Intesting details in old gold mining paintings.

I have been studying old paintings to knock up some of my own mining equipment. One interesting detail is the riffles in the Chinese rocker boxes often have a dip in the middle. Is this to help clear rolling rocks or for some other reason ? I think there is alot we can learn from the little details in old drawings.

I have no idea on why it would they would have a dip, but I reckon you are right about learning from some of these old pics.

Heres anouther useful detail from an old photo. For the dipper, what looks like a coffee can with a stick pushed through what might be a square hole as the stick looks square at that point and slightly offset from center. Makes sense for turning. Imagine trying to explain to a fella like this that over a century later after this photo was taken some one on there Iphone would be using something called the internet to work out exactly how he was doing what he was doing. he has no riffles but a blanket. Maybe chasing the fine stuff in sandy material.

The dip is to clear material and the square stick is so he can turn the ladle.

Heres anouther interesting set up. The concept of a spring dolly is pretty well understood. but I like his little fines capturing shoot at the bottom of the stump that runs into the pan. Must have some mesh at the top end and a tunnel bored through with a auger bit. Save having to dig the material out as it would be self classifying. Smart.

I see a lot of people moving back to the good old gold Cradle after the ban on Pumps here in NSW. I also understand most of the knowlage on how to use them has been lost. Sure it sounds simple dirt and water in one end gold the other end simple hey. Well not so it is the motion in this device which is the key as to retention of the gold. There has been many types of riffles used in the rocker but the one shown above I would say were Mercury traps as well. But I will not say to much about why's and what for's in the use of mercury.

Below are some pages on the the Rocker box and it's use they are a very good read and they do hold some top information.
cheers Jemba







Placer mining in the western United States : part 1
Published
1934







https://babel.hathitrust.org

I down loaded this some time ago and printed it out .

Goldfreak said:

Heres anouther interesting set up. The concept of a spring dolly is pretty well understood. https://www.prospectingaustralia.co...082/1630726222_screenshot_20210904_124905.jpg but I like his little fines capturing shoot at the bottom of the stump that runs into the pan. Must have some mesh at the top end and a tunnel bored through with a auger bit. Save having to dig the material out as it would be self classifying. Smart. https://www.prospectingaustralia.co...082/1630726029_screenshot_20210904_124934.jpg

Click to expand...

That is an awesome set-up! Some of the old diggers were true engineers, pushed to create and innovate a solution to put food on the table. :Y: