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extremely new here so please be gentle.

I have a cheap Chinese pot still (that should be my signature all my posts start with that)
I am aiming for neutral a spirit

I mad a 25l birdwatchers wash and after the cleaning and sacrificial I did my first strip run and ended up with about 5.5l of 40%.
Due to the size of the still I did 3 runs and collected in 10 jars of 150ml.
I threw away the first 100ml of each batch.
Each jar smelt of acetone to various degrees and even though I could smell the difference not one was what I would call a clean smell , even after a day breathing.

So I looked up about doing a second strip run but could nothing really about it.

So, in the interest of learing I decided to go a second strip run to see what happens.
So its a fast and hard boil
Again i separated the first 100m it smelt very sweet and came in at 78% and then stored in batches of 200ml
the first 200 smelt quite sweet and was at 77%
The 2nd had very little smell and was at 76%

I kept going until I had 12 bottles of 200ml the last 200ml had an abv of 15% and had a smell to it as did the 200ml before (though not as bad and the abv was 25%)

I realise I have done a sort of quick and dirty spirits run so it leads me to a few questions.
Bearing in mind I only have a pot still.

Is it worth doing a second stripping run before a spirit run?

with what I collected
Should I throw the fores, first 200ml and last 200ml (which leaves me with 1900ml) dilute to 40% and then do a spirit run?

or should I collect it all, dilute it to 40% and then do a spirit run?

thanks all

Up to you really, since you're still learning how to make what you're looking for, and what that might be...I would recommend doing a low and slow spirit run to get cleaner separate between the heads/hearts/tails. You may find that's enough to get a product you like, and if not you could always recombine it and run it again.

Though as I'm sure you've heard many times already a reflux still with a packed column usually does neutrals better.

I'm understanding your question the way that you made a stripping run, then throw the result back in and made another "stripping run".
You can only make ONE stripping run.
The purpose of this is to get a clear liquid, extracting as much water as possible.
You would then end up with a "base" for further processing (that's where the spirit run comes into play).
Knowing your still from another thread, my advice would be to do several stripping runs until you have enough for a longer spirit run.
Take the foreshots at every possible occasion, including the stripping run.
When you do the spirit run, take the foreshots and do the cuts. Collect into smaller vessels, for your size still, I'd say around 100-150 mL.
Let it air out over night and decide the next day what to keep.
You can do as many spirit runs as you like and with the right cuts made, the quality and smoothness of the product will be better.
The heads and tails can be set aside and re-processed at the next stripping run.
Most new distillers have a problem with the cuts, we all had at a time...so don't worry...you'll get there.
If everything fails and you made a disaster, just throw it all in again and start over. That's the beauty of it, nothing but the foreshots are wasted..mostly one can reprocess what's gone wrong.
Search for Kiwi's guide for cuts...it will help you a lot.

Edit: Oh, I almost forgot. As you mainly go for Vodka, a reflux still would be the right tool for it.
However, you can make wonderful Vodka on a pot still....just do two spirit runs, the later with the hearts cut from the first.
If you miss the cuts or still think there may be heads present, just do another run.
This spirit also makes an excellent base for Gin.

Thanks guys
Danespirit I see what you are saying now, so really I have just done a quick and dirty spirit run!
Based on what you are saying what I was thinking of doing is this.
Do the "cuts" on what I have so based on what I posted previously i would end up with about 1.9L dilute to 40% , keep some as a sort of benchmark and then do a slow spirit run with small containers.

I have spent most of the afternoon (when I should have been doing ironing) reading up about still design.

I have just bought a preserving boiler and this post seems to be the answer to my prayers.
http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=17205

The only things I need to work out (well not the only thing but what I cant get my head around) is what does the needle valve do- I know it controls the flow but why do you need to control the flow? and what height can I have (the smaller the better for me)

I will post these questions on the build section but if you have a quick answer I would appreciate it

Oh yeah...I know how it is to be totally occupied by the great stuff in here...time flies by and all of a sudden several hours have passed.
Well, what Pooyan has built, is a slanted plate Bokakob or Boka in short. Named after the possible inventor Alex Bokakob.
It's an LM still and a great tool for a lot of things, as it can produce neutral (Vodka) and flavored like Whisky.
The needle valve is mounted on the takeoff.
It has the purpose of regulating how much product one draw from the still and how much stays in the column...iow the reflux.
There are a bunch of different designs for such an LM head, the slanted plate is just one of them.
Please have a look at the plans and drawing section, before you decide what kind of still head you want to build.
Some designs require more metal working skills than others. Furthermore, the tools for such a build also influence the decision.
For example, TIG welding if you go for stainless etc..
The part most people seem to struggle with is winding the coil. Besides the method with the corrugated gasline, one can also make one out of copper.
There are a few tutorials in here on how to make an RC for a still, Hook is one of them that comes to my mind.
Mine are here: http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... 87&t=52290
Btw..one of my personal favorites regarding an LM still, is RAD's concentric: http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... 50&t=36382
So there are a lot of options for a reflux still...now you have the hard task of picking one.

Danespirit

many thanks for your time and effort in your replies
I have been frantically investigating still designs. I think I like the idea of a hybrid boka. so I can use one column as just a srtipping run and then add the other to do reflux.

I am thinking of a 2 " column but have yet to work out the ideal (and cost effective and practical) length.

I would love to make a condenser out of CCST but cant seem to find any (unless I want to pay £150+ ) at any price.

I will look at the designs and see how we go.

I am just entereing my busy period at work so it may have to be deferred until the summer holidays.
I am fermenting 25l of birdwatchers so should hopefully end up with about 7L of useable spirit to make some nice (as I can get) neutral to make some lemon and vanilla vodka and som odins gin.
any advice on a boka would be appreciated

Take care and thanks again

You are welcome, stringman..
Unless you haven't come by it yet, these are some plans too: http://homedistiller.org/equip/photos-alex" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow
If you click on any of the drawings, it will open in a new tab and you can see it in a magnified version.
It may give you some inspiration for your build.
Please start a new thread, when you have decided what kind of reflux still you want to build.

Take care..