Skid plate

[Bazz]

Hi Guys

I have seen this subject discussed before but can't find the threads

I'm looking for some info on skid plates for a banker / rocker box, probably all the whys wheres and reasoning......

Here's the thing.......

I'm at the pointy end of the longest rocker box build in history, the top fluid bed is straight forward but as the material falls to the bottom level I'm thinking a couple of inches of flat plate before the material hits the secondary riffles......

By the way I've set up a butchered type of modified clarkson riffle system

no photos yet

Cheers

Bazz

Based on this sucker https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_VNW2QVIFs

 

[PipeclayJim]

Gs it is hard to give advice without a photo and measurements. But here goes I am basing my advice on the old rocker design. In the top hopper I would have a slick/skid plate angled back towards the back of the bottom sluice. This slick plate should be the length of the top hopper. As material is washed in the top hopper it will fall onto the slick/skid plate and be placed at the back of the bottom hopper. But keep in mind there should be no riffles on that plate or material will be blown all over the shop. In the bottom sluice the slick area should be around of the catchment area. Say your catchment area is one meter long the slick area before the catchment area should be around 250mm it can be longer but not shorter. As for jetting for washing your material you have 3 choices 1= Power jet this has two or 3 jets covering the work area. 2= Straight jetting this is a line of small jets on either side of the work area. 3= the spray bar I think most here know how they work. Any one of the washing systems will soak you while you are working why not just build a Wal banker, that way you get the best of both worlds.

 

[Bazz]

Hey PCJim

Thanks, that makes complete sense to me....

The pic is the one I'm using as a model

Clearly I don't do much of this work in fact it's the first attempt...

Now the upper plate is 12" x 12" so 9" of that is skid/slick plate, do you suggest any catching stuff ie miners moss before the material drops to the bottom tray???

The bottom is 12" x 36" and I was planning on using a modified clarkson riffle system, about 6 half inch angle iron angled @ 15 degrees

The pump is rated at 100 litres per minute

And yep! the Walbanker is a consideration (I think - too noisey at the moment)

Thanks again

Bazz

 

[PipeclayJim]

Slick/skid plates must be free of any hindrance or obstruction. If your going to use a bilge pump I think you will be disappointed they are more for clean-up sluices extra. The next bit of trouble you will run into is the way the sieve is set up they should be worked wet. And by the looks of that photo I cannot see any wash setup. You can play around with PVC [plastic] pipes by heating them and bending them while they are warn. In fact you can almost do anything with any pvc pipe under heat. Only cut your pipe after you have heated it not before. In this way you could make a jetting system up to go over the sieve but there again the bilge pump will not drive them correctly.