If you want to see more check out my other Dream Mat videos in this playlist. ua-cam.com/play/PLQTZxyzC7xEFO_aeyKpn3L2Odf1CZPByQ.html Did you like this video? Please thank me by hitting the like button, SUBSCRIBING and leaving a comment. I plan on releasing more videos shortly. Thanks for watching!
A cool and informative test. But don't forget that lead is actually quite light. Gold is around 70% heavier, which is getting on towards double the weight, so will behave differently (hopefully better 🙂)
Yes that's easy to forget when you see the lead sitting next to gold in a pan. I'll do a better job of keeping that in mind. I would think with the slower water flow the big lead would have stayed in there. I'm sure it was the shape that did it.
Gold: 19.32 g/cm³ Lead: 11.34 g/cm³ Calculation: The percentage difference in density is given by: Percentage difference=Density of gold−Density of lead Density of lead×100 Percentage difference=Density of lead Density of gold−Density of lead×100 Percentage difference=19.32−11.3411.34×100≈70.4% Percentage difference=11.3419.32−11.34×100≈70.4% Conclusion: Gold is approximately 70.4% heavier than lead, good call.
Even after adjusting your flow that was not enough flow. You need much more flow. 99% of all prospectors will never find a piece of gold in their lifetime like the biggest lead you used so this should be of no concern to almost everyone. Also, the specific gravity of gold is almost twice as much as lead (19.32 vs 11.34) so being almost 2 times heavier in water, lead is not a good comparison. Tungsten would be a much better comparison. In my stream sluice, highbanker, 6” dredge, and now 7 YPH trommel, nothing compares to Dream Mat for all gold down to flour gold capture. Even in my 6” dredge with surges and shutdowns between cleanups, over 50% of my gold is 100 to 200 mesh gold. This is a good attempt of a test, but more flow and using real gold or tungsten would be a much better test.
I have some tungsten for the next test. This wasn't an attack on DM. It's just a cautionary tale to think about the variables while choosing the right mat for what you're doing. Thanks for watching!
Vickie and Ryan's gold adventures here. On tight budget, and I traded a to heavy and bulky for me dredge for a 1 1/2" highbanker dredge combo. Wanted to purchase a combo dream matt but, $ and taxes and shipping stopped me. I already had a big heavy long dream matt Incan never get pitched right nor have enough water flow to use. Could just be me. So I decided with the highbanker extra water flow I would cut the matt I already owned but never use. Surprise it was exactly the right size. And it is the big not combo dream matt. Was happy to hear someone already discovered what I was wondering before I lost any gold. Thanks. Appreciate the test.
Did you have a chance to run the setup that you described? DM matvis a godd system, I just don't like the combo mat if you have a chance of finding larger gold.
Great test! Even though gold is 19 times heavier I have found the same thing happen with larger flat pieces tumble out especially when the dream mat is not clearing out all the time.
Yes, gold is 19 times heavier than water and lead is 11 times heavier. In a sluice in this situation they should react about the same. I wanted to test how the mat handles flat gold, that's why I used flat lead. I've seen flat gold flap and tumble out of mats before. I was hoping the vortex style wells would hold it better. Rifles force gold higher up in the water, allowing it to gain more momentum.
Keep in mind it's not a perfect test. However, it's difficult to set up a sluice in the perfect situation out on the river. There's definitely some good info to consider before you hit the river.
Interesting test, but it immediately stood out to me that you are testing the mat for pieces larger than it's designed to capture. The mat alone is good if you are in an area where there is little chance of finding larger gold pieces.
Yes, and I made that point in the video. It's important to know the material you are sluicing and pick your gear accordingly. Beginners may not know that and fall for the marketing that DM does. These mats have limitations just like other mats on the market.
@@prospectingforadventure Yes you did at the very end, but you should have qualified what you were trying to prove relative to Dream Mat's Marketing if that was your goal. On that note, I've never seen Dream Mat advertise its product as being able to capture "big gold". As for big gold, I must say that I've never seen "big, flat gold". Maybe that's just a me thing. But again, that's not what Dream Mat is marketed for and you didn't provide anything to show that Dream Mat misleads with its marketing. Thus, your video came off as if you were trying to bash a Ford Escort for not being able to tow a 6 ton trailer.
@prospectingforadventure OK. You have links to "leaf gold". Great, I learned something and thanks for that. But I didn't say that was the problem with your video; it was just an observation. The problem with your video is that you are claiming that Dream Mat is misrepresenting the capability of their product. I just received a combination dream mat and it specifically says that the mat is for "fine gold recovery". I'm much more interested in seeing something that shows Dream Mat has misrepresented their product.
We are pulling past 150 mesh in wash plants running constant feed in the larger mats & dredge mat, fine gold is not the issue. The larger cells do allow for larger size gold recovery. Now on the subject of Combo mat, what we don't see is the 1 to 1 exact flow, same exact material, and same feed rate compared on this other system that is supposed to be better. We are confident that Dream mat has the best gravity gold recovery on the planet & are willing to step up to the plate & prove it. I Love to Race! I edited this comment after rewatching this video. I still stand behind the knowing the proper mat size for gold recovery would have improved recovery. The regular vortex & dredge mat would have better large gold recovery. But do you have big gold in that area?
There you are, I was waiting for you. I'll set up any test you want to do. I'll give my non biased opinion on everything I test. A controlled environment test doesn't really reflect how it will operate out in a stream with different variables. Not sure if you watched the whole video or not. I specifically said I was impressed with the fine gold recovery and that I would use the mat again. I just won't use the combo mat for areas with large gold. What makes you think I would be upset if I lost a test? I'd be happy to lose and see what works best. The primary reason I bought that mat is because I already know other mats struggle with flat gold. And that the mat is advertised as being a very forgiving mat. Some mats are hard to set up. People should know every system has limitations. And this wasn't an attack on Dream Mat. I could see how it would appear that way.
Not every mat performs the same at the same angle and water flow. Each mat should be ran per manufacturers recommendations. Only then is it a fair fight. Or have all mats being tested ran side by side cycling the proper setting for 1 mat at a time and see who comes out on top most often.
I rewatched the video and have to say the test was a properly feed sluice & good overall test. The big flat lead should be replaced w/ tungsten the same size for a true represented of gold. Lead is allot lighter, but a good poke in the eye test. I still would like to see the unit that does better in the exact environment. I have some flat tungsten test pieces I will send you.
@TheDSP1970 Thank you for watching the whole thing. It's important to see the context of my test. I would love to test with the tungsten. I need to find a spot where I can get that larger flat gold in my test pan. Lol
The gold in this test location is small. I've found gold as large as 6 grams in some of my spots. One 4 gram piece that is fairly flat. Some cornflakes pushing a gram that are pretty flat and thin. Really it's the pieces that are the size of the thin, flat, hammered bird shot that I've seen move down other mats.
I believe 8 mesh is what you should screen the gravels to. But with the wrong angle, water flow or over feeding will cause gold loss. I'm not a fan of the multi mat. I don't know how having a mat with a different size cell is meant to work with the same water flow & angle. I'd maybe understand it it had a wider area with the smaller mat.
Really like this mat testing, Im doing gold prospecting since 12 years, using a sluice maybe 2 times, I really sticking to the panning skill and technique to increase volume, time come with age and try to figure out if its really a sluice can beat fast gold panning and recover more gold maybe.
I have a couple videos where I was speed panning and dumping the black sand in a bucket. Then I'd run the concentrate at home. I've wondered myself what is faster. I like the speed panning method if you're short on time. You don't waste the time it takes to set up the sluice.
Of course! Most of time it take few min to setup at the right place, it just a little controversial between two different techniques, its some physic involved but over backbreaking a sluice its thing to consider thats for sure! Thank for the video! 😊
Looked like a good "real world" kind of test for flat pieces. I bet if you are in a place where flat pieces are common, a safety pan at the sluice outlet would be a good place to catch anything that managed to bounce that far. Sure, it'll load up with the gravel, but, when it's 1/2-2/3 full, just buzz the metal detector over it before you discard the rocks.
Thank you! I acquired some tungsten rounds for my next test. Tungsten has nearly the same specific gravity as gold. It'll make for a more accurate test.
Sorry folks Im a gold hog guy . Just think when your dredging and everything of all sizes is going through your sluice. With much more flow . I've used and have faith in gold hog to just simply gas and go with no clean up dredging . How ever dream mat is my preferred mat for cleaning up cons in a controlled environment with uniform sized material. Great video and very informative thanks for sharing PPO out 😎.
