Why dont more people run thumpers?

[W Pappy]

Good point Dad!! But I guess the same reason a lot of people don"t run thumpers is the same as why they don"t run reflux or think they are they don"t really understand them.Their is a lot of confusion on both for newbies a lot of people think all they have to do is throw some packing in their column and now they think it is a reflux.

[bellybuster]

funny, I just read this thread and my take?? Some folks don't run a thumper simply because they don't have one......

[Dan P.]

I have a thumper, I run a thumper, sometimes.
The truth is, you don't need a thumper to make first class spirits.

[Jimbo]

The truth is, you don't need a thumper to make first class spirits.

+1 to that. But,.... I have a triple distilled 5 grain that is really tasty, very fruity but light. Could this be done in 2 runs with a thumper on the 2nd pass? These kind of unique uses make a thumper intriguing to me.

[W Pappy]

bellybuster could it be the reason many people just don"t have one is because they don"t really understand them?Even a lot of distillers that have them may not realize the multitude of functions it may possess.

[LWTCS]

bellybuster could it be the reason many people just don"t have one is because they don"t really understand them?Even a lot of distillers that have them may not realize the multitude of functions it may possess.

Prolly part of it...IMO

[goose eye]

Dan p no one said you couldn't make good likker without one.
It just another tool.
I'm gonna talk this one last time on this and then let it be.
what the ole boys is doin is what they gotta do.
If you pull the cork on a jug of brandy and have to put
A couple drops in your hands and rub them together real fast
Then smell your palms to find out what flaver it is. Is it possible
to have a strong scent in your hearts. He'll, I don't no cause I ain't never run no likker and ain't gonna in the future.
Most all tall is smarter than the ole boys would ever be and
What they do no is a thing of the past.

So I'm tole

[W Pappy]

Aw goose some of us new boys is tryin to keep er goin it aint in the past yet I"m a learnin all the time.

[Dan P.]

The truth is, you don't need a thumper to make first class spirits.

+1 to that. But,.... I have a triple distilled 5 grain that is really tasty, very fruity but light. Could this be done in 2 runs with a thumper on the 2nd pass? These kind of unique uses make a thumper intriguing to me.

Jimbo, I've been using a thumper on the strip run, to give an intermediate distillation, and preliminary heads and tails cuts.
On the spirit run I just use the pot, because it gives a shallower output abv/flavour trajectory that suits me better.
Using a thumper you will lose the very deep tails that are, to me, valuable in recycling as feints. My thumper craps out at around 10% on a strip run, unless I really blitz it with the heat, and even then it is running fairly clear. On just my pot I strip it to nothing, and by the end it is pretty milky.
Also, on a thumper the heads are compressed to some degree. If you want to use some of the heads fractions, it is a bit more difficult with a thumper.
However, for making spirits of multiple distillation; triple, quadruple, the thumper is a valuable tool.

[Dan P.]

bellybuster could it be the reason many people just don"t have one is because they don"t really understand them?Even a lot of distillers that have them may not realize the multitude of functions it may possess.

You must feel this strongly to post the same thing twice in a row.
Perhaps you could write a letter to the multi-million £ Single Malt Scotch and Cognac industries, let them know where they are going wrong?

[goose eye]

Dan p ain't that conyack. A closed market.
Don't it have to be made in a little bitty place in a little bitty country
To be considered conyack. Ain't that a law they passed?

Just like the only good wine from France regardless of the
Vintage.

You a smart man don't no why your hackles up on
this. How would you like to add a vanilla bean in the
middle of a charge an keep it white. Ole boys ain't never done it
but is it possible for you. Don't discount thangs just cause a bunch of
hillbillies do it . This is a education glean what you will.


So I'm tole

[Dan P.]

Dan p ain't that conyack. A closed market.
Don't it have to be made in a little bitty place in a little bitty country
To be considered conyack. Ain't that a law they passed?

Just like the only good wine from France regardless of the
Vintage.

You a smart man don't no why your hackles up on
this. How would you like to add a vanilla bean in the
middle of a charge an keep it white. Ole boys ain't never done it
but is it possible for you. Don't discount thangs just cause a bunch of
hillbillies do it . This is a education glean what you will.


So I'm tole

My hackles are a little bit up, yes. But my point is that not using a thumper does not imply a deficiency in understanding.
I believe it will take me a lifetime to master the use of a simple pot-still.
Maybe the ole boys have the generations of experience that helped them master it sooner.
Either way, a craftsman must master the most basic principles first. The straight line and the square corner. They are hardest to do.
To me, a thumper is a tool, yes, but for many people it is a crutch.
I have used one. I know. It can be like a soft focus foto. It hides some of the wrinkles, but it still looks like a soft focus foto.
My understanding of distillation, with or without a thumper, may be deficient.
My understanding of the difference between art and artifice, however, is not.

[Dan P.]

PS Goose eye, you are a man of knowledge in these matters, do you think ole boys always used thumpers?
Honest question.

[goose eye]

It goes back along way but it depended on what they
Was trying to make.
Corn don't need it brandy all depending they would.
They was tryin to put out the best product they could
with what they had to work with.
Some of the ole boys wouldn't use one for themselves.
Double an twist . Single foot to get it gone

So I'm Tole

[bellybuster]

bellybuster could it be the reason many people just don"t have one is because they don"t really understand them?Even a lot of distillers that have them may not realize the multitude of functions it may possess.

Prolly part of it...IMO

No, fine Sirs, not lack of knowledge, I just don't have one. Plain and simple. Prolly many others out there too that just plain old don't have one.

If knowledge were required about 75% of the thumper posts on this site should be recommended to get rid of theirs.

