Blichmann Beergun Opinions?

Got a nice gift certificate to Northern Brewer and since I keg a huge percentage of my beers and HATE to bottle... plus I only usually bottle a few beers for sample-purposes, I would really like to get a counter-flow filler.

Any opinions out there on the beergun?

Use your GC on something else and read this

nice. Thanks.

my bad... shoulda done a quick search.

actually... know what... screw that. I'm freakin' spending the money. I've built 4.9 million things for brewing and have spent that last six months building my damn AG rig.

I'm just buying something for once.

You need a pump? chiller? Conical? I'd say that would be better money spent. I obviously have no experience with the Blichmann, just playing devil's advocate or something.

Cape Brewing said:

I'm just buying something for once.

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I feel ya bro...just don't EVER build a BMBF...You'll end up using it more than the beer gun

BMBF ? searching

clayton_ross said:

BMBF ? searching

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No Need:
BierMunchers Beer Filler
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/we-no-need-no-stinking-beer-gun-24678/

Kilted Brewer said:

You need a pump? chiller? Conical? I'd say that would be better money spent. I obviously have no experience with the Blichmann, just playing devil's advocate or something.

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I've got three pumps (free from family member who accidently had them fall into his truck from work... which would be fine... they would let him do it) arleady built into my rig. I have a Shirron I'm using as a heat exchanger in the rig and a 30 plate chiller I'm using as a chiller... both I got as gifts. I've got all sorts of excessive stuff tossed into the AG rig so I'm good there.

In terms of a conical? That would be extra schweet but the gift certificate is only $100 and I'm not looking to dump another $x into it.

I'm looking at a counterpressure filler as something I really want given how I keg/bottle and, frankly, I'm tired of building stuff and want to f'in BREW for a change!!

DAMN IT!!!!!!!!

(not really that fired up about it)

If you are doing AG, I would suggest getting a refractometer ($60) and then spend the rest on ingredients or a better bottle or something else small you need (e.g., cleaners, new hoses, brushes,...).

Not to get off topic but I don't get the attraction of refractometers. What's wrong with my hydrometer? And I have about six of those. I have about 30 feet of beer and 30 feet of air line left over from when I ran the lines for my bar... and I go through line all the time since i have two taps running off the side of a camper I use to tailgate and it's a ton easier to just replace the three feet of line every time rather than clean 'em... and I have a carboy, bottle and dip tube brush.

Man... guys are anti-counterpressure fillers for some reason.

Cape Brewing said:

Not to get off topic but I don't get the attraction of refractometers. What's wrong with my hydrometer? And I have about six of those. I have about 30 feet of beer and 30 feet of air line left over from when I ran the lines for my bar... and I go through line all the time since i have two taps running off the side of a camper I use to tailgate and it's a ton easier to just replace the three feet of line every time rather than clean 'em... and I have a carboy, bottle and dip tube brush.

Man... guys are anti-counterpressure fillers for some reason.

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I say Get one!

It's not that were Anti-counterpressure fillers, it's that we've used the BMBF and it works as well as the Blichman and only at about $3. Go out and buy some ingredients and a BMBF and get all of those KICKED sings off of your taps!

you have obviously convinced yourself that you are getting the counter pressure filler and nothing we say will make a difference. Enjoy your purchase...

The BMBF costs about $6 and takes 3 minutes to make, we are all about saving money here, but if you are set up and have some to blow, by all means do what makes you happy.

I have a Beergun and I like it for bottling a bunch of bottles at once. It is great for that. However, for bottling just a couple bottles it isn't worth it.

Refracto's are great for AG brewin because you can check gravities during every stage of the process to better monitor your mash, sparge, and boil. Just a drop gives you an accurate sample in seconds as opposed to a full test jar that needs to be cooled and then hydro'd. I think it is a really great tool.

If you use carboys, some of those stackable carboy dryers would be really nice.

EDIT: The beergun isn't worth it for a few bottles because the setup and cleaning do not make sense for only a 6-pack. I use this for filling just a couple bottles.

Donasay said:

you have obviously convinced yourself that you are getting the counter pressure filler and nothing we say will make a difference. Enjoy your purchase...

The BMBF costs about $6 and takes 3 minutes to make, we are all about saving money here, but if you are set up and have some to blow, by all means do what makes you happy.

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I havent convinced myself of anything. All I was doing was asking for an opinion on a specific product. I got some great suggestions on building one a lot cheaper (which was greatly appreciated) but as I was saying, I just finished spending hundreds of hours on a full "irish pub" in my basement, a walk-in cooler to feed six refridgerated lines to a handmade tap box on the bar, a fermentation fridge and a hard-plumbed, 20 gal AG rig... I tired of building stuff. I want to just buy something for once. I have a gift certificate to burn and don't see spending $70 on something like this as not "saving money here"... so... sorry if that's not what you're all about.

If it's a peice of crap, awesome, that's what I was asking. If it's great but you can build one for $3, awesome, that's what I was asking. If it's "ok" but there's a different model that's a lot better and happens to be $10 cheaper, even better... that's all I was asking.