I have that same box/mat and Ive found that if material is not classified to under 1/4th" - especially in high concentrations of black soil - Im losing more than half the gold
@Brian_DadBod2.0 Classifying always helps while sluicing. I think you run into that no matter what mat you're using. I went down to half inch in this video. The manufacturer claims you don't have to classify. It looks like you do need to classify to maintain peak efficiency of the mat.
@@prospectingforadventure I agree, I'm super new to all this, but I do know I had good gold in it and got pretty frustrated watching it blow out with a few bigger rocks going through. It's a learning curve I guess. I'm modifying mine now, putting V Matt in the drop area/flare, then Jarvis riffles over miners moss, then the mat. Wish me luck, I may have an expensive target in the works lol. It does work great for cleanup though!
Right on man! What rate were you? And what years were u in? I was in 40 from 82 to 84. And then some reserve time in WISCONSIN. What state are you in?. Was out prosecting with my daughter for the last time this season here in WIS... won't be to long and our water will be getting kind of hard.. lol.. today we got 2 inches of rain and flooded all the creeks around here. Here we only find flower gold. Talk to you later!!
Finally än actual proper test of dream mat. And just as I always thought its crap. The problem is it only has one type of capture zone, sure different sizes but still only one type.
Personally, I wouldn't go as far as to say it's crap. I believe the concept works. That being said, I prefer to use at least 2 different types of capture methods in my box. So I can't argue with that.
@@prospectingforadventure the reson i say its crap because I have never said a proper test of it against other mats, ie the other mats for example gold hog is not set up properly, especially by the creator of the mat. And when you point this out he gets mad etc and can't take proper feedback it seems.
It's easy to be biased when it's your baby. I've seen the test where 4 mats or so ran side by side with the same angle and water flow. Would have been nice to see the same test done at different angles and flows to see which one does the best most often.
@@prospectingforadventure sure but if someone comes withegitimare concerns for how tests are done you should not get mad, and yes that's one of the tests I'm talking about. That test says nothing really.
I am so glad to see you do this lead is a great test i use number 12 rat shot the smallest you can get. You can also vibe the sluice to get better results. The dirt I’m on has to be vibed I’m on a platinum deposit and the pure black sands I’m on are much bigger than the gold causing it to be just as heavy as the gold meaning my gold won’t settle out
I've seen the same issue with beach gold. It's so fine. The trick is getting the water flow and angle just right. Also, using a mat without any riffles that causes turbulence. You want smooth and flat water flow. Combined with the proper angle, you'll retain the gold.
@ ya that’s what I’ve done the gold just won’t settle unless I vibe it. I’ve got a great setup and I have to run like 2 to 3 degrees. What area you in? I’m in Michigan running upper peninsula beach gold
2:50 Your mistake right there. Adjusting water/angle to get such a large and flat piece of lead to rush through your sluice... Imagine what would happen to a taller rounded piece of gold. When I run enough water to move a 2" rock down my sluice such a piece of lead stays put on the feed. In fact, my biggest gold pieces to date have all been picked off the feed. They didn't move. Edit: You know though there should ideally be classification to avoid material bigger than 1/3 pocket size from going over a mat for ideal separation. I have progressive screens on mine covering the upper portions as I only let fine gold enter the micro area etc.
I appreciate the feedback. Others have said I wasn't using enough water. 🤷♂️ I made sure to note that those large pieces wouldn't have made it into the bucket because they didn't fit through my screen. My intent was to draw awareness using different sluice mats. Some manufacturers will have you believe they have the cure all mat. People need to understand that you'll likely need different mats for different conditions. My second point was showing how flat gold has a tendency to lift and tumble out. It's hard to pick up on all the info by skipping around on a video.
@@prospectingforadventure Yes for sure. It is a great example of how lift&tuble works. It might even be worse on deeper water giving more room to tumble. When I designed my sluices (for my own personal use only) I went through a lot of steps and analysis before I decided that any size sand/rock I can separate 100% reliably from a gold piece would only be 2x it's size at most. (Since gold is around 3x heavier than black sand etc.) I then tried to see if I could separate the flows of material a bit more so the larger stuff didn't block pockets for the finer gold. It's all about relative forces, and keeping everything agitated. In order to do that it appears you will have some gold migration if it is not protected by a layer of other material or it overfills a pocket. During assembly of my sluice I took some videos but I had not made it public. I've changed it now so you can see what I did for the upper areas with very fine pockets. ua-cam.com/video/A5-cD45XRd0/v-deo.html
Yeah I ran the dredge mat in my 4" dredge last summer. It's towards the top of my play list. I had a problem with the angular rocks wedging into the vortex holes. Eliminating those catch zones. So I get what you're saying. I need to try it again on a stream with smooth gravel for a fair opinion.
@@prospectingforadventure My biggest worry is the fine mesh I need at the start is too weak to handle the bigger rocks or even gravel I need to handle later on. I settled on a bit too coarse mesh on top. I wonder if I could have used a finer undermesh with a bit coarser protective mesh on top? That way most of the weight and force is carried by the coarser mesh but it doesn't limit the fineness of the classification for the first capture zone?
I haven't looked at the video yet. Have you seen the Jarvine riffles yet? Something like that might give you the structure you need. I've used multiple layers of mesh before. One for structure and one for classifying.
No test is a perfect test as all gold that is mined is non liberated gold and its impossible to get an exact yield because there is always variables in each yard of material. Great test.
I'll figure out a way to do a more controlled test for the next one. Really it's going to come down to my overall opinion after I use the mats for a while. I've used other mats as well.
I've head the dream mat is more forgiving while he hog has to be tuned properly. What do you think of this,?. I had a 35 foot long highbanker and fellow miners always susprized I had gold all the way down wonder if it's because I would dump 5 gallon buckits at a time into the distruction chamber. Thus flat boarding the upper part. Mats were mix of gold hog home made and carpet runner v matt also some negative slope areas to slow the flow and give different catch areas
Dream mat is advertised to be a very forgiving mat. So far that seems to be true running a stream sluice. For the dredge mat I need more time with it. Gold hog I've found some styles are more forgiving than others. They don't seem too terribly difficult to setup. They also struggle to catch that big, light and flat gold. I've seen it tumble out. That's when the correct style of mat comes in or adding a variety of mats.
I run a mini mat and get mostly fine gold in my material,i also use a drop riffle and like both sluices,my big box or production box is gold hog and i dont use that as much due to flow issues but have caught nice gold in it to.
I love the drop riffle for hiking in! The plastic sluices are so light and they perform well. I really think th most important thing is to just understand how to dial in whatever sluice you're using. Sometimes, you have to pick something based on gold size.
Dredge matt is definitely dream matts beat matt for running material. I run miners moss expanded metal, Hungarian riffle qnd dredge matt in my Hugh banker moss and dredge matt perfect combo
Yes, accept for people who are using that mat in a high banker or muddy water. Those people won't see the gold until they finish. The video was more aimed at people who don't have experience running sluice boxes and people who think Dream Mat is a magical cure all. Thank you for sharing your experience.
Awesome test! I use dream mat, i have the dredge mat and river mat they have big cells, anything smaller than that might be good for cleanup sluice. After seeing this worrys me about flat pieces, have you done this test with gold hog?
Thank you. I run a combination of gold hog, carpet and moss in my dredge. The first 1/3 is talon and I think Razor Back. I had 3 or 4 large corn flake pieces settle in there. The whole reason I tried DM was because in a stream sluice with gold hog I've seen smaller flat gold migrate through. That type of gold is inherently difficult to catch. If the edge catches current, it likes to sail out. I've had great success with it in my dredge tho. I think the larger cell DM is the way to go if you're using it in a sluice. I'm not a fan of the combo in area's with larger gold. I did a similar test with DM on my dredge mat and ended up not liking the test. The Jarvine Riffle caught most of the larger test lead. Ideally, I would perform the same tests again with my newly aquired tungsten rounds. Lead just isn't heavy enough for an accurate test. I also had issues with jagged bedrock clogging up the cells. All mats have limitations. The trick is to pick something that works for the conditions that you're working in.
@@prospectingforadventure cape- d with all that ramp, makes it look like it wouldnt hold gold well. Even if they made a mini vortex with regular vortex combo mat would better.
@@prospectingforadventure oh for sures...im not doubting its performance, just the inferiority of the " new" design as compared to the Vortex... im getting ready to buy one myself. Im in central california and i already got the gold fever. Wootwoot
I think, based off where the water Chanel V is in the sluice, you've got too much velocity of water/angle. I find this to be an issue myself for river sluice's and is why I've moved to pumps, so I can control those things more. Completely agree though it's all about knowing both your equipment and its capabilities as well as what your after. Test pans are crucial.
Unfortunately, not everyone understands how a sluice works. I'm not sure if you watched the whole thing or not. I was explaining that the mat and others have limitations. I chose this mat to prove a point because of the marketing. It's not a unicorn cure all and many new prospectors are going to be disappointed when they figure that out the hard way. That mat works well, but there are many styles and sizes.
@@prospectingforadventure You're supposed to choose your mat for the size of gold you're getting. Why did you think the Cape d or micro mat would catch that huge lead "flake" in the first place? Those size mats aren't made to catch that large stuff. You would want a larger mat if you're expecting larger gold, it's pretty common sense really. If dream mat isn't working, it's operator error.
Excellent video, and I respect the honesty. It's a rare thing nowadays. So that's why I am gonna ask you for your opinion, and why I am subscribing. I live in the northeast where there supposedly isn't alot of big pieces of gold. It's more the smaller stuff. I dint want to waste money and I am taking this up as another outdoor hobby cuz the VA said get outdoor more. So, in your opinion is a 36 inch long sluice suffice? And, which mat do you recommend that I get for up here. This way if I get on the gold I don't loose it. Thank you!
Thank you for checking in. The standard 36" sluice box is great for what you're describing. You'll want to classify your gravel down to 1/4 inch for smaller gold. 1/8th inch and 1/2 inch will work as well, but they have their disadvantages and advantages. 1/4 is a happy medium. That combination mat in the video is a good option. I would probably go with the mat that is all one size. Like the larger cells in that combo mat. For a beginner, it's easier to set up than traditional hungarian style boxes. There are other types of rubber mats out there, too. However, some require cutting and gluing. I'm not a DM fan boy, but I haven't seen sufficient evidence that it doesn't work for instream sluice boxes and it's excellent for beginners. You can go on their website and find a sluice box with a mat included. The most important thing is to understand the material you're running, watching the water flow and angle of the box. You can blow gold out of any mat on the market if you're careless. Hope this helps.
@@prospectingforadventure yes this helps alot my friend. Thanks for taking the time. I also heard there is a DM where you don't have to classify anything and just put it in the sluice. Like I said, it's mostly placer gold up here. So smaller stuff. Some pickers and maybe a few nuggets. Exactly what is the name of the mat you think I should use for this material please. Also, can u give me any hints as tonwhere I can get reliable intel on where a good gold spot maybe. I am asking about Google earth, does that work? Should I go to the geology dept were I got my masters from? Or what sites online can I get reliable intel on where there was ancient volcanic activity? I type this in and wind up with everything but what I want! 😂 it's frustrating
Good video bro, if you are not to confident on the Dream mat, You should take a good look at the Miracle mat... it sort of looks the same but is Not. Take care and enjoy the adventure....
Similar tests. Every rubber mat and drop riffle I've tested with flat lead or coins has had a similar problem. That's why I got a DM, hoping the vortex motion would stop that tumble or cartwheel motion. It also doesn't have the riffles that kick small gold back up into faster water. I have tungsten rounds now. They have about the same specific gravity as gold. It'll be a more accurate test. I do favor gold hog in areas with angular rocks. Those types of rocks get trapped in DM cells.
If you're running DM in a sluice, it's best to classify before running. DM says you can shovel right into it, but they also say it works best pre classifying.
That's why I took it out of my dredge. My goal is to run some controlled tests this winter. I pan the tailings on occasion to test for losses. I've never seen anything substantial or worse than other mats.
I've seen larger pieces of gold tumble right out of sluices. It's crazy. I know lead isn't the most accurate test, but it clearly illustrates my point. 👍
The only thing I could say is. The big 3 flat pieces that floated out. When you shoveled them in they sat at the top the. You had to force them to move. Reality if you seen that wouldn’t you have just pulled those out?
What if the water wasn't clear or someone was using this mat in a high banker where that section is covered by the hopper? I was testing the mat, not the flare. Ideally, I would have had a little more water and angle. Additionally, this video was to inform beginners of things to consider while running this mat or a sluice in general.
@@prospectingforadventure that is true I have pure clean water in my streams. I didn’t think of those kinds of variables. Love the video though awesome test I watched the whole thing unlike some of these people haha. I am a beginner as you can tell lol 😂 thank you 🙏
Keep in mind that pure lead has approximately a little more than 1/2 the density of pure gold. The density of gold is what keeps the gold in the sluice. If you want to really see the difference use flat gold.
Yes, I'm aware. I still feel like it's a fairly good test for a slower stream sluice. It wasn't meant to be an end all be all test. I was just having fun on the river and shared my experience. However, I have received some tungsten flat rounds for the next time I do a test. Tungsten has nearly the same specific gravity rating as gold. Thank you for making your point in a kind manner. So many people just want to say someone else is wrong.
Just use the mini mat that I have in my 6 inch box or the river mat fam. I think that the combo mat was designed backwards. I do love my Dream Mat. But I'll pass on that combo mat indeed fam. Keep on having fun getting that Au and living the dream. Gold Squad Out 🤠
I have some tungsten for the next test. This wasn't an attack on DM. It's just a cautionary tale to think about the variables while choosing the right mat for what you're doing. Thanks for watching!
In a perfect world 😂 I purchased some recently because I'm dealing with alot of blk sand and fine stardust.. I've been talking with goldhunter77 about us possibly doing a gutter sluice off just to test it out head to head with his design on beach sand . Should be interesting. From my understanding classification is recommended with DM . Thanks for a great demonstration so many variables to look at with the shinys.
Actually, I ran a similar test in my dredge with the dredge mat. The larger flat pieces still tumbled. The gravel was fractured bedrock, that mat doesn't exchange that type of material very well. So, I want to try that test again with the typical round gravel. I forsee better results. That's why I post my experiences on here. My goal was to expose new prospectors to some variables they may not have thought about yet.
Yes, if I can. Sometimes, you can't see it depending on the material you're running. The water may not be clear enough. Or if you're running a high banker or dredge where you aren't next to the box.
Would the size/shape/surface area of the piece of lead have something to do with it? Seems it would act like a "kite" the sluice box. I just ordered a 10x38 combo sluice, so I hope that's the case! LOL
Yes, that was one of the main points I was testing. Flat gold is hard to catch. I was hoping the cells would suck the gold down and protect it. The test wasn't perfect, but it was a good visual demonstrating how something as heavy as lead can sail through when it's flat and thin. I did this because I've experienced hard to catch flat gold in multiple locations.
with my experience with dream mat I've come to the conclusion it just isn't what the hype makes it out to be I use the gray the green and micro purple and unless you classify it to 1/8 it just fills up and clogs the cells and gold blows out you can't beat expanded metal and moss with v rib or goldhog matting I feel I wasted my money buying dream mats
Yes, gold is 19 times heavier than water and lead is 11 times heavier. In a sluice in this situation they should react about the same. Not all flat gold will float. It depends on size and surface tension. I wanted to test how the mat handles flat gold, that's why I used flat lead. I've seen flat gold flap and tumble out of mats before. I was hoping the vortex style wells would hold it better. Rifles force gold higher up in the water allowing it to gain more momentum.
Ever go fishing? I hope you go to the fishing channels and complain about the same thing? I've pulled buckets of lead out of the rivers over the years. That's also why I took the big peices out as they tumbled towards the end. Nice comment though. 👍
That's funny because when I was a kid, my dad and I used to walk the rivers, picking up lead, fishing line and trash. So that's where a lot of the lead that I removed came from. The rest of it is from gold prospecting adventures. Nice try though. 🤣 I hope you also volunteer some of your time cleaning up the areas you enjoy.
@prospectingforadventure the combo dream Matt is a bad design because in order to catch gold in the micro dream matt first you have to slow the water down. Then it plugs up the bigger cells at the bottom. If you have a higher water flow for the bigger cells at the bottom the gild gets washed out if the micro cells at the top. I used it on the beach on lake superior and my tailings had almost as much gold as the sluice Matt did
Have you had the same result with course fines from the river? Beach gold does best with smooth laminar flow. I use the gold cube for that. I see where you're coming from though. The end of the sluice dictates how you run the rest of the mat.