[Usge]

Thumper gonna do what it's gonna do regardless of anybody else's understanding of it. Whatever process works best for you (with, or without thumper) is the best process.

Not everybody likes to tinker. I know some here still running the same/first thing they ever built..pretty much the same way and still liking what they produce with it. Ain't nothing wrong with that. Run what you brung. Be happy

[W Pappy]

OK point taken bellybuster thanks for your input and taking the time to read this post.I do appreciate it I hear you make mighty fine likker too.

[bellybuster]

don't get me wrong, I would love to run a thumper... for the most part because I like to play. The product really has little to do with why I distill. Nice bonus though.

We could have the same discussion with why doesn't everybody run a flute or a reflux. Economics, ability, space and time to do so I think will be the most common reasons, not lack of understanding. I just though that direction was kinda... you know... ?

[Jimbo]

The product really has little to do with why I distill.

really? I cant wrap my head around that.

[bellybuster]

haha....lush

[W Pappy]

bellybuster could it be the reason many people just don"t have one is because they don"t really understand them?Even a lot of distillers that have them may not realize the multitude of functions it may possess.

You must feel this strongly to post the same thing twice in a row.
Perhaps you could write a letter to the multi-million £ Single Malt Scotch and Cognac industries, let them know where they are going wrong?

Dan P I apologize for getting your hackles up.The statement I made was to be between new distillers and distillers that have been running thumpers for awhile.Your point is well taken and dont get me wrong I most definitely am NOT saying that a thumper is a fix all end all. Even though looking back it does appear that way.Your comments are greatly appreciated also.

[W Pappy]

This should have been "Why don"t more new distillers utilize the thumper"I thought about it half way thru page 2 hahaha.Hope I aint steppin on my bean bag with this topic!

[Dan P.]

Dan P I apologize for getting your hackles up..

No apologies necessary. I apologize too. I'm a married man, it comes easy to me.

Funny the term "hackles up". I get visited by an old Gypsy fellow every few months. He always has stories, of both the tall and and the very tall variety. Today he was telling me about his game cocks. Gypsies are known as incorrigable cockfighters, which is illegal in this country. "Hackles up" being a cockfighting term.

[W Pappy]

I just zone out and start thinking about what I"m gonna put in ferment next when she starts hahaha.

[SoMo]

I'd like to know beyond abv% what positive attributes will a thump add to say sweet feed or Ujssm? I love flavored whiskey and all but despise vodka and neutrals no jab at anybody this is all about personal preference, what each individual likes. What would adding one do for me running a 15.5 keg with a 2in column pot still, to better what I like in a single run whiskey? The original question why don't more people use a thumper?

[Dan P.]

I'd like to know beyond abv% what positive attributes will a thump add to say sweet feed or Ujssm? I love flavored whiskey and all but despise vodka and neutrals no jab at anybody this is all about personal preference, what each individual likes. What would adding one do for me running a 15.5 keg with a 2in column, to better what I like in a single run whiskey? The original question why don't more people use a thumper?

If you are making a single run sugarhead whiskey in a straight pot-still, a thumper will make it better, no doubt. But, to be honest, I don't get the whole single run straight pot still thing.

[SoMo]

I'd like to know beyond abv% what positive attributes will a thump add to say sweet feed or Ujssm? I love flavored whiskey and all but despise vodka and neutrals no jab at anybody this is all about personal preference, what each individual likes. What would adding one do for me running a 15.5 keg with a 2in column, to better what I like in a single run whiskey? The original question why don't more people use a thumper?

If you are making a single run sugarhead whiskey in a straight pot-still, a thumper will make it better, no doubt. But, to be honest, I don't get the whole single run straight pot still thing.

I think our statements answer the OP's original question, it's all about our individual tastes. I would like to add a thump maybe, maybe not, I don't know. I would like to see the conversation continue as a shared info kinda thing to educate those of us new and still expanding our base of knowledge and equipment use.

[Dan P.]

I think our statements answer the OP's original question, it's all about our individual tastes. I would like to add a thump maybe, maybe not, I don't know. I would like to see the conversation continue as a shared info kinda thing to educate those of us new and still expanding our base of knowledge and equipment use.

This is one of the problems with thumpers. Well, not with thumpers, but with the study of thumpers.
For instance, let's limit ourselves to mash, low wines and feints, and combinations thereof as variables. On any run, that gives us 49 variations of what we can put in the boiler and thumper!
If we add water (to purify or mellow the spirit) or flavouring, we get 225 variations, as long as we stick to one or combinations of two variables.
You can calculate the number of combinations of three, four or five variables between the boiler and thumper if you like. My mathematical skills don't stretch that far!
I spent a lot of time researching how people use thumpers, on this and other forums. I did not get a conclusive answer, because there are so many variables.
The bottom line is, will any combination of any of the variables possible with using a thumper give me a spirit that is better than a spirit that has been made using the traditional double run?

[Jimbo]

The mind boggling permutations of thumper usage is not an appealing factor here.

Im with Melloman, would like to see real life examples of who did what, and what were the results. I dont have the time or inclination to try 225 or 49 variations on a theme. But if someone had great results doing something specific, Ill try it.

Im a simple potstiller making whiskey. All my energy goes into recipes, mashing and fermentation. The potstill just makes a withdrawal when Im done.

[LWTCS]

I'm talkin to the folks that have asked in one form or another,,,,, "wuts a thumper?" Cack.
I don't have enough fingers or toes to count how many times an iteration of that question has been asked.
Aint talkin to you fellers that know any better. And never tried to imply that any method was better or worse.

I got a big yard and need to gitter done. Thats why I was attracted to thumpers at first.