How goes the battle gents?

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Slatco
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How goes the battle gents?

Post by Slatco » Mon Aug 11, 2025 2:09 pm

Hey fellas, hope everyone is on the gold! I have been plugging away on my two permitted properties and finally got into something worthwhile with my testing program. Also got some new ground on Pine Creek in Atlin so I am actually getting closer to Alaska lol..

Also have been dealing with the usual mining BS like leaking cylinders, broken welds, porcupines etc....

We are past the midway point of the season so now is the time to step up the efforts and get the gold!
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Re: How goes the battle gents?

Post by Joe S (AK) » Tue Aug 12, 2025 3:48 pm

GO FOR IT !!!
It's great that things are working out well for you.
Here in Northern Idaho I'm still working on getting a very (!) Slow healing Diabetic foot wound to heal. 18 months so far and every time it starts looking like there's a light at the end of the tunnel it turns to ne another train coming at me.
Don't forget to very carefully put away and save the largest Chunk-a-Gold you find --- to stir the imaginations of future generations of new miners you come across down along the road.
My largest piece came from an in-holding claim inside the Wrangle St. Elias NP about 20 years ago now. 7/8" long by 3/8" wide and thinish, it made a VERY unexpected necklace guift for "The Queen of Our Realm".
And so, in the words of Chief Dan George in The Outlaw Josey Wales
" ... endeavor to pursue ..."
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Really Gets Things Done!
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Re: How goes the battle gents?

Post by DanAK » Sat Aug 16, 2025 4:59 am

Update from my mining season;
I started building a new dredge last spring and got a long ways into it, boat part is done (20’x28’) and got the 4’x8’ shaker deck nearly finished I built a second deck to make it a double deck shaker, was getting it close to mounting on the boat when June 1 came along and decided I’d be better washing dirt than playing welder fabricator.. I started running with my double shaker plant then swapped plants to the floating wash plant (dredge 1) and ran 3 runs to test new riffle designs but it is on poor ground so decided to abandon ship and go back to the shaker plant, the season has been going ok, trying to stuff 930 yards a week thru the little plant, so far so good on that, I’ve had the normal season breakdowns that comes with this trade and have been lucky to have had spare parts and knowledge to get me thru them all as of yet.
It sure has been a cold wet summer here and very little sun has been shining, my solar panels have not been very effective this year having to run generator to charge a lot more than a normal season.
Stay safe out there and keep digging if you can !
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Joe S (AK)
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Re: How goes the battle gents?

Post by Joe S (AK) » Sat Aug 16, 2025 3:06 pm

Copied all that, I did.
On a 'regular day' I used to shovel about 1.5 +- yards through my sluice or highbanker a day, and once in a while, when I could use the Keene 4", well, the sky was the limit.
I sure do hope that I can get back into it again - time will sort it all out, I guess.
As time allows keep us up on your "dirt reports" it's as close to real minin' as some of us can get right now.
Joe
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Really Gets Things Done!
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Re: How goes the battle gents?

Post by Bob(AK) » Tue Sep 16, 2025 7:36 pm

Joe, I sure hope you get that foot healed so you can get some gold. It is
very important for a gold miner to be able to mine gold.

For myself, yeah I'm getting older and slower, dredge less hours a day and
less days, it is a lot of work. There is still gold on the bottom of the creek.

Bob
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Re: How goes the battle gents?

Post by Geowizard » Wed Sep 17, 2025 6:02 pm

I just turned 75 a few days ago. I'm missing my right leg from an above the knee amputation.

It isn't slowing me down!

I'm working on funding from BHP (https://www.bhp.com/xplor), I am working on funding for critical minerals research at the BN Project with NSF and NASA funding from UAF.

Life goes on! :)

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Re: How goes the battle gents?

Post by Geowizard » Wed Sep 17, 2025 6:18 pm

Ice:

The battle gets easier with ICE.

https://www.uaf.edu/centerice/ :)

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Re: How goes the battle gents?

Post by Geowizard » Wed Sep 17, 2025 6:29 pm

The NSF Link;

Gold miners are innovators. It's how we get better at what we do. Sponsors are out there looking for ideas!

https://www.nwicorps.org/

Gold deposits are often rich in accessory minerals. Many accessory minerals are critical minerals. :)

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Re: How goes the battle gents?

Post by chickenminer » Tue Sep 30, 2025 4:18 am

Phew... finally winding down for the season. Forecast is for 1/2" snow tonight.
Had a fun mining season with some interesting ground but planning to move to new area
for next summer.
Picked up a "new" piece of equipment :)
Image
_______________________________________________________________________________
C.R. "Dick" Hammond
Stonehouse Mining
Chicken, Alaska
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Re: How goes the battle gents?

Post by Joe S (AK) » Wed Oct 01, 2025 3:27 am

JEEZ Dick --- do your hands even fit a "True Temper #2" any more??? :lol:

What a great piece of equipment!
Determination, Tempered in the Heat of Stubbornness,
Really Gets Things Done!
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