A HD discussion as old as time: Lyne arm angles

[Stags]

Hey stillhands. Another topic as old as time- do we think lyne arm angles matter?

I have read the threads from the past and feel like it’s 2025, we should see what recent consensus is.

My research is as follows:

Historically, going back to the beginning of HD time, I believe the consensus has been something along the lines of “for big distilleries they matter, for us at hobby scale, they do not”. But, as threads become more recent, there seems to be a bit of growing division, with some dissenters claiming they can detect a difference in hobby scale stills.

As it relates to me, I’ve generally had rigs with flat lyne arms, a 90 degree bend, and a vertical pipe plunging to the condenser/ thumper. As I think about what I know about stilling, I can’t help but wonder if that isn’t contributor to the “smear factory” nature of pot stills. They are not excessively long, but I could see a world where some liquid pools and smears, especially between my thumper and condenser in spite of the fact it’s maybe a 8-12” run.

So for a 2025 installment: what do we think of lyne arm angles?

[NZChris]

I suspect that you’ll need a lot more than 12” to be able to produce a noticeable difference.

[Saltbush Bill]

There's a lot more to it than just angle, length and diameter as well as takeoff speed/ power input are all going to have an effect on final product.

[SW_Shiner]

If there's pooling then its the wrong angle. Some people like to angle it back to boiler to avoid passive condensate filling the thumper faster. Some people insulate to minimise passive condensate. I have a ferrule on top of my still at an angle so that a single 90° fitting gets my condenser to the right place. As has been said before and still stands today, most hobby stills have nowhere near the length/diameter needed to start worrying about flavour changes due to passive reflux.