Any corny kegs to avoid? Favour?

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globell

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Been reading up. Think that a keg is in my immediate future. Anything I should be aware of as I will need to order one online as there are no dealers in my area.
Would like a new one
5 gallon
doesn't have to be pretty - will not be using it for on tap - just for force carbing.

Thank you!!!
 
I would check out AIH.. they have some good deals, and even better sales on new and used kegs. I picked up a used 5 gal one recently for $40.
 
If you are just using it for force carbing, just buy a used one and save some cash..new ones are honestly a waste of money unless you are showing them off or just want the bling (or just have an excess of money you want to just spend on something that is new).

Used ones are perfectly fine as long as you replace the o-rings, clean them up real good (which is not hard at all to do and if you have never used a keg is great to learn the ins and outs of how they work/assemble).

There are lots of threads on here and elsewhere on cleaning up a used corny.

For the price of 1 new corny, you can pick up 2 used ones which is a better deal imho.

I have to date never bought a new corny and I have around 12 used ones I keep in circulation at this point..all mine are beat up as hell but work perfectly.

Just my .02 on it to help you save some hard earned cash.
Also, as others have stated previously, AIH is also a top notch place to get them for a reasonable cost, especially now with the holiday deals going on.
 
The pricing used to be in favor of buying used, but around here used ball lock corny kegs are running $50+. The you need to replace o-rings and poppets, figure at least another $10. For $15 more you get a new keg. I buy the new ones now.
 
My used 5 gal came with no dents, but was a bit sticky and just dirty. I used hot water, goo gone for the stickers, and bar keepers friend to clean it all up. There are some scuffs, but it looks nice and clean. Also another note about AIH.. there used kegs ship with a free o-ring replacement kit, at least the low profile ones I keep ordering do. I am still adding to my eqpt, so if I can save $20-$30 for each keg, i'll take a chance on the used ones.

20161128_140254.jpg
 
If you're just buying one keg I'd look for a sale on a new one. You'll like the nicer looking hardware, the added cost isn't much, and you won't have to worry about it.

If do end up shopping for a used keg, I would get one with the newest style pressure release valve that threads into an all stainless lid fitting (Image A). Avoid the old style pressure releases B, C, and D:
images


Avoid the plastic lids:
images


And avoid the non-manual pressure release lids:
47600d1329013863-given-two-corny-kegs-yesterday-cimg6990.jpg
 
You're going to carb it in a fridge, and then bottle it carbonated?

If you're going to do that, you may want to go with a Blichmann beergun, as bottling carbonated beer can be a pain. Or, if you want to go cheap, you could go with the homemade counterpressure filler: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=24678

If you don't have a cold place to carb it up, and keep it cold (a fridge) until done bottling, then force carbing and bottling won't work so that's something to keep in mind. Warm carbonated beer foams like heck, and so it's impossible to bottle it and maintain carbonation.
 
Yooper offered premium advice. Any used keg (suggest ball lock) is best if you remove the ball lock poppets and replace the 5 o rings that are used in this system. New kegs are ready to go w/o seal replacement. Also use keg lube on o rings to prevent any leaks.

I use a Blichmann beer gun to occasionally bottle cold, carbed beer (warm beer neither carbs well nor bottles well as Yooper mentions) at low CO2 pressure to control foaming. For the most part, however, I prefer my beers on tap. There are examples of beers you'd want to bottle and store away for additional aging or to share with others. For the needs you listed, at minimum you'll need a soda keg, quick lock connectors, CO2 and liquid lines, CO2 tank and a regulator....plus some device with counter pressure to fill bottles with minimal foaming along with some way to chill the keg.

If you are going to this extent to collect all this gear to carb and bottle beer, you may want to consider finding an old fridge and making a very simple tap dispensing system. Even though you seem to be steering away from draught beer, serving on tap is really awesome since you'll have a large majority of the components already on hand.
 
If you're going new avoid the Kegco kegs, I hear they can be fine or completely rust out within a couple weeks. Not worth the risk for that kind of money in my opinion.
 
I would avoid buying pin locks or converted pin locks. Those are a little wider and shorter than original ball locks, and less will fit in a fridge. That is, if height is not a critical issue, which is partly negated because most pinlock disconnects tend to be a bit taller.
 
+1 on the ghetto cobra tap bottle filter!

I have about 12 kegs, new and used, differing brands, all have been fine.
 
Curious as to the basis of the advice to avoid plastic lids?

