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Colorado Prospector - Gem and mineral prospecting and mining forums > Prospecting, Mineral Collecting and Treasure Hunting Forums > Equipment - Prospecting and Lapidary
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swizz
I did some cleanup yesterday and thought I'd share some pics.
I plan on adding a recirculating cleanup sluice to the system (probably the new Keene Super Recirc.) this spring for the #20+ mesh stuff.... for now I'm panning that. Mesh #30 and smaller go into the Blue Bowl smile.gif .
I ran two separate batches of concentrate through the system, both from our very own CP!
Each were 2lb dry bags.
The first was concentrate was sent by Dan & Denise from the shavings and grindings (panning sample) included in the incredible gold/quartz cab that I won in the CP drawing (1st item down): CP Stash
The second 2lb cons bag that I ran through was a special bag that Dan & Denise put together (which I requested) for Colorado gold (to be included in a project I'm working on). I am very grateful, exactly what I needed. happy088.gif
If you've got the cabin fever or just want to stay sharp with your cleanup techniques I highly recommend picking up some CP cons and gettin' busy. Me.... I'm still learnin'. I had a blast!
Here's how it went:

My indoor system is very tidy. As you can see I'm setting up shop on my nice area rug with no worries. Well, that and.... since my last girlfriend moved out there are no more rules here music037.gif . I'll also be wearing a tuxedo during the entire process chaplin.gif (the umbrella in the pic is for camera lighting)


Some of my cleanup tools:


This is my basic recirculating setup The 36 gal Rubbermaid tub contains all of the splashback. I'll be attaching the spray nozzle (for rinsing classifying screens, etc.) and the Blue Bowl to the end of the recirc hose for each process.


This is the first stack of screens - #2 mesh down to #30. Since I know I have a tendency to get these screens mixed up (and the magic marker will eventually wear off) I've taken the liberty of burning the mesh numbers into each screen rim with a rounded attachment on my woobuning tool.


Dirt


Rinsing it down trough the stack one screen at a time


Starting to see colors in the #20 mesh drool.gif


#20 - #2 mesh goes to the pan. Here's the #30 mesh and smaller that went to the bottom of the bucket. It will be classified in the next stack of screens:


Next stack of screens #30 - #100. Each mesh class will be Blue-Bowled separately at different speeds.


continued....





swizz
I've marked the inside of the Blue Bowl with individual level indicators for each mesh:


Working like a charm:


Eureka!


Here are the results from the gold/quartz cab pannings:


Bag 2; I haven't had time to dry and sort it yet but these are some of the larger pieces that will go into my project. Many thanks Dan & Denise!


Saddle-up boys, we's a goin' inta town for sum vittles and a hot shower tonight! char092.gif


CP
Awesome Swizz! That is a spectacular report and display of the process! signs021.gif
You've sure got the blue bowl down to a science too, very nice! The whole system you set up sure looks it works very well. Thanks for sharing the tips and information with everyone.

Glad those grindings from the gold in quartz cabochon worked wo well with it too. I had one heckuva' time pannin' those out of the rock dusts mushy soup. Some of them are very fine and light weight! bash.gif laught16.gif
The new Colorado gold project is gonna' sure be cool with the history you're creating for it. Can't wait to see and hear about that soon too when completed. biggrin.gif

Thank you for the compliments on the Colorado Prospector placer dirts too, we hope everyone finds them to be the closest thing to really panning creek side available anywhere. smile.gif

Hey! I didn't see any pics of a panner in a tux though!? happy.gif smiley-laughing021.gif
RichDColorado
Nice setup, swizz. Thanks for posting those pics - I need to get as organized as you are to get through some of my old cons.
Coalbunny
I have a BB, Swizz, and I never can get it to run at a constant level. I have to watch it like a hawk and keep adjusting the water flow it seems.
Any advice?
swizz
QUOTE (Coalbunny @ Feb 1 2010, 06:49 PM) *
I have a BB, Swizz, and I never can get it to run at a constant level. I have to watch it like a hawk and keep adjusting the water flow it seems.
Any advice?


