$59 dollars really!!!!

[Blue_Water]

Wayne,

I like the low mount, I was just worried that it might get too hot while on the flame, if it were mounted that low. On my keggle, the cover on the valve handle started melting once.

Did you notice that valve getting too hot, or is that not a concern for you?

Thanks

 

[BargainFittings]

Wayne,

I like the low mount, I was just worried that it might get too hot while on the flame, if it were mounted that low. On my keggle, the cover on the valve handle started melting once.

Did you notice that valve getting too hot, or is that not a concern for you?

Thanks

I brewed with it as you can see in the picture. The valve did not heat up enough to melt the handle. I swapped my burners around and use a smaller ring burner for boil as its easier to control than my big banjo burner. Its edge on with the pot so not much heat came up around the pot bottom.

My other pots have gotten hot enough to soften the plastic on the valve handle and I generally just wait until it's soft and pull off the plastic (with a rag to protect my hand)

I've use a piece of heavy duty foil under my valves in the past to divert the heat off them.

On kegs you can position it so its not above a drain hole in the skirt and it will typically not get hot enough to melt the handle.

 

[AnOldUR]

I just put a half coupler inside my pots and drill that sucker as low as I can get it.

Same thing here. Half coupling with no dip tube. The shorter coupling means more room for my IC. More important though, I'd rather leave as much break and hops in the kettle as possible even if it means loosing a little wort.

Question. I don't see half couplings on your website. For my aluminum pot, I cut one of your full couplings in half and faced the ends. Do you sell the shorter ones?

 

[BargainFittings]

Question. I don't see half couplings on your website. For my aluminum pot, I cut one of your full couplings in half and faced the ends. Do you sell the shorter ones?

I do have the half couplings available. Not sure why I've not listed them.

I'll get them on the site soon. Need to check my pricing on them before I list them.

 

[Brutus Brewer]

Does it take a special bit to drill through the stainless steel?

 

[AnOldUR]

Does it take a special bit to drill through the stainless steel?

High Speed Steel at a slow cutting speed with some kind of cutting oil. Vegtable oil will do, but watch the speed. Too fast will work harden stainless. 150 RPM max with a 7/8" dia drill. If you don't know how to sharpen a bit for sheet metal, try one of these.

 

[Blue_Water]

Yep, you can get these step bits from Harbor Freight for around $10-15 for a set. Make sure you get the 7/8" diameter. These pots are pretty difficult to drill through, you'll need a strong drill and put a lot of force on it, go slow rpm with oil as stated in the previous post.

I drilled my two Cabela's pots last night. Worked out great. When I open/close the valve I can see a little tiny bit of flex in the pot around the valve, but should not be an issue. They look pretty darn sharp!

 

[Jonnio]

Terry did you do a half coupling low as well or some sort of pickup?

Also - am I reading you correctly that the final hole size should be 7/8" ? Is there any good reason to go a little smaller and file to fit?

 

[TerryWendel]

I just bought a 60qt aluminum pot. They were out of the stainless... no worries. Easier than cutting a freakin' keg.

 

[Blue_Water]

Terry did you do a half coupling low as well or some sort of pickup?

Also - am I reading you correctly that the final hole size should be 7/8" ? Is there any good reason to go a little smaller and file to fit?

I installed the bulkhead that has the female NPT so that I can attach a pickup tube. I did put a pickup tube in the kettle, stole it from my keggle.

On the Cabela's pot there is a slight ridge on the side toward the bottom, and I made sure that the o-rings were 100% above the ridge to ensure a good seal, so the center of the hole I made was a little over 1.5" from the bottom of the outside of the kettle.

My old step bit had 3/4" as the largest size, so I used that on my keggle and I spent a long time filing to get the bulkhead in there. If you have the time, then going 3/4" then filing will work. It was very nice having that new bit with 7/8", and the bulkhead fits in there nicely without filing. I'm going to test the pots for leaks tomorrow, and I'll post the results if there are leaks.

Edit: My bulkhead came from Austin Homebrew. Your bulkhead could possibly be a different size, so you might want to confirm before you go drilling. I'm assuming these bulkheads are all the same, but maybe not. The AHB bulkhead comes with a paper that tells you specifically to drill a 7/8" hole.

 

[BargainFittings]

I use my washer as a guide on the inside to get a feel for how far down I can get it before it goes off the flat. If I want it lower, then I grind a flat on the edge of the washer so it can sit farther down in the pot.

On this particular pot I just installed it as low as the washer would go without having to cut it down.

 

[McPintley]

How can you go wrong? By finding this post too late. That's how. They're sold out.

