BeerBorg

Just wanted to thank all my brew brothers for their input on the post I had about a rash of bottle bombs. I thought it might do more good for others posted here than on the other "help me " post.

The were right to a tee in the conclusion they collectively arrived at about bottles, and I think the mystery has been solved.

I happened to have a batch of bottles soaking and was fixing to cull all the SN bottles out when my finger tips discovered something amiss. I grabbed one by the lip and it did't feel right.

I showed these 2 bottles to my co-brewer/brother and asked if he could see anything different between them...
"Nope" he said after careful study so I pointed out the flange/collar to him...
and since he couldn't hold them in his hands ( post polio) to feel the difference in thickness I pulled out the scale and weighed them to show him the difference between the two, the SN bottle was 6.7 oz and the infiltrator was 6.3 oz but they were the exact dimensions so it was clearly thinner glass and it had no number on it so I knew it wasn't a SN bottle.

After finding this one I sorted through the rest of my SNs and found three more. While all the debris has long been cleared I can't go back and verify this but after your suggestions I assume I got a handful of duds from one of my Craig's List scores and they got by me in the sorting.

I think my wing capper is going to get me through for now but I do have to pay more attention to the collars of the bottles when I sort and clean them.

If I remember right from a post on another forum, the short collar should still work fine with a bench capper but not the hand/wing cappers right? I've got a couple I was saving to use once I get my Super Agata but if they are no good period then I'll definitely get rid of them.

Yes. Collar is irrelevant with a bench capper.

RickBeer wrote:Yes. Collar is irrelevant with a bench capper.

You are correct.

But I have also found the collar is irrelevant with a wing capper. True the shorter lipped bottle WILL feel different when capping, but will cap just fine.
After doing many with both you learn to look, listen and feel when capping.
I capped many a bottle with just water in them before filling with beer, with both a wing and bench capper. I wanted to be sure that I was doing it right. 20-30 caps was a small price to pay for secure beer.

It's just patience and a strong, steady hand to cap those short collared bottles. I've done them many times with my wing capper, but its a lot more time consuming because you gotta be sure the capper is gripping the bottle well and strong to crimp the cap.

The wing capper did work on the short collar bottles. I have some beer in Abita bottles that capped fine and haven't blown up. I was pointing out that the infiltrator bottles looked so much alike until you look closely and were much thinner. There was only a few so they must have been in a Craig's List score so they could have been re-used a lot or damaged. I bought all the SN bottles full (yum) so I know they were only used twice at most.

Ok great thread Borg. I know it was slightly mentioned. But I'm not clear on this.
Can beer be completed in 64 oz. growlers?

Mostly no. Growers can't handle the pressure. Mr. Beer's growlers can they say.

RickBeer wrote:Mostly no. Growers can't handle the pressure. Mr. Beer's growlers can they say.

Those are PET growlers?

No, glass:

http://www.mrbeer.com/product-exec/prod ... n_Growler1

http://www.mrbeer.com/product-exec/prod ... r_Growler1

http://www.mrbeer.com/product-exec/prod ... i_Growler1

Thanks WFinKC

DirtRacer wrote:If I remember right from a post on another forum, the short collar should still work fine with a bench capper but not the hand/wing cappers right? I've got a couple I was saving to use once I get my Super Agata but if they are no good period then I'll definitely get rid of them.

that post was the reason I decided to get a bench capper instead of a wing. I didn't want to have to remember which bottles will or won't work.

It isn't so much the shorter collared bottles being bad as it is which bottles they are.

I would never try to use a double ringed bottle for anything but some with bench cappers might. The double ringed bottles I've found to be much thinner and more brittle than any of the collared bottles.

Some of the short collared bottles are thin and brittle. I have found that it is the glass itself not the collar that is the problem. It is hard to tell if you don't have a scale to tell the difference between a good bottle for reusing vs. a bad one. Sometimes just the amount of light going through will show you thin they are but, like weighing them you have to have something to compare to.

I have found that, in general the long collared bottles ( both short and tall) for some reason seem to be the strongest of all that I have rotated through the pipeline.

Keep in mind that the bottles aren't made with the intention of being refilled; even the brand new bottles you buy from a supply store state "No Refill" on them.
The tall collared ones are probably stronger/ better because they can fit more automated systems than others but that is just a guess.

I have had bottle bombs and crack/leaking bottles a few times and I would say, if possible stick with the tall collared bottles that are the darkest amber in color to be on the safe side.

If you have some you want to use that you have saved up then
1) make sure they are squeaky clean and sanitized
2) hold them up to a bright light and check them for scratches, cracks or other flaws
3) don't bottle an iffy batch of beer in an iffy case of bottles (bottle bomb detective work)
4) try to bottle each batch in the same bottles and put the bottles in your brew notes
5) if you use a wing capper try and find a plastic case crate to hold the bottles in (see below)