When you are sitting down to plan the designs of your own home made gold dredge, probably the first question you will want to ask yourself is “What size of dredge do I want to build?” The bigger your dredge is, the more material you'll be able to process, but the more it will cost and the more it will weigh. Sometimes good used dredge parts are available to start a homemade dredge. The more general knowledge you have about dredges before you begin your design, the better your construction plans will be. The club members may even let you have a few minutes behind the nozzle so that you can get a feel for the whole experience. Take some pictures of the dredges while they're in operation. Another great possibility is to join a prospecting club whose members actively dredge, and then go out to the claims and check out the members while they are dredging. If your local prospecting shop has a dredge set up, take a close look and even measurements or photos if you can. Check out their web sites as most have good photos of their dredges and the individual components that make up these dredges – you can get a lot of information from their web sites. These manufacturers have done quite a bit of research studying their products, they have tested different options and have developed efficient pieces of equipment that do the job well. Perhaps the best thing I can suggest is that you study the designs of the well-known dredge makers like Keene and Pro-line. Think about what you want and what you need then weigh those together with what you can afford. The time you spend sorting through design concepts, deciding what you will build and how you will build it will be well spent. Dredges need to be functional, durable and sturdy. You don't want your dredge to be rickety, or to fall apart, or to fail to function. Of course you will be building on the cheap, but you don't want to shortchange yourself too much.

1 1/2 inch suction dredge nozzle