The Desert Fox
Spiral Gold Panning Machine
By Camel Mining
Way back in 1994, ( the "dark ages" ), I was prowling around in Quartzsite Arizona at the Main Event Annual Gemboree show looking over all the fantastic Gem and Mineral exhibits and dealers when I stumbled upon an outfit called Camel Mining Products, which had all kinds of goodies and toys on display.
And there was a fellow that had a spiral panning machine running with about 25 to 30 people gathered around watching him spooning in a conglomerate that looked to be the consistency of cat litter.
I had heard of, and seen these machines, advertised in the mining magazines but I had never seen one in operation before.
I thought it was nifty to watch the mixture churn in the wheel and see the black sand work its way up the spirals until it washed away, leaving the gold to fall into a small container in the back of the machine.
Ever since then I have told myself over the years, I gotta get one!
Well, it's now August of 2008 and I just purchased one. I bought the single-speed version of the Desert Fox by Camel Mining.
I have been running samples from all over the Rand mining District, and the El Paso Mountain washes and even my back yard here in Red Mountain, (with all the nasty clays mixed with alluvium in the soils).
I will give performance reports in up-comming pages now in the works, but in a nutshell, the Fox does do its job as advertised.
HOW IT WORKS - The Desert Fox spiral gold panning machine consists of a light weight unit that has spiral leads that work to pick up gold with each rotation of the wheel. The spirals dump the gold into a tube shaft at the center of the wheel and into a hanging cup that catches the gold.
This machine has a pitch adjustment and water spray system that allows the operator to "tune out" the black sand.
The Desert Fox sports a seven lead spiral wheel that, according to Camel Mining, makes the Desert Fox the fastest panning machine in its size class.
The neat aspect about this machine is the ease of setup and use.
The Action Packer Carrying case also serves as a reservoir to re-circulate water.
MACHINE SETUP - To assemble, take everything out of the case, then spread out the stand legs and place them back into the case.
Drop the tailings collection bin in the case in front of the legs and place the wheel into the hollow shaft on the drive unit, making sure it drops in the drive slot.
Then, secure the spray bar to the front of the drive unit and tighten its wing nut and hang the collection cup in place on the back of the machine and you’re good to go.
Simply fill the case with three or four gallons of water, and be sure to add a "wetting" agent to the water so your flower gold does not float away with the tailings. (you DO use a wetting agent when you pan don't you?)
Camel Mining suggests a couple of drops of "Jet-Dry liquid", or the like, per gallon of water is good. But do not use any detergents.
(The Fox does GOLD, not bubbles!)Hook the power clips to a motor cycle, lawn and garden or automotive battery and then turn the switch on. Now you're ready to start spooning in your concentrates.
The Desert Fox is intended for cleanup work, not as a primary prospecting tool. Designed to separate the pickers and fine flour gold from the black sand concentrates. If there is a lot of black sand, it is very time consuming to separate out the gold by panning, especially when dealing with large quantities of concentrates produced by other methods.
The Desert Fox spiral is ideal for reducing large amounts of pre-classified concentrates to a concentrated state and ultimately to a clean gold product.
MANUFACTURER DESCRIPTION -
Variable Speed Desert Fox
From: BlackCatMining.comThe Desert Fox Spiral wheel was computer designed for maximum speed and efficiency. Our exclusive aqua-jet on the spray-bar churns and mixes the materials in the wheel for the fastest recovery possible. The Fox can pan up to 70 pounds of concentrates per hour.
The Desert Fox spiral wheel has seven separate spirals which pick up gold seven times with each rotation of the wheel. All seven spirals end at the center tube-shaft. The seven spirals dump gold into this tube-shaft and into a hanging gold catch-cup at the other end. This method is far superior to other types of spiral wheels which do not pass the gold through the wheel into a hanging cup.
The Desert Fox wheel with it's pitch adjustment and water spray system, allows the operator to "tune out" the black sand which is nearly always present with placer gold. Machines with a cup in the center of the wheel depend on the gold displacing any black sand and the operator must splash water by hand to complete the clean up process. This type of machine is much slower than the Desert Fox because it has only one spiral lead and the need to splash water by hand.
Another important feature exclusive with the Desert Fox is it's sealed ball bearing. Gold panning machines are subject to a muddy water environment. All competitive machines have sleeve bearings and at least one has the bearing running under water.
WHAT'S IN THE PACKAGE? -
Ships complete with an easy-to-understand owner's manual and a video. Operates on any 12-volt 7-amp DC power source.
A bag of practice sand containing real placer gold is also shipped with every Desert Fox so you can get acquainted with your new machine and see how efficient and easy it is to use.
Desert Fox has a Five Year Limited WARRANTY direct from the manufacturer.
The Desert Fox Automatic Spiral Gold Panning Machine has been manufactured in the USA by Camel Mining Products since 1969.
Specifications:
Height: 20 In.
Width: 14.5 In.
Length: 20 In.
Weight: 10 Lbs.
Wheel Diameter: 12.5 In.
Power Req: 12VDC 3A
Water Required: 3-4 Gal.
Pump Capacity: 450 Gph.
Stowed Dimensions:
Height: 10 In.
Width: 14.5 In.
Length: 17.5 In.
Variable Speed Desert Fox - $ 299.00
One of the most popular pieces of prospecting equipment on the market, the Desert Fox spiral gold panning machine proccesses material quickly with a great rate of gold recovery.
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