For an update, I am in the next step now. I can't afford insane 1k runs so I started "normal" mining. Though that takes so much longer, and I have been busy IRL, so updates will be a lot more scarce.
And just to clarify what I think about mining right now;
Previously I have been 110 % sure that all loot is avatar based. I have my doubts now, however. The test so far indicates that mining claims are of a "random" value, based on how much you spent to find That claim. In other words, I bomb with 1 PED - I find claims of a size in proportion to that. If I bomb twice, get one NRF and then a hit - I will not get a claim in proportion to the 2 PED spent. Rather I get a claim from the 1 PED table. If I used an amp which decays 1 PED, then I'd get a claim from the 2 PED table, bombing twice with one NRF - I still get from the same list. (Note how, even in the 1 PED table claim size is most often above 1 PED TT, because whoever wrote the code knows no one is like to have 100 % hit rate.)
The above is in accordance with what the hunting tests showed, as far as I can tell. Hit the mob for more dmg - get more loot. Eco matters, because you want the dmg done to be as cheap to you as possible.
Important text: Also, the above indicates that the best enhancer to use while mining is not a depth enhancer, unless you are targeting a specific ore in an area for markup, but rather the range enhancers. Find more claims = more TT for you, so long as the enhancers don't break quicker then you find more claims. If you already have a 100 % hit rate, the enhancer will not do anything but add to your costs. UL amp with range enhancers is ideal for increased TT return. And never, ever double bomb unless skill gains tell you to. And even then, it would be wise to consider just where to drop the next bomb. If you stood at X=0, found a claim at X=1 and you have a finder with range 50 - then move to X=52 before dropping your next bomb. You still search all the same area, but without loosing valuable search radius by searching stuff you already looked through once (you always find the closest claim while mining). If the area is one-dimensional. You get the point.
Disclaimer: In theory.
Edit: And as JohnCapital's tests suggested - this further increases the importance to know if someone else has mined the area before you. If they have, get out. Or at least give the area some 15-20 minutes to respawn it's claims.