OREGON PIONEER 15

OWNER’S MANUAL

SURVEYORS EXCHANGE COMPANY GEOLASER

3323 DeArmoun Road Anchorage, AK 99516 Phone: 1-507-629-3758 Cell: 1-507-828-0503

www.Gold-Rus.com

INTRODUCTION

This manual covers the general operation of the Oregon Pioneer 15. Prior to operating the Oregon Pioneer, read this manual. Please carefully follow the operating procedures and observe all safety precautions to ensure the proper operation of our equipment, and to avoid serious bodily injury.

SERVICE ASSISTANCE For additional servicing questions not illustrated in this manual, contact SURVEYORS EXCHANGE COMPANY.

CONTACT INFORMATION

SURVEYORS EXCHANGE / GEOLASER Larry Wilmarth

LarryWilmarth@gci.net 3323 DeArmoun Road Anchorage, AK 9916

USA Phone: 1-907-345-6500 Fax: 1-907-345-7207

www.gold-rus.com

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SAFETY PRECAUTIONS The OREGON PIONEER, like any other mechanical device can pose potential dangers to life and limb if improperly maintained or imprudently operated. The best way to prevent accidents is to be aware of the potential dangers and to always use good common sense. In the interest of safety, some general precautions relating to the operation of the OREGON PIONEER follow. DANGER Danger is used to indicate the presence of a hazard which will cause severe personal injury, death, or substantial property damage if the warning is ignored. WARNING Warning is used to indicate the presence of a hazard which can cause severe personal injury, death, or substantial property damage if the warning is ignored. CAUTION Caution is used to indicate the presence of a hazard which will or can cause minor personal injury or property damage if the warning is ignored. WARNING Storing gasoline and other volatile fuels in day or sub-base fuel tanks can cause an explosion. Store only diesel fuel in day or sub-base fuel tanks. WARNING Exposed moving parts can cause severe injury. Keep hands, feet, hair, and clothing away from belts and pulleys when the unit is running. Replace the guards, covers, and screens before operating the OREGON PIONEER. CAUTION Flying projectiles can cause injury when making adjustments or servicing the OREGON PIONEER. After the adjustments are made, reinstall the guards and be sure that all the bolts & nuts are tight. Failure to do so can result in personal injury.

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STANDARD EQUIPMENT

13 HP AIR COOLED ELECTRIC START ENGINE WITH HYDRAULICS

SCREEN TROMMEL WITH 3/8” OPENINGS

TAIL LIGHTS

FENDERS

WATER PUMP

SLUICE

TUBELESS TIRES

WATER CONTROL VALVES

LEAD FREE PAINT

150’ WATER HOSE IN 3 ~ 50’ SECTIONS

15’ SUCTION HOSE WITH FOOT VALVE

4 ADJUSTABLE OUTRIGGERS

2” ADJUSTABLE HEIGHT COUPLER

DISCHARGE CONVEYOR

NOMAD CARPETING

ALL INFORMATION, ILLUSTRATIONS AND SPECIFICATIONS

CONTAINED HEREIN ARE BASED ON THE LATEST PRODUCT

INFORMATION AVAILABLE AT THE TIME OF PUBLICATION.

THE RIGHT IS RESERVED TO MAKE CHANGES AT ANYTIME,

WITHOUT NOTICE OR OBLIGATION.

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TIRES

The tires are Free Star F-108 Tubeless, radial S/T – (ST 205/75R14). Never exceed 50 PSI. Caution should be used when changing the tires. Failure to do so can result in personal injury. The first step in changing the tires is to make sure that you have blocking. The second step will be to loosen all of the lug nuts. Change the tire and firmly tighten all of the lug nuts, then lower the trailer. Be sure to periodically check and tighten the lug nuts.

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COUPLER

The maximum rating of the Coupler is 3,500 pounds gross. Caution should be used when hooking the coupler with the ball. Make sure that the ball is in excellent condition. It should be tight and not cracked. Once the coupler is lowered onto the ball, lower the locking mechanism and install a ¼” bolt through the hole on the locking mechanism. Secure it with a self locking nut then hook the safety chains. THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT SAFETY PRECAUTION. The Coupler will easily disconnect by following the above procedure in reverse.

