River / Stream Sluices - advice, information and questions

[Ag Man]

Hey Daniel,
Wing dams are easy to make up if needed - couple of rocks, logs, clay etc. to guide more water in.
You'll find the flared models have the flare set at a slight down angle. I don't like it.
A flat sluice is easier to set up when there's little water.

Yeah, the sluice comes with easy instructions.

With a bit of practice & time in the water you'll get the hang of it quickly.

I only ever classify to 1/2" & the sluice handles it fine.

I try & keep my Angus sluice as level as possible. Angle depends on water volume/speed going thru. Low flow - more angle. High flow - less angle.

I've had my Explorer fed by the 1/2" garden hose at home to do a clean up.(needed to classify fairly small, but it worked fine.)

Have a look at this youtube clip. The guy bangs on a bit but it's a good review. He has some lines marked on the side of his sluice to help set up but there's no need for that. Bung it in water on a bit of a down angle & put some gravel thru it & see what it does. If the riffles clog up, then either feed it more water(wing dam) or drop the angle.

Best thing to do is to go out & have a go - you'll pick it up...

[video=480,360]http://youtu.be/QHd-KriR7SE[/video]

 

[Nugget]

Hey Danielkrupski, I can confirm the Angus MacKirk Grub Steak Sluice is well suited to low flowing water ways.

In terms of setup, they're pretty easy. Most people say to drop a 1 inch stone in the flair end, if the stone tumbles its way through the sluice without getting caught up, your pretty well set. Also take note of the riffles, if they are clogging up, add some more forward tilt, if they are clearing out too fast, tilt it back a little. As for classifying, 1/2" - 1/4" is fine depending on water flow.

A method I picked up on the forum for checking your configuration, is to submerge a gold pan just under the tail end of the sluice using a large rock to hold it down. Run a bucket of material through the sluice and pan out the what you catch in the gold pan. If there's any gold in pan, you'll need to make some adjustments.

Nugget.

 

[gavfromoz]

Hi guys,

I'm just trying to decide on which sluice to get.

I wanted to know if anyone can explain the difference between the following sluices :-

* GRUBBSTAKE FLARED SLUICE
* RECON SLUICE
* MINING & MANUFACTURING LIGHTWEIGHT CONS CLEANER (the one with the hopper attached)

I've seen and tried Nugget's Grubbstake sluice up in Nundle and liked it. I don't know the other two. Any suggestions?

Cheers
Gav

 

[Pete_The_Prospector]

Have at look at these as well Gav, no classifying
http://www.bazookagoldtrap.com/

 

[gavfromoz]

Interesting Pete. Love looking at all the new inventions. I'll keep an eye on it. I got the pyramid sluice but haven't yet given it a good workout, perhaps at the Australia Day weekend, if there's enough water to permit it. Thanks for posting that

 

[Pete_The_Prospector]

Your welcome. I had 2 shipped over from the States not long ago and I will be giving them a good work out soon

 

[gavfromoz]

May they be full of colour each time you clean up

 

[user 1769]

Pete,
I've been looking at putting together a fluid bed trap like the bazooka myself, please let us know how it goes. I'd love to hear of a side-by-side comparison with McKirk sluice...

 

[Nugget]

There's heaps of Sluice manufactures out there Gav, here's a few worth checking out.

Keene http://www.keeneeng.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=SB
Black Cat Mining http://www.blackcatmining.com/mining-equipment/sluice-box.cfm
Prospectors Choice http://www.prospectorschoice.com/River-Sluice.html

I guess it's just a matter of researching the models you like / suits your needs, narrowing it down to one then taking the plunge.

 

[gavfromoz]

Thanks Nugget, this helps a bit, just looking at trying something a little different

 

[Golden Tiger]

Hey gavfromoz,

If it's any help, I have a river sluice 300mm wide by 900mm and its great in winter with lots of water flow but once summer comes around it spends more time in my boot than in the water. Im looking at getting a grubbsteak flared sluice for myself as it does not require as much water flow and has a much quicker clean up time.

Thats just my 2 bob anyway.

 

[casper]

Hi guys,

I'm just trying to decide on which sluice to get.

I wanted to know if anyone can explain the difference between the following sluices :-

* GRUBBSTAKE FLARED SLUICE
* RECON SLUICE
* MINING & MANUFACTURING LIGHTWEIGHT CONS CLEANER (the one with the hopper attached)

I've seen and tried Nugget's Grubbstake sluice up in Nundle and liked it. I don't know the other two. Any suggestions?

Cheers
Gav

I have the RECON and it's a double flair Sluice - check this url for comparative descriptions of all their sluices... http://angusmackirk.com/product_pages/sluices.html
casper

 

[Beagleboy]

Gav, if you have lots of water you can go for the AM Boss. If water flow is an issue the Grubstake is the go. AM sluices are fantastic and very easy to work with. If you get the smaller sluice box you cant process as much pay dirt but the Grubstake is super fast to clean up and set up. I was looking for a long time before i decided what sluice to get and I love my Boss.

 

[G0lddigg@]

Hey gav theres a pretty good explanation right here on their product page http://angusmackirk.com/product_pages/sluices.html

Grub Steak Sluice
#4 - " Grub Steak " - This model is great for small creeks. The down angle flair sets the best fall angle and directs more water into the mouth.
L = 28.5 inches W = 8.0 inches and D = 2.5 inches
Weight = 2 lb.

"Recon" Designed to offer the same features as the Scout("Back Pack" sized Sluice"Scout" Designed as a small "Back Pack" sized Sluice for Remote Prospecting and/or Clean-ups.) - but with twice the production ability.
L = 27.5 inches W = 9.0 inches and D = 3.25 inches
Weight = 2 lb. 4 oz..
not sure about the third one, I like the look of the Alaskan Flair Sluice myself, 19 riffles with removable flair

Images credit: http://angusmackirk.com/product_pages/sluices.html

 

[mdv]

I use a Grub Steak for sampling and digging out small crevices. Super portable, easy to see what you have caught, super easy to clean. I also connect a pump if there is insufficient natural water flow. But to process by the shovel full, I use a Walbanker.

 

[Ramjet]

Hey Gav.
Here's a YouTube comparison between the bazooka and a riffle type sluice.

[video=480,360]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZ1xk4Td_bc[/video]

 

[gavfromoz]

Thanks heaps guys, there's just so many different types of sluices available and I guess each one has it's own merits and uses, depending upon water flow and also distance to be transported. Thanks for the video as well RJ.

I think I'll order my Grub Stake today as it's coming into Summer now and hopefully I can use it with low water flow. My aim is to get a highbanker sometime and now that I have all the time available, to get out there as often as possible.

Tuena would probably be the best and closest for me from Burwood and instead of going it alone, I'll probably see if anyone is going out there from time to time and join them, just for the safety side of things.

Cheers
Gav

 

[PJ Gibson]

The best High banker sluice I have seen is the "Wal Special"

 

[meatz]

hey newbie to prospecting , i'm after anyone selling a small low water sluce that fits on a trailer , and after advice on a detector whats best deepest etc , and anyone keen to venture through meekathra and kal in serch of gold and how to get access to leases?

 

[Nugget]

Welcome meayz. It may be worth spending a little time looking around the topics and posting your questions in the relevant sections. You'll get more replies that way

Moved to General Chat.