I agree that this can be a challenge with the Blue Bowl. I think that the regulator valve could easily be improved. There's probably a Home Depot remedy in the plumbing section, I've been meaning to look for a more sensitive flow regulator.
For the valve that comes with the recirc - I start low and slow gradually working the level up to where I want it, then usually backing off a hair.... but yeah, you really gotta keep an eye on it. Requires a little bit of patience.
russau
Carl, surging in the water levels of the BB can be cause by spoon feeding to much material at one time. solution. make a autofeeder to maintain a constant slow feed and use a battery charger for power when cleaning up at home. plus make sure your bilge pump has a clean intake all the time. ive seen mud get into the pump and cause binding of the pump.
Denise
Great set up Swizz! I dont think I have ever seen the blue bowl work that good. happy088.gif
I dont use one myself, I have just seen them used. I like to pan, keeps the wrists good and strong. biggrin.gif Good idea to use a woodburner on the classifiers, I have seen and heard of many people mixing them up for the same reasons.

On a side note.........Love the art work on the wall!! groucho.gif Just a few questions......

Whos the artist?
Those water colors?
And why do you have a woodburner? chin.gif

Im thinking someone is holding back on talents here.
laugh.gif


Thanks for the cleanup demonstration and walk through. You did a great job!!
swizz
QUOTE (Mrs.CP @ Feb 2 2010, 08:14 AM) *
Whos the artist?
Those water colors?
And why do you have a woodburner? chin.gif


My dear old Mom is the artist, she's well into her 80s now but still producing works on the South Shore of Lake Superior.
Her mediums are Oil, Watercolor, and Batik. Her work with Batik is most impressive (process involves hot wax). She also likes to paint scenes on saws, old wooden chairs, and old canoe paddles... some cool stuff. My whole place is a shrine of her works.
There are two watercolors in the shot (upper) and two Batiks (lower) which are fish impressions. The impressions are from actual fish pressed onto the Batiks.
I'll pass your compliments on to her!
....and
Woodburner? oh.... that thing. My Dad is a master and teaches classes at his local community college in carving and woodburning . Unfortunately, he didn't discover this talent until I had left home for college. I'm just trying to get caught up! You'd think this stuff would come naturally for me from those two savants but I really have to work at it. Lord knows I try.........
Denise
She does fantastic work! happy.gif I would love to see some of your fathers work also.
Im a big fan of woodburning and carving.

Ok Ok....Im done hijacking this thread. Sorry guys, curiosity gets the best of me.
biggrin.gif
CP
That's okay dear, you didn't highjack it too bad. biggrin.gif Besides, that work in the background is very noticable! Killer stuff. happy.gif
We added this demonstrational to the plans and tips page a few days ago, it's a great thread for anyone wishing to use the blue bowls.
happy088.gif

Thanks again to Swizz for taking the time to put it together so well and with so much information everyone can use. signs021.gif

Another thought on change of flows during the running time. We've noticed in the past when running on battery power for the recirculating pumps, the change of flow begins rather quickly after running for a bit even with a fully charged batt, and then continues to slow as the battery power is used. To over come that change/slow down on the flow, we use a constant 12v power supply (battery charger) directly to the pump when possible. The charger will supply a more constant flow over the running period if you have power available like say at home, or in the field via a genny or an inverter?

CP
YellowFever
swizz could you please give the exact measurements that you have marked on your Blue Bowl? I would really love to have that to help out with my clean up! thanks!!!!!!
swizz
QUOTE (YellowFever @ May 22 2010, 06:26 PM) *
swizz could you please give the exact measurements that you have marked on your Blue Bowl? I would really love to have that to help out with my clean up! thanks!!!!!!


No problem - measurement from top of brim:

30 mesh minus cons: mark is at 1/4" - run waterline anywhere between top of rim and 1/4"

50 mesh minus cons: mark is at 1/2" - run waterline anywhere between 1/4" mark and 1/2" mark

100 minus mesh cons: mark is at about 7/8" - run waterline anywhere between 1/2" mark and 7/8" mark

Let me know if you have any questions, this system has been working excellent.
OkieJon
Great post! Bookmarking this one for future reference.
RichDColorado
Hey Swizz - Thanks for posting the water line indications for each classification - those levels were spot-on. I broke down and bought my blue bowl yesterday, even paid RETAIL! Wish I had gotten it a couple years ago when I started doing this gold getting stuff. Worked through some unworked -100 cons and was amazed at the amount of gold which was recovered. Also worked through the unworked -100 and -30 magnetic material I previously pulled and found a decent amount of color in those. Still have quite a bit of -30 cons which I panned through 2x by hand - now I'm curious to see jsut how much gold my fantastic panning skills left behind. This may be a fairly humbling experience.

slaphead.gif Got me thinking of how much color I may have tossed in the past thinking there was not enough fine fine gold to mess with. So much for sorry hindsight - lesson learned for the future is to sort though every bit, no matter how fine - it all adds up in the mayonnaise jar.