I have the beer gun and Love it, makes it very easy to bottle I would not want to use any thing else.

Boerderij Kabouter said:

I have a Beergun and I like it for bottling a bunch of bottles at once. It is great for that. However, for bottling just a couple bottles it isn't worth it.

Refracto's are great for AG brewin because you can check gravities during every stage of the process to better monitor your mash, sparge, and boil. Just a drop gives you an accurate sample in seconds as opposed to a full test jar that needs to be cooled and then hydro'd. I think it is a really great tool.

If you use carboys, some of those stackable carboy dryers would be really nice.

EDIT: The beergun isn't worth it for a few bottles because the setup and cleaning do not make sense for only a 6-pack. I use this for filling just a couple bottles.

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Awesome... Thank you... that's what I was looking for!

..and that's a good point on the refractometer. Since I'm still a couple of hours of work away from getting my rig up, I haven't done any runs on it and the rigs I've used with HBC buddies, they haven't bothered with readings since they're so used to their rigs and recipes... But I can see how that would make things a lot easier. And then simply use the hydro when you're checking FG.

I have a beergun and love it, I bought it before discovering the cheaper option on here. I did lose a ******* small piece of black rubber that I am replacing for $4 plus $6 S/H on Austin Homebrew, awesome. :-|

Everytime I go to the LHBS and see the beer gun and its price I laugh knowing how great the BMBF works since the cost was only a stopper that I didn't have yet. Hoorah for the $1 beer gun!

While I understand that people's thoughts on the BMBF aren't what you are looking for, I think people are still give you good reviews of the beergun... From what I have read, the beer gun works great, but its a waste of money considering you can build the same thing for 5 dollars...

NoClueBrewMaster said:

While I understand that people's thoughts on the BMBF aren't what you are looking for, I think people are still give you good reviews of the beergun... From what I have read, the beer gun works great, but its a waste of money considering you can build the same thing for 5 dollars...

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This isn't really true.... the BMBF is great for a few bottles and is cheap. Both great pluses! But if you are going to fill a bunch of bottles, I don't think the Beergun can be beat. I sometimes bottle my full 10g batches with the Beergun and it is faster than regular bottling with a wand. With two people one filling and one capping I can bottle a full batch in no time.

That said, using the Beergun requires cleaning and sanitizing about 15-20 feet of tubing, disassembling the gun and cleaning/sanitizing it, and reassembling the gun. Then you fill bottles, then do the whole process in reverse to cleaning and put it away. This goes quick once you know what you are doing, but I would never go through the trouble for a 6-pack.

Thanks Boerderij Kabouter.

I would primarily use it for filling a couple of bottles here and there for competitions and giving samples to friends and stuff but I have a dedicated "santizing corny" that I have laying around for the sole purpose of blowing cleaner and sanitizer through the lines at the bar so I'm not sure the cleaning/sanitizing would be a major nightmare. That and, while I HATE to bottle, I am starting to get into more and more beers that really are bettler bottled rather than kegged(I have two bottle conditioning now). Once I have my AG rig up, I'll be able to do 20 gal batches and being able to bottle, say, half of that really quickly would make my life a lot easier.

Two big things I guess... 1) I think it'll give me a lot of flexibility to do large bottlings or deal with a little pain of cleaning for little ones and 2)... I know... I get it... I can build one for $3... but like I was saying, I just don't feel like building something for once.

Why so much tubing?? Jsut to cut down on foaming?

Cape Brewing said:

Two big things I guess... 1) I think it'll give me a lot of flexibility to do large bottlings or deal with a little pain of cleaning for little ones and 2)... I know... I get it... I can build one for $3... but like I was saying, I just don't feel like building something for once.

Why so much tubing?? Jsut to cut down on foaming?

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I think the Beergun is indeed what you are looking for then. It takes some technique so don't get frustrated the first time you use it. The first 12 or so you do will likely be frustrating... I you a big low-rise plastic tub (~3 feet long, 18 inches wide, and 4 inches deep) to do all my bottling in. When I fill the bottles, I go until beer is almost up to the cap and foam is spilling out (into the tub) then hand the foamy beer to my assistant to cap it. This way you keep gas out of the line by constantly flowing beer, and your spillage is collected so you can drink it as a treat when you are done bottling. The foam spillage will look like a lot of loss but it really isn't. I lose about 1-2 beers into the bucket per 5 gallon batch now (which is perfect, one for me and one for my assistant).

The tubing is part of the design, it does indeed reduce the foaming. The whole concept hinges on gradual pressure change, that is why there is no counter pressure, and subsequently why you can fill so quickly.

Have fun, and ask away if you have questions!

I am thinking of the beer gun also. I'd like to bottle entire batches, but force carb in a keg and possibly force filter. I'm all about saving $, but after reading people taking 45 minutes to bottle 24 bottles, I'd rather spend the extra money and save time.

I like the CO2 purge before filling the bottle and adding CO2 after filled, no foamy mess.