Top 3

[fishnfacts]

As I ready my gear for my 1st gold prospecting trip tomorrow to the Llano uplift in Llano Texas I wonder what I am going to experience. Will I blow all my gold out the back of my sluice, will I dig in this big sand box never even being close to paydirt, will I hit the motherlode and be rich beyond my dreams. I would be happy with being as rich as my dreams as I have been dreaming. LOL
Anyways my question to all you seasoned vets for all us of greenhorns is what are your top 3 mistakes that you made when you first dug that first pan and what was your first top 3 things that you did right?
Now I am not talking about what brand equipment you bought, as that would turn into a debate that would last a lifetime, but what kind of equipment would be a good answer. I know I don't have every little thing that I will eventual buy or build but I do have the basics. Pans 14" and 10", classifiers, a homemade sluice and misc. tools.
So think back to those first few times that you stuck a shovel into mother earth and what you discovered you had accomplished.


Ron

 

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[ALewis]

I am more greenhorn than seasoned vet.....But,

Mistakes, I've had a few....
I did not season my pan before very first trip, they left that out when I bought at Big 5...lol
Did not have a snuffer bottle, getting that first piece of micro gold out of the pan was a chore.

I think you have already done one thing right, getting on TNet ! Pretty sure I have learned / discovered more here than anywhere's else... Read anything / everything

(next, get a bazooka gold trap)

 

[omnicron]

Fist big mistake is thinking your going to get rich.
Second biggest mistake is thinking your going to get rich.
Third biggest is thinking your going to get rich.
With that out of the way...
Go with the mindset that you wont even find enough to buy a loaf of bread.
Make sure you have your shovel, buckets, classifiers and other tools of the trade.
Prepare to work your azz off.
Dig till you either hit the gravels or people speaking Chinese, then dig deeper.
Take plenty of water, Gatorade and something to eat.
If other miners are there, talk with them and listen to what they say, that will point you in the right direction.

 

[ALewis]

I'm not going to get rich ?

 

[KevinInColorado]

My first mistakes were all about digging in the wrong spots. Sand and loose gravel will not be productive. Look for baseball or larger, river rounded cobbles and dig there. The harder the digging, the better the gold most times!

Oh, and with a traditional sluice, more classification = better gold retention. Also makes panning easier of course. From what I've heard, the Llano gold is tiny so classify small, maybe 1/8 inch (8 mesh really).

 

[goldog]

Sounds like you have a sluice. As mentioned above you'll need a pan and sniffer bottle. Realize that ALL 3 WILL FLOAT! I've lost both pans and bottles as they will float AWAY. The sluice won't go far but... Be sure its not trying to leave.

As Old Buzzard would say "Git 'yerself a No2 shovel... Once you're in the river cobbles, find the ones bigger than your head, more like watermelons. Heck find a Smart car. Around and down from those is where you'll pick up some color.

Finding a buddy who knows how is probably the best advise when you are getting started. Someone familiar with your area can point you toward the paying material Pay attention to the small things like the local "heavies" etc... Where I am at I'll see certain rock or pebble types (magnetite). For you it may be something else.

 

[Lookin4goaled]

Sample before digging... Just because it has all the indications of a good spot doesn't mean it is... Also sample every few feet during your dig. If you get some decent gold out of a hole there's no guarantee that the hole will continue to produce forever. Don't wanna be putting in a ton of sweat and gettin skunked without knowing it.. Good luck to you! Hope you have a blast and get some great gold!

 

[Gold Rover]

This is my 3rd season of prospecting, so I'm a noob, but I've learned a lot. Much of it comes from this and other forums and lots of books (my wife's a librarian) and videos. I've dug in dumb places and great places for gold and learned something from both. The fact that you are doing it is the most important thing right now. Failure is an important aspect of experimentation, so live and learn and enjoy the progression.

I was too anxious to get the sluice running at first. Anywhere with water and a history of gold was all it took for me to set up and run buckets of material. Now I prospect more and sluice less.

I thought that smaller gravel was the stuff to play in. I've found that fist size rocks and bigger are superior and basketball size is better than fist size.