Thanks for speeding up the learning curve for the blue bowl quite a bit -
swizz
Hi Rich,
That is great news, I'm glad it's 'panning' out for you! I've been giving mine a workout this summer and almost wish they made a larger version of it. Definitely reduces the time-consuming panning process.... one sluice-load of cons is a lot of material to work thoroughly with a pan. I bought a small and very powerful rare earth magnet (not pictured) that I've been using in the Bowl now and it really speeds up the process. I pause the Bowl about halfway through a session to remove magnetic heavies and then resume. I was using the standard 'spring-style' (Jobe) miner's magnet pictured in this thread, but it just wasn't powerful enough.
Another thing I have done since then is replaced the cheapo plastic recirculation hoses and valves (pictured) included with the Bowl Kit. Those things were eventually shooting water from every connection. I went to the hardware store and picked up a much better flow regulator and a 6ft section of quality garden hose to replace those items. The hose was sold as "connection hose for hose reel", or something of that nature and there was probably a whole isle devoted to flow regulators. The pump motor that they give you with the Bowl kit is top notch though, mine has been working flawlessly and I also power a recirculating sluice with it.
Now.... if they'd only invent some kind of super-magnet to extract micro-quartz. chin.gif
PbJake
Swizz,

Just came across this thread, doing some research on picking up a blue bowl myself. Quick question: would you advocate getting the "leg levelers" that are advertised alongside the BB? Seems a bit steep at ~$21...

Thanks
swizz
Jake,
I'm big bowl fan, so I'm definitely the type who's gonna recommend it.
It does have a bit of a learning curve but really not too bad. Their instructions SUCK and are inaccurate. Go to prospectorchannel.com and watch this vid: Gold Processing
It will take ALL of the pain out of learning the nuances of the Blue Bowl.
Crusty
Brilliant thread! I was trying to wrap my brain around how I was going to process the 12 (1/2 - 3/4 full) buckets of 1/4" classified material from this weekend and now I've got it! I know the classifiers are stackable, but seeing the photos made it all clear... must be that 6.5 years I spent in the "Show Me" state; I need a visual.

I did order a blue bowl, it'll be here Friday. Unfortunately, starting Wed, I'm going to be tied up working 16-ish hour days at the Warrior Games (http://www.teamusa.org/warriorgames/) for the next 2 weeks, so I'm not going to get to dedicate any time to it anytime soon. :(

So for the blue bowl kit parts, I assume I just take all the kit plumbing parts and go find the higher quality equivalents at the hardware store?

Thanks for sharing your smarts Chris!! thumbsupsmileyanim.gif

Dypheron
With that much material to run don't get in a hurry when you're classifying. If you try to run too much material the screens will fill up and not allow all of the smaller stuff through. I have a small cup that I use when I'm classifying, one scoop at a time and I make sure all of the cons are washed before I put another scoop in.
Crusty
QUOTE (Dypheron @ Sep 22 2014, 01:59 PM) *
With that much material to run don't get in a hurry when you're classifying. If you try to run too much material the screens will fill up and not allow all of the smaller stuff through. I have a small cup that I use when I'm classifying, one scoop at a time and I make sure all of the cons are washed before I put another scoop in.



I'm down with that! When I thought about trying to speed things up in the field this weekend, wondering if saving time by skipping the "extra" quick wash, a check of the bucket showing I was still catching stuff the buckets missed confirmed it was worth the time! I don't want to waste all that back breaking effort with the shovel by throwing gold away!! Copy, slow & steady!!

OH, I just had a thought, we have 3 50 gallon rain barrels (shhhhh.... don't tell) so I won't even have to use any water I don't already have! I can just put the bilge pump in the rain barrel (suspended near the top to keep from picking up shingle sand and dead critters lol), put my bucket on the top of the barrel, and I've got my recirculating system set up!!