@prospectingforadventure I use the devon gold vdr Matt now most of the time. Sometimes my own home made design. I'm pretty happy with the results from them
Dream matt makes q huge mistake if you want to run just dream matt run dredge matt first then a flair of 4-8 inches qnd micro matt. Slow the water down for micro matt keep the dredge matt pumping run both matts as flat as possible want to count to 10 after material hits matts and the matts have cleared threw the material already. Don't be afraid to turn the water flow up box flater this is how dream matts do well.
hello sir, I just bought this combo product for France. I'm also a little disappointed. Much more detailed instructions from the seller are missing! . I notice that if the flow is too slow, the rifles open their mouths, if the flow is faster, the rifles open their mouths, in return the fine gold flakes tend to leak from what I have observed. I saw that it had a slope of 9 to 9.5%. It remains very difficult for the 2 smaller rifles! the vortex should work better. I will add that the carpet I ordered is 8x36, it does not respect the dimensions! 36 goes to 34 so really 2inch difference 😂
if you have a piece of gold that big as that flat lead, you can pick it out before it washes away. Dream mat works awesome. also its important to classify correctly with dream mat. when running small cell mats like the 3 section you are running, you have to classify to 1/4 or smaller. with the bigfoot mat with extra large cells you can classify 1/2 in or larger or run unclassified. Good Job on explaining the exchange process.
What if you're using this mat in a high banker? You aren't sitting over the mat like you are just sluicing. The manufacturer is advertising that you don't have to classify with this mat. I personally know that it's going to perform better using a smaller classifyer. I made this video to demonstrate that this mat isn't a cure-all mat that a lot of beginners might believe. Beginners fall victim to hype and manufacturers' claims. Without real-life experience, it's hard to make informed decisions.
A good gold catch should catch 95+% 0f your classified gold and scour should not be a to much problem . A good sluice should be set up to catch multiple types of gold nugget, flake and flour
My dredge has different stages for different size gold. I use more than one type of mat too. I was hoping this combo mat would do the same for my sluice. It works, but it's just not a cure-all.
Run more water. 3-4x.. more vigorous the water the less shit gets packed in the cells, but it keeps the black sand, and that’s what you want. Chunk of gold to fall on the black sands, and because of the swirling motion(activation) of the cells the gold will sink though the sand and boot some sand out
Not to mention if your big gold gets hung up at the top, just grab it before it tumbles down. Obviously not a fool proof plan. 😂 I’m sure u already on that tho
What happens if someone chooses to use this mat in a highbanker configuration? You aren't hovering over the top of the box. Many new prospectors don't understand that each mat has different limitations. I'd use this again as a stream sluice, but I wouldn't use it in my highbanker.
To be fair, half of the big lead pieces sat still right at the top before the mat and you had to dump on top of it multiple times to get it to move. If you saw a dime sized gold piece like that sitting there at the top, you would be too busy shitting your pants to put dirt on top of it to make it move.
The goal was to test the mat, not the flare. I take it you have never run a high banker or dredge? Or ran a sluice in muddy water? Not everyone has the ability to see their gold at the top of the box until they shut down or remove the sluice from the stream. I don't know about you. I'd prefer to trust the mat than rely on my eyes to catch the gold.
I do both. I feed in the center when I want to see the amount of black sand that comes out of the pile at the end. It also concentrates the gold on the center of the inspection mat.
Nice try... Have you ever heard of corn flake gold? I have personally seen large flat gold captured with traditional hungarian riffles. Those are actually more difficult to capture because of the potential wavy or uneven shape. So if a smooth flat piece migrates, I can conclude a piece that's suseptible to catching fast water would also migrate. If I could post a photo here, I would. I have also seen flat gold tumble just like the lead did in the test. For the next test, I have flat tungsten rounds. That would eliminate the specific gravity concerns.
I don't like the combo matts they make no sense to me. Your fine gold matt is your micro matt this should be ypur last matt. Also 3 different size matts in one matt all 3 should have different flows of water
I'm not a fan of having the micro mat in there. I'd rather it just be the last two sections. The theory is you catch the fine gold first while it's moving along the bottom. Once you introduce it to more turbulent water it becomes more difficult to capture. The larger gold is easier to catch.
That's not true. I've had traditional hungarian riffles catch that larger flat lead and coins. I've also seen certain gold hog mats catch similar items. I bet the DM mats with larger cells would perform better as well. You don't know if you do try. And I have seen flat gold the size of the large flat lead in my test.
12 is on the steeper side. They advertise the mat as a very forgiving mat. That's essentially why I did the test. If that's true, it shouldn't need a specific angle and water flow. Most of the information is general information to watch out for while running any type of sluice.
The way i see it . Dream mats are the best general use mats. you still need to match size to the material Size and water flow or use multimats . if you know your specific needs and will be repeatedly dealing with the same or similar situations , goldhog matting will let you dial in your boxes for those situations. no matting is perfect. Most people suggest a saftypan when possible. Dredges are very inefficiant because of their short wide boxes and always lose gold. the only real fix is making a much longer box .
The test is bogus! You NEED to test with lead that is similar size and shape to whatever is in your area. Have you ever seen or heard of anyone finding gold that big and that flat? A real test should would have been in a controlled environment, known weight of gold and a catch pan at the end of the sluice to catch whatever made it through.
If you want to see more check out my other Dream Mat videos in this playlist.
ua-cam.com/play/PLQTZxyzC7xEFO_aeyKpn3L2Odf1CZPByQ.html
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Good video Chris. Thats one of the most honest and informative videos I've seen concerning dream mat
Thank you, I appreciate that!
A cool and informative test. But don't forget that lead is actually quite light. Gold is around 70% heavier, which is getting on towards double the weight, so will behave differently (hopefully better 🙂)
Yes that's easy to forget when you see the lead sitting next to gold in a pan. I'll do a better job of keeping that in mind. I would think with the slower water flow the big lead would have stayed in there. I'm sure it was the shape that did it.
Yep, actually 80% but your right
Gold: 19.32 g/cm³
Lead: 11.34 g/cm³
Calculation:
The percentage difference in density is given by:
Percentage difference=Density of gold−Density of lead Density of lead×100
Percentage difference=Density of lead Density of gold−Density of lead×100
Percentage difference=19.32−11.3411.34×100≈70.4%
Percentage difference=11.3419.32−11.34×100≈70.4%
Conclusion:
Gold is approximately 70.4% heavier than lead, good call.
I think it was an honest evaluation all together. I'm a big believer in the vortex theory of catching the fine gold also.
Thank you. I like the vortex as well. You know me, though. I like to mix it up. Lol
@@prospectingforadventure yes sir I do know you enough to know that for sure!
I like using the regular vortex mat myself. Bigger cells, and it still catches the fly poop.
A Dream Mat or different brand?
@@prospectingforadventure dream mat original mat
Yeah, I wish this combo mat started with the Cape D mat and went two sizes up. Might need more water flow though. There's always a trade off.
@@prospectingforadventure I’m usually running the mat hot😂
Even after adjusting your flow that was not enough flow. You need much more flow. 99% of all prospectors will never find a piece of gold in their lifetime like the biggest lead you used so this should be of no concern to almost everyone. Also, the specific gravity of gold is almost twice as much as lead (19.32 vs 11.34) so being almost 2 times heavier in water, lead is not a good comparison. Tungsten would be a much better comparison. In my stream sluice, highbanker, 6” dredge, and now 7 YPH trommel, nothing compares to Dream Mat for all gold down to flour gold capture. Even in my 6” dredge with surges and shutdowns between cleanups, over 50% of my gold is 100 to 200 mesh gold. This is a good attempt of a test, but more flow and using real gold or tungsten would be a much better test.
your spot on bro! you have to have the eye for flat bits and feed it to the situation !!! nice 1 mate!
Thanks, that's basically what my critique was all about. I hate when those pieces flap around and grow wings.
Perfect example of Test, Test, Test.
Thanks for sharing.
🙏❤️🌲
Don't settle for "good enough". That's why I like to test my mats.
Great video Chris! That was a great way of testing it!
Thanks! Now to figure out how to get UA-cam to like it. Lol
Great experiment. Dream mat user my self. Definitely need to try that on the box and mats we use. 👍
I have some tungsten for the next test. This wasn't an attack on DM. It's just a cautionary tale to think about the variables while choosing the right mat for what you're doing. Thanks for watching!
