Do twist off bottle not work at all?

I realized last week I was going to need more bottles in 2 weeks I decided to start by buying some beer and reuse their bottles. Well....duh. I started off wrong and bought some beer with twist offs (I could have sworn JW Dundee were pop tops ).


So are twist off bottles off limits for bottling? Do they not get a good seal or something? Or perhaps they simply break easier?

They suck basically. Ive capped them with a wing capper and some of them break at the neck. Not a huge break but just so there are a few glass scrads waiting to fal into the bottle when you open it. Try to get pry offs. Ive been told that if you have a bench capper that twist offs will work but I can speak from experience on that one.

So if you cant get pry offs what you have may work just be careful. And check all the bottles for a good seal some probably wont seal completely. Youll just have to recap those.

On that note, will any pop off bottles work in regards to recapping?

If you have a wing capper...DO NOT use the twist offs. I have a bench capper and about 30 or more cases of twist off bottles. It works great.

I would avoid New Belgium bottles with a wing capper....The taper of the neck plays hell on the release mechanism of the capper.

+1 on bench capper for twist off. I bottled 6 cases and had no problems. It take more elbow grease to cap them but it can be done.

BigKahuna said:

I would avoid New Belgium bottles with a wing capper....The taper of the neck plays hell on the release mechanism of the capper.

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Never had a problem with capping those with my wing capper. Perhaps it depends on the brand of the capper. I have no idea who makes mine, but it works on New Belgium bottles.

I've used twist-offs before just to test and see if they would work. I think I bottled a sixer in them. I just twisted them right back on.

When the beer was ready, the twist-offs were just as carbonated as the others. I didn't notice a difference. This was just one time though and I've since accumulated enough other bottles.

If you don't have enough of the 'right' kind of bottles, let it sit in the primary/secondary a little longer while you get more bottles. The beer will be better for it and you won't have to worry about your beers not carbonating.

Cheers!

Never actually done, but have read about people using twist-offs w/ the original cap. Twist off carefully and place carefully on homebrew making sure cap is threaded properly...not ideal...probably not as good a crimped crown cap, but should work fine in a pinch. Translation...i think you'll be fine, but don't make a habit out of it.

I use 2 liter plastic soda bottles. I started with standard 12 oz beer bottles, then went to champagne bottles. I finally bought a 20# CO2 bottle & 2 cornies, but that will have to wait until the next move. If you still don't have enough beer bottles, give the 2 liter soda bottles a try.

I have capped twistoff bottles with a bench capper for testing purposes, and they seemed to be fine. I worry somewhat about the general thinness of the bottles. They seem somewhat fragile. I am new to bench capping and am still calibrating the wrist-pounds...

I have bottled in 2L bottles in a pinch and they seemed to do fine. I never let them sit a long time or anything.

I think that plastic bottles would be good for places you can't take glass, or don't want to carry glass back home. Recapping screwtop bottles might be good in a pinch or if you think you won't get the empties back.