Jeff95531
Silver Member
- Feb 10, 2013
- 2,625
- 4,094
- Detector(s) used
- Teknetics Alpha 2000
- Primary Interest:
- Prospecting
So yesterday my mom reminded me I had a birthday coming up and what did I want? I told her I had a couple of things in mind and l'd get back to her.
Today was filled with good and bad Karma, stuff acting up, communications fouled. My laptop wouldn't connect to the internet and I found a bad cable. I have had problems with these cables before and they are impossible to find (you have to buy the booster to get the cable) but you get the idea. Low and behold the Radio Shack guy in the Ace Hardware store had one. Plugged it in, took it to a wifi place and Success! Then I got to thinking about what delnorter had said (thanks Mike) telling me about shrimp guns at our local True Value AND the fact Karen told me they just announced they were going out of business. So I headed over to hopefully get one while they are still open. I get there and there are no parking places. I finally find a spot, get closer and see a sign saying everything is 1/2 off in the store. The fishing tackle was already almost gone! I ask a guy to show me his shrimp guns and they had two left. Got the one for $17 including tax. Went back to Ace and the guy says "what cha gonna do with that sand dredge?"
I knew I was in the right place.
5 bucks later I walk out with a combo extension/reducer to 1 inch. Cool huh?
So I set out to the lower river this eve to test it out. Found an awesome looking spot that I have never even seen before cuz the water is so low. 3 boulders with each 15x10x10 and nearly touching each other forming a key hole. There were two low points inside. One easy and one hard. Neither looked disturbed at all so I went to work on the easy one. Got a gallon in an hour...half an hour moving +1" rocks and another 1/2 hour slurping. I learned several things right away...
Press fit couplings get tighter in cold water. I broke the reducer trying to break it down for transport. I'll get 3 more tomorrow.
I need to replace the nut with a stainless steel wing nut and lock washer. Then no wrench required and infinitely adjustable on the fly.
When it stops getting material, it's time to move more +1" rocks.
It doesn't work real well w/o the reducer.
The lack of a one way valve means before you finish the stroke you have to raise the tip, keep pulling and raise the tip higher than the gun...otherwise it pours right back out.
It would be easy (and might even work) to add a one way valve, a Y and hose and fasten it to my homemade sluice. Slurp right into sluice and home to process. Thanks for the idea IdahoJake!
It's kinda big for close quarters. Closed, the gun is 36" long by itself with a 2 1/2" intake. With the reducer/extension on the end, it tops out at 5'4" closed. I'm 6'2 so it fits good overall.
Just now got home, been going all out since eight, bushed but dying to know what's in the bucket. Just another sleepless night. I'll run it tomorrow...unless I go again.: thumbsup:
Also just donated to Land Matters and Leigh is mailing my CA DVD tomorrow. Thanks to my 89 yo mom!
Today was filled with good and bad Karma, stuff acting up, communications fouled. My laptop wouldn't connect to the internet and I found a bad cable. I have had problems with these cables before and they are impossible to find (you have to buy the booster to get the cable) but you get the idea. Low and behold the Radio Shack guy in the Ace Hardware store had one. Plugged it in, took it to a wifi place and Success! Then I got to thinking about what delnorter had said (thanks Mike) telling me about shrimp guns at our local True Value AND the fact Karen told me they just announced they were going out of business. So I headed over to hopefully get one while they are still open. I get there and there are no parking places. I finally find a spot, get closer and see a sign saying everything is 1/2 off in the store. The fishing tackle was already almost gone! I ask a guy to show me his shrimp guns and they had two left. Got the one for $17 including tax. Went back to Ace and the guy says "what cha gonna do with that sand dredge?"
I knew I was in the right place.
5 bucks later I walk out with a combo extension/reducer to 1 inch. Cool huh?So I set out to the lower river this eve to test it out. Found an awesome looking spot that I have never even seen before cuz the water is so low. 3 boulders with each 15x10x10 and nearly touching each other forming a key hole. There were two low points inside. One easy and one hard. Neither looked disturbed at all so I went to work on the easy one. Got a gallon in an hour...half an hour moving +1" rocks and another 1/2 hour slurping. I learned several things right away...
Press fit couplings get tighter in cold water. I broke the reducer trying to break it down for transport. I'll get 3 more tomorrow.
I need to replace the nut with a stainless steel wing nut and lock washer. Then no wrench required and infinitely adjustable on the fly.
When it stops getting material, it's time to move more +1" rocks.
It doesn't work real well w/o the reducer.
The lack of a one way valve means before you finish the stroke you have to raise the tip, keep pulling and raise the tip higher than the gun...otherwise it pours right back out.
It would be easy (and might even work) to add a one way valve, a Y and hose and fasten it to my homemade sluice. Slurp right into sluice and home to process. Thanks for the idea IdahoJake!
It's kinda big for close quarters. Closed, the gun is 36" long by itself with a 2 1/2" intake. With the reducer/extension on the end, it tops out at 5'4" closed. I'm 6'2 so it fits good overall.
Just now got home, been going all out since eight, bushed but dying to know what's in the bucket. Just another sleepless night. I'll run it tomorrow...unless I go again.: thumbsup:
Also just donated to Land Matters and Leigh is mailing my CA DVD tomorrow. Thanks to my 89 yo mom!
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Mike is planning on getting here Tues Pm and leaving Fri morning. He'll be pitching a tent in my grassy spot in front of the vehicles. Don't get dark till 7 
