Handpull Sparklers

[Frothy]

Looking good Jim definately the best way to dispense real ale (the corny's do get a bit overcarbonated.)

Iowalad - CFBS do reconditioned beer pumps I was quoted ~ £110 & if you ask them nicely I'm sure they'll put it on a plane for you.
http://www.cfbs.co.uk/

Frothy

[Garth]

Yeah, it looks great Jim,

I've been following this thread intently as I have just bought a pump myself and were intriuged about how you were going to hook it up.

Have you got the sparklers now Jim?

Iowalad, you can get pumps as cheap as £20-£30 on eBay, shipping would probably be about £50 mark, thats not bad for a pump. They're about £200 new.

CFBS quoted me these prices for a recon. unit

Model Price (inc VAT)

Angram 1/4pt CO £122.79

Angram 1/4pt Water Jacketed CQ £134.54

EWL 1/4pt Paragon £122.79

Homark Universal 1/4pt £122.79

Higene 1/4pt BDV C/on £122.79

Higene 1/4pt Water Jacketed BDV C/on £122.79

[Jim]

Nice one, Garth.

Yeah, I've got the sparklers and will be pulling a pint or two through it tonight - I'll post the pics later.

What make is your pump?


Question for other beer engine users - I seem to be getting a very slight leak back down from the pump to the beer line, say over a couple of hours, so that it takes a good pull of the handle to get the beer flowing again. Is this normal, or do I need to look at my seals again?

[Garth]

Jim, I believe it's an Angram, they're supposedly quite a good engine, haven't recieved it yet, (eBay) but it's on it's way, I can't wait.

I've wanted one for a while to get away from this bottling lark. I will still bottle some but the amount I drink and when friends are round to deplete the supply, it's becoming tedious.

I will probably go down the cask breather route, I get through a fair bit but not enough per week to get through a barrel-full, so although being an active member of Camra I really don't care, I ain't drinking oxidised beer.

[iowalad]

Thanks for the info guys.

Now to convince the wife that we can't live without a beer engine!

[Frothy]

Check valves are available to stop the beer coming back down the line ->
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... &rd=1&rd=1

When I used to work in a proper pub you always had to give the pumps a few good pulls in the morning to get the beer flowing.

Frothy

[RabMaxwell]

Jim wrote- I seem to be getting a very slight leak back down from the pump to the beer line, say over a couple of hours, so that it takes a good pull of the handle to get the beer flowing again. Is this normal, or do I need to look at my seals again?[/quote]
Hello i get this also jim and sometimes some beer trickles back into the cornie.I don't bother filling the engine with water after use. I have been finding that beers that are on tap for a little longer are spoiling slightly near the end. It could be drawing in air from the beer line or the beer trickling back to the cornie causing it. Anyway i have ordered some new fittings & plan reducing to 3/8 pipe & fitting a one way valve at the cornie post. Then no beer should return to the keg. I will let you know how it works. Cheers

[sparky Paul]

Question for other beer engine users - I seem to be getting a very slight leak back down from the pump to the beer line, say over a couple of hours, so that it takes a good pull of the handle to get the beer flowing again. Is this normal, or do I need to look at my seals again?

I shouldn't think it should lose 1/4pt+ over a few hours. My Angram pump is different to yours, but where the inlet connects to the cylinder there's a non-return valve which provides a good seal.

Adding a check valve as Frothy suggested should fix it though.

[Jim]

Interesting views on leakage. My own thoughts (on looking at the valves in the pump themselves) were that there was no way they would make a perfect seal - the springs are just too weak. Maybe softer o rings would help, though. I'll have a look at those one way valves as well.

I had a slight problem with air (or rather CO2) in the beer line last night as well - maybe as I used a longer line than the previous night??

However, here's how it looked:





The head lasted all the way to the end of the pint. I have to say, though, that the beer I have on currently didn't perform well off the handpull - it's better with more fizz in it.

Recipes suitable for handpulling welcomed!

[SteveD]

although being an active member of Camra I really don't care, I ain't drinking oxidised beer.

Agree, I always thought that use of CO2 blanket disallowing a beer from being classified as real ale was one of Camra's bigger stupidities.

[sparky Paul]

Well, the head looks good Jim.

It looks very tight - is that the white sparkler nozzle?

Do you reckon the beer lost the bite that co2 gives it? The use of a sparkler certainly seems to knock the co2 out of a pint.

What sort of o rings did you get to fit? If they are the black ones (probably EPDM or Viton) then silicone (orange) is certainly softer and should help give a better seal. The seal on the Angram pump is not even sprung - its on a small weighted shuttle on the inlet, I suspect the vacuum created in the beer pipe by gravity helps keeps it shut, as well as the weight of the metal shuttle.

I guess that this bit of vacuum will also draw co2 out of the beer too, and this will find it easier to get by any seal...

[Jim]

Well, the head looks good Jim.

It looks very tight - is that the white sparkler nozzle?

Do you reckon the beer lost the bite that co2 gives it? The use of a sparkler certainly seems to knock the co2 out of a pint.

What sort of o rings did you get to fit? If they are the black ones (probably EPDM or Viton) then silicone (orange) is certainly softer and should help give a better seal. The seal on the Angram pump is not even sprung - its on a small weighted shuttle on the inlet, I suspect the vacuum created in the beer pipe by gravity helps keeps it shut, as well as the weight of the metal shuttle.

I guess that this bit of vacuum will also draw co2 out of the beer too, and this will find it easier to get by any seal...

Yeah, it lost quite a bit of it's bite. Obviously over the years I've tweaked my beers to taste good from a plastic barrel, cos that's all I use. Next step for me is to look at making the beer suitable for handpulling. Maybe a darker beer with more crystal malt plus more hops?

The o rings I used were plumbing ones from B&Q. There's also a seal round the body of the valve where it screws into the base of the pump - I've got a new o ring of (I hope) the right size for that, as it could be where the leak's occurring - worth a try, anyway. After that, it's silicone seals.

It was the white sparkler in use, but to be honest, they both look the same to me! I'll have to try the black one as well to see if there's any difference.

[Jim]

A thing of beauty!



Just have to put the edging strip on the worktop and that's it.

[Andy]

Good work Jim

[Bongo]

I like it,your an inspiration to continue drinking Jim,bit like the wife.