Learn to pan properly as it is the basis of the whole deal. Once I finally found gold, I used it to learn to pan better and really played with it to see how it acts in different situations in the pan. Also, once you find gold, your questions about "is it gold?" will disappear. Once you see it compared to the other stuff in the bottom of the pan you will recognize it in the future.

Persistence and a lack of concern over getting skunked, using what you've learned from your failures and having fun doing it is the key.

 

[DizzyDigger]

<snip>
Persistence and a lack of concern over getting skunked, using what you've learned from your failures and having fun doing it is the key.

 

[fishnfacts]

Time is growing near, car is all packed. I leave in 5 hours on a 3 hour cruise, 3 hour cruise.
I totally expect to find nothing but a speck would be great, anything more and I will be doing the old fist pump.
I want to thank everyone who replied and everyone on Tnet for all the advice and all the info that they freely put out there for all the green horns like me to at least have a chance to see some color at the end of a long day of enjoying ourselves.
Again, a big AU to all!

P.S. If I find a speck or flake, can I call myself a prospector?

Ron

 

[goldhog]

Everything BEGINS.... and ENDS.... in the pan.
If you never become a GREAT panner... you'll struggle with prospecting and mining.
(Unless you have a bunch of money to pay people that can.)

My suggestion to ALL beginners.
Buy some cons that have fine gold in them.
MAKE SURE they have fine gold in them, not just a few salted pickers.
You can find them cheap.

Mix those cons in with raw dirt.
Practice until you are an expert on fine gold panning.
This may take many months of practice and literally 1000's of pans.

Be able to distinguish fine gold instantly and not WONDER... is that gold in my pan?

Watch panning videos and try to learn the techniques of several people and see which works best for you.

Doc

 

[russau]

my mistakes were: buying equipment before I know how to really use it, not knowing enough to get started when I did start, not getting with someone that did know what they were doing. things that did help: finally getting with someone that does know what they were doing( now the internet really helps, BUT theres no comparison being with someone else), do lots of test pans all over where you want to work and noteing exactly where they were, and before you buy anything- go out with someone and try theres to see how its done. I know its hard to believe but you may not like that type of prospecting/mining! and once you do get into this ,your now a prospector/miner and NOT a "recreational". casual, parttime anything or youll just eliminate yourself from the 1876/1872 mining laws and give the wacoenviromentalists more fuel for their fire against us! good luck today and I wish I was there to see your face once you pull out that gold from your pan!

 

[Hoser John]

#1-FIRST AID KIT #2 - a nice big gun as you never need one until ya need one,then toooo late,never leave home without one in todays drug fueled insanity-John

 

[midnightmoon]

Do NOT get discouraged, and if you do ... don't give up.

It may take awhile (for me it did anyhow) to get that first color, but then it seems to know your address and shows up more often.

... and always wear sunscreen.

 

[fishnfacts]

Just got home and plan on a nice post for everyone after some lunch and I download my camera.
It was unbelievable and thanks to all the help and about 20 spots, I found that golden honey just where it should have been.
More to come..............

 

[Prospector70]

Fantastic!

Oh I made many mistakes, pans floating away. Dropped tools in the river. Keene Sluice upside down 10 feet from where I put it. Cheap buckets that get cracked easy.. Like Hoffman mining but on a smaller less expensive scale.
If I was just starting I would get a BGT
I would get proper river gear, (waders / gloves / Polarized sunglasses (to see where you are walking easier)
I would go to and fro with a two wheel dolly. Nothing worse than trying to carry everything back to the car after you are already exhausted haha.

Can't wait to see the juice, great job!

 

[TheGoldProspector]

Only three--

1. Be ready to start early and work hard - this pasttime is not for the weary, or for those thinking they will be sitting on one spot of the river's edge panning..

2. Secure your sluice - this goes for not only making sure the box is running correctly, But Also making sure it is secured down by force/tied to an anchor..

3. Beware of your surroundings - at all times. This goes from before you Even begin the hike down to the water... Be prepared to stay hydrated, good shoes, proper bug/sun spray..

For Us prospectors, this may be the best place on earth; our Disneyland.. Just remember to keep your head on straight, dont blow your wallet your first time down mainstreet and dont follow the beaten path.. With that, you will be just fine


May your pans be heavy!!