ball or pin lock kegs

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Which is better to use Ball lock or pin lock?


Neither is better, I use both.

There is no difference in functioning as a beer container.

The Keg dimensions are different.
Pinlock kegs tend to be 9" diameter and 22 - 23" tall,
Ball lock tend to be 8 - 8 1/2" diameter and about 24" tall
Of course the quick connects that you buy must match your style of kegs.

I think more people use ball lock kegs around my neck of the woods.

Buy what is in the best shape for your money.
Good Luck,
John

Right now the ball lock kegs for sale near me seem to be in terrible rough shape.
Also ball lock kegs all seem to have pull ring pressure relief valves, not so with pinlocks.
 
All new kegs are being produced as ball lock. So you need to decide what you're going to do. Get two different QD's and set them up on dedicated lines (if you use the barb connections) or use the MFL fittings and be able to change out the QD's as needed. You'll need to add swivel nuts to all your gas lines to do that. If you go for the barb QD's then you're going to want to either have lock specific lines, or go with one style over the other.

Personally, since I use mostly 3 gallon corny kegs (with some 1 gallon, 2.5 gallon and a few 5 gallon) I have all ball lock fittings. I also have swivel nuts on almost all my gas line ends (except into the first two manifolds I got, every other line is with a swivel nut).
 
I have both. The connectors are different but you can just have both styles of connectors, no big deal.
I would get any kegs u find that are inexpensive and in good shape.
 
Ball lock is waaaay more popular, read less available and hence more expensive. I use all pin lock- cheaper, easier to find, can't accidentally swap in for out, and work just as well. I just picked up 3 more from www.kegconnection.com for $30 per, a great Cyber Monday deal!
 
I prefer ball locks. Some people swear by pin locks. Not sure if it matters which one you use. Only advice I'd give is use all the same either way. It's an un-necsessary pain in the butt to switch around plumbing if you decide to use both. Stick with one type.
 
As stated above they are different sizes. If you already have a fridge you are thinking about using for beer, the sizes may make a difference. I have both and dont really mind switching connectors as needed. With the threaded it isnt that big a deal, if you have a manifold with valves. If you dont have a manifold you will have to disconnect all the keg connectors to change fittings.
Or just leave both types connected all the time.
 
In my opinion ball lock is better supported with parts and so forth. I would pick ball lock again as that is what I use.
 
brewmastercontrols said:
In my opinion ball lock is better supported with parts and so forth. I would pick ball lock again as that is what I use.

Ever own a pin lock? ;)
 
Ever own a pin lock? ;)

You ever use/own a ball lock?? Just saying, it swings both ways Hoss...

Personally, I've never had an issue putting the wrong QD on a post. Then again most (if not all) my kegs have at least one of the posts marked (stamped right close to the post, or in the rubber top). IF you can read/see, you can put the correct QD on the fitting. :eek:

IMO, I'd rather go with the type that I know I'll be able to get pretty much forever. Since they're not making new pin lock kegs, that pretty much rules them out. Sure, the USED, keg market is drying up, but they ARE making brand new ones in ball lock. Haven't seen any brand new manufacture pin lock kegs.
 
MFL quick disconnects make the choice a moot point. Get what you can when the price is good unless you're dimension constraints speak otherwise.
 
MFL quick disconnects make the choice a moot point. Get what you can when the price is good unless you're dimension constraints speak otherwise.

Exactly as I stated in my post very early in the thread... IF you use swivel nuts (for all QD's and such) then it won't matter. You'll just need to change the QD's to match the keg they're going onto. I'm sure that can get old for some people. I don't need to worry about it since all my kegs are ball lock...
 
Golddiggie said:
You ever use/own a ball lock?? Just saying, it swings both ways Hoss...

Personally, I've never had an issue putting the wrong QD on a post. Then again most (if not all) my kegs have at least one of the posts marked (stamped right close to the post, or in the rubber top). IF you can read/see, you can put the correct QD on the fitting. :eek:

IMO, I'd rather go with the type that I know I'll be able to get pretty much forever. Since they're not making new pin lock kegs, that pretty much rules them out. Sure, the USED, keg market is drying up, but they ARE making brand new ones in ball lock. Haven't seen any brand new manufacture pin lock kegs.

Oh, I have... Hoss. I wasn't arguing that one is better than the other, but that parts are just as easy to find for both. That's all ;)
 
Oh, I have... Hoss. I wasn't arguing that one is better than the other, but that parts are just as easy to find for both. That's all ;)

True... for now at least... IMO, if your kegorator/keezer/brew fridge can handle either, then it's a difficult choice. If one fits better than the other, then the choice is easier. Personally, I've not seen (anywhere, and I have looked) pin lock kegs in sizes other than 5 gallons. I can buy brand new 3 gallon ball lock kegs though, all day long.
 
Golddiggie said:
True... for now at least... IMO, if your kegorator/keezer/brew fridge can handle either, then it's a difficult choice. If one fits better than the other, then the choice is easier. Personally, I've not seen (anywhere, and I have looked) pin lock kegs in sizes other than 5 gallons. I can buy brand new 3 gallon ball lock kegs though, all day long.

I can't argue with the fact all new homebrew kegs are ball lock. But I sure like my pin locks, and if ever I decided to change things up it's an easy fix.
 
i started kegging with ball locks for one reason:

I wanted skinnier kegs that i could stuff into my 7.2 cubic ft chest freezer ("kegerator/Keezer")

Sure Pin Locks are only 1/2" or so wider but when I'm cramming 6 kegs into my setup I didnt care about height and needed all the width i could get.... some would say its not about length...but about girth....giggity...

Shameless plug of the Kegerator to show that with how much work i had put into this i needed every little bit of space on the inside to make all 6 lines work:



kegerator1 by jmw5107, on Flickr


kegerator2 by jmw5107, on Flickr
 
I went ball lock for a few reasons.

I look at it as a lifetime investment. Kegs should just last forever so the extra money isn't a big deal.

I like the idea of the relief valve. I use it to purge the O2 after I keg up a beer. Sure you can do that with a pin lock but I believe you have to put C02 in, then disconnect, then press down on the air in. I'd rather just pull the release.

The other reason is I can fit exactly 6 ball lock kegs in my fridge. I sort of got lucky on this, I measured as best I could and it happened to work out. If they were pins I couldn't do it.

I feel the air release is worth the difference in price over time.

Another option is sometimes there are deals on converted pins. Sort of best of both, cheaper and have the the release valve. I've never used one though so I can't say much more about it.

Lastly, bottling sucks.
 
First keg I found was a pin lock. The next 4 were ball lock. I ended up converting the pin lock to ball lock for simplicity. The kit was cheap enough. I do miss not having a relief valve on the lid though. I can't fit 4 pin lock size kegs in my keezer, but I can squeeze one or 2 in with the rest ball lock.
 
Sounds like either of them is good. I havent bought anything to put them in yet (thinking about buying a used fridge and converting it) but it sounds like the ball lock would be better if I want to fit more in a fridge. Plus if I buy a new keg system it looks like they are going to be ball lock. Thanks for all the post.
 
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