Commercial bottles for home brewing

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ronb454

ronb454

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Hi all, this has probably been asked before but I cannot seem to track down any definitive info. I would like to know if there any "best" commercial beer bottles that will work well with crown caps.

I thought all were the same but I have found Miller Fortune bottles are very hard to cap. I wonder if the breweries have their bottles made so they are more returnable than