The three I have encountered showed signs of flex-cracking where the arms attached, it just seemed like a potential point of failure. Some mention a concern with sanitation in the plastic exposure but I'm not convinced that's an issue.

Since I seem to always have plenty of options when buying a used keg I tend to pick the cleanest/shiniest I can get :)
 
I've been enjoying the Torpedo series of kegs. I only have one LHBS, and they're INCREDIBLY proud of their used kegs. Proud, as in: selling reconditioned kegs for almost TWICE the cost of a new Torpedo from MoreBeer. Craigslist has had a few offerings, but even they're a bit pricey. As others have said, if you rebuild them with new gaskets, you're at or over the cost of a new Torpedo.

I dig that they're stackable. The ones I've had delivered so far have me very happy.
 
cornykeg.com clearance section has been my favorite source. It gets updated as they get stock of the "ugly" or "scratch & dent" kegs and might change throughout the day, so if it says out of stock now, just check back later and there might be a few.

They are beat up, but guaranteed to hold pressure and come with all new ball locks, o rings, and seals, so that is done, and depending what you get, still come in under $50 shipped. I just ordered 3 more last week - 126.84 to my door.

FWIW, I have been going with the converted pin lock because they are a bit cheaper and the dimensions don't make a difference on my setup - actually a little shorter is better for me. Downside to those is that they don't have the manual pressure release valve on the lid, but that hasn't been an issue at all for me. Just relieve pressure by pressing the gas post poppet.

Other than that, I really like the torpedos and they look like a great deal. I will be going that route for some smaller kegs when I get around to it.
 
http://www.homebrewing.org/AIH-New-5-Gallon-Corny-Keg-Ball-Lock_p_5100.html

These guys are out of Ann Arbor Michigan (least one of their stores is)
and if you wait for the sale, i've seen brand new kegs at 75$ each.
I haven't seen a used one under 60$ in ages and they often need o-rings ect so IMHO it's better to just buy new and not have the hassle of a beat up old keg.
I do however suggest that you get 2 at a time or more.
You'll discover that sparkling cider on tap is pretty nice.
 
Durability...


meh... How much wear and tear are your lids seeing? I'd take SS lids over plastic on principle, but I wouldn't avoid plastic lids if the price were right. My only complaint about my plastic lids is they don't have a pressure release valve.
 
I once bought used Cornelius kegs that someone had put Firestone posts on. I couldn't find poppets that would work right, so I had to buy the right posts for both kegs. That was an expensive mistake. Just something else to look out for when buying used.
 
meh... How much wear and tear are your lids seeing? I'd take SS lids over plastic on principle, but I wouldn't avoid plastic lids if the price were right. My only complaint about my plastic lids is they don't have a pressure release valve.

Right, so at least two reasons, then.
With or without principles ;)

Cheers!
 
You'll discover that sparkling cider on tap is pretty nice.

Cider, ginger beer, that San Pellegrino clone that's posted around here, a nice hoppy ale, a brown ale, that lager I'm going to start on next week...
 
I have a number of torpedoes, I like the fact that they don't have the rubber which seems to transfer to floors as they age and you move them around. I've had a couple (out of 7) of torpedo kegs that didn't seal very well at the lid. I coulda sent them back to morebeer but I had beer demanding to be kegged and all others were filled. I successful reworked the lip of the kegs with a hammer and pliers. It's trial and error

My advice with all kegs is to pressure check them when you buy them and also after you keg your beer.

I think many of us have emptied a CO2 cylinder premature because of leaks. I just spray a little starsan solution around the lip and look for bubbles and adjust the lid as necessary.
 
I successful reworked the lip of the kegs with a hammer and pliers. It's trial and error

I would not keep any new product that needed to be reworked with a hammer and pliers. A replacement by the vendor is called for.
 
of course ... get it to where you need it for the batch at hand then send it back under the 60 day no hassle return / 1 year warantee. That's why I like MB so much.

I would not keep any new product that needed to be reworked with a hammer and pliers. A replacement by the vendor is called for.
 
My advice with all kegs is to pressure check them when you buy them and also after you keg your beer.

Good advice. I also like how MB sends their kegs out under pressure. Every time I open one up, a quick pull on the PRV tells me what I need to know. So far, only one hasn't arrived with pressure in it: a 1.5gal torpedo. I broke it down, cleaned it, lubed it, and upon reassembly has had no problems; that said, I appreciated having the red flag go up to alert me to a possible problem.
 
Looking at a torpedo keg as it is a touch shorter than other (primary reason) as my fridge is only 23" tall (MAX). Excited!
 

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