has to be a very specific rock including: shape, colour , size not just any old rock.
:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: layful:

 

[Dragon Man]

Jethro, that Rock follows me. I like its shape

. . but I accidentally left it behind last week. Hopefully it will still be sitting where I left it when I go back to that same spot
I had to use stand-ins this week :awful:

 

[Mackka]

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[jethro]

Jethro, that Rock follows me. I like its shape

. . but I accidentally left it behind last week. Hopefully it will still be sitting where I left it when I go back to that same spot
I had to use stand-ins this week :awful:

So,, Getting a temp or casual to fill in at short notice. No wonder there are so many good rocks on the scrap heap layful:

 

[7.62marksman]

even rocks have feelings

 

[GoldDigga87]

Dragon man I seen your video and am looking at building the exact same set up as your 12" gold rat but in the smaller 8" version. I've looked at the clay claw from gold hog but they will only sell it with a unit and won't sell them separately..
How did you go about getting your hands on a clay claw?

 

[Mackka]

Its a very old thread mate, i hope you get a reply.
Mackka

 

[G0lddigg@]

Dragon man I seen your video and am looking at building the exact same set up as your 12" gold rat but in the smaller 8" version. I've looked at the clay claw from gold hog but they will only sell it with a unit and won't sell them separately..
How did you go about getting your hands on a clay claw?

he made it himself mate, pretty easy stuff little bit of bbq grill with a bent c section and two holes to mount in the existing arms bolt

 

[gulliver]

I use the Fiskar long handle ergonomic post hole shovel. Available from bunnings or mitre 10. It is light. They come and go in these delayed stock times

 

[Grey Panner]

Good thread Jem.
I sit my pickup strainer in a submersed bucket in the creek (usually layed on its side) so it only picks up clean water.
A big snapper lead in the strainer stops the hose from floating the pickup.

Hi Reeks.
I also use a bucket for the pump intake. Where possible I set the bucket upright with a large rock in it for stability. I also use a shade cloth filter over the intake,
With the bucket upright clean water away from the creek bottom can be drawn in.
The water needs to be deep enough so that a vortex does not develop to draw air into the pump so the creek needs to be deep close to the bank.
In addition, I use a poverty pot.
When cleaning up, as soon as I see colour in the pan I tip the contents into a small bucket and collect more paydirt.
I continue in this way until the shift is over and then clean-up the poverty pot, perhaps back at camp.
With only one clean-up to contend with more paydirt can be processed.
For what it's worth.
Grey Panner.