Refractometer /ebay

I saw these on ebay and they are pretty cheap under 20 bucks. What do ya think?

http://cgi.ebay.com/0-32-Brix-Wort-SG-Refractometer-Sugar-Wine-Beer-a0-/250716159885?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a5fd8ff8d

Thanks for this post - i just bought one. I was on ebay about a month ago looking for a reasonable one. 0-32 brix is a nice range. These aren't complicated they just bend light so getting an inexpensive one - usualy isnt a bad deal. Just dont submerge these in water.

that is the same one i have. i have not had a problem yet

Looks like it ships from hong
Kong. I bought one from an eBay seller a few months ago, I've been happy. Probably the same quality but his ships from so cal. When I het home I'll post his info

subscribed to see the local seller

yup would rather buy local than from kong town.

subscribed...

Hmmmm I JUST bought one this morning and saw this thread. I saw one from Hong Kong for $20-$30 and one from So Cal for $70. I figured I can get 2 of the Hong Kong'rs for the price of one from So Cal and it appears they have a very similar part number. Paid something like $24 for mine and got free shipping..

I have one just like that, cost me about $30 after shipping and haven't had any big problems with it so far.

I bought mine today so we shall see

I bought mine from National Industrial Supply:

nisupply.com

310 748 6858

Had it a few months and its worked well for me. I bought mine through their E-bay store front it was around $20+-

southpawbrew said:

I bought mine from National Industrial Supply:

nisupply.com

310 748 6858

Had it a few months and its worked well for me. I bought mine through their E-bay store front it was around $20+-

Click to expand...

Here's a question for you (or anyone). I checked out their site. They have an "aquarium" salinity tester for $24 that has a SG scale from 1.000 to 1.070 and a "wort" tester for $64 that goes from 1.000 to 1.120 which makes the scale almost impossible to read because the scale is so compact.

Couldn't you simply use the "aquarium" scale as it's more aligned with the range we test 1.000-typically 1.070? The SG should be the same regardless of the source, correct?"

Here's the "salinity" tester - you can see the scale would be a lot easier to read (SG is on the left side)


and here's the "wort" tester. The incremental lines between the numbers look like they will be very difficult to read. (SG is on the right side)

NO! A refractometer is NOT a refractometer. Refractometers can be made to measure many different things. Salinity (the measure of salt), Brix (the measure of sugar), Alcohol, etc. They are not all the same. For homebrewing, you definately want one that measures brix.

Here is the one that is made in the USA and is $30: http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-0-32-ATC-Br...351?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item33537bebef

Had mine for a little over a year, works great!

i think i might disagree with ninja a little. All refractometers measure the amount of disolved solids in a solution by the amount of light refracted. They may have different scales for their intended purpose. I do agree with ninja that a brix refract is likely the best. In the case of the scale shown by chips, you could use the brix side and use that to calculate the SG if the scale looks to smoooshed. USe the SG as an estimate and see where your calc take you.

Just and idea and good luck.

I ended up buying both, I'll sell the one that doesn't work best for me. If it's the salinity one then I'm sure some aquarium fanatic will buy it off Craigslist

Sure they are the "same" in the same way that a circular saw and jigsaw are both saws. They both cut things, but that doesnt mean you would use a jigsaw to cut a 4' x 8' piece of plywood.

You want the Brix one, dont even bother with anything else.