Pneumatic Bottle Capper - Just...because.

CornyKegs 728
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Very Nice!

I got wrapped up in some other projects (brew stand and fermenters) but this sort of thing is an excellent brain exercise and I'd love to do one in the future :p
 
A question about air cylinders;

I have 2-1/2" bore cylinder but it has a 6" stroke. Is there any problem having the cylinder "bottom out" well before the end of the stroke? I have a feeling this is just fine but I'd like to know. I guess I could set this up to stroke out about 2" on a bomber and then I would have enough travel left to still cap a regular sized beer bottle.

I have not been able to find any spec on minimum stroke setup.
 
Mine seals the cap before bottoming out and how far it moves really depends on bottle height. I use 2x4 or 1x4 to space the bottles up for shorter bottles.
 
iamsblack said:
A question about air cylinders;

I have 2-1/2" bore cylinder but it has a 6" stroke. Is there any problem having the cylinder "bottom out" well before the end of the stroke? I have a feeling this is just fine but I'd like to know. I guess I could set this up to stroke out about 2" on a bomber and then I would have enough travel left to still cap a regular sized beer bottle.

I have not been able to find any spec on minimum stroke setup.
Click to expand...

Set the stroke to the shortest bottle and you will be fine.
My pneumatic capper works that way and on my filler line the capper worked that way too.

Cheeers,
ClaudiusB
 
Trying to make it feed the caps automatically:
[ame]http://youtu.be/K9FQmfjGtBE[/ame]
[ame]http://youtu.be/pDDr1t1ElhQ[/ame]
 
I'll put the caps on a magazine, trying to get the dimensions right for the mechanism, it starts to be in the right ballpark:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Nearly there, a few things still hold in place by bubblegum, but it works reasonable well already. A big bummer was the fact that the magazine bended when I glued it together, it sometimes shoots two caps at the time because of that.

[ame]http://youtu.be/ayErOyFyYTY[/ame]

[ame]http://youtu.be/zM_fHwKZBw8[/ame]
 
And now the final video of this prototype, bottling some beer:

[ame="http://youtu.be/b6Hz2QIyvlU"]http://youtu.be/b6Hz2QIyvlU[/ame]

If I get an inspiration to do another one, it will have a conveyer-belt + Arduino controlled automation (... to make the bottling process even more complicated operation :p ...)
 
Vesku said:
And now the final video of this prototype, bottling some beer:

http://youtu.be/b6Hz2QIyvlU

If I get an inspiration to do another one, it will have a conveyer-belt + Arduino controlled automation (... to make the bottling process even more complicated operation :p ...)
Click to expand...

You did a great job.
Go with a conveyor and you will love it.
I had three conveyors, in-feed, bottling and out-feed.
Only the bottling is still around as a show and tell unit.

Cheers,
ClaudiusB
 
When using a single acting cylinder, how do you release the pressure in the cylinder. I just built this, and without removing the air hose, the pressure remains in the cylinder and the capper remains in the down position.
 
nevermind, just realized that I didn't have a 3 way valve introduced into the system. Thanks for the quick reply
 
My wooden capper gave up, I made a new version from steel + plexiglass:
_MG_0244.JPG
_MG_0247.JPG


I need to redo the cap magazine from plexiglass too as soon as I can get some...
 
Hey guys, first of all, amazing builds! Our old homemade bench capper just conked out and I've been inspired to build a pneumatic one to replace it. Have most of the components but I was wondering about the specs for the compressors you use. I tried calculating the CFM requirements for my cylinder (0.073) but I don't think that translates in actual usage. What tank size do you think is enough? Motor size? Minimum CFM? How many bottles can you guys cap before your compressor kicks in? Thanks a lot and Happy International Beer Day!
 
sticky_iks said:
Hey guys, first of all, amazing builds! Our old homemade bench capper just conked out and I've been inspired to build a pneumatic one to replace it. Have most of the components but I was wondering about the specs for the compressors you use. I tried calculating the CFM requirements for my cylinder (0.073) but I don't think that translates in actual usage. What tank size do you think is enough? Motor size? Minimum CFM? How many bottles can you guys cap before your compressor kicks in? Thanks a lot and Happy International Beer Day!
Click to expand...

CFM usage is super low like you calculated (looks like you used 20 times per min? ;) unless your stroke is longer). Real life is probably a little more cubic feet per cycle when you count tubing but much less than 20 cycles per minute. Regardless of all that, I can't imagine you could possibly buy a compressor too small for this application.
 
I calculated for a 2" bore 2" stroke double acting cylinder at 3 cycles a minute. lol I'm not too confident with my math but yeah, it seems to be way below 1 CFM even at 20 cycles. Good compressors are hard to come by here, we mostly get cheap Chinese direct drive ones, usually with 2hp (peak rating) motors, 20-30L tanks, and grossly overestimated CFM ratings. I'm just worried a compressor like that might kick in every 10 bottles or so since they run at around 90 decibels
 
-TH- said:
... I can't imagine you could possibly buy a compressor too small for this application.
Click to expand...

unless its those tiny ones for airbrushing...


yes, Sticky_icks - it may kick on during bottling - unless you have one of those 50-gallon tanks. My compressor is in the garage, and my capping done in the kitchen, so the door is barely cracked open to let the hose through. Really, its just part of the deal. If you want to cap pneumatically, the likelihood of noise is a probability.
 
In the Philippines, Stealthcruiser. Craft beers are still pretty new here and we only have a handful of active brewers but we're chugging along. Thanks guys, I think I'll take my chances with a cheap direct drive and hope it lasts a year or until I can get a quality belt-driven one. Oh, and happy international IPA day!
 
So I managed to throw together the parts for a test run but capping has been inconsistent. My compressor is a direct drive 2.5hp 145FAD w/ 40L tank. I'm also using a double acting cylinder. Could either be a cause for low pressure? Maybe shorten my tubes? I get around 100 psi max on my regulator, is that enough? Anyone else have problems capping consistently?
 
sticky_iks said:
So I managed to throw together the parts for a test run but capping has been inconsistent. My compressor is a direct drive 2.5hp 145FAD w/ 40L tank. I'm also using a double acting cylinder. Could either be a cause for low pressure? Maybe shorten my tubes? I get around 100 psi max on my regulator, is that enough? Anyone else have problems capping consistently?
Click to expand...

What is the bore diameter of your cylinder??
 
I've been assembling my parts to do this and came up with an easy way to fill most of my bottles. I'm wondering if anyone has made one of these in a 2 capper configuration by just doubling the cylinder and such?
 
Late to the party I know, but very cool builds so far. So it looks like the AutoCad files are no longer available. I was wondering more about the stands people are using. Were they mostly built or made by someone?
 
I made mine out of the electrical strut material everyone builds their brew sculptures out of now a days. That way I didn't have to weld anything.
 
Kahlid74 said:
Late to the party I know, but very cool builds so far. So it looks like the AutoCad files are no longer available. I was wondering more about the stands people are using. Were they mostly built or made by someone?
Click to expand...

made my own measurements, then bought in small pieces (Online Metals, if I recall) and I took it to a local welder, then a local powder coat guy. I'm sure I spent too much, but I love my capper !
 
Ok, pardon my ignorance on how the spring loaded air cylinder works: when You step on the pedal, is it tap once and release or step on it til the cylinder drops completely and then let off? Basically, does it go until it exerts it's pressure by capping and then back off or so you need to keep pushing? How do the automatic ones work with different height bottles?
 
On mine, I hold the pedal - a tap would make it retract instantly. But it isn't a long hold - half a second to a second - It comes down and crunches the crown, then I release it. Because the stroke is 2 inches long, slightly different bottle heights is not a problem - the shaft stops when it cannot go any further.
I built a couple of wood blocks for the base of mine - if I'm doing shorties, or bombers, I can change the bottom block.
 

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