Vickie and Ryan's gold adventures here. On tight budget, and I traded a to heavy and bulky for me dredge for a 1 1/2" highbanker dredge combo. Wanted to purchase a combo dream matt but, $ and taxes and shipping stopped me. I already had a big heavy long dream matt Incan never get pitched right nor have enough water flow to use.
Could just be me. So I decided with the highbanker extra water flow I would cut the matt I already owned but never use. Surprise it was exactly the right size. And it is the big not combo dream matt.
Was happy to hear someone already discovered what I was wondering before I lost any gold. Thanks. Appreciate the test.
Did you have a chance to run the setup that you described? DM matvis a godd system, I just don't like the combo mat if you have a chance of finding larger gold.
Great test! Even though gold is 19 times heavier I have found the same thing happen with larger flat pieces tumble out especially when the dream mat is not clearing out all the time.
Yes, gold is 19 times heavier than water and lead is 11 times heavier. In a sluice in this situation they should react about the same. I wanted to test how the mat handles flat gold, that's why I used flat lead. I've seen flat gold flap and tumble out of mats before. I was hoping the vortex style wells would hold it better. Rifles force gold higher up in the water, allowing it to gain more momentum.
I am glad you are doing this test because I have a dream mat small
Keep in mind it's not a perfect test. However, it's difficult to set up a sluice in the perfect situation out on the river. There's definitely some good info to consider before you hit the river.
Interesting test, but it immediately stood out to me that you are testing the mat for pieces larger than it's designed to capture. The mat alone is good if you are in an area where there is little chance of finding larger gold pieces.
Yes, and I made that point in the video. It's important to know the material you are sluicing and pick your gear accordingly. Beginners may not know that and fall for the marketing that DM does. These mats have limitations just like other mats on the market.
@@prospectingforadventure Yes you did at the very end, but you should have qualified what you were trying to prove relative to Dream Mat's Marketing if that was your goal. On that note, I've never seen Dream Mat advertise its product as being able to capture "big gold". As for big gold, I must say that I've never seen "big, flat gold". Maybe that's just a me thing. But again, that's not what Dream Mat is marketed for and you didn't provide anything to show that Dream Mat misleads with its marketing. Thus, your video came off as if you were trying to bash a Ford Escort for not being able to tow a 6 ton trailer.
@311g thank you for your opinion. Have a good one.
ua-cam.com/users/postUgkx4YLREx7NwGkd39Bv1qzZmDuFRss6PH8D?si=qxFO08Fao4z4IMsr
@prospectingforadventure OK. You have links to "leaf gold". Great, I learned something and thanks for that. But I didn't say that was the problem with your video; it was just an observation. The problem with your video is that you are claiming that Dream Mat is misrepresenting the capability of their product. I just received a combination dream mat and it specifically says that the mat is for "fine gold recovery". I'm much more interested in seeing something that shows Dream Mat has misrepresented their product.
We are pulling past 150 mesh in wash plants running constant feed in the larger mats & dredge mat, fine gold is not the issue. The larger cells do allow for larger size gold recovery.
Now on the subject of Combo mat, what we don't see is the 1 to 1 exact flow, same exact material, and same feed rate compared on this other system that is supposed to be better.
We are confident that Dream mat has the best gravity gold recovery on the planet & are willing to step up to the plate & prove it. I Love to Race!
I edited this comment after rewatching this video. I still stand behind the knowing the proper mat size for gold recovery would have improved recovery. The regular vortex & dredge mat would have better large gold recovery. But do you have big gold in that area?
There you are, I was waiting for you.
I'll set up any test you want to do. I'll give my non biased opinion on everything I test. A controlled environment test doesn't really reflect how it will operate out in a stream with different variables. Not sure if you watched the whole video or not. I specifically said I was impressed with the fine gold recovery and that I would use the mat again. I just won't use the combo mat for areas with large gold.
What makes you think I would be upset if I lost a test? I'd be happy to lose and see what works best. The primary reason I bought that mat is because I already know other mats struggle with flat gold. And that the mat is advertised as being a very forgiving mat. Some mats are hard to set up. People should know every system has limitations.
And this wasn't an attack on Dream Mat. I could see how it would appear that way.
Not every mat performs the same at the same angle and water flow. Each mat should be ran per manufacturers recommendations. Only then is it a fair fight. Or have all mats being tested ran side by side cycling the proper setting for 1 mat at a time and see who comes out on top most often.
I rewatched the video and have to say the test was a properly feed sluice & good overall test. The big flat lead should be replaced w/ tungsten the same size for a true represented of gold. Lead is allot lighter, but a good poke in the eye test. I still would like to see the unit that does better in the exact environment. I have some flat tungsten test pieces I will send you.
@TheDSP1970 Thank you for watching the whole thing. It's important to see the context of my test.
I would love to test with the tungsten. I need to find a spot where I can get that larger flat gold in my test pan. Lol
The gold in this test location is small. I've found gold as large as 6 grams in some of my spots. One 4 gram piece that is fairly flat. Some cornflakes pushing a gram that are pretty flat and thin. Really it's the pieces that are the size of the thin, flat, hammered bird shot that I've seen move down other mats.
I believe 8 mesh is what you should screen the gravels to. But with the wrong angle, water flow or over feeding will cause gold loss. I'm not a fan of the multi mat. I don't know how having a mat with a different size cell is meant to work with the same water flow & angle. I'd maybe understand it it had a wider area with the smaller mat.
Really like this mat testing, Im doing gold prospecting since 12 years, using a sluice maybe 2 times, I really sticking to the panning skill and technique to increase volume, time come with age and try to figure out if its really a sluice can beat fast gold panning and recover more gold maybe.
I have a couple videos where I was speed panning and dumping the black sand in a bucket. Then I'd run the concentrate at home. I've wondered myself what is faster. I like the speed panning method if you're short on time. You don't waste the time it takes to set up the sluice.
Of course! Most of time it take few min to setup at the right place, it just a little controversial between two different techniques, its some physic involved but over backbreaking a sluice its thing to consider thats for sure! Thank for the video! 😊
Looked like a good "real world" kind of test for flat pieces. I bet if you are in a place where flat pieces are common, a safety pan at the sluice outlet would be a good place to catch anything that managed to bounce that far. Sure, it'll load up with the gravel, but, when it's 1/2-2/3 full, just buzz the metal detector over it before you discard the rocks.
Hey really liked you test video so cool I’m going to employ that with my improvements I made to my highbanker dredge thanks for the info
Thank you! I acquired some tungsten rounds for my next test. Tungsten has nearly the same specific gravity as gold. It'll make for a more accurate test.
Sorry folks Im a gold hog guy . Just think when your dredging and everything of all sizes is going through your sluice. With much more flow . I've used and have faith in gold hog to just simply gas and go with no clean up dredging . How ever dream mat is my preferred mat for cleaning up cons in a controlled environment with uniform sized material. Great video and very informative thanks for sharing PPO out 😎.
Well, right now I'm running half gold hog and half riffles/moss in my 4" dredge. Until I can test the dredge mat more. Thanks for the input.
I have that same box/mat and Ive found that if material is not classified to under 1/4th" - especially in high concentrations of black soil - Im losing more than half the gold
@Brian_DadBod2.0
Classifying always helps while sluicing. I think you run into that no matter what mat you're using. I went down to half inch in this video. The manufacturer claims you don't have to classify. It looks like you do need to classify to maintain peak efficiency of the mat.
The first 1/3 of my dredge box is gold hog mat. I'd say it catches 90% + of the gold. It's been my favorite configuration over the years.
@@prospectingforadventure I agree, I'm super new to all this, but I do know I had good gold in it and got pretty frustrated watching it blow out with a few bigger rocks going through. It's a learning curve I guess. I'm modifying mine now, putting V Matt in the drop area/flare, then Jarvis riffles over miners moss, then the mat. Wish me luck, I may have an expensive target in the works lol. It does work great for cleanup though!
Hey there!!! I saw a Seabee emblem at the beginning of this video.!!!!! I was a UT in NMCB40
Hoorah, lol You're the first person to notice that. I figured sooner or later a Seabee would see it. I was in 4.
Right on man! What rate were you? And what years were u in? I was in 40 from 82 to 84. And then some reserve time in WISCONSIN. What state are you in?. Was out prosecting with my daughter for the last time this season here in WIS... won't be to long and our water will be getting kind of hard.. lol.. today we got 2 inches of rain and flooded all the creeks around here. Here we only find flower gold. Talk to you later!!
That was a Great Test for the Dream Matting
Thank you!
