High bankers are a great way to prospect is sluicing is not an easy option. Some rivers are too wide, too deep, or just not realistic to set a sluice up in or dredge. A high banker allows people to dig material from the earth rather than the river and dump it directly into the unit.
A high banker is essentially a sluice on a stand with a classifier (or grizzly) bucket where you feed material into the grizzly which washes the material, allowing the smaller material to pass through a sluice while the bigger rock falls out the back, never entering the machine. A high banker consists of a grizzly, a sluice, and a motor with a hose that feeds water from it source out through the unit itself.
It is very important (and generally legally required) to have a settling pond for the back end of the material to go. A settling pond allows the water to pool away from the original water source where it can gradually seep back into the waterway without muddying up the waterway itself. If a settling pond is not available, water recirculation systems are also available if you do not have access to a settling pond or want to minimize the amount of water you need in a day.
In choosing a good high banking system you really want to pay attention to a couple of key factors in deciding which unit is right for you. Too many times have I seen someone who let dust gather on their machine as they picked out the wrong unit for the job.
Your first factor should be overall weight. Yes, with highbankers a good general rule of thumb is the “bigger is better” principle. However if you have to carry over a hundred pounds of machine, motor, hose, shovels, picks, and buckets, you have to decide if you are in reality able to do so. This is why many people who highbank on a regular basis often have at least one other person with them. However, if it’s just you or you and one other person, or you have a distance to go, a smaller unit may be the better option in the long run. A small motor, lightweight hose, and smaller highbanker may seem less productive, but generally smaller units are quicker and easier to setup and breakdown, allowing for longer periods of actual usage versus the setup and breakdown of much bigger and heavier units. However if you have a good group of people who will help you this factor can be offset.
As with any other piece of prospecting equipment you should take into careful account the manufacturing process. If the unit is not solidly constructed, easy to assemble and disassemble, and adjustable to your needs you will find yourself once again, cussing at inanimate objects rather than kicking the person who bought the dang thing in the first place. You can bypass this worry with GottaGetGold, knowing that we only carry high end products made for people who will go out more than once a decade.
Next, you want to look at the overall ease of use for your highbanker. A variable motor, controllable water spigots, adjusting legs, and overall ergonomics are good things to keep in mind as you decide the machine that is best for you. By having a variable motor you can slow the flow of water while saving gas at the same time. A good thing since now a days gas has truly become a factor. With a controllable spigot you are able to slow the water going through your sluice and control how clean the gravel and rocks you feed into the grizzly are. Yes, the cleaner the rocks the better, but I have seen water set so high that the sluice ran to fast and the pressure actually pinned the rocks to the grizzly. Anyone who has ever tried to balance a highbanking machine on rocks only to have it tip over can preach to you the importance of adjusting legs and most manufacturers have heard the call. However there are still a few loser priced units out there that fix position the legs. Balancing or self adjustments are fine for smaller or wider models, but otherwise really think about how many times you trip on an outing without having pounds of water pressure and gravel tossed on you.
Another option that you can look at is what is called dredging highbankers, or dredge hibanker combo units. These units allow for a more diverse range of uses for your machine. A dredge highbanker combo machine means that you can not only use the unit as you would a normal highbanker, but also suck material out of the water acting like a, well you guessed it, gold dredge.
So weigh your options, be confident in what you want in a highbanking sluice and get ready to get muddy. Because you will.
