Beer Engine Dismantling

[Phill]

For fear of breaking it I thought i'd take stock and ask on the forum. I've bought an Angram CO beer engine with im currently trying to dismantle and clean. I've found a few topics on here about this but there all at the more dismantled stage than mine. My question is how do I get the pump bit away from the handle?


I can’t seem to get into unscrew this bolt holding the pump onto the handle



And I don’t know how this bit disconnects. Can I hit the end of the pin with a hammer or is it held in please by a screw? I thought there was a screw at the front but an alan key just spins round in it.

Any help much appreciated, apologies for the poor photography.

[Waffty]

Undo the grub screw, on the front, to pretty much where it's about to drop out (remove completly if your confy that you won't loose it) & tap the pin out with a 'pin driver' or suitable screw driver & small hammer, it shouldn't take too much effort, if it does, then the screw hasn't been removed enough.

Unscrew the top of the handle & slide of the ceramic handle, the threaded bar is held in my a locking nut which will be a pain to remove, without a box spanner but you should be able to get it out with a little persistance. Once removed, look in the hole & you'll see another grub screw, this will need to be removed, in order to remove the main pivot bar i.e same MO as the other, tap it out with pin driver/screw driver.

Hoses are clamped, with those pliers thingys so just remove them, and replace them with standard hose clips.

Angram pumps are the business, you soon see that when you check out the weight of the brass work. Get some brass & give it a good buff & it'll come up like the dogs danglies.

Any probs give me a shout, I've got 3 CO's & 3 CQ's in the garage

[Phill]

Thanks alot guys,

I had another look at the grub screw, after pulling more gunk out of the end of it the alan key went further in and managed to turn it.

Pump out safe and sound


I've dismantled the pump and given it a once over, but it could do with soaking it in something to get it really clean. Are there any cleaing products I should avoid using for fear of them eating parts of the pump? I was thinking of soaking it in some oxy cleaner before sanatising it.

Many thanks for the replys it was exactly what I needed to know

[Trunky]

[Waffty]

The main parts of the pump are a nylon type plastic, a glass barrel & the silicon type gasket, which will all take pretty much anything you want to throw at it. To dismantle, just undo the four nuts/bolts at the top & gently ease it apart. The cylinder is GLASS so becareful when taking it out. Putting it back together is easy, just follow the same principles are a car wheel i.e tighten alternate corners & don't over tighten.

That said, the bottom inlet valve/stem is stainless, as too is the pump piston rod, so avoid too much contact with clorine type cleaners i.e read the instrustions

To be honest, the pump comes apart in such a fashion, that contact times can be reduced by using a pair of rubber gloves, an old tooth brush, your solution of choice & a bit of elbow grease.

My first pump 'strip' I soaked for hours & hours, my second I was done and dusted in under an hour

[timmydog]

Thanks alot guys,

I had another look at the grub screw, after pulling more gunk out of the end of it the alan key went further in and managed to turn it.

Pump out safe and sound

I've just bought a couple of the same model of Angram beer engines and am trying to dismantle mine to give them a clean too. I am having a problem getting the springs of though. How did you manage to get yours off? Do they just unhook?

I have a feeling that mine may have been sitting in a shed for a while and rusted a bit, which is why they're proving difficult, but i don't want to force them and risk breaking them.

Also, while I'm on the subject, does anyone know where to get spares for them, apart from directly from Angram? I contacted them about getting a replacement 1/4 pint glass cylinder since one of mine is broken and was quoted £85! Thought that it was a bit more than I'd like to pay...

Tim

Edit: Ah! Got it - there are a couple of nuts at the top of the springs which can be loosened to allow the springs to be unhooked.

I'm still interested in finding a cheaper source of spares though...