highbanker matting question

[Huelten]

Hey all,

ive got a quick question i could use some advice on. im new to highbanking, in fact i just built one out of my proline sluice box, which came with some standard carpet for under the riffles. also i picked up some deep grooved rubber v-matting from a local store. any advice on which one is more effective?

 

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[IdahoJake]

Well, for year's I used matting and miner's moss under riffles and expanded metal. It took me a long time to think that maybe technology had advanced enough to change the sluicing game. I was stubborn and held to the "tried and true"...then, I tried some Gold Hog matting. It took me a while (a LONG while), but now everything I have is outfitted with it. My sluices. My highbankers. And, my dredge sluice.

If you can afford it, it does a wonderful job collecting even the finest of gold flakes. If you can't afford, in the past I've used v-matting under the header area and carpet under riffles the rest of the way down the sluice bed.

 

[Huelten]

okay i suppose i just assumed the v-matting would work because the small strip before my expanded metal begins is always catching gold. thanks for the info.
Do you run your gold hog matting underneath your expanded metal riffles?

 

[kazcoro]

Doc uses it under his punch plates. Check out his videos on youtube.

 

[russau]

i once thought i couldnt aford Gold Hog mats. but if they collect as much gold as Docs saying/showing, the mats should pay for themselves quickly! anyway thats what im going to find out this summer in my travels!i have several setups/mats/carpets configurations for my dredge that im building to try out at some locations to see what works best for that area. my Veranda carpet did a reral good job saveing fine gold on the Arkansa River in Colorado and Wyoming. this summer should be LOTS of fun!

 

[Goodyguy]

Hey all,

ive got a quick question i could use some advice on. im new to highbanking, in fact i just built one out of my proline sluice box, which came with some standard carpet for under the riffles. also i picked up some deep grooved rubber v-matting from a local store. any advice on which one is more effective?

Deep V.

Here's why.............................

Unlike carpets there are no fibers in the deep v mat. So you get a more active exchange of material, active meaning that the lighter materials easily wash out of the channels while the heavies are retained. What happens in carpets is that most everything, light as well as heavy particles that are small enough to wedge into the carpet fibers become trapped and soon the carpet gets saturated with those particles and becomes packed solid. Once carpet becomes packed solid it no longer can trap gold and you must stop and do a clean up. Also it's much harder and more time consuming to clean all the particles out of the carpet plus you end up with way more concentrates to process than with a mat whether it be deep v, vortex, gold hog, or any other rubber mat on the market.

Here is the catch....... deep v is great at retaining fine and small flakes of gold up to about 1/8" but anything larger will just roll across the tops of the v's. Same thing with vortex and other mats with small areas to trap gold. The good news is that you can modify the deep V as well as the vortex mat to capture larger gold, by simply removing a row of rubber every 3-4" inches for the first foot of mat creating a few 1/4" drop riffles that will hold the larger gold. The reason for doing that for only the first foot of mat is because all larger gold will drop out within that first foot.

With gold hog mats I'm told that they will trap the 1/4" gold with no modification necessary.

Miners moss has the same drawbacks as carpet but will trap larger particles, that is until it becomes packed solid.

Go for the gold
GG~

 

[G1sammons]

Deep V. Here's why............................. Unlike carpets there are no fibers in the deep v mat. So you get a more active exchange of material, active meaning that the lighter materials easily wash out of the channels while the heavies are retained. What happens in carpets is that most everything, light as well as heavy particles that are small enough to wedge into the carpet fibers become trapped and soon the carpet gets saturated with those particles and becomes packed solid. Once carpet becomes packed solid it no longer can trap gold and you must stop and do a clean up. Also it's much harder and more time consuming to clean all the particles out of the carpet plus you end up with way more concentrates to process than with a mat whether it be deep v, vortex, gold hog, or any other rubber mat on the market. Here is the catch....... deep v is great at retaining fine and small flakes of gold up to about 1/8" but anything larger will just roll across the tops of the v's. Same thing with vortex and other mats with small areas to trap gold. The good news is that you can modify the deep V as well as the vortex mat to capture larger gold, by simply removing a row of rubber every 3-4" inches for the first foot of mat creating a few 1/4" drop riffles that will hold the larger gold. The reason for doing that for only the first foot of mat is because all larger gold will drop out within that first foot. With gold hog mats I'm told that they will trap the 1/4" gold with no modification necessary. Miners moss has the same drawbacks as carpet but will trap larger particles, that is until it becomes packed solid. Go for the gold GG~

U should stand corrected there is heavy modification required on gold hog matting ! It just occurs in your wallet! A wapping 900 dollars to outfit my 6" and it seems there's no place to pick it up ..by mail only ... Seems something that great would be available someplace you can walk in and pay cash for it! Maybie I'm old fashion but if I'm gona spend 900 dollars on something I like to pick it up and hold it befor I give up that many bills maybie have a chance to bond with it ..

 

[MikeMike]

It was 35 a foot in my sluice for my 4" dredge, about $235 with shipping. I wouldn't recommend it in a proline, because you may not be able to get the pitch about 8 degrees

 

[Goodyguy]

It was 35 a foot in my sluice for my 4" dredge, about $235 with shipping. I wouldn't recommend it in a proline, because you may not be able to get the pitch about 8 degrees

He could easily get the pitch on his proline stream sluice that he modified into a highbanker with no problem.
I've seen a photo of it posted on another thread.

 

[G1sammons]

It was 35 a foot in my sluice for my 4" dredge, about $235 with shipping. I wouldn't recommend it in a proline, because you may not be able to get the pitch about 8 degrees

I have 6"tripple sluice 2each 16" on the sides and 1each 22" center all 70"
The angle is not a problem for me... And could handle the cost but just doesn't feel right ... There's just too many don't likes in the deal for me ... Looks promising
Looks like a good idea, cost too much for what it is ,but been there too many times befor and don't believe its gona make that much of a difference ...my biggest gain would be the drop in cons in other words easier clean up but I don't see a 900 dollar value in that ...I know doc shows how there's almost no loss but they way he checks is not legit you can drop a box behind your dredge for a few minutes a call it a test! That's a joke of a way to go about it ... I'm not knocking gold hog matt it may be great
But the reality is everything has losses and gold hog is no different .... And with there being no store front no big cost in advertising or development why is the cost so high... Most of this looks to be done out of someone basement... Which doesn't bother me other than the cost factor ... It's a smart way to control cost so you can sell things for a better price but that's not what's going on here..... Or at least that not the way it appears to me....

 

[russau]

as i said before,i was hesitant about the cost but after thinking it through, i figure i could recoup my investment quickly(in 1 summer) with this new matting. besides i have the Veranda carpet(that has proven itself to me) Vortex belting( works GREAT in my Gold Cube) lots of miners moss (stopped useing it in my dredges) and im wanting to give it my own run for its money this summer in Colorado and Wyoming. im building a 2 inch dredge just for this purpose and it will have a 2 inch crashbox/sluice, and a 2 inch flaired sluice in either a over under setup or just a straight sluice.and all the Gold Hog matting can be switched around to suit my needs/desires.Docs website really covers it all and will save me LOTS of time experimenting with different combos on the GH matting.im real close to being done, im waiting on my engine/pump combo from Colorado. then itll be off to paint.i want to paint the inflatable pontoons to protect them from any enviromental inferred rays that would ruin the rubber.i may take it over to Indiana to try it out early.