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Hi,
I have a couple of questions regarding the GB4 gin basket that I hope someone could help me answer. I understand that SD is happy to sell basket and other part to us tinkerers building their own Aroma Head.
I’m new to distilling and am in the process of making my own still. I have seen that most of the stills are very advanced and I start in a more modest way by making my stuff out of 2” copper piping. I have come across a 4” SS pipe and are therefore considering to try and make a gin basket using StillDragon's basket, sight glass and ferrules.
So I hope some of you guys can help me on my quest.
If I’m to import a gin basket to Sweden it will be almost 600 Euros and that is way out of my budget!!!
Sorry for any bad English! It’s not my first language.
Comments
I'll get you some measurements in a couple hours when the sun comes up.
StillDragon Australia & New Zealand - Your StillDragon® Distributor for Australia & New Zealand
= 255mm
= side
= Yes, snug, not vapour proof though.
BTW, thanks for the reminder of where we came from and the reason that Stilldragon exists. Our aim was to help the home distiller construct better equipment by providing corner stones and building blocks.
The amazing state we are in today has been organic growth from that foundation.
StillDragon Australia & New Zealand - Your StillDragon® Distributor for Australia & New Zealand
@punkin, thanks a lot for your reply.
Is there any advantage to have the outlet on the side instead of above the botanic basket? Or is it only because the total practical size of the GB?
I guess the basket goes all the way to the top end cap?
By the way, Kill Bill, one of my favorite movies (Gogo Yubari) ;)
Can't remember why we did it that way, but the development thread is here somewhere i think as we developed it with full consultation and involvement of members here.
StillDragon Australia & New Zealand - Your StillDragon® Distributor for Australia & New Zealand
This is the single most profitable piece of StillDragon kit ever created..
I don't mean making StillDragon a profit, I mean making ME a profit.
Having the outlet on the side allows the end user to remove the filter basket without having to dismantle anything in the actual vapor path.
StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America
@grim, good for you ;)
@Smaug I'm was thinking on still have the outlet on the side of 4" pipe the as it is today but above botanic basket in a void space above the botanic basket. That will increase the total length by approximately 70 mm or so.
But then again, maybe it doesn't makes a difference in reality?
What's your thought?
I still do not understand why the botanic basket is perforated on the sides? Except of course for the outlet!
It doesn't have to be. Maybe even shouldn't be for optimal extraction?
On the larger commercial sized ones we only install the perfs about 1/3 up the filter basket to insure optimal vapor interaction with the botanicals.
In retrospect I think we wanted to insure there wouldn't be any excessive pressure build up due to the veggies creating a clog.
Be mindful that at the time, there was no such thing as an offset gin basket at this scale. We were more or less breaking ground on this component and relied heavily on customer feedback in order to refine the design and bring to market.
StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America
Yep, right Larry. It was clogging thanks for the jogging.
StillDragon Australia & New Zealand - Your StillDragon® Distributor for Australia & New Zealand
Makes sense to me :) Maybe a safety valve on the intake pipe. Then again, why change a winning concept!!!
Thanks for your generous help an engagement, thanks for sharing the fruit of you labor.
Time for me to get my butt in gear, buy some Argon gas and learn how to TIG weld....
I will post my result if I ever manage the TIG...
Meanwhile, a pic of my 600 mm shotgun and a 400 mm column pipe that I finished the other day. Have 800 mm column pipe too.
Nice to see someone else installing baffles for improved cooling efficiency
@danmarcus. The previous comments about the gin basket not being a perfect fit is correct. But what you can do and I do, is get some Teflon pipe tape and wrap it around the basket a dozen times at the top and bottom of the basket. This forces all the vapor stream to get into the bottom and out of the top of the basket. With the tape the fit is so tight you have to push it down. You can do it with your eyes closed if you want.
@DonMateo here come a potential bomb in the making with pressure build up 8-|
PRV.
We didn't stock those in the early days.
StillDragon North America - Your StillDragon® Distributor for North America
@richard. How is it a bomb if the vapor is going thorugh a porous basket ? Very smart comment.
@DonMateo If your basket becomes clogged you have a pressure build up and a resultant explosive environment. Wise comment.
@richard. How many times have GB4s been used and if there were any explosions then this would have been made widely known. I have used my about 40 times and never had any clogging or pressure buildup. Experienced comment. How many times have you used one?
@DonMateo Last comment, as of recent not much because I now macerate. Initially it was all the time. But my initial comment was around your prior comment
This is what comment was about, is irresponsible to have said it and you ought know better. Leave it there.!!!
Now, now boys. We are all entitled to blow ourselves up in any way we see fit.
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@moonshine. Well your GB4 is a great peice of gear and if they were exploding I am sure you guys would be teh first to tell everyone and figure out a solution. My only problem with the GB4 is that its not very big but you can get around that with a 4" extension peice stacked ontop of the base basket, which gets you enough volume to run a 200l still doing vapor infusion. Which makes a better product in my opinion.
I think I'll be careful with the jamming of the basket... I assume it's unlikely that it will explode but if it happens then it will happen to me! Assumptions is the mother of all fuck-ups. What if to fit an external by-pass pipe from the bottom to the top with an inline safety valve if there is such a valve available? Or a union coupling or tri clamp with some kind of aluminum foile that will burst if there is a pressure build up?
@DonMateo or anybody else. I have a 100 l vessel that I plan to configure into a boiler. Do you think the normal GB4 volume is sufficient or would I benefit from making it taller?
PRV, pressure release valve? I so, please "link me"
There is a spare 2" port on the side of the basket that would take a 2" PRV.
StillDragon Australia & New Zealand - Your StillDragon® Distributor for Australia & New Zealand
@Danmarcus, there is no danger of a pressure buildup unless you completely jam in your botanicals and have a layer of flowers for example that form and thick blob.
When you mix up your botanicals its a really good idea to mix them all together then charge up your baskets.
Normally when I take out my baskets after a run I check to see that there has been uniform distribution of gas through the grains and with almost no exceptions do I have dry spots which means uniform gas flow through the basket and botanicals and no bomb effect that @richard was guessing at.
I did put an extension piece on my GB4 so that I can put a second basket on top, it even has space for a third actually and this works very well. Its not a standard SD kit so sorry about the photo.
This is paired to a 150L boiler. The only thing that I have noticed that would produce a buildup of pressure is when condensate accumulates at the bottom of the GB4 for that reason their is the drain valve. I normally drain it every hour when doing a run. But if you have it offset correctly then that liquid drains back to the boiler.
A PRV on the boiler is all that's required to alleviate any pressure concerns re the potential for the basket blocking.
That said, I've never blocked the basket despite countless runs, but always use a PRV regardless.
It's in stock but not listed on our website, and thus has to be ordered manually by email. Please send an inquiry using our contact form.
StillDragon Europe - Your StillDragon® Distributor for Europe & the surrounding area
@crozdog Yes of course, there is only need for a safety valve on the boiler. That's me overthinking and complicating it. Thanks :)
@danmarcus. Yes I always have a safety valve on the boiler. You can see it in the foto. Its like a safety belt. You only want to use it once.
Just because you didn't jam them in doesn't mean your botanicals/herbs won't turn to glue/concrete during the run.
Absolutely.
Stacking baskets does indeed work, but as your vapor speed increases you are in increasing danger of flooding and puking.