 

[LakeErieBrew]

They still have all sizes in aluminum. The 60 qt is still there for 49.99. Mine is on the way.

LINK

 

[Saccharomyces]

I ended up buying the $45 60qt aluminum pot from Sam's Club. The lid was another $8.

I'll be using a 50' IC so no need for any weldless fittings in my brewhouse. I will get the wort out of it in no time flat using a 1/2" autosiphon. When the IC gets here I will cut the lid so I can get a solid fit with the chiller in the pot.

(Besides, weldless fittings look too professional. I need to uphold my reputation as a redneck brewhouse brewer. )

 

[LakeErieBrew]

I received my pot last night. It was pretty badly damaged on the bottom, so I'm sending it back. By damaged, I'm talking about a massive dent in the bottom/side of the pot. It was at least six inches wide and bad enough to warp the bottom so that it did not sit flat.The shipping box wasn't damaged, but the actual box for the pot was really beat up. I think it's quite possible it left the Cabelas warehouse damaged.

Originally they were going to send me a new one by January 6, but I wasn't satified with that solution. The extremely nice and helpful lady at Cabelas put me on hold and got a faster shipping method appoved. I should have another one delivered by December 30.

It's a bit frustrating, but as long as the new pot arrives undamaged I will be happy.

 

[AnOldUR]

I received my pot last night. It was pretty badly damaged on the bottom, so I'm sending it back.

You have to wonder if these pots are seconds. There seem to be a lot of reports of dents. I got two of the stainless and both are dented. Minor and I'm going to keep them but . . . . damn. I want my shiny thing to be perfect.

 

[Jonnio]

You have to wonder if these pots are seconds. There seem to be a lot of reports of dents. I got two of the stainless and both are dented. Minor and I'm going to keep them but . . . . damn. I want my shiny thing to be perfect.

They are probably just poorly handled in the warehouse - most of those guys assume that things in factory boxes are packed well enough to be shipped, so they toss them around - these pots are definitely NOT well packaged in their original boxes.

 

[zac]

All the pots I bought were just fine. Just wanted to update with a good story about the pot. I like mine, It'll be theroughly tested this weekend.

 

[jkarp]

Yeah, my 24 qt aluminum one arrived pristine and is well on its way to becoming an indoor electric kettle. After a $20 off coupon, it was a whopping $10. Can't go wrong with that!

 

[Brutus Brewer]

They are probably just poorly handled in the warehouse - most of those guys assume that things in factory boxes are packed well enough to be shipped, so they toss them around - these pots are definitely NOT well packaged in their original boxes.

I agree. Back in college I worked for a Meijers Store unloading trucks. The skids would come off the truck shrink wrapped holding all kinds of merchandise. We'd cut the wrapping off the skids and throw whatever it was to the appropriate pile for stocking. It was nothing for VCR's, stereo's whatever to be dropped then put on the shelf.

 

[AnOldUR]

16" diameter
17" height
50" circumference
3418 cu/in volume = 14.8 gallons capacity
Lying ad! I'm missing a quart!

Finally got the chance to play with my pot today. Want to brew tomorrow, so I stole the ball valve off my old pot. Installation went pretty smooth. The center of the valve is 1" up from the bottom of the pot.

One thing about the dimensions above. The inside diameter is actually smaller than 16”, so the pots volume is a good ½ gallon short. No big deal, but strange.

I made a dipstick up to check volume. If you’re going to make one, here are the dimensions that I got. The first gallon is 1 ¼” deep because of the radius on the bottom. Every other gallon adds 1 3/16” of depth.

 

[AnOldUR]

One observation:

With my 42 quart aluminum pot as it approached boiling I’d have to watch very closely. For a while after reaching a boil it would be a challenge to stir and adjust the heat to prevent boiling over, but once a steady rolling boil was reach there was no need to worry. My best hope was that with the extra room in this new 60 quart stainless, this transition would be more manageable. What I found was better than expected. The changeover to boiling was smooth with no excess foaming. I was amazed to see the clean rolling boil just start. This is with 9 gallons pre-boil and FWHs.

So can I expect this to repeat in the future? Is it because it’s a stainless pot or may be the extra surface area?

 

[Jonnio]

I would guess that its the lower thermal conductivity of the stainless. It allows a "gentler" increase in the wort temperature.

 

[TerryWendel]

I got my 60qt aluminum pot in today. Besides some dings in the lid and a slight bend (which I easily straightened out; hey, it's aluminum) the thing looks like a quality pot. Walls aren't thin at all and it's quite sturdy. Can't wait to use it.

 

[LakeErieBrew]

I just received my replacement pot today. I'm happy to report that it's in great shape and it arrived when they said it would.