Mining with the cheapest tools available

[Thorin]

So lately when I set off on a mining expedition my inventory has five stone pickaxes, an iron pickaxe, iron sword, stone shovel, stone axe, four stacks of torches, one stack of wood, one stack of bread, and a filled water bucket.  I head for the bedrock, then find a good place to build a little room.  In said room, I build a crafting table, then a wooden door and pressure plate (those go up to keep monsters out but let me leave without clicking), then a furnace, then a chest.  I put most of my bread and wood and half the torches in the chest, then head out.

So there I am starting to mine, with five stone pickaxes and one iron pickaxe (and iron sword, stone shovel, stone axe, a bit of wood, a bit of bread, two stacks of torches, and filled water bucket).  Now, I know stone takes longer to break with a stone pickaxe, but I'm trying to conserve the more expensive raw materials like iron and diamond.  This is probably one of the reasons that I have so much of both those raw materials   I'm following these two rules:
1. Treat every diamond like your last one, and
2. It may take an entire iron pickaxe to get four iron ore, meaning you're only up one iron ore over your starting count

Keep in mind that I don't have an enchantment table and haven't learned specifics about enchantments yet (other than that you really don't know what you're going to get), so I do not have Unbreakable or Efficient diamond pickaxes like some.

Do you find yourself mining with stone pickaxes and shovels, or do you prefer to use iron or diamond tools?

[Tom]

I much prefer iron and diamond tools. These days I manage to get 6+ diamonds out of a single diamond pick, not counting other resources (a stack or so of iron, etc). It's well worth it for the time it saves. It is SO much faster, and you don't have to use up so many slots. I find I have to go back and empty my inventory every diamond pick or two.

[Mr. Analog]

I always upgrade, for me it's not about the hoarding of diamonds it's about putting them to use so I can get enough raw material to build cool stuffs.

A significant amount of my iron supply went into the rails, as did nearly all my gold. I also don't spend as much time when I'm working using enchanted diamond tools, this is good because I can rip through a lot of stuff and fill my inventory in under an hour getting what I need to build things.

My main issue is fuel, I can make my own which is good because while I have furnaces running I can be out chopping down trees to make more charcoal (and replanting). I really can't have enough smooth stone.

Now that I'm into creating potions the acquisition of rare nether materials is important making armour a higher priority than before.

I never make diamond armour, but I will always enchant the iron stuff. I always have a diamond sword, with an iron backup and I always have an enchanted bow (seriously Pow II kicks). I refill arrows at the mob grinder.

In the nether it's really easy to die in a way that you can't recover your loot so I bring only armor, weapons, some food and a iron or stone pick, if I die I'm only out 2 diamonds, 24 iron and whatever goodies I had found before I died.

[Thorin]

Man, I've got coal coming out the yin-yang.  Like, 45 stacks?  Which is enough to smelt 360 stacks of other stuff?  It's probably because some of my mines go under the Ocean biome and that probably has extra coal.  Almost as much as the redstone I have

I agree the stronger tools go way faster.  I did have a diamond pickaxe at the beginning and it went nice and quick.  In fact, there were times when I accidentally mined a block that I didn't intend to mine.  Now, if it had Unbreakable III on it so that it lasted for 6,000+ uses, that'd be like 60 stone pickaxes, or 24 iron pickaxes.

I wonder what Lazy and Mel do.  And Lenny, since he does come on here now

[Lazybones]

I alternate between iron and stone or diamond and iron... haven't settled but generally have a higher value and a lower value pick on me and uses shovels on all dirt, sand and gravel i hit.

Building a large structure out of smooth stone brick, I know why Mr. A is always out of coal.

FYI lava works for 100 firings but uses up the bucket so you loose 3 iron... so it isn't worth it.

[Mr. Analog]

Building a large structure out of smooth stone brick, I know why Mr. A is always out of coal.

Pretty much!!

FYI lava works for 100 firings but uses up the bucket so you loose 3 iron... so it isn't worth it.

Exactly this, if there was a way to get the bucket back it would be awesome, but for now? Sucks.

[Thorin]

I wonder how many furnaces you run, Mr. A.   I remember seeing, like, 20 in Mel's tower when I ended up in there by accident.

[Tom]

I wonder how many furnaces you run, Mr. A.   I remember seeing, like, 20 in Mel's tower when I ended up in there by accident.

Huh, by the time you fill up the furnaces, the first ones might be finishing

[Thorin]

I dunno, 64 items in the furnace would take 640 seconds to completely smelt.  That's 10 minutes and 40 seconds.  I'm pretty sure I can fill a furnace in twenty seconds or less, so filling all twenty would take no more than 400 seconds.  Unless one were to put less than a full stack in?

[Mr. Analog]

27 furnaces usually.

18 for smelting 9 for making charcoal.

[LennyLen]

I use iron tools generally, and sometimes diamond if I've found a lot of it.  I normally find that I get anywhere from 4-8 iron per pickaxe, so the 3 that go into making it are worth it.

[Tom]

I use iron tools generally, and sometimes diamond if I've found a lot of it.  I normally find that I get anywhere from 4-8 iron per pickaxe, so the 3 that go into making it are worth it.

That's around what I find for diamond picks, so long as your mine isn't intersecting a stronghold or something. Diamond picks will find around 4-8+ diamonds which make it very worth it. Especially since they end up finding a stack or two of iron, and several gold. Not to mention the mining speed advantages.