Mining

Just wanted to see how you guys mine, why you mine this way, and general tips for mining in general. I plan to begin mining, and I just want to make sure I'm doing it as efficiently as I can. I came across this post on the minecraft forums while I was bored:

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First of all, branch mining exposes fewer blocks than digging in a straight line for the same amount of effort made.

The reasons for this are 3 fold:
1) It doesn't matter if you miss blocks in one area as long as you have an equal chance of finding diamonds in another area. So you're not going to find *more* diamonds on average by making sure you don't miss diamonds in one area, when it is just as effective to look for diamonds in some other area.
2) With branch mines, you have closely spaced parallel tunnels and there is a risk of re-encountering an area you have previously excavated, this will therefore reduce the overall average number of blocks you newly expose per block you break.
3) With branch mines, at the junction between each branch and the main tunnel, you need to break blocks on a wall where the surfaces of as many as 4 blocks, which are adjacent to the blocks you're breaking, have already been exposed. This will slightly contribute further to an even lower ratio of exposed surfaces per broken block.

A 3-spaced branch mine is slightly more effective than a 2-space due to reason #2, above. A 4-space is even more effective. But an infinite space (straight line) mine is the best overall.

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Secondly, there is no advantage in way of travel distance with branch mines over straight lines. When people believe that branch mining confers a benefit in the way of reduced travel distances, they don't take into account the time needed to travel back up each branch after reaching its end.


OKAY... consider these scenarios...
Note: When counting the number of blocks exposed in each method, I didn't count the 4 blocks adjacent to the origin, because I considered them already exposed. In other words, I presume clearing the origin block was not part of the process.

A.) Consider this branch mine.

Note:
1) that 15 spaces of digging effort were made.
2) that 41 blocks were exposed during the digging, beyond the initial condition, and including the excavated blocks of the tunnel itself.
3) that if 1 return trip is made, 30 blocks need to be traversed in order to dig the mine and return to the origin. Remember: You have to count the distance you must travel to go back up each branch after reaching its end.

B.) Now consider this really long straight tunnel.
Note:
1) The same effort was expended building it. 15 spaces were dug.
2) 45 blocks were exposed beyond the initial conditions, and including the excavated blocks of the tunnel itself. That's 4 more blocks uncovered than the branch mine.
3) If you count the number of blocks that were traveled building the tunnel and returning to the origin, you will find that it was 30, which was the same distance we had to travel to build the branch mine and return to its origin.

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Anyway, I've been using a silk touch pick to mine, simply because I have more of them than fortune picks (I'd rather lose one than a fortune pick), and I fortune the ores when I get home. I also carry around an enderchest and fire resist pots.


Also:



Which layers should I mine to most efficiently avoid lava, while still able to find diamond rich caves? I always mined at layer 12. but that was a while ago, and I don't remember why I did it other than to be above the lava level, while being at diamond level.

Any tips or tricks you guys use to mine efficiently? Let me know

 

No advantage to branch mines? You sure about that? When I branch mine, I don't just reach the end and walk back, I dig across and then mine back, meaning it's just a 3 block walk back to the origin point (then 9, 15, 21 etc).

Also, it allows you to continue mining much easier, especially if you don't dump cobble, dirt and gravel. Unless you start a new straight line tunnel every time, you'll have to travel significantly longer to continue. And if you do just make new tunnels, then you're not really straight lining.

Mining at y12 was with the old measurement of y coords (from the eyes), so the best level to mine at is y11 (12.6)

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

 

Pinwheel mining works pretty well starts at a center point that divides into 4main tunnels that are larger than the tunnels that branch off then you dig smaller tunnels that can be spaced to desired distance this technique works well in finding cave systems and hidden ores

 

I didn't make that post, just copied and pasted it off of somewhere;

I feel that mining in really long straight lines trades thoroughness for efficiency. Also, when I go on mining trips, I don't go back to the start point until I'm done.

 

Caving is pretty easy for fast ores but high risk

 

Bnot sure where you got that technique from but it sounds a lot like the one me and North use. Just mine in a straight line and turn at gravel and dirt. I check out lava pools and explore caves around y:12. I usually find 96 or so diamond ore doing this and on a good trip you can get 2 stacks of it.

 

Now i k where those 3x3 tunnels r coming from

 

2 space branches are actually the best because you miss 0 blocks where rare ores could be hiding, the post saying 4 space is totally false because a lot of veins i find are 1-2 blocks thick and would more than likely be missed by a 4-spaced mine

 

Do a balance 3 spaced

 

3 still gives you the chance to miss the 1 thick patches

 

I'd be willing to miss 1 ore for the sake of efficiency.

 

I would too

 

1 thick veins can spawn upto 4 unwilling to miss that

 

Whatever dinner time

 

I am, 4 ore doesn't really make a difference

 

to you, ya crazy person. spending over 100k on shadetokens

 

300k* xD

 

jesus dude, you are insane. lol

 

Most of it was rebuying shade tokens with what I won.

 

I go right through the gravel/dirt, it prevents me from going in a circle.