BoulderBayBrewing

Recipes 

__________________
On Deck:IPA
Primary: What the Helles Munchner
Secondary:Cabernet Sauvignon
Bottled/Conditioning:
Drinking: Red Barron German Pilsner

explosivebeer

Recipes 

Ok I'll let you know. I'm hoping to finish it this weekend and hopefully have time to take it for its maiden voyage. We'll see.

__________________
"I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts, and beer."
-Abraham Lincoln

explosivebeer

Recipes 

Hey B3, I posted pictures in my gallery if you want to check them out. I haven't had a chance to draw up a schematic yet but I'm sure you can piece it together.

Building from the inside out, I used 30" 14-gauge steel tubing as the crossbars to hold the keggles and burners. I braced that with notched lengths of 3/4" wood. The frame is 4x4s and 2x6s attached with Kreg screws. There are triangle supports under the 4x4s that the casters attach to. I ran a couple pieces of wood length-wise on top of the triangle supports and then the eight 1x6" slats to form the bottom that act as storage but will also allow spills to drain through. On top of that, I got a nice 3/4" sheet of plywood, ripped it to 33", then cut that section to fit the length of the table (about 72") to form the table top. I used the remaining 33"x24" piece as the side table which is braced with two more of those 30" steel tubing pieces.

Anyway, I hope that helps. Let me know if you have any specific questions. I've still got to mount the pump, wire the electical, channel the natural gas, and build a ping pong table top to rest on top. But it's getting closer. Good luck with your build.

__________________
"I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts, and beer."
-Abraham Lincoln

BoulderBayBrewing

Recipes 

Thanks ex! Thats a sweet looking stand. I'll have to post some pictures of ours when we get it finished. Thanks for all the info. You'll have to let me know how the first brew day goes!

__________________
On Deck:IPA
Primary: What the Helles Munchner
Secondary:Cabernet Sauvignon
Bottled/Conditioning:
Drinking: Red Barron German Pilsner

ScubaSteve

Recipes 

Wow, that's a really sharp looking stand! I hope it brings you many a successful brew day. I think you'll find the side table comes in really handy.....I know I did.

__________________
WOOD RIG BUILD (Sold): http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/scubas-herms-build-36267/?highlight=scuba%27s
SS RIG BUILD (In Progress):http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/scubas-rig-build-2-judgement-day-89991/
UNIBREW SINGLE VESSEL CONCEPT RIG:http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/single-vessel-all-electric-ns-nc-brewery-158608

If you ask 10 brewers a question you'll get 12 different answers, and 3/4 of them will be opinions without any actual experience in it...-Revvy

GlassblowersBrew

Recipes 

Inspired to go build.............

__________________
On Deck: IIPA 10 gal
Primary #1: IIPA 10 gal
Primary #2: Air
Secondary: Air
Kegged: Firestone Union Jack

GlassblowersBrew

Recipes 

Hey Scuba Steve and ExplosiveBeer,

I was wondering if you could give me some advice in building my own wood rig. I really like a lot about your old setup and wanted to pick your brain if you are open to that...

What were the dimensions that you went with?

If you built it a second time would you change the dimensions? (for heat avoidance, comfort of brewing...)

Did the angle iron ever bend under the heat?

Did the angle iron ever transfer so much heat to the wood frame to cause it to smolder in the notches?

Thanks so much for your advise, your design is so beautiful. Imitation is the highest form of flattery as they say...

John
GlassblowersBrew

__________________
On Deck: IIPA 10 gal
Primary #1: IIPA 10 gal
Primary #2: Air
Secondary: Air
Kegged: Firestone Union Jack

explosivebeer

Recipes 

Hey John,

My stand is 33" wide, about 30" tall, and has recessed casters under the corner supports at the lower joints. The total height off the ground is only about 34", which causes problems when the table top is folded down and you have to roll the table over raised surfaces (I take it in and out of the house for brewing and the top has to be folded up or else it hits the raised door jam). The table doesn't pick up too much heat from the wide burners I have but I wouldn't want to keep my hand between the flame and the table for too long either.

For height, it's about as tall as I'd want it and I'm 6'2". I wanted to make sure I had enough room between the horizontal boards to slide the keggles in and out. That, in combination with the fact that I used 2x6s instead of 2x4s for the structure forced the height up. But if you change either of those, it should be better.

I haven't pulled the angle iron out of the slots I cut for it but I'm not too concerned about it. I'm still planning on drilling small holes in the bottom of the keggle supports in case pressure builds up in them but it hasn't been an issue yet. And the square tubing I used hasn't compromised at all with the weight and heat. The industrial supply company cut it perfectly to size and had it ready to go in a day or two. I think the gauge was 14 and I had 10 30" pieces which ran about $30.

Anyway, I've got to run but wanted to give you a few details to get you going. Good luck on the build.

-Brandon

__________________
"I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts, and beer."
-Abraham Lincoln

GlassblowersBrew

Recipes 

Brandon,

Thanks so much for your info. Im gonna read it over a few times to absorb it and apply it to my plan. I am planning on using it as a 2 tier for now so I don't have to buy a 2nd pump to save a little money, so I am kinda adapting the one tier. I figure when I get a second pump I can use it as a one tier, until then I will be mashing/sparging at ground level. I don't know if this is going to cause any problems but it seems to me that using gravity for that step isnt going to slow me down much or add much labor. Doing ten gallon batches with all gravity got old after the first brewing.

I feel like the lumber needed to make this is the most economical way to build a rig and in my opinion the most hansom. As long as it is fire safe and works well, who can complain? Thanks again for your help.

BTW, I really like the flip top table idea. It seems to be a great surface to ferment on or use for other tinkering projects. I plan on storing in the garage, Im sure it will be piled up with fun projects in no time......

__________________
On Deck: IIPA 10 gal
Primary #1: IIPA 10 gal
Primary #2: Air
Secondary: Air
Kegged: Firestone Union Jack

explosivebeer

Recipes 

I'm glad to help. Just let me know if you have any other questions, either on this thread or in a PM. The flip-top table also serves as a mildly effective wind shear for me when I was brewing outside. I'm moving it to a new place so I won't need it for that anymore but it is nice to have mobile counter space when it's not in use.

Installing the hinges for the table top is a little tricky. I recessed the table top side into the plywood which is somewhat problematic since you have to chip through layers of plywood rather than a consistent wood texture. A router might have been a better option if you can set up a fence for it. Also, I couldn't find any hinges that had good clearance. I want to say the distance from the joint of the hinge to the first hole was only an 1/8th over the size of plywood I used for the table top, which means that they don't have a lot of grip into the rail where they're attached to the table. But it's held so far and seems to be sturdy enough, though I haven't slammed it down hard yet.

Anyway, good luck with everything. Post some pictures for us some pictures when you get it put together.

-Brandon

__________________
"I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts, and beer."
-Abraham Lincoln