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Yes it is a standard reducer. I had to use a ring of the same heavy gauge wire that I made the flange out of between the reducer and my arm. My arm did not end at a perfect 1.5" :( so the wire gave me some adjustment. The actual length of the arm is roughly 12" from the top peak to the red...

what size onion did you use? i have access up to 12 inch onion floats, bigger the better? 5.5 inches, I felt that was praportional to the 3" pipe but I suppose bigger could be better? more details on how the condenser attaches to the arm I used a 1.5" to 3/4" reducer with a 3/4"...

Are you just trying to avoid running twice? In my opinion, if you have a good recipe that is not overly weakened with sugar (meaning a molasses rum wash or all grain whickey ) then you will have pleanty of flavor running twice. Especially if you are adding back stillage or fresh wash to your second ...

I want to point out that blackstrap is 50% fermentable but for those of you useing fancy molasses, it is quite higher than that. I am sure that making it in a 55 gal drum that we are talking about blackstrap for this application.

I just used a lead free solder from the hardware store. The still head is about 15" to the peak so about 12" or 13" to the first angle. Not sure which you are asking about but roughly 2" to the ball and another 6" after the ball. I don't know the thickness of the copper, it ...

Don't mind at all! This still head performs like a dream. The precondenser works like have a very long tapered arm. It colapses the vapor in a short length that would happen in a much longer length without it. I got the idea from reading a post about the how a long tappered arm works better than an ...

There have been several of us that have asked for this....http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... =16&t=8581
Here's mine.http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... 50&start=0

Lurch wrote:the one thing that was not asked or mentioned in this tread, is where to purchase the tri clamps?

Try ebay.
I am lucky enough to have a scrap yard in town that has a stainless section that always has tri clamps and sanitary fittings. You can buy it by the pound.

Sounds similar to what I do by inverting sugar in the dunder. I am not sure from your post if you are using all or your dunder in the next batch. If so, that may be to much. I use about 30% dunder. Any more than that and you may find your acidity getting out of hand. If you are useing molasses in yo...

I visited Bacardi last year. All of their rums, by law have to be aged two years. They carbon filter all of their rum prior to ageing. I don't know if the silver is aged in stainless tanks or if they just filter it a second time to remove the color gained from the barrels. The tour guides could only...

You can buy nice big bottle brushes for cleaning glass fermenters. They work in a keg as well. But, like they have said, you won't need it if you are distilling clean wash.

I drink Rum with an ice cube or two in a brandy snifter. The last few swallows are always the best making want more. The second pour is always neat becuase my tongue is ready for it then. but flat-out (ie, valve wide open and power high) during the hearts. Logic tells me that will just force tails i...

Subtle flavor can come from the yeast. Look here...http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=7678 I agree that many rums are doctored. Pyrat is flavored and some form of sugar added. My bottle has crystals of sugar around the cork from evaporation. They don't distill their own rum, jus...

I assume you don't have an ariloc so put some plastic wrap over it to keep the co2 in and oxygen out. Fizzing is what you should see. You are not going to see large bubbles.

I have seen that stuff at most feed stores also. It is not what the recipes calling for feed grade molasses are talking about. You need to call around to find someone that carries the other. It is pure cane molasses but it is the dregs after all the edible stuff is used. I assume they also don't wor...

Good idea! Nice retro fit. I assume you have a valve on top of the brass fitting? Do you also have a drain in your boiler or do you just top off the amount you have collected?

If you are makeing the copper flange first and then adding additional solder with Oldogs method, strength is not an issue as I demonstrated in the original post http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=8550&start=30&st=0&sk=t&sd=a As far as being concerned about using ...

Make the same recipe a dozen times and then maybe don't use your hydrometer. I think telling someone not to use it when they are learning is not such a good idea. It is a tool and very useful for figuring out what is going on in your fermenter.

Learning something new here. So you make a wooden buck. Clamp a flat piece of copper to it and then push it onto the buck while spinning on the lathe?
Is that how you do it?

Should not be a problem. I did a search a while back for info on steam flow. There are some charts on the web as it relates to steam heat systems, granted these are under higher pressure. A large amount of steam can pass through 1" pipe. You will have high velocity at the restriction and then i...

Myles, Have you been seduced by the photos of Pusser's wooden stills as I have? I think it is a cool idea and I have been tossing around some design. The way I see it, you have to be prepared to run it weekly in order to keep the wood tight and sanitary. I don't need another still but can't help mys...

Husker wrote:(whenever the wife gives me a second of "free" time).

Man isn't that the truth!!!! Sounds like a good idea, if I am uderstanding it right. Love to see the pictures.

Smokey, This is my post http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=8550 that you are referring to. And as you well know by now, it is a copper float. If you are looking to make your first still, keep it simple. Your going to make a second or third one later (many of us have :lol: ), but...

Glad heat fixed it. I have run into a poor backset ferments from time to time as well so I will share my observations for others that heat did not fix. I live in the midwest where we have hard water, PH is usually not the problem. Even after many generations of adding back dunder, the hard water kee...

I have experimented alot with my Rum. You get plenty of good advice here on the forum, but honestly very few of us have tasted each others hooch to know if we should be listening to them or not. I take the advice that makes sense to me and then test it for myself. So do the same with mine! :D I have...

I have seen fertilizer for orchids at the store that are high in nitrogen and list "no urea" on the label.

I know this is the Whiskey Critic but there has been some Rum talk so I am going to add a little. When I went to Puerto Rico this past summer, I went to a rum bar and sampled everything the bartender suggested as the best of the Island. I first asked for a large wine goblet to taste them with. He wa...

Its now time to decide what to do with the outlet. Punkin designed this to work vertically. My question is: will flavor be affected by mounting it straight up & down as opposed to on a downward 45Deg like I plan to run my lyne arm? Fast strip runs & slow flavourful spirit spirit runs are th...

Lots of opinions here on speed or lack there of...http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... &sk=t&sd=a

I personally don't air out my strip runs. I do however keep my feints (heads and tails left from spirit runs) in a glass fermenter that is only capped with a coffee filter. These get aired out for months until I have enough to do my all feints run.