Finally än actual proper test of dream mat. And just as I always thought its crap. The problem is it only has one type of capture zone, sure different sizes but still only one type.
Personally, I wouldn't go as far as to say it's crap. I believe the concept works. That being said, I prefer to use at least 2 different types of capture methods in my box. So I can't argue with that.
@@prospectingforadventure the reson i say its crap because I have never said a proper test of it against other mats, ie the other mats for example gold hog is not set up properly, especially by the creator of the mat. And when you point this out he gets mad etc and can't take proper feedback it seems.
It's easy to be biased when it's your baby. I've seen the test where 4 mats or so ran side by side with the same angle and water flow. Would have been nice to see the same test done at different angles and flows to see which one does the best most often.
@@prospectingforadventure sure but if someone comes withegitimare concerns for how tests are done you should not get mad, and yes that's one of the tests I'm talking about. That test says nothing really.
I am so glad to see you do this lead is a great test i use number 12 rat shot the smallest you can get. You can also vibe the sluice to get better results. The dirt I’m on has to be vibed I’m on a platinum deposit and the pure black sands I’m on are much bigger than the gold causing it to be just as heavy as the gold meaning my gold won’t settle out
I've seen the same issue with beach gold. It's so fine. The trick is getting the water flow and angle just right. Also, using a mat without any riffles that causes turbulence. You want smooth and flat water flow. Combined with the proper angle, you'll retain the gold.
@ ya that’s what I’ve done the gold just won’t settle unless I vibe it. I’ve got a great setup and I have to run like 2 to 3 degrees. What area you in? I’m in Michigan running upper peninsula beach gold
2:50 Your mistake right there. Adjusting water/angle to get such a large and flat piece of lead to rush through your sluice... Imagine what would happen to a taller rounded piece of gold.
When I run enough water to move a 2" rock down my sluice such a piece of lead stays put on the feed. In fact, my biggest gold pieces to date have all been picked off the feed. They didn't move.
Edit: You know though there should ideally be classification to avoid material bigger than 1/3 pocket size from going over a mat for ideal separation. I have progressive screens on mine covering the upper portions as I only let fine gold enter the micro area etc.
I appreciate the feedback. Others have said I wasn't using enough water. 🤷♂️ I made sure to note that those large pieces wouldn't have made it into the bucket because they didn't fit through my screen. My intent was to draw awareness using different sluice mats. Some manufacturers will have you believe they have the cure all mat. People need to understand that you'll likely need different mats for different conditions. My second point was showing how flat gold has a tendency to lift and tumble out. It's hard to pick up on all the info by skipping around on a video.
@@prospectingforadventure Yes for sure. It is a great example of how lift&tuble works. It might even be worse on deeper water giving more room to tumble.
When I designed my sluices (for my own personal use only) I went through a lot of steps and analysis before I decided that any size sand/rock I can separate 100% reliably from a gold piece would only be 2x it's size at most. (Since gold is around 3x heavier than black sand etc.) I then tried to see if I could separate the flows of material a bit more so the larger stuff didn't block pockets for the finer gold. It's all about relative forces, and keeping everything agitated. In order to do that it appears you will have some gold migration if it is not protected by a layer of other material or it overfills a pocket. During assembly of my sluice I took some videos but I had not made it public. I've changed it now so you can see what I did for the upper areas with very fine pockets. ua-cam.com/video/A5-cD45XRd0/v-deo.html
Yeah I ran the dredge mat in my 4" dredge last summer. It's towards the top of my play list. I had a problem with the angular rocks wedging into the vortex holes. Eliminating those catch zones. So I get what you're saying. I need to try it again on a stream with smooth gravel for a fair opinion.
@@prospectingforadventure My biggest worry is the fine mesh I need at the start is too weak to handle the bigger rocks or even gravel I need to handle later on. I settled on a bit too coarse mesh on top. I wonder if I could have used a finer undermesh with a bit coarser protective mesh on top? That way most of the weight and force is carried by the coarser mesh but it doesn't limit the fineness of the classification for the first capture zone?
I haven't looked at the video yet. Have you seen the Jarvine riffles yet? Something like that might give you the structure you need. I've used multiple layers of mesh before. One for structure and one for classifying.
No test is a perfect test as all gold that is mined is non liberated gold and its impossible to get an exact yield because there is always variables in each yard of material. Great test.
I'll figure out a way to do a more controlled test for the next one. Really it's going to come down to my overall opinion after I use the mats for a while. I've used other mats as well.
@@prospectingforadventure exactly right what ever works best for you.
Good test. Would love to see you do the same test with other mats as well, gold hog, riffles over mesh, et cetera...
If gold hog and run properly it won't loose a single one of the test pieces.
I'm sure I will eventually. It's all bout time. Lol
I'd like to see a test with Tungston, I understand that it behaves just like gold in the sluice/pan
I'm curious to see how it goes too!
I've head the dream mat is more forgiving while he hog has to be tuned properly. What do you think of this,?. I had a 35 foot long highbanker and fellow miners always susprized I had gold all the way down wonder if it's because I would dump 5 gallon buckits at a time into the distruction chamber. Thus flat boarding the upper part. Mats were mix of gold hog home made and carpet runner v matt also some negative slope areas to slow the flow and give different catch areas
Dream mat is advertised to be a very forgiving mat. So far that seems to be true running a stream sluice. For the dredge mat I need more time with it. Gold hog I've found some styles are more forgiving than others. They don't seem too terribly difficult to setup. They also struggle to catch that big, light and flat gold. I've seen it tumble out. That's when the correct style of mat comes in or adding a variety of mats.
I run a mini mat and get mostly fine gold in my material,i also use a drop riffle and like both sluices,my big box or production box is gold hog and i dont use that as much due to flow issues but have caught nice gold in it to.
I love the drop riffle for hiking in! The plastic sluices are so light and they perform well. I really think th most important thing is to just understand how to dial in whatever sluice you're using. Sometimes, you have to pick something based on gold size.
Dredge matt is definitely dream matts beat matt for running material. I run miners moss expanded metal, Hungarian riffle qnd dredge matt in my Hugh banker moss and dredge matt perfect combo
I still to break out my highbanker. Maybe this spring.
The test you did was good. However, when I am slucing, if I see gold that large, I pick it out of there.
Yes, accept for people who are using that mat in a high banker or muddy water. Those people won't see the gold until they finish. The video was more aimed at people who don't have experience running sluice boxes and people who think Dream Mat is a magical cure all. Thank you for sharing your experience.
Awesome test! I use dream mat, i have the dredge mat and river mat they have big cells, anything smaller than that might be good for cleanup sluice. After seeing this worrys me about flat pieces, have you done this test with gold hog?
Thank you. I run a combination of gold hog, carpet and moss in my dredge. The first 1/3 is talon and I think Razor Back. I had 3 or 4 large corn flake pieces settle in there. The whole reason I tried DM was because in a stream sluice with gold hog I've seen smaller flat gold migrate through. That type of gold is inherently difficult to catch. If the edge catches current, it likes to sail out. I've had great success with it in my dredge tho. I think the larger cell DM is the way to go if you're using it in a sluice. I'm not a fan of the combo in area's with larger gold. I did a similar test with DM on my dredge mat and ended up not liking the test. The Jarvine Riffle caught most of the larger test lead. Ideally, I would perform the same tests again with my newly aquired tungsten rounds. Lead just isn't heavy enough for an accurate test. I also had issues with jagged bedrock clogging up the cells. All mats have limitations. The trick is to pick something that works for the conditions that you're working in.
After looking at the design. The d-cape looks inferior compared to the Vortex mat. Terrible that they dont make more Vortex combo mats!
If it were up to me I wouldn't include the first section in that mat. Even if it meant you only had two different sizes.
@@prospectingforadventure cape- d with all that ramp, makes it look like it wouldnt hold gold well. Even if they made a mini vortex with regular vortex combo mat would better.
@phackqu I agree. However, the micro section did retain gold.
@@prospectingforadventure oh for sures...im not doubting its performance, just the inferiority of the " new" design as compared to the Vortex... im getting ready to buy one myself. Im in central california and i already got the gold fever. Wootwoot
Gold fever is awesome and a curse. Lol Best of luck to you!
I think, based off where the water Chanel V is in the sluice, you've got too much velocity of water/angle. I find this to be an issue myself for river sluice's and is why I've moved to pumps, so I can control those things more.
Completely agree though it's all about knowing both your equipment and its capabilities as well as what your after. Test pans are crucial.