BTW, that harbor freight power supply worked like a champ!
Crusty
QUOTE (Dypheron @ Sep 22 2014, 01:59 PM) *
With that much material to run don't get in a hurry when you're classifying. If you try to run too much material the screens will fill up and not allow all of the smaller stuff through. I have a small cup that I use when I'm classifying, one scoop at a time and I make sure all of the cons are washed before I put another scoop in.


All right, I got my classifying area set up last night (took a pic, will post this evening) and ran about 10 small trowels through. Definitely takes some time to get a good routine. No doubt it is going to take a LONG time to run through 12 buckets! I just panned each level and didn't see a single speck; LOTS of mica and not a lot of black sand... maybe this bucket was one that I got a lot of the overburden that had dropped in? I know it was only 10 small scoops, so not huge odds there would be a lot in them.

Did you ever play around some more with that small bucket sluice? Any suggestions on how I could work them in to my process? The buckets are classified to 4- now, should I do it to 8- and try that sluice, or to be safe, just take the time to use the classifiers and do 20, 30, 50, 100 and then pan the 20- and blue bowl the 30/50/100?

Makes for long days at work, sitting here wishing I was home playing with my dirt!
Crusty
So I got a little recirculating area to classify set up. Still trying to get in to a groove on how to most efficiently work. Ran 4 rounds through the 8, 12, 20s. Panned one of the 12s & 20s with no sign of color :( Grabbed a couple of handfuls of the 20- and panned it, no color :(

Swapped the water out in the tub when I got done; quite a bit of muck bottom, guessing mostly the stuff that was light enough to suspend in the water and come out of the bucket drains. Should I bother to pan most of that or just skim off the light stuff and save the last little bit of heavier stuff in the bottom?

Kevin In Centennial
QUOTE (Crusty @ Sep 24 2014, 10:21 PM) *
So I got a little recirculating area to classify set up. Still trying to get in to a groove on how to most efficiently work. Ran 4 rounds through the 8, 12, 20s. Panned one of the 12s & 20s with no sign of color :( Grabbed a couple of handfuls of the 20- and panned it, no color :(

Swapped the water out in the tub when I got done; quite a bit of muck bottom, guessing mostly the stuff that was light enough to suspend in the water and come out of the bucket drains. Should I bother to pan most of that or just skim off the light stuff and save the last little bit of heavier stuff in the bottom?

Try panning it. You may find some very fine gold that also floated out. probably not anything bigger or thicker tho...good luck!

More importantly you can skip the 12 for sure and you should add a 50 mesh. The -50 gold will pan out MUCH easier when it is separate from the 20-50 material. Watch a video on the shake and tap method to see how best to pan the finer stuff. (either Mike Pung or Doc from Gold Hog have good videos on this method)
Crusty
QUOTE (Kevin In Centennial @ Sep 30 2014, 08:17 PM) *
Try panning it. You may find some very fine gold that also floated out. probably not anything bigger or thicker tho...good luck!

More importantly you can skip the 12 for sure and you should add a 50 mesh. The -50 gold will pan out MUCH easier when it is separate from the 20-50 material. Watch a video on the shake and tap method to see how best to pan the finer stuff. (either Mike Pung or Doc from Gold Hog have good videos on this method)



Thanks! I am planning on panning the 12 & 20 and running the 20- through 30, 50, 100 and blue bowling that.
swizz
QUOTE (Crusty @ Oct 1 2014, 07:07 AM) *
I am planning on panning the 12 & 20 and running the 20- through 30, 50, 100 and blue bowling that.

That should work well!
Crusty
QUOTE (swizz @ Oct 1 2014, 07:39 AM) *
That should work well!



