Lost in the direction I want to go!

[LuckyShine]

I am sure this will be something I get told to do more research on and read the new members section so on and so forth. I have done tons of reading and I guess I am coming up with "conflicting" information...? I have read that a "pot still is all we need to have for a good corn whiskey" but then I have read the long post on that a pot still will produce the most heads and tails and only come out around 50% and a larger quantity but not good quality in separation of the cuts. Where a CM will give the minimal amounts of heads and tails and produce distillate at 90% but lower quantity and better or cleaner quality between cuts. So once you dilute it to a "drinkable 40%" I'm assuming quantity is close to the same across the board? That's not taking into account for the LM and VM reflux stills but what I figured on them (and I am new so I am sure I will be wrong here) was its pointless to run one of them being one lowers the amount of heads and the other lowers the amount of tails while the CM does both. How far off am I here if any and for making a good quality corn whiskey with the highest quantity without sparing any of the quality. So I guess my question comes in to clear my thought process, is there a keen advantage to one or the other?

[wv_cooker]

Oh it's a confusing world our hobby, lol. You know what you want to make and a general rule of thumb is pot still for whiskey and flavored drinks Reflux column for vodka and neutrals.

Now it's a matter of choosing one but and aren't there always one lol. Flutes do single run flavored drinks pretty fast and everybody seems to love them, but they are complicated to build. People say VM's make great vodka, boka is a reflux column isn't it. See where I am going here.

You really can make about any product with any still. They each do a good job at one thing but depending on how you run them you can also make other things.

I built an LM for my first rig because It made good neutral and I could remove the packing and run it in pot mode with a short column that I also built. Never once did I change out the column because I learned a way to make whiskey in a reflux column from Odin. So you can see what ever you build and learn on for your first your opinion will change as you go along and if you stay in the hobby long you will have different ones from time to time.

As a personal opinion if I were building my first again I would go with a cm for it's ease of construction and the new style CM's are pretty good at making either neutrals or flavored drinks depending on how you run them. So to me they are pretty versatile. I would consider 3" tubing for it's ability for faster take off speeds.

I hope this long bs post helps you clear your mind and helps you choose a rig, and when you do let us know and we can point you at some very fine reading on how to build it. I am not trying to be a smart a**, I just know how confusing and overwhelming it can be in the beginning. CM's are a good choice for your first in my opinion and I am sure others will pitch in with more. Good luck and enjoy the ride!

[LuckyShine]

That does clear it up some, I am leaning towards a CM but I am partial to a pot still because that is what I first built last year when i was the newb watching youtube videos and had no idea what I was doing. I am looking to do just whiskey as I am not much into vodkas and so forth. As a new guy I am inclined to ask, would a whiskey be considered a neutral? By the deffinition given by HD its a clear tasteless spirit and therefore depending on the whiskey it could be a neutral?

[wv_cooker]

Read up on a new type CM with a dephlegmator or shotgun reflux condenser as it were. You can run them in pot still mode or pretty much anything in between.

To my knowledge whiskey is known as a flavored drink. Now if you are referring to HD as being the parent site, a lot of information there is a little outdated and the reference to whiskey starting as a neutral could be a method used somewhere in the world commercially. Whiskey is generally referred to as a flavored drink and a neutral is lacking any flavor in it's purist form. A nice vodka somewhere in the middle.

Now though you want to make corn likker as we know it, you may want to make your wife some macerations some day requiring a good neutral. You yourself will find many things you want to try that you don't realize now. Though you can make a neutral with a pot still by running it a number of times and you can make whiskey with a reflux column, I do it all the time. I am just of the opinion that when you first start you might want something a little easier to experiment with many different type of product.

Hope this helps!

[aj2456]

Just to muddy the water a little, why does it have to be only one still column you build- you could build two... maybe a pot still now (a v easy build imho- just easy soldering) and a boka later(coil winding involved)

Thats what im planning to do once ive gotten knowlagable about the pot still- esp since i have 50% of the stuff to build it now anyway... but then i secretly like building this stuff

but if its only one still than yeah CM looks like the best one

[multipazz]

have you taken a look at the concentric pot/reflux hybrid ?

[pounsfos]

personally I would'nt go CM way

I have used CM's before, not good if you have unstable water pressure, and I find getting them to equilibrium alot harder than an LM or VM

Just my 2c

[Prairiepiss]

You have to look at a cm still as it should be looked at. And for what it is. And a cm still is a pot still with performance mods. Like a stock 4x4 truck is the pot still. And you add a lift kit bigger tires and more horse power and larger axles. Now its a cm still. It can still do the same work as before. But now it can go places to do that work. It couldn't go before. And haul more. Where a LM is more like a tractor trailer. It does one thing really good. Haul a lot of stuff. But is limited of where it can go. But it can make smaller loads like an oem pickup. Sort of. Now a VM is a train or plane. It can carry the load. But is very specific as to where it can go.

So what does that mean? A cm still can be ran as a pot still. Just like a pot still. Because it is a pot still. It can also be ran as a cm reflux rig. But as a reflux rig it isn't gona give you a perfect neutral. It will however give you a really nice vodka. When I say vodka. I mean a close to neutral drink that has a nice hint of grainy flavor and mouthfeel. It has character. It can also be ran between a pot still and a reflux still. So you get a flavored drink at a higher ABV. It will also compress the heads and tails more. So you get more cleaner drink from a single run. Then a pot still would. But remember running with reflux also slows the process down. When compared to a pot still. There are improvements that can help with that.

So here I will break it down.

If you just want a flavored drink. And are willing to do multiple runs if need be. A pot still is a good choice. Adding a thumper could possibly remove the need for multiple runs.

If you want to mainly make flavored drinks. With the occasional vodka. And or single run high ABV flavored drinks. A cm still is a good choice.

If you want to mainly make neutrals. With the occasional flavored drink. Then the LM would be a good choice.

If you want to make really good neutrals. And nothing else. Then the VM is a good choice.

A pot still is also a good choice. As an addition to the LM and VM. To be used as a stripping rig. To improve the performance of those rigs.

[wv_cooker]

perfect explanation PP.

[LuckyShine]

Great information guys, I think I need to look into a CM reflux still, what good options are there for building one?

[Prairiepiss]

First read the cm mod thread. Link in my signature.

[Coyote]

When I built my 2" column I included a union
in line so I have the option of changing heads
if I ever desire.

Best of both worlds

Coyote

[shadylane]

Almost all the stills use a boiler, also known as a pot. Build this first.
A 2" or bigger tri-clover clamp on the output makes it easy to change still heads.
A drain and a fill port will let you recharge the pot without having to disassemble it.
Build the pot right and it's easy to make modifications in the future.

[wv_cooker]

Almost all the stills use a boiler, also known as a pot. Build this first.
A 2" or bigger tri-clover clamp on the output makes it easy to change still heads.
A drain and a fill port will let you recharge the pot without having to disassemble it.
Build the pot right and it's easy to make modifications in the future.

Most use a keg and yes they can be re-worked as often as you can come up with ideas. Also the 2" opening on a sanke keg will fit to a 2" Tri clover fitting without modifying it.

[shadylane]

Ya gotta crawl before you walk, then walk before Ya run.
Start simple and build up from there.

[wv_cooker]

Ya gotta crawl before you walk, then walk before Ya run.
Start simple and build up from there.

Sorry about that really thought that was a question. A pot is just fine.