You could be right with the v. In that location, it was the only way I could get the mat to exchange material.
That's amazing! Where are you finding those $2000-sized pieces of gold? Just asking because I want to test out my mats, too.
Dream mat sells tungsten rounds now for testing. They have just about the same specific gravity as gold. I'll be using them for my next test.
I think the biggest thing is really just to understand how a sluice works. Then this would be a no brainer... Dream mat still the way to go..
Unfortunately, not everyone understands how a sluice works. I'm not sure if you watched the whole thing or not. I was explaining that the mat and others have limitations. I chose this mat to prove a point because of the marketing. It's not a unicorn cure all and many new prospectors are going to be disappointed when they figure that out the hard way. That mat works well, but there are many styles and sizes.
@@prospectingforadventure
You're supposed to choose your mat for the size of gold you're getting. Why did you think the Cape d or micro mat would catch that huge lead "flake" in the first place? Those size mats aren't made to catch that large stuff. You would want a larger mat if you're expecting larger gold, it's pretty common sense really. If dream mat isn't working, it's operator error.
@user-sr9lc5jj9e
That was precisely my point and I said so in the video. Lol
@@prospectingforadventure you did a really crappy job is what I'm saying.. lol
Thank you, I could really care less what your opinion is. 👍
Seems like the swirly points get clogged quickly and then you lose vortexing. I sense more clean outs will improve capture.
I'm a little low on water flow. You just have to wait a little longer for gravel to exchange.
Nice test! T hank you
Appreciate it!
Excellent video, and I respect the honesty. It's a rare thing nowadays. So that's why I am gonna ask you for your opinion, and why I am subscribing. I live in the northeast where there supposedly isn't alot of big pieces of gold. It's more the smaller stuff. I dint want to waste money and I am taking this up as another outdoor hobby cuz the VA said get outdoor more. So, in your opinion is a 36 inch long sluice suffice? And, which mat do you recommend that I get for up here. This way if I get on the gold I don't loose it. Thank you!
Thank you for checking in. The standard 36" sluice box is great for what you're describing. You'll want to classify your gravel down to 1/4 inch for smaller gold. 1/8th inch and 1/2 inch will work as well, but they have their disadvantages and advantages. 1/4 is a happy medium. That combination mat in the video is a good option. I would probably go with the mat that is all one size. Like the larger cells in that combo mat. For a beginner, it's easier to set up than traditional hungarian style boxes. There are other types of rubber mats out there, too. However, some require cutting and gluing. I'm not a DM fan boy, but I haven't seen sufficient evidence that it doesn't work for instream sluice boxes and it's excellent for beginners. You can go on their website and find a sluice box with a mat included. The most important thing is to understand the material you're running, watching the water flow and angle of the box. You can blow gold out of any mat on the market if you're careless. Hope this helps.
@@prospectingforadventure yes this helps alot my friend. Thanks for taking the time. I also heard there is a DM where you don't have to classify anything and just put it in the sluice. Like I said, it's mostly placer gold up here. So smaller stuff. Some pickers and maybe a few nuggets. Exactly what is the name of the mat you think I should use for this material please. Also, can u give me any hints as tonwhere I can get reliable intel on where a good gold spot maybe. I am asking about Google earth, does that work? Should I go to the geology dept were I got my masters from? Or what sites online can I get reliable intel on where there was ancient volcanic activity? I type this in and wind up with everything but what I want! 😂 it's frustrating
What if you left it the way you first had it set up with less water flowing through. Having gold situp in the flair seems like a good thing.
My goal was to test the mat, not the flare. The box needed more water regardless.
Good video bro, if you are not to confident on the Dream mat,
You should take a good look at the Miracle mat... it sort of looks the same but is Not.
Take care and enjoy the adventure....
Thank you, I'll look into it. Half the fun prospecting is trying new gear.
Have you run a comparison with any other type of matting, say gold hog?
Similar tests. Every rubber mat and drop riffle I've tested with flat lead or coins has had a similar problem. That's why I got a DM, hoping the vortex motion would stop that tumble or cartwheel motion. It also doesn't have the riffles that kick small gold back up into faster water. I have tungsten rounds now. They have about the same specific gravity as gold. It'll be a more accurate test. I do favor gold hog in areas with angular rocks. Those types of rocks get trapped in DM cells.
wounder if ya can classify with just using the sluice ?? or do they make one that works that way..
If you're running DM in a sluice, it's best to classify before running. DM says you can shovel right into it, but they also say it works best pre classifying.
I just can’t bring myself to trust the dream mat. Great test though. Have you tried testing the losses on gold.
That's why I took it out of my dredge. My goal is to run some controlled tests this winter.
I pan the tailings on occasion to test for losses. I've never seen anything substantial or worse than other mats.
go ahead and try it Damon. next time your with Todd see if you can use one he has at the house
Knowing the gold in your district is big for sure.
I've seen larger pieces of gold tumble right out of sluices. It's crazy. I know lead isn't the most accurate test, but it clearly illustrates my point. 👍
The only thing I could say is. The big 3 flat pieces that floated out. When you shoveled them in they sat at the top the. You had to force them to move. Reality if you seen that wouldn’t you have just pulled those out?
What if the water wasn't clear or someone was using this mat in a high banker where that section is covered by the hopper? I was testing the mat, not the flare. Ideally, I would have had a little more water and angle. Additionally, this video was to inform beginners of things to consider while running this mat or a sluice in general.
@@prospectingforadventure that is true I have pure clean water in my streams. I didn’t think of those kinds of variables. Love the video though awesome test I watched the whole thing unlike some of these people haha. I am a beginner as you can tell lol 😂 thank you 🙏
I appreciate that. Many of the negative comments are from people who didn't watch and listen to my commentary.
Keep in mind that pure lead has approximately a little more than 1/2 the density of pure gold. The density of gold is what keeps the gold in the sluice. If you want to really see the difference use flat gold.
Yes, I'm aware. I still feel like it's a fairly good test for a slower stream sluice. It wasn't meant to be an end all be all test. I was just having fun on the river and shared my experience. However, I have received some tungsten flat rounds for the next time I do a test. Tungsten has nearly the same specific gravity rating as gold. Thank you for making your point in a kind manner. So many people just want to say someone else is wrong.
Just use the mini mat that I have in my 6 inch box or the river mat fam. I think that the combo mat was designed backwards. I do love my Dream Mat. But I'll pass on that combo mat indeed fam. Keep on having fun getting that Au and living the dream. Gold Squad Out 🤠
fam!
The micro mat inspection at the top with 20% riffle onto the mini mat never looses anything hand feed wise!!!
It has some limitations, that's why I did this video. All mats have limitations.
I have some tungsten for the next test. This wasn't an attack on DM. It's just a cautionary tale to think about the variables while choosing the right mat for what you're doing. Thanks for watching!
In a perfect world 😂
I purchased some recently because I'm dealing with alot of blk sand and fine stardust.. I've been talking with goldhunter77 about us possibly doing a gutter sluice off just to test it out head to head with his design on beach sand . Should be interesting. From my understanding classification is recommended with DM . Thanks for a great demonstration so many variables to look at with the shinys.
Micro/Cape D/Mini combo is really designed for fine gold. A standard vortex or Dredge would have easily picked up those dime sized pieces.
Actually, I ran a similar test in my dredge with the dredge mat. The larger flat pieces still tumbled. The gravel was fractured bedrock, that mat doesn't exchange that type of material very well. So, I want to try that test again with the typical round gravel. I forsee better results. That's why I post my experiences on here.
My goal was to expose new prospectors to some variables they may not have thought about yet.
If you had a big piece of gold in your sluice wouldn’t you just pick it up instead of continuing to dump in material??
Yes, if I can. Sometimes, you can't see it depending on the material you're running. The water may not be clear enough. Or if you're running a high banker or dredge where you aren't next to the box.
Would the size/shape/surface area of the piece of lead have something to do with it? Seems it would act like a "kite" the sluice box. I just ordered a 10x38 combo sluice, so I hope that's the case! LOL
Yes, that was one of the main points I was testing. Flat gold is hard to catch. I was hoping the cells would suck the gold down and protect it. The test wasn't perfect, but it was a good visual demonstrating how something as heavy as lead can sail through when it's flat and thin. I did this because I've experienced hard to catch flat gold in multiple locations.
with my experience with dream mat I've come to the conclusion it just isn't what the hype makes it out to be I use the gray the green and micro purple and unless you classify it to 1/8 it just fills up and clogs the cells and gold blows out you can't beat expanded metal and moss with v rib or goldhog matting I feel I wasted my money buying dream mats
Lead is lighter than gold, so you decided to flatten lead and see if it holds in a mat? And I'm assuming you know flat gold floats.
