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Finished my still

PostPosted: Mon May 09, 2016 11:21 pm
by sparkydan
Finished my copper still what you all think.
First time builder now to make the mash.
Gave it a run with viniger and water to clean . Thumper andvcoul work well very happy i am lol

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 2:17 am
by Meatheadinc
Very nice traditional still. :handgestures-thumbupleft:
Well done.
Any more detail, specs etc?
Build thread maybe ?

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 5:01 am
by Zzpop
Awesome work mate :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 5:46 am
by scythe
Just be careful running gas indoors, fire and suffocation risks and all that.

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 6:37 am
by Undertaker
Noice! Looks like copper work is bit more than a hobby for you
+1 on a build log

Cheers Phil

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 9:18 am
by CaptainRedBeard
That looks amazing. I particularly like your dough "glue" you've used to join the column to the boiler. Like a true Popcorn Sutton still.

Wish I had the room to have one of those style of stills. Very impressed :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 9:30 am
by bluc
Very cool love it :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 4:42 pm
by sparkydan
Honestly got sick of my mates sugar yeast water essence crap so i challenged him got a design of learn to moon shine .com and manipulated it a bit done some research and pow theres a copper still lol. Never silver solded in my life before this. Now is the question corn wiskey or full grain mash . And i havent mesured the dimensions yet planed of a 6 gal enlarged slightly to fit the 1900 by 900 sheet copper ill keep yal posted on the progress

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 5:25 pm
by sparkydan
I had all these ideas to seal the cap . Clamps temp rated rubber ect lol it seems pocorns rye mix paste works amazing im thinking to build some type brick clay style igloo with flu like the old ones only with gas to help get it to temp bit quicker lol.
This hobby is a desiese im thinking havent made one drop yet and im going mad lol

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 5:27 pm
by sparkydan
And also shed is very well vented rollerdoor open window and door also

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 6:15 pm
by Dig Brinker
Beautiful work there Dan. Love the boiler, 6 gallon is it or larger?
No one has asked yet, but are those fittings brass? Have they been treated? Lead free?? :-B

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 6:18 pm
by Sam.
Mate I would be extremely careful using flour paste for a permanent seal it is recommended here for an emergency temp repair.

Wouldn't want it to fail, especially running on gas...

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 6:25 pm
by sparkydan
Not sure on the brass there gas plumbing fittings not old so i would assume lead would b ok open to sugestions still a newbie and on the rye paste any other sugestions would be good . I ran it with viniger water flat out for 2 /3 hours not one leak any other ideas please .
I do enjoy others picking at my build . More brains are better than one

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 6:35 pm
by CaptainRedBeard
New or old doesn't really matter with plumbing fittings, if its brass then it more than likely has lead. Lead is a big no in distilling. It leeches poison into your booze.

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 6:43 pm
by hillzabilly
sparkydan wrote:I had all these ideas to seal the cap . Clamps temp rated rubber ect lol it seems pocorns rye mix paste works amazing im thinking to build some type brick clay style igloo with flu like the old ones only with gas to help get it to temp bit quicker lol.
This hobby is a desiese im thinking havent made one drop yet and im going mad lol

G-day mate ,a mans gota brew what a mans gota brew ,with ya rye mix seal and brass fittings ,they may be traditional but they also carry a risk to your health and safety a concern wich seeing its your first still I would expect you may be unaware of ,the seal may leak and with gas that means a seriouse fire risk(not to bad when you set up out in the woods,compared to the carport at home ) or at least a loss of product,the fact you have a thumper means there is a little more pressure in the boiler wich compounds these issues,brass can contain lead so its my understanding that the site does not condone its use in the vapour or distillate path,I would try and tin the brass with silver solder were it contacts these , but she sure would look at home in a log cabin.cheers hillzabilly

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 7:32 pm
by Meatheadinc
Water fitting in aust are regulated low lead below the standards
Gas fittings have no standards for lead..

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 11:08 pm
by sparkydan
no worries , so ill change the fitting to a more safe metal and come up with a cap sealing gadget . i do have a 1.2 m twin fan outdoor range hood ill probably mount above it all that should help. any suggestions on sealing my cap?

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Tue May 10, 2016 11:30 pm
by CaptainRedBeard
Your cap looks pretty darn big. You could flange the boiler and cap, and use a tri clamp (as per 99% of builds on here). Could be pricey though at that size.

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Wed May 11, 2016 1:16 am
by Dig Brinker
As far as I know you can cut a cardboard ring & wrap that with PTFE tape (plumbers tape) to make a vapour safe seal. Then use something heavy on top to hold it on? Still a bit backwoods. I would flange the top and bottom and use a tri clamp but that would depend on the diameter.
For the brass fittings ditch them & solder on copper elbows for the bends. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Re: Finished my still

PostPosted: Wed May 11, 2016 5:51 am
by rumdidlydum
Dig Brinker wrote:As far as I know you can cut a cardboard ring & wrap that with PTFE tape (plumbers tape) to make a vapour safe seal. Then use something heavy on top to hold it on? Still a bit backwoods.Bad Idea! I would flange the top and bottom and use a tri clamp but that would depend on the diameter.
For the brass fittings ditch them & solder on copper elbows for the bends. :handgestures-thumbupleft: