Aussiedistiller, Home Distilling, Moonshine, Home Brew

Hi All,
Thinking about building rather than buying, and just wondered if anyone has done a double liebig?

Water jacket up the core, condensor tube centred and then water jacket surrounding that.

What I was thinking of is 6mm centre, 13 mm condensor tube, and 19mm external jacket.

A shotgun would be easier and more effective over the sane length... What are you thinking of building?

Hi Fishboy ive read the potstill section many times and i remember benpandaae86 Pot Still very well :handgestures-thumbupleft:
he has an inner water tube and an outer water tube with the product in a middle tube or something like that :think: Have a look at the link and you will see, also if your thinking of building i would recommend reading up as much as possible as there are so many different designs put up by members :techie-typing:

What sort of still are you thinking of making? with the effort of 2 water jackets i would make a double shotty if i was using just a few pipes but IMHO if i were to make a liebig it would just be a long one with one water jacket

:text-+1: with zak

Yep that sort of thing was what I was thinking for the Liebig.

The thought at the moment is probably a 2 or 3" boka.
I've had a loan of a turbo 500 for a little while but the sensitivity of the needle valve is a pita.

I've got a bit of time off over the next week or so so it's off to the scrapyards and see what I can find in tube.

As a metalworker I make a good fishkeeper, so I need to keep it basic for the moment.
I have been doing a lot of reading on the forum, but to be honest it's only been the last few weeks I've really been thinking about build rather than buy, so I haven't really been reading a lot of build stories.

I've got a bit of hard drawn tube and some fittings to have a play with, so I'll see how I go with a Liebig first.

I'd like to end up with a pot / reflux combo I think, so thats why I'm thinking Boka might be a good choice.

Maybe... :think:

Any suggestions greatly appreciated.

You could try a hybrid, a pot with a coil that can be a packed section. Like one of my design ideas, just change the liebig to the double?

Gives an idea anyway :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Try this link for a thread on hybrid/single runs by bt1 :handgestures-thumbupleft:

I want vodkas occasionally and the missus likes vodka but im mostly a whiskey drinker so this design is a no brainer for my needs

I can see the value of producing good neutrals, but to be honest it's a bit of a battle to turn it into something sippable in the bourbon style.

I've managed to find a mix that I'm not totally :puke-huge: throwing up over, and I am continuing to tweak it.

I've been TPW all the way so far, but with just the borrowed t500 it's neutrals or nothing at this point.

How did you do the coil penetrations through the column?

i know what you mean with the essences, its one reason i stopped making bourbon and just stuck to vodka with my still after a while.
That was one of my ideas above. I have a T500 that is leaking and i need to remove the top plastic part and add copper bends into a condencer and this will help me bypass the reflux coil and keep it as a pot still or use the coil and have reflux. This isn't the design i went with in the pic above, the one i went with is below but im aiming for a 2" shotty vertical though.



As for getting the coil pipes through, drill holes and stick the pipe through, then solder. at least that's what i have come the believe

Hi mate i did build a leibig with inner tube as well i made it out of stainless but i would recommend buildin a shotty out of copper

It uses a lot of water to knock the heat down hope this helps

Happy stillin

Thanks Ben,
I was just tossing the idea around, wondered if anyone had thought of it already.
Knew some one would have.. I'm not clever enough to think up anything new... :teasing-tease:

Did you run two feeds for the water or did you recycle it?
B Y that I mean did the water only make one pass along the condenser x 2
Or did the water go up one path and then back through the condenser for the second pass?

At this stage of the game creating a shotty is well outside my skill / confidence level.

Fishboy wrote:Thanks Ben,
At this stage of the game creating a shotty is well outside my skill / confidence level.