Yes, gold is 19 times heavier than water and lead is 11 times heavier. In a sluice in this situation they should react about the same. Not all flat gold will float. It depends on size and surface tension. I wanted to test how the mat handles flat gold, that's why I used flat lead. I've seen flat gold flap and tumble out of mats before. I was hoping the vortex style wells would hold it better. Rifles force gold higher up in the water allowing it to gain more momentum.
Puting lead in the stream wonderful ideal
Ever go fishing? I hope you go to the fishing channels and complain about the same thing? I've pulled buckets of lead out of the rivers over the years. That's also why I took the big peices out as they tumbled towards the end. Nice comment though. 👍
Sounds like you would make more money on lead if your pulling buckets of lead out if I were you give up on gold and just get lead 😅
That's funny because when I was a kid, my dad and I used to walk the rivers, picking up lead, fishing line and trash. So that's where a lot of the lead that I removed came from. The rest of it is from gold prospecting adventures. Nice try though. 🤣 I hope you also volunteer some of your time cleaning up the areas you enjoy.
I sold my combo dream mat. Bad design.
I don't think it's a bad design. However, it does have its limitations.
@prospectingforadventure the combo dream Matt is a bad design because in order to catch gold in the micro dream matt first you have to slow the water down. Then it plugs up the bigger cells at the bottom. If you have a higher water flow for the bigger cells at the bottom the gild gets washed out if the micro cells at the top. I used it on the beach on lake superior and my tailings had almost as much gold as the sluice Matt did
Have you had the same result with course fines from the river? Beach gold does best with smooth laminar flow. I use the gold cube for that. I see where you're coming from though. The end of the sluice dictates how you run the rest of the mat.
@prospectingforadventure I use the devon gold vdr Matt now most of the time. Sometimes my own home made design. I'm pretty happy with the results from them
I'll have to look that up.
Dream matt makes q huge mistake if you want to run just dream matt run dredge matt first then a flair of 4-8 inches qnd micro matt. Slow the water down for micro matt keep the dredge matt pumping run both matts as flat as possible want to count to 10 after material hits matts and the matts have cleared threw the material already. Don't be afraid to turn the water flow up box flater this is how dream matts do well.
Thanks for the tips.
hello sir, I just bought this combo product for France. I'm also a little disappointed. Much more detailed instructions from the seller are missing! . I notice that if the flow is too slow, the rifles open their mouths, if the flow is faster, the rifles open their mouths, in return the fine gold flakes tend to leak from what I have observed. I saw that it had a slope of 9 to 9.5%. It remains very difficult for the 2 smaller rifles! the vortex should work better. I will add that the carpet I ordered is 8x36, it does not respect the dimensions! 36 goes to 34 so really 2inch difference 😂
if you have a piece of gold that big as that flat lead, you can pick it out before it washes away. Dream mat works awesome. also its important to classify correctly with dream mat. when running small cell mats like the 3 section you are running, you have to classify to 1/4 or smaller. with the bigfoot mat with extra large cells you can classify 1/2 in or larger or run unclassified. Good Job on explaining the exchange process.
What if you're using this mat in a high banker? You aren't sitting over the mat like you are just sluicing. The manufacturer is advertising that you don't have to classify with this mat. I personally know that it's going to perform better using a smaller classifyer. I made this video to demonstrate that this mat isn't a cure-all mat that a lot of beginners might believe. Beginners fall victim to hype and manufacturers' claims. Without real-life experience, it's hard to make informed decisions.
How much does that cost ?? I wanna buy a sluice
You would have to check out the DM website. My sluice was second hand and the mat was purchased a while back.
A good gold catch should catch 95+% 0f your classified gold and scour should not be a to much problem . A good sluice should be set up to catch multiple types of gold nugget, flake and flour
My dredge has different stages for different size gold. I use more than one type of mat too. I was hoping this combo mat would do the same for my sluice. It works, but it's just not a cure-all.
Run more water. 3-4x..
more vigorous the water the less shit gets packed in the cells, but it keeps the black sand, and that’s what you want. Chunk of gold to fall on the black sands, and because of the swirling motion(activation) of the cells the gold will sink though the sand and boot some sand out
Also, just in the mini mat, I’ve caught .3g chunks and it stayed within the first 5 cells.. (I don’t classify anything) just straight shovel though..
Use the right equipment for the location you are running remember there is no one tool for all jobs
That was the objective of my video. I probably didn't do a very good job stating that.
Not to mention if your big gold gets hung up at the top, just grab it before it tumbles down. Obviously not a fool proof plan. 😂 I’m sure u already on that tho
What happens if someone chooses to use this mat in a highbanker configuration? You aren't hovering over the top of the box. Many new prospectors don't understand that each mat has different limitations. I'd use this again as a stream sluice, but I wouldn't use it in my highbanker.
To be fair, half of the big lead pieces sat still right at the top before the mat and you had to dump on top of it multiple times to get it to move. If you saw a dime sized gold piece like that sitting there at the top, you would be too busy shitting your pants to put dirt on top of it to make it move.
The goal was to test the mat, not the flare. I take it you have never run a high banker or dredge? Or ran a sluice in muddy water? Not everyone has the ability to see their gold at the top of the box until they shut down or remove the sluice from the stream. I don't know about you. I'd prefer to trust the mat than rely on my eyes to catch the gold.
try flipping your mats around 180 degrees it might work better sluice not level
That's the direction the manufacturer says to use it.
Spread your cons across the the slick plate don’t pile
I do both. I feed in the center when I want to see the amount of black sand that comes out of the pile at the end. It also concentrates the gold on the center of the inspection mat.
0.1 grams can be found with my detector first
Miners moss over a v mat kills the Dream mat. Doesn't have to catch gold, just catch the miner.
Not sure why you think this is a problem? Clearly, you spotted all of them and could have just picked them out. Gold would be even easier to spot.
What if the water isn't clear or someone is running a highbanker with a hopper?
You don’t find flattened nuggets… try it again
Nice try... Have you ever heard of corn flake gold? I have personally seen large flat gold captured with traditional hungarian riffles. Those are actually more difficult to capture because of the potential wavy or uneven shape. So if a smooth flat piece migrates, I can conclude a piece that's suseptible to catching fast water would also migrate.
If I could post a photo here,
I would. I have also seen flat gold tumble just like the lead did in the test. For the next test, I have flat tungsten rounds. That would eliminate the specific gravity concerns.
I don't like the combo matts they make no sense to me. Your fine gold matt is your micro matt this should be ypur last matt. Also 3 different size matts in one matt all 3 should have different flows of water
I'm not a fan of having the micro mat in there. I'd rather it just be the last two sections. The theory is you catch the fine gold first while it's moving along the bottom. Once you introduce it to more turbulent water it becomes more difficult to capture. The larger gold is easier to catch.
That dream mat is top notch!
Even top-notch stuff limitations. That's why I did this test.
All sluice don’t past that test
That's not true. I've had traditional hungarian riffles catch that larger flat lead and coins. I've also seen certain gold hog mats catch similar items. I bet the DM mats with larger cells would perform better as well. You don't know if you do try. And I have seen flat gold the size of the large flat lead in my test.
Your angle is way too steep. With that short of a sluice, you shouldn't have much angle at all.
read that dream mat asks for 7-12 ° angle that's steep?
12 is on the steeper side. They advertise the mat as a very forgiving mat. That's essentially why I did the test. If that's true, it shouldn't need a specific angle and water flow. Most of the information is general information to watch out for while running any type of sluice.
The way i see it . Dream mats are the best general use mats. you still need to match size to the material Size and water flow or use multimats . if you know your specific needs and will be repeatedly dealing with the same or similar situations , goldhog matting will let you dial in your boxes for those situations. no matting is perfect. Most people suggest a saftypan when possible. Dredges are very inefficiant because of their short wide boxes and always lose gold. the only real fix is making a much longer box .
The test is bogus! You NEED to test with lead that is similar size and shape to whatever is in your area. Have you ever seen or heard of anyone finding gold that big and that flat? A real test should would have been in a controlled environment, known weight of gold and a catch pan at the end of the sluice to catch whatever made it through.
You must not have watched the whole thing. And yes I have seen flat gold that size. Thanks for the input. 👍