Aussiedistiller, Home Distilling, Moonshine, Home Brew

Have fired off a message to Mac and Sue on the 5* website to order some shiny bits and pieces and will update the thread when I get them installed.

Alright. Sorted out most of the stuff for the boiler with Sue. Only one element at the moment but more are coming. I'll get a second one then.
Next step. I have another,woohooo, foam extinguisher (3) that hold approx 25-30 liters and 11 liters respectively. I'm gunna turn the biggun into an inline thumper that attaches directly to my boiler. They're all the rage at the moment.
I was thinking of welding a 4" ferrule on the top and bottom and making a plate to fit between them out of copper. Will a 1" riser, 2" cap and 1" downcomer be enough as I have those sizes in my stash. I will probably only run 2400 watts but might go to 4800 in th future (Maybe). If I want to go for more riser area I either need to find a 1 & 1/2" riser tube or maybe make the ferrule it joins onto the boiler 6" to fit another 2" cap on there.
I'll solder a 1" copper socket on the downcomer plate so I can adjust the thumper depth just by changing the length of tube I use.
Before I start drawing up plans will a single 2" cap and 1" riser handle the load?

as for the riser, probably be ok, but 1 1/2" riser would be better as the cross sectional area of a 1 1/2" riser is the same as the area between the riser and 2" cap so air speed and pressure should stay the same. 1" riser will have more air speed but should slow once its turned around between the riser and bubble cap before it leaves the slots. as for DC, i see most people use 3/4" and meat has a 3/4" to 1" reducer i think on top which i will do also. i think also having a larger riser than the DC allows the liquid to choose the riser more also with less pressure build up. maybe. i could be wrong but that would seem so.

what width do the bottles have? ID?

so did i read that right,
*the bigger boiler, then
30L inline thumper
then 2 more bottles on top?

how tall would that be? but sounds interesting

WTDist wrote:

what width do the bottles have? ID?

so did i read that right,
*the bigger boiler, then
30L inline thumper
then 2 more bottles on top?

how tall would that be? but sounds interesting

The boiler is about 100 liters and will have a 4" ferrule connection for the still or thumper to attach to. It will be on its side.
The big one for the thumper is approximately 300 mm wide x 400 mm high. The two smaller are about 180 wide by 400 high.
I thought about using the littluns for the column but they're an odd size of around 7" so I'm guessing would be a prick to get ferrules.
If I dont remove the paint people will think I have a fire engine. Good nickname actually!
Will post photos soon.

never know, 7" is probabally out there. I didnt grab a bunch of brand new 5" copper at the scrappy as i didnt know if i could get 5" triclamps, turns out they are easy to get.

Pic.

Plus its not just the ferrules. Id need to build my own 7" plates. Cant be naffed.

Ok. Finally got all my shiny new five star gear from Perth and a couple of stainless bsp fittings from fleabay. Going to orjaminize a boily to whack em on the boiler this week at work. Hopefully get it all together during the next couple of three weeks. Updates soon but build is still ongoing.

I hope you get better ebay fittings than i did.
What a waste of $7.

scythe wrote:I hope you get better ebay fittings than i did.
What a waste of $7.

Mainly a couple of 1&1/4" fittings (in middle of photo) to sort the threads on the cylinder out. Seem to be ok. Nothing a bit of thread tape cant fix. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Those ones look like a better style than mine. Mine were a bit of pipe with a thread cut off centre, absolute rubbish.

Finally all welded up. Couldn't get hold of a tig so he worked his magic with an arc welder. Slightly distorted the ones on top of the tank (a poofteenth) but will do up fine with a seal.
Thumper sitting on top with 3" sight glass ferrule.
Other 4" is for a fill port.
Gotta make the stand, build the thumper cap and get the elements wired up.

Cooooooooooool! :happy-partydance:

Nice :handgestures-thumbupleft: are you going to shine her up or leave her au natural? My vote would be leave it industrial looking, maybe there's a way to freshen up the red and clear coat it?

Leave as is I think. Probably insulate it eventually. I'm not so much about how it looks, just how it works. Lucky for me cause I tend to make things untidy.

Bits all built for thumper plate. Cheers zak.
Soaking in vinegar now.
Going to have a crack this weekend.
Interesting thing happened at bandcamp. Bloke I work with saw what I was making in the welding bay and said 'Bit tall for a bubble cap isn't it?'
Turns out he's got a 6" column and has a 4" he's not using. Going for a look tommorrow. No cooling lines as he used it on his 6".
I want a 6" but he offered me his 4" for $500 and a taste of my product when I'm up and running which sounds like a pretty good deal. Said its a 4 plate. Not sure where he got it yet. Didn't ask.

Good ta see ya still swinging away on the build,seems the gods are smileing on you as well meeting a brother from another mother with a good deal ,here's hopeing its not a total piece of shit.cheers hillzabilly ;-)

Well shit hot!
Know the guys up early (same roster as me) getting his Billy lids ready for school so ducked over for a look. It was in pieces in a storage crate.
From the bits I can see it looks identical to the 5* mac 4 ssg with a different top piece. Dont think it is as its not marked 5*. The plates also have two downcomers instead of just one.
Said he bought it online from pieces a couple of years ago but upgraded to the 6" because the speed irked him (too much money methinks).
I'll pick it up later as he's gotta find a few bits and pieces for it.

Great find!

I got all excited and picked it up straight after taking the littlest to school.
I ran all the parts through the dishwasher (baskets were jagged) and put it together to see if everything was there. Seems to be and boiler is done and dusted.
Need to sort out the cooling piping for the still now but pretty sure I've got some fittings that should fit.
I am absolutely stoked how this all turned out! :handgestures-thumbupleft:
It's not a 6" but for the price I can't knock a 4". Looks brand new now apart from a few scratches. I can't find any markings on it to say where it came from.




Told him about the site but he's in his late 50's/early 60's??? and says he'll have a look but he leaves most internet to his kids. Got a young wife and little ones. Not sure whether that's lucky or not at his age. :))

Awesome build. Was wondering how it ran.

I’m wanting to build a boiler and I have access to a few of these cylinders.

Cheers