From the lucky land of legal home distilling NZ

[MacStill]

Hi Everyone,

Thought I would introduce myself after wandering through McStill's great forum for ages reading everything I could about still making and producing shine.

I'm an Engineer by trade from the Marine and General Eng. Industry and interested in building a pair of 4" Perforated Plate Stills to experiment with different still components and setups using the same wash in both to get some real world results of mods made to them. I have hunted around on Trademe in NZ for all the copper and kegs I could afford over the last year and have got 5", 4", 3", 2 1/2", 2", 1 1/2", 1 1/4", 1", 7/8", 3/4", 5/8", 3/8" and 1/4" copper pipe to play with :-D and 1.5mm copper sheet :-D

I have 4 50L SS Kegs, a 25L SS Half Keg and 4 rare 20L SS Naval Kegs (not corny kegs, like mini 50L ones?) also got 4" and 3" Stainless steel 304 pipe that I want to uses later on for a stainless flute column build.

I'm interested in producing drinkable :laughing-rolling: Vodka Whiskey and Rums also try making Italian Grappa with the spent grapes from the local vineyards.
I have read a lot of info on other distilling forums so I can kinda know what I talking about too ask the guys with the distilling smarts questions to help me build and uses the rigs I'm designing.

Cheers

[CHEROKEE]

Welcome aboard mate, you’ll do well here. Cheers :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Kimbo]

Hi Coppersmith, welcome to the forum mate :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Gas on]

Welcome Smithy!

What the fucks a flute?? :laughing-rolling: :laughing-rolling:

[CHEROKEE]

Yeah, what’s a fucken flute? Cheers :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[MacStill]

Welcome Smithy!

What the fucks a flute?? :laughing-rolling: :laughing-rolling:

Yeah, what’s a fucken flute? Cheers :handgestures-thumbupleft:

nose flute player2.jpg

[CHEROKEE]

I'm sorry I asked the question. Cheers :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Coppersmith]

Thanks guys, glad to be here. I've been reading as much as I can find about bubblers (olddogs Flute) leaning towards perforated plates for my build but keen to play with a few bubble cap plates later on. I have 1750mm of 5" copper pipe staring at me wanting to be turned into something interesting... :think:

[Coppersmith]

If I could afford the Tri Clamps :angry-banghead: found a company that makes a 15" 16 gauge copper dome that I want to buy... this gets me thinking

#Mean Still.jpg

[CHEROKEE]

What a beautiful piece of KIT, I may have to modify the Kitchen. maybe............. Cheers :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Gas on]

Welcome Smithy!

What the fucks a flute?? :laughing-rolling: :laughing-rolling:

Yeah, what’s a fucken flute? Cheers :handgestures-thumbupleft:

nose flute player2.jpg

Is that the "old dog" & with the original flute? :)) :))

[Coppersmith]

Has anyone seen kegs like the one on the right of the picture? I was told buy the guy I got them from they were rare old 20L kegs used by the Navy to store their grog in on the ships :think: it has a 2" BSP thread in the spigot, so I thought I could use if for a small thumper keg being feed by a 50L keg pot still??

25L half keg and 20L naval keg..jpg

[kiwikeg]

Hi dude welcome to the forum,
Those kegs they will be absolutely brilliant for storing low wines and ageing/oaking bulk batches of spirit.

[Coppersmith]

Thanks kiwikeg, I thinks they are too gud to chop up and would be perfect for ageing spirits, way cheaper then the 20L oak barrels listed on trademe.
Just have to find a wine barrel to cut up into stakes and toast em :obscene-birdiedoublered: cost me 50 bucks a keg for 4 of them and the screw fitting means I can make a stainless screw in lid out of a 2" bsp threaded fitting, cheaper than buying tri clamp fittings.

[kiwikeg]

Yeah, Bazzas prices are pretty steep for those small barrels!!!
Where abouts in NZ are you?
There's oak pieces for smoking in the BBQ section in most M10mega's that are fine for oaking spirit, eg the jack Daniels oak smoking chips, Apple wood and cherry wood smoking chips.

[Yummyrum]

Nice kegs .When I first started this hobby I was also very frugal.....it changes.
Personally althogh that keg might accept a brass 2" bsp thread , I'm really not comfortable with brass because of tje lead thing. I would just go with a triclamp connection.

It aslo keeps things more uniform for interchangability down the track :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Coppersmith]

In the far north kiwikeg, did my trade cert in Engineering Fabrication in aucks a lot harder to get parts and supplies up here than living in the city. I'm on first name basis with the courier drivers from copper hunting on trademe :laughing-rolling: cheers for the oak tips

[Coppersmith]

Found 2" bsp 316 SS threaded fittings I could use to tig up a lid, read about the lead in brass fittings very good tip. I'm one of the lucky ones with a TIG welder but still like brazing things with the OXY and MAPP torch.

[Fatherjack]

:greetings-waveyellow: :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Coppersmith]

Hey fatherjack,

Wondering how many kiwis were drinking round here :handgestures-thumbupleft: