Dry Washer Question for the bored;

[grumpy]

Afternoon friends;
I know most of us in the heat are bored inside and i have been pondering a question for a piece of fall equipment; Dry Washer or Drywasher im not sure how it spells there;
I see there are about 600 models and makes and sizes of the things; Can anyone refer me to a very good one that is reasonable?? I have looked and studied several and the best i can tell is size is probally needed to make more certain recovry and method of operation could add to that also; The keene 151 seems to be the most popular one i find in all areas of operation??

Next question is just how effiecient are dry washers??? a recirulating highbanker (protable unit) if large enough to handle the project seeems to be to me much much more efficient tool but also able to work less dirt?
And so if i could get a little feedback on these subjects while were trying to stay cool id really appreciate it;
Thanks much and luck to all
Grumpy

 

[parrott]

The Keene 151 is great for high volume... it can keep a small crew of three or more busy working and
sharing duties. It is a contant air, the other choice is the bellows. But as far as production the 151 i
a good choice as far as running dirt.

The dirt needs to be dry and not lumpy...Wet washing methods usually more effecient then
using air. I had an early 151, but my buddies and me too were getting older and
slower... I sold it for $400 usa back when gold was about $450 usa.. Now with gold about $1700 usa,
drywashing (dry washing) should be making a comeback as even a "speck" is worth recovering.

 

[XT18000]

I'ed go with a small recirulating highbanker if hauling the water is no issue, maybe two of them. They will cost less than the Keene 151 and are
more efficient and a WHOLE LOT CLEANER to work with. EFFICENCY is what recovers the most GOLD, not how much dirt you can throw
in any gived time. Be sure to screen out as much trash from the water as possible between tubs ( two is good three is better ) and you should
have little to slow you down.

 

[nvchris]

[size=medium]Get an Ol' Yeller from Frank C
12 volt puffer with the best recovery of any unit (drywasher)

 

[Bucket 247]

I would tend to agree, Frank makes a hell of a drywasher, they are light, portable, available in different sizes...while like Parrot said the Keene is a no-nonsense feed me dirt monster that might work a little faster than your prepared to shovel, water is always better for finding small gold but not always practical, drywashers do a pretty good job.

 

[parrott]

Bucket... I agree, Franks drywashers can be used by one person while the keene151 is best with
several or more sharing the duties and the gold...

 

[Bucket 247]

And also Parrott, another plus is that Franks drywashers are a relative steal in price compared to the 700+ bucks for most major mfg's. Also, while we're on the subject...theres a guy on the ArizonaOutBack forum selling his Keene Puffer DW212, now that machine can definitely keep up with one guy. but its a pinch on the bulky side for a guy like me that needs mobility and I like to sample and pack up for another area quite often, but if you have a spot you plan on being in for the day its a great drywasher I've had my Keene for 15 years or better and it keeps puffing away year after year.

 

[Hobo lobo]

While bellow washers work fine, I prefer the constant flow, because I like to work the shallow bedrock in small washs and the blower can be reversed and be used as a vacuum cleaner, NOTHING cleans the bedrock and cleans out the cracks and crevasses like a vac. IMO a whisk broom and dust pan leave most of the really fine gold on & in the bedrock

 

[Bucket 247]

Hobo...I totally agree that nothing can clean out a crack better than a vac, I've got two short video's out there on Crack-Vac-n... one during the day and one at night. Very fun!!

 

[parrott]

Thanks Bucket... Drywashing is a last resort. A Keene 151 can keep a small crew of about three people busy. Production and quality; moving dirt and not losing gold should be the goal... Today a small speck is a "Keeper." js

 

[Dwayne2010]

I heard that a Keene 151 drywasher will lose gold if you can't keep it fed? I also was thinking that if a guy could have 20 5 gallon pails full of dirt at the ready, that one man should be able to keep a keen 151 going? I know that it uses a lot more gas too, but if I were to buy a keene 151 I would shut it down after I have run my 20 pails of dirt. Clean out the riffle tray. And then get back to work filling my pails. Has anyone else done this or tried this? Is 50 degrees above ambient worth the extra 500$ over the Keene 140?

