cornelius to sanke conversion

Hi all,
I was wondering if anyone has any possible sources for parts to convert a cornelius keg to a sanke keg fitting. I have seen some at a few breweries where it looks like a corny lid with a sanke flange that is welded onto the corny keg. I have a few cornelius kegs that i would like to convert but havent found any sources for possible readymade parts to do the conversion. thanks!

Can I ask why you're converting them? If you're just wanting to use a sanke kegerator with homebrew kegs, they sell adaptor kits at morebeer.com

Cant' you also get 1/6 barrel sankes that are roughly the same sort of dimension?

Might help to know what your end-goal is for this.

Yeah I know i can get 1/6 sanke's but the price is much higher than i can get cornies for and I already have a bunch. Ive seen converted cornies and I am sure there must be some kind of supplier for the conversions. Its just a welded on sanke flange. Ive seen them at quite a few breweries. Im hoping to move over to system.

It would seem that farming out the welding plus the fittings could easily cost more than new or refurb kegs. You might call micromatic to see if they sell the parts to convert or know who does. It would still involve plugging or welding the posts shut and welding a lid in place, and a valve to that along with an appropriate length spear. All done with sanitary welds, of course.

yeah thanks. yeah it would be much better just to have sanke 1/6 barrels but i have a tig and can do the welding myself and already have the kegs. personally i have more free time than money so that is why im looking into it. seen it so many times there must be a resource. thanks again

Junkyard? Or post a wanted ad in the classified area for someone who has converted sankes to keggles and want's to sell off the parts.

Why not just adapt the kegerator to use both types of connections?

I have a couple bought them this way so I have no idea who did the conversion.
They are nice to have when you go to a party you can use a commercial pump tap

Try Sabco. IIRC, they have the lids pre-made.

thats what im looking for! thanks guys. ill try contacting sabco but if anyone has any other contacts for the premade part i would be grateful... thanks again

I didn't think sabco had the conversion lids. I know you can buy converted kegs from them (sold out right now) but I've never seen lids.

yeah thanks. i didnt have a chance to call them yet but i cant find anything on their site. I think the search is still on....

why can't you just take the Sanke off of some kegs you may get some from people who have converted them to keggles and just weld it to the Corny lid?

It would be a pain as you most likely would need to remove the spear every time you want to take the lid off but very doable

Maybe post an ad in the classifieds for tops cut off sanke kegs with spears. There are a lot of threads about what to do with them. If you weld a corny lid to the corny keg, it seems there would be a lot of places for crud to hide. Maybe check with kegglebrewing.com they convert a lot of sankes to kettles, then just cut those tops to be a nice fit where the lids go.

Great idea, ill check in with them and see if they have any extra parts. Be great to get a bunch from one source to save on shipping and all.

I have 8 Corney kegs (5-gallon, ball-lock beverage kegs) myself and am looking for a way to convert them to Sanke (D-System) with a converted lid.

I looked on Sabco's website and did not see anything, and I emailed them with the same question. I will post whatever reply I get.

BrewingTRouble said:

I have 8 Corney kegs (5-gallon, ball-lock beverage kegs) myself and am looking for a way to convert them to Sanke (D-System) with a converted lid.

I looked on Sabco's website and did not see anything, and I emailed them with the same question. I will post whatever reply I get.

Click to expand...

So, you want to take something that is worth $50, then spend another $50+ to permanently convert it into a crappy frankenstein version of something that you can get for $30? (even legally for ~$90)

The OP of this thread was fixated on converting a corny. If he would have stepped back a bit, and looked at what he was doing, I think he would have realized it made little sense- from any standpoint.

If a removable Sanke lid were available for a corny, that would make a bit more sense, but there is no such part. There are clearance issues with the spear housing and a standard lid lever. There is also an issue with the spear and how a corney lid is inserted, necessitating spear removal each time. Also, I would think any commercially made lid would also need a relief valve for liability reasons, further complicating things. Sanke kegs have designed pressure failure points that serve as OPV.

I don't think corny conversions are even done anymore. They were done at at a time when cornies were close to free, and slim 1/6 barrels did not exist. I also would not trust the inside of a welded corny/sanke conversion to stay clean, especially without a commercial keg washer.

I can save you all a ton of money. I've got (4) four Corney kegs that have already been converted to Sanke professionally. A friend works at a distributor and they didn't want them any more. They were fosters kegs. I was told they were Corny kegs so I bought them sight unseen. Turns out they are corny kegs but they are sanke tops and i have no taps forthem. One has a dent in the top. I'll let all 4 go for $100 plus shipping.

Contact me at [email protected] if you're interested and I can send pics.

Update: I no longer have the (4) Corney Kegs I had before. No need to contact me. It seems these do have some value as I was contacted by several people wanting them.

http://www.chicompany.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=376_17_59&products_id=1496

Easy sanke to corny conversion kit. Company has a lot of other conversion stuff too.

droopy said:

http://www.chicompany.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=376_17_59&products_id=1496

Easy sanke to corny conversion kit. Company has a lot of other conversion stuff too.

Click to expand...

So, after the OP converts his corny to a Sanky, he can then convert his Sanky back to a corny?

droopy said:

http://www.chicompany.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=376_17_59&products_id=1496

Easy sanke to corny conversion kit. Company has a lot of other conversion stuff too.

Click to expand...

I am having a hard time visualizing how that kit works?

awarner322 said:

I am having a hard time visualizing how that kit works?

Click to expand...

The kit allows using swivel nuts on lines, like those used for threaded Corny QDs, on a Sankey coupler. They can also be used on shanks to allow swivel nuts to be used on both ends of a beer line, but they can cause foaming issues with some beers when used on shanks. The inside is not very smooth and causes cavitation and nucleation issues. They work better when used on the coupler beer out, but are still not as good as using true 'beer nut' barb adapters.

Resurrection time!
I have 2 Corny kegs converted to Sanke amongst my herd of Sanke stainless. I'd love a few more, and here's why - they are just a little narrower than the 1/6 barrel Sankes and I can fit an extra keg in my keezer if 2 of them are Cornies.

With my keg washer, I don't have any concerns about debris in my kegs. I pull the spear, flip it over and place on the keg washer with PBW. Rinse, sanitize, ready for the next batch. I can look inside my kegs through the spear orifice just fine, thank you very much. If they're is any debris, a few seconds with a wooden dowel and a piece of Scotch Brite in my electric drill solves it. But that only ever happens with new-to-me kegs that have been sitting around for a few years with skunge in the bottom.

I've got a friend that is pretty skilled at welding stainless I might try to engage in a little project...

Chris