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TOWING

When towing, make sure to do a Pre-Trip Inspection. Make sure that the lights are working, no loose items and the tire pressure is good.

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TOWING - REAR VIEW

Rear view of unit going down the road.

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To start out, level the frame with the side jacks. Install conveyor and hoses. Place water pump and hoses into position.

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LEVELING JACKS

By pulling the pin, you can rotate the jack downward. Reverse the step when towing the unit.

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DISCHARGE CONVEYOR

Remove conveyor from the carrying cradle.

Slide conveyor into place. The rear of the conveyor will lock into position.

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Lift the conveyor and tilt up the support holder. Snap pin in place.

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INSTALLATION HYDRAULIC HOSES

The hydraulic hoses have quick attach fittings. To install or remove, slide the collar and insert male end. Collar is spring loaded, so will lock into place.

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HYDRAULIC OIL TANK

Fill Reservoir before use. Standard Hydraulic Oil will work fine.

This shows the fill cap with strainer on the top and the fill gauge on the side.

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WATER PUMP CRADLE

Strap water pump down to the cradle while transporting unit.

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ENGINE & FLOW CONTROL PANEL

Ignition key is in packet inside Water Pump Box. Put oil & gas in the motor when you receive it.

1st valve – Trommel. 2nd – Feed conveyor. 3rd – Discharge Conveyor. 4th – Oscillating Sluice.

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FLOW CONTROL VALVES

When knob is pulled out – there is no load on the motor. This makes it easier on the motor.

When the motor has started, push the knob in. This will allow the Hydraulic Oil to flow.

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HYDRAULIC OIL FILTER

The Hydraulic Oil Filter is located on the return lines. Replace filter every six months or if in By-Pass.

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CONVEYOR BELT ADJUSTMENT

To adjust the belt, you will need to tighten the side that the belt is moving to. Tighten it just a little bit at a time until adjusted correctly.

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WATER MANIFOLD

The top valve is for the trommel spray bar. The middle valve is the Chute Spray, and the bottom valve is the Sluice.

The side nipple is for a garden hose. The drain plug is at the bottom of the manifold.

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CARPETING

To remove carpeting, loosen knobs, lift and pull up. This is where the garden hose comes in handy.

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OSCILLATING SLUICE

The Oscillating Sluice is fully adjustable. With the side by side motion, and with the external water, you are able to

really fine-tune the sluice for the best recovery possible.

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REPLACING SCREEN

To replace the screen, first remove the side deflector. Then remove the 3/8” bolts, remove the screen and reassemble with the new screen.

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TROUBLESHOOTING PUMP Problem: The pump does not pump.

Solution: Check the filter. Check the Intake and Discharge Hoses to ensure that they are not collapsed.

SLUICE Problem: The Sluice does not move. Solution: Check the Flow Control.

Problem: The Sluice is not capturing the fine gold. Solution: Reduce the water pressure. Decrease the angle

of the sluice.

Problem: The Sluice is building up with concentrates and black sands.

Solution: Increase the angle of the Sluice or increase the water pressure.

SPRAY Problem: The water flow is restricted. BAR Solution: Remove the Spray Bar, End Cup and flush out

with water.

MOTOR Problem: For any problem with the motor, refer to the Owner’s Manual for the motor.

TAIL Problem: They do not work. LIGHTS Solution: Check the bulbs. They could be blown out. Check

to make sure that pig tail is plugged in.

Problem: One side works and other side does not. Solution: Check the connections and check for shorts in

the wires.

TRAILER Problem: The coupler will not lock on the ball. COUPLER Solution: Adjust the bottom nut on the coupler.

ROLLER Problem: The Roller Chain keeps coming off the Sprocket. CHAIN Solution: Properly align the Sprockets.