Mrs Crusty will be out of town Mon-Thur. Might have to set up some work lights and get some quality time with my cons after work next week!! thumbsupsmileyanim.gif
fenixsmom
"Quality time with my cons." Sounds romantic! Perhaps by candlelight and a nice bottle of wine to ease the gold out of its iron coverings?
Caveman
Jessie, that's very sweet, but bright lights and beer work much better - seems that raw gold runs to the "Redneck" side of the tracks! Crusty, I do like the 12 mesh classifier for panning, too. I needed something between -8 and -20, and -12 works great. I would take a 16 mesh too, but that's overkill. I also bought a black sand magnet to make things easier (yes, I pan/run that too!). I like what you are doing with your set-up, and would like to get with you on that this weekend so I can put together a station, too.
fenixsmom
Well in that case bring whisky, moonshine and light up the room with a string of Christmas lights and Chevy brights!
Caveman
Now yer talkin' our language! You go, girl! thumbsupsmileyanim.gif
Crusty
oh ya! lol

Caveman
How's the clean up going, Crusty?
Crusty
QUOTE (Caveman @ Oct 1 2014, 01:17 PM) *
How's the clean up going, Crusty?



I'm working 12-17 hour days all this week, so I won't get a chance to get back them to them until Sunday. :(
Caveman
Bummer. kick_can.gif
Donny
Holy hell, I'm in over my head.

QUOTE (swizz @ Jan 31 2010, 12:11 PM) *
I did some cleanup yesterday and thought I'd share some pics.
I plan on adding a recirculating cleanup sluice to the system (probably the new Keene Super Recirc.) this spring for the #20+ mesh stuff.... for now I'm panning that. Mesh #30 and smaller go into the Blue Bowl smile.gif .
I ran two separate batches of concentrate through the system, both from our very own CP!
Each were 2lb dry bags.
The first was concentrate was sent by Dan & Denise from the shavings and grindings (panning sample) included in the incredible gold/quartz cab that I won in the CP drawing (1st item down): CP Stash
The second 2lb cons bag that I ran through was a special bag that Dan & Denise put together (which I requested) for Colorado gold (to be included in a project I'm working on). I am very grateful, exactly what I needed. happy088.gif
If you've got the cabin fever or just want to stay sharp with your cleanup techniques I highly recommend picking up some CP cons and gettin' busy. Me.... I'm still learnin'. I had a blast!
Here's how it went:

My indoor system is very tidy. As you can see I'm setting up shop on my nice area rug with no worries. Well, that and.... since my last girlfriend moved out there are no more rules here music037.gif . I'll also be wearing a tuxedo during the entire process chaplin.gif (the umbrella in the pic is for camera lighting)


Some of my cleanup tools:


This is my basic recirculating setup The 36 gal Rubbermaid tub contains all of the splashback. I'll be attaching the spray nozzle (for rinsing classifying screens, etc.) and the Blue Bowl to the end of the recirc hose for each process.


This is the first stack of screens - #2 mesh down to #30. Since I know I have a tendency to get these screens mixed up (and the magic marker will eventually wear off) I've taken the liberty of burning the mesh numbers into each screen rim with a rounded attachment on my woobuning tool.


Dirt


Rinsing it down trough the stack one screen at a time


Starting to see colors in the #20 mesh drool.gif


#20 - #2 mesh goes to the pan. Here's the #30 mesh and smaller that went to the bottom of the bucket. It will be classified in the next stack of screens:


Next stack of screens #30 - #100. Each mesh class will be Blue-Bowled separately at different speeds.


continued....

Caveman
Donny, no you are not..... some of us are just really into this, and like to show others how to do some of the more advanced collection of fines properly. We have a great set of members who will gladly help answer any questions, and "pull you to shore" if you do get in a little over your head. We have members in all stages - from those who just bought their first pan, or picked up their first interesting rock, to working claim holders. Please do not get discouraged, and hang in there and ask questions - we are glad to answer, and have you stick around!

sign0016.gif

fenixsmom
He's right! I'm in the "just bought a new pan + one season" I feel perfectly at home here with a GREAT group of folks that I know will listen to my endless stupid questions. I also know when I decide to upgrade or attempt to be "creative" with design prototypes, I trust these guys to be objectively honest with ne. Do not fret, we ALL started somewhere!
Donny
I really appreciate both of your comments caveman and fenix. Honestly I just ended my career in the service after ten years and I'm not quite sure where to go next but I love the outdoors and I've always been intrigued by prospecting. I have kinda studied up my towards gems and minerals but I want to learn more. I actually took a hike yesterday and I'm not sure but I think I found some amanzonite. Well from what it looks like on the web and the show prospectors. Lol.. and if I did, it's kinda like what do I do with it now? Lol thanks again for the warm welcome. smiley-music024.gif Click to view attachmentClick to view attachment hopefully these pics uploaded.. their not the best
Denise
smileywaving.gif Welcome to the CP forums Donny and thank you for your service!! smileyflag.gif That definitely looks like some Amazonite, nice find! happy088.gif I would just display it where you can admire it. We have several cool finds around in our yard that are too large to display in the house. You will find that several here look for many different kinds of minerals, some even in the same week. laugh.gif So there is plenty of info to learn from here.