 

[thedeserttortoise]

My partner just got the 151. He love's it. I still use a small unit made locally by an outfit called Packwasher. It's a blower operated model and I like using my blower to vacuum the cracks too. I've done a bunch of testing on the dry washer and if you kind of learn its maximum feed amount you can keep the recovery up. I would still use my G1 or other sluices if there was water around here but there isn't. It's pretty much dry wash or nothing. The following photo is an example of about a 7 to 8 five gallon bucket run. This was in my little dry washer. The thing I like about the small one is that I just pack it and the blower right down to where I'm working. I pre-classify with a 1/2 inch screen and dump it in. If I'm sampling I'll pan out a run before going to the next. If it's a good spot I'll just run most the day and clean up at the end. PS> This is a picture of an exemplary run. Got two or three of these out of a bend in this little arroyo on one of our claims. We have one other area on the same claim that works out about this good in spots. Get a few of those great spots, then hardly a peek for a day or so. I'm still trying to find where it's breaking off the vein. It's coarse enough I think I'm getting close?

 

[nvchris]

Nothing in the rules that say you can't have a puffer and a gas vac, I just can't stand to listen to the high pitched loud noise of a 2 stroke motor, when you vacuum and run its damn near nonstop.
At least with a puffer you only listen to the vac for the time it takes to "clean up".

One tip is never let any drywasher's hopper run low, turn off and then restarting (at full throttle) without doing one of the following, emptying it or tossing a shovel full of fine tailing on it. This lessens the impact of the first surge of air that can blow out cons. Think of it as a surge suppresser.

Desert gold can often fool you with its corse texture into thinking your close to a vein, more time then not the source is long gone and the placer is what is left. But don't stop looking! Test the ridges and any saddles look for any contact zones.

Odds are the loads that are left are the ones that haven't weathered out into the drainages and were missed by the old timers. This is where the metal detector is your tool of choice.

 

[thedeserttortoise]

Nothing in the rules that say you can't have a puffer and a gas vac, I just can't stand to listen to the high pitched loud noise of a 2 stroke motor, when you vacuum and run its damn near nonstop.
At least with a puffer you only listen to the vac for the time it takes to "clean up".

One tip is never let any drywasher's hopper run low, turn off and then restarting (at full throttle) without doing one of the following, emptying it or tossing a shovel full of fine tailing on it. This lessens the impact of the first surge of air that can blow out cons. Think of it as a surge suppresser.

Desert gold can often fool you with its corse texture into thinking your close to a vein, more time then not the source is long gone and the placer is what is left. But don't stop looking! Test the ridges and any saddles look for any contact zones.

Odds are the loads that are left are the ones that haven't weathered out into the drainages and were missed by the old timers. This is where the metal detector is your tool of choice.

nvchris... you know, I hardly ever participate in the forums any more. A shame too. Your suggestion hit on one solid point that I had overlooked. The ridges... why is it we always want to head to the bottom all the time. There's a ridge with a saddle right above the arroyo that I got about three pans like that from. I still pick up pretty good samples there. Thing is, the top of the ridge and that saddle should show promise. Besides, the new mining company coming in here at the old Copper Flats area in Sth Western NM just left a series of survey marks and tapes along that same saddle. About a half block long series of these little dirt pedestals with foil on them along with a line of red tape along the same path. I've tried to run into them and ask what it means. I think its a fault or rift, maybe contact zone or something. They have bought up everything right to the very southern boundary of two of our claims here. Maybe their hard work can lead me to a possible hot spot. Anyway. It's that ridge top in line with the saddle that I'll be looking at this week... Thanks for your thoughts....

 

[jdeluisa]

Hello, Where in NM do you live? I am in Albuquerque