opinions about my 3 gallonb pot still???

[bigfoot]

ive only ran 4 or so batches of wine thru it which worked great..another question could i upgrade to a 5 gallon pot with the pip i already have?

[Halfbaked]

Welcome bigfoot. If I were you I would get rid of the glass in your rig. I can't get the pic very big but If that is a plastic funnel I would change that out for a Stainless or copper one. High proof Alcohol or alcohol vapor should only touch stainless or copper.

[S-Cackalacky]

I don't see why it wouldn't work. The 5 gallon pot might give you a bit better results. The larger wash charge should help with cuts. Your condenser looks a little short. Is it knocking down all the vapor? Also, you shouldn't be using a plastic funnel at your collection point. You shouldn't have any synthetics in contact with your product (vapor or liquid).

Edit: Didn't see the glass thumper/slobberbox before. We don't sanction the use of glass here on the forum for safety reasons.

[bigfoot]

never thought about that plastic funnel..i only used it once..idk about the glass thumper..my first batch was 160proof..seems to work pretty good..i wonder if i go to a 5 gallon pot if my pipe i have will be big enough..id say ill have to upgrade the thumper at least..the mason jar is sealed tight so idk i think itll be ok..what are some negatives of it???

[bigfoot]

i believe it is..tastes smooth and have a high proof..im green so im not 100% sure lol...once i get some good recipes and habits down ill prob ship this rig off to a newbie and make mnyself a bigger still..gonna mix up that sweetfeed tonight

[Halfbaked]

Glass can and will explode. It will ruin your day. When hot and cold meet is where it is most likely to happen but can happen at any time. Even if it is a canning (mason) jar. When it explodes then you have hot alcohol vapor coming out your still and that could cause explosion of your still or fire not to mention glass in your face and the mess. It can mess up your drop also It can/will fill up and then puke over into finished product.

[bigfoot]

i checke out some forums.. why cant i have a sealed glass thumper ? just wondering..safety wise i cant see a problem...quality wise is the reason u dont want glass?

[bigfoot]

ah ok thanks for explained halfbaked..

[Prairiepiss]

Safety wise. For a couple reasons. You have a glass jar not designed to be used as it is being used. Full of a high ABV liquid. That more then likely is flammable. If it breaks you have a big fire ball.
It is also way to small for that size boiler. Should be 1/3 to 1/2 the size if the boiler. So the thumper should be 1.5 gal or so. This is so it doesn't fill up onvyou during a run. Draining it in the middle of a run is not safe.
How is it sealed and mounted? Jars aren't made to be suspended by the threads. And the jar lids are not made of safe materials for a still. What did you use to seal the lid?
Heat an dissimilar materials that expand at different rates. Is not good.
If you have done a lot of canning. You would know how easy it is for one of those jars to break. Hot jar and just a small drop of cooler water. And boom glass everywhere.

This design is made by a well know crook in this hobby. There has been many many threads about how bad this design is. There is a quite large thread about the crook that builds them.

Everyone that comes here with this still design says the same things. And we again have to say the same things. And they usually defend it till the end. It's been well documented around here. Why this design should not be used. It's up to you to decide whether you want to nice forward and be safe. Or stick with your current setup. Just know it won't be condoned here.

[Halfbaked]

Im sure you will have some more chime in. If you can get you a SS or copper thump Id say great. Im a thump fan

[bigfoot]

ill probly just sell this one and make a new one after i get some experiance

[Prairiepiss]

ill probly just sell this one and make a new one after i get some experiance

So your willing to sell a unsafe still to someone else?

Cut the thump thingy out. Splice it back together with a piece of copper. And run it as a pot still.

[bigfoot]

hmm i believe you i saw it online and thought it was cheap but wanted a stilll asap..so after reading that ill make a few more runs to build up some cash and sell the puppy and get a safe new one..or try to find a copper pot or stainless pot.. thanks

[Halfbaked]

Merged from New shiner from wv/oh line

[mmmmmm]

I'm guilty of using a plastic funnel as well. I don't collect into it though, I just use it to dump my collection jars into my jugs.

Still, I need to get a stainless one.