A shotty was well out of my comfort level (not so much skill, I was a welder in a past life), but I just read as much as possible before attempting anything and then went for it
After some problems due to not cleaning joining surface properly, I finished it, it's a beast and will knock down 13-15L per hour over a 3 ring burner with an adjustable regulator
Admittedly I usually run it around the 8-10L per hour mark, any higher uses a shiteload of gas
Practice your soldering/brazing on some scrap bits first and you should have no problems

Seperate water feeds i have a manifold with ball valves so i can ruffly adjust where the water goes

Hi fish,

:text-+1: on the shotty, they look more complicated than they are. Have a good read through the build threads and macs tips on shotty building in the "tips from the work bench" section.

If you are thinking about building a boka then you won't need a shotty or even a liebig for that matter, the liebig is only there to cool the alc so your alc meter reads correct, the vapor is condenced by the coil in the top of the colomn.

Good luck with the build :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Thanks Woodduck, Spork Ben..
The main reason behind the Liebig thought to be honest was simply an opportunity to practice some very long forgotten soldering skills. I've done a heap of electrical soldering and in my Loooong distant past I did a bit of oxy soldering and mig work.
But that was a Looong time ago. I grabbed a bit of hard drawn and some fittings to see how I'd go, and then started thinking about how I could make it a Little bit trickier.
( notice I said a little bit)
So now I'm still a little lost to be honest.
The budgets not great for the project so I'm thinking fairly carefully about the next move.

I'm keen to be able to create something worthwhile, but I know that I do have a short attention span and if I am unable to make progress I have a tendency to loose interest.
I love a challenge, I've ticked most of the boxes I've set for myself.

Making things is a great buzz. I'd love to make my own booze that I'm proud to serve to mates, but I also have no illusions about my capabilities. Like I said, as a metal worker I'm a great aquaculturist.

I will read some more, think some more, play with the t500 till I have to give it back....

Got to admit Wt that I'll have a read through your build post when I've got a minute.
A hybrid sounds really like it will tick all the needs.

Thanks for the input so far :)

Fishboy wrote:Got to admit Wt that I'll have a read through your build post when I've got a minute.
A hybrid sounds really like it will tick all the needs.

Thanks for the input so far :)

Before everyone beats up the hybrid pot too much, it won't give you a great neutral. It might get some of the way there but not great.

There is a reason not many people at all run them. Even BT1 has said its more of a rum rig.

Just wanted to add this before you start building :handgestures-thumbupleft:

hybrid will make neutral if you have a packed section will it not?? :think: my design is basically the T500 with a bypass of the reflux and no plastic. A pot and a T500 in one, i probably should have mentioned that a hybrid can only make neutral if it has a packed section. 8-}

I have no soldering skills also also fishoy.
Last time i used a mig, oxy/accet or arc welder was over 13 years ago but if i can source some 2" im making a shotty :D
I figure if i fuk up ill just try again. if it leaks ill fix it. im on a low budget also so the 2" i get will be from a metal scrap yard.
All I have done is read the shotty thread and the soft solder thread with a few pointed questions also.
A liebig was my first option as it was the easiest to comprehend but as Ive dove in a bit further i realized i really wanted a 2" shotty (if i can afford it) on top of my T500 boiler

Dont be scared. Im sure many here have built them for the first time with no skills :handgestures-thumbupleft:
I may still end up making a liebig though if i cant get cheap 2" :cry:

Yeah one of my big problems is also time..
I work full time as well as run another business on my days off.
So sometimes it's easiest to just bite the bullet and she'll out the sheckles.
But there is little satisfaction in that.....

Fish, if you can use a hacksaw, hamer and sand paper and can hold a gas torch and a roll of solder you can make a still. You just need some patience and a bit of practice, the confidence will come once you get the hang of it. There are a heap of blokes here that will help you through it and give you pointers if you choose to give it a go.

I'll throw these links up just in case you haven't found them already,

http://www.aussiedistiller.com.au/viewt ... =41&t=3087

http://www.aussiedistiller.com.au/viewt ... =41&t=1237

viewtopic.php?f=57&t=2931

Have you thought about making a modular pot/boka ?

The pot still and boka are two of the easiest stills to make.

I'm planning on making a pot still head that will fit my 3" column.