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OPERATION PROCEDURES/SUGGESTIONS

Set the machine up in a position to make it convenient to the material & water source. Make sure the machine is level and stable. Set the pump in place with it’s intake as close to the water level as practical. The less distance your intake hose lifts the water the more efficient the pump will operate and the easier it will be to prime. Prime the pump by pouring water into the plug hole on the casting until it fills the hose and pump. Always check the gas and oil levels before starting & priming. Make sure the discharge hose has no kinks and is hooked to the plant and the valves on the plant are turned on. Start the pump & check the discharge hose to make sure no kinks developed when the water has pressured them. Adjust the water valves on the trommel to wide open to begin. Adjust the valve on the chute spray to about ½ open. Check the sluice and see that about 1” of water is over the riffles on top or water over the discharge end of the sluice is about ½”-1” over the expanded metal riffles. Use the chute spray valve to adjust the water up or down. If there is not enough water, open the sluice valve until the water level looks good. Start the plant engine with the flow control valve out, then after about ½ minute push it in. Move valve #1 to the right—open and set at 2.5 to get the trommel started and going about, 20 RPM. The trommel requires most of the available power so make sure you adjust the valve to keep it running strong. Keep it running about 15-20RPM and don’t make it labor excessively, by overfeeding it. Open valve #2 and set at 2 to get the feed conveyor started and running about 120 feet per minute.

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Open valve #3 and set at 2.5 to get the discharge conveyor started and running at about 105 FPM. Open valve #4 and set at 3 to start the oscillating sluice box to oscillate at 86 pulses per minute. Any of these settings can be fine tuned to your preference to give the trommel more or less wash time, the conveyors faster or slower and the sluice box OK. However, the settings stated are a good starting point, and may prove best. Feed a little material onto the grizzly and watch for a response from each hydraulic system. If any system seems to labor, give it a little bit more power by opening the valve a little more. When hydraulic power to all systems seems good, feed more material into the hopper and check all 4 systems again. When all 4 are working fine, check the sluice box. There should be 1-2” deep water & material running off the end. Adjust the feed conveyor-valve #2 to deliver the material to the trommel a little faster, if you like, and watch the trommel to make sure it don’t slow down or load up with too much material. Watch the discharge conveyor to make sure it handles the extra weight with no problem. From here it is just you and the machine. You must learn to watch each system, especially the trommel to make sure you don’t overload it, but that it gives you near maximum production. Your sluice box may be your limiting factor. It must not get overloaded. Put your fingers down in the riffles/expanded metal. You should easily feel the metal and the material should be loose down to the matting. At no time should material pile above the water or water & material/slurry be more than 2 ½” deep. Put a tub under the end of the sluice & catch the tailings for a few minutes. Take the tub out & shake or stir it to get the heavies onto the bottom. Pan the bottom material. You should have no more than 2 or 3 very fine colors. If you have more than 2 or 3, you are running that material too fast. Slow the feed down, and if this doesn’t help, slow the water down by first reducing the flow to the sluice box or closing it. Then if still too much, reduce the flow to the chute, then to the trommel.

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You will soon figure out how to maximize your profit from the material you are running. Most property has pay layers or pay streaks and when running them you need to be conservative with feed rate and water. When running material of marginal value, you can speed things up. Shutting the plant down for lunch or at night or whenever: Quit feeding material into the hopper, let the hopper empty completely,

until it appears clean and the feed conveyor is empty. Let the trommel run until it appears empty and clean. Let the discharge conveyor run until clean. You can shut the hydraulics to them down but leave the water running.

(As soon as the hopper empties, put a tub under the end of the sluice box to figure out if your shut down procedure is flushing gold out of the box or just the trash.) The water should be clear enough, and enough material gone, so you can see the expanded metal. Shut down the oscillation on the sluice box. If you plan to clean up, let the water run awhile longer to flush the maximum amount of trash. If you have any gold recovery, it should be near the front end of the sluice, but may be in the nomad matting and not visible. Larger pieces should be visible once the water is turned off. Pan the tub to see if your shut down procedure lost gold. It probably did not, but if it did, you should reduce the water flow when the material is decreasing. Gold is easy to catch and you shouldn’t lose much, but you will always lose some. After shutting the plant down and the water pump off, inspect the riffles in the expanded metal. There should be some material behind each one. The gold, if any, will be close up under the riffle. There should be little or no gold visible in the bottom half of the box. If there is, you need to clean the box and check the gold. If it is not substantial, at least a few ounces, you need to reduce your feed rate of material & water. Only you can decide, through trial & error, what is the best procedure for running your material. If you have any problems send us an email and we’ll offer our thoughts. Happy Mining!