Keg?

[holliday]

I'm wanting to be able to distill more than 4 gal at a time and found this keg for $50 on craigslist in surrounding area. It says its stainless steel and 15gallons. The guy says its from the 1960's as well. Does it look alright to you all? If I got it should I mount my column on the side or plug that hole and stand it up? Any opinions appreciated.

[pounsfos]

is it stainless steel??

Only suitable metals are stainless steel and copper,
how big is the hole (i'm guessing 2'), and what type of still do you want to make out of it?

[holliday]

The guy says its ss. I won't know till I look at it and I'm not sure about the hole size either. I already have a boka that I would just mount.

[DavidWatkins]

I've seen a couple of those kegs in person, that hole is just a filling/drain hole. There is the usual keg spear and tap arrangement at one end. Fair warning though, this style keg is usually used for imported beers so it may not be the american sankey fittings, that could be a european DIN keg. Not a guarantee, but a possibility.

[holliday]

Well I thought about mounting the column on the side if I got it. Would that make any kind of difference

[Prairiepiss]

From the pic it looks to be a stainless one. Can't guaranty that. But pretty sure. You can tell pretty easily when you see it in person. Give it the old ding dong test. Tap on it with a key. Stainless will ding. Aluminum will dong. And scrape it with the key. Most keys are brass. It will gouge aluminum and not scratch stainless. Beings the brass is softer then the stainless.

Look up mash rookies keg. He uses one like this. And has a nice setup. If I were to use one of these. I would set it up like his.

[holliday]

Hmm I went through his topics and couldn't find a good picture of it. All of the ones I found have his amazing flutes on it and just a glimpse of the keg. I didn't know about the key thing so that is a great bit of info. Is $50 a good price for these? I haven't been in the market for a keg.

[mash rookie]

I have a couple of those kegs. They work fine. They are not as stable as the newer kegs but are certainly legitimate to own with their age. Breweries all use the newer designs.
I would just do a little welding on it. Have the bung hole welded shut, weld on a four inch ferrule on top, (you wont regret that move) and weld on a couple of one inch stainless half couplers for future element and drain fittings even if you are running gas. You can have them welded on without drilling the holes until you want to use them. If you can not weld stainless find a welder and promise him a bottle of hooch. He will probably work pretty cheap.


edit to add. I recently picked a couple more of them at the local recyclers for $20 each. They make cool BBQ's too. I have one on my boat.

[holliday]

Thanks for the input. I was wondering why you said a 4 inch ferrule my column is only 2
It's a 2 inch boka about 5 feet tall


So $50 is a bit much... Maybe I'll try to talk em down

[Prairiepiss]

So $50 is a bit much... Maybe I'll try to talk em down

I wouldn't say that. This depends on the area your in. And availability in that area. A going rate around my area is around $40 +or- $10. Yes the occasional score comes around from time to time. But that goes for anything your trying to buy.

[mash rookie]

I was wondering why you said a 4 inch ferrule my column is only 2

Most guys eventually go to a larger column and having a larger hole for filling cleaning and inspection is wonderful. You can also build it like mine by cutting the end open just below the lip. They have a slight taper there. That will give you a twelve inch opening. After forcing the end out it will act like a pressure fit lid. I have one with a two inch ferrule. After filling my boiler yesterday I put the lid on, smacked it with a hammer to tighten it and attached my column with a two inch tri clamp. No sealant necessary.
If you are interested in trying that I will dig out a tutorial post I did on them a couple of years ago.

[holliday]

I'm excited lol. I posted online locally I was looking for a 15 gal keg to make a grill
And got me one for $20 the following pics are of it once I got it home.



Now to find how I'm going to mount my 2" boka and fill this bad boy up. I have some ujsm but only 5 gal.

[mash rookie]

There is a tutorial somewhere here. You have to remove the split ring and unscrew the valve Counter Clockwise. Google and Youtube search it. A two inch ferule will match up easily.
Good find!

[squeezins]

I'm not sure how things work in you're area but around here its pretty common to go to the beer store and get a keg for the price of the deposit, usually around $35. It's a little more than what you spent but if you ever need another one for a fermenter its another option.. Good find.

[holliday]

I busted open that keg and some god awful liquid is inside of it. The guy I bought it off of said he got it from a recycle place. I'm trying to decide to flare my copper or get a 2" ferrule

[the fojizzle]

Please put up that tutorial!! I need the same help! Thanks!

[Condensifier]

Please put up that tutorial!! I need the same help! Thanks!

Here you go:http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4705

[Buddydubbs]

that last keg picured that was bought for 20 bucks looks aluminum isnt that a no no

[rad14701]

that last keg picured that was bought for 20 bucks looks aluminum isnt that a no no

I'm not seeing any pictures that appear to depict an aluminum keg... Can you point it out to us...??? The one in the first pot is stainless and you can tell by how the numbers are stamped into the metal, plus the welds... The next picture is definitely of a stainless steel keg...