Make yourself at home around the website!

Denise
Crusty
Welcome Donny! It is indeed Amazonite! It was a very similar piece that infected me with the Colorado Rockhounding bug, which led me to this fine group of folks! As stated above, there are members of all skill levels who are happy to share what they know!
russau
Donny, thank you for your service! SALUTE!
swizz
Donny, welcome to CP and thank you for your service! emoticon-object-018.gif sign0016.gif
It looks like Amazonite to me as well, nice!
MikeS
Welcome aboard Donny! Thank you very much for your service! emoticon-object-018.gif
There is a mountain of information here to sink your teeth into. Whether you just want to do a bit of rock collecting or you wish to make it a profitable adventure, you have came to the right place! thumbsupsmileyanim.gif Feel free to ask any questions.
MikeS
QUOTE (Donny @ Oct 2 2014, 10:10 AM) *
I think I found some amanzonite. Well from what it looks like on the web and the show prospectors.

That Amazonite has some nice color. Your spot there may produce some nice crystal pockets like your seeing on the show. Nice find! thumbsupsmileyanim.gif
Donny
Wow, I'd like to say thank you too everyone on multiple levels. It's an awesome vibe joining guys as your all very welcoming. It was an honor to serve, thank you all very much! Getting out and in a sense "having my leash taken off," lol It feels like a great area of freedom and exploitation. I look forward to getting to know all of you better and learning from you all. I'll keep the questions down a minimum of 50 per blog. Lol jp. Thanks again all
Crusty
Got in 8 hours of classifying today. Did 3.5 buckets down to 8, 12, 20. I've got 2 full buckets of -20, waiting to get 30, 50, 100 classified.

Only saw some really small gold, but I did pull a nice garnet out of the 8 and 2 out of the 12!
Donny
QUOTE (Crusty @ Oct 5 2014, 10:10 PM) *
Got in 8 hours of classifying today. Did 3.5 buckets down to 8, 12, 20. I've got 2 full buckets of -20, waiting to get 30, 50, 100 classified.

Only saw some really small gold, but I did pull a nice garnet out of the 8 and 2 out of the 12!


So what does all that mean?
Donny
QUOTE (Donny @ Oct 3 2014, 10:43 PM) *
Wow, I'd like to say thank you too everyone on multiple levels. It's an awesome vibe joining you guys as your all very welcoming. It was an honor to serve this country, thank you all very much! Getting out and in a sense "having my leash taken off," lol prospecting feels like a great area of freedom and exploration. I look forward to getting to know all of you better and learning from you all. I'll keep the questions down a minimum of 50 per blog. Lol. Thanks again all


Stupid smart phones. Don't know how I messed my first reply up so bad but this is what it was suppose to say.
Crusty
QUOTE (Donny @ Oct 6 2014, 12:01 PM) *
So what does all that mean?



If you look at the first page of this thread, you'll see Swizz's photos. The green "things" stacked on top of the bucket are classifiers. They have screens in them that only let material of a certain size through. The numbers are the # of holes per inch, so a #12 classifier has 12 holes per inch, a 30 has 30, etc. Classifiying makes pulling the gold out of the material easier, even if you just sluice it, as gold (and garnets) are heavier than most like-sized material. When you get to trying to get the super fine gold, classifying it down to super fine particles is a must; the 100 classifier hardly looks like it has holes in it!

In the field you can get away with only going down to 2 or 4 and then running the concentrates through your sluice and then bringing home what you pull out the sluice to classify in to the smaller stuff, but on my last trip I wasn't able to sluice, so I am forced to classify everything versus just the stuff that stuck in a sluice, so it will take much longer to get through.

Hope that makes sense, since I'm just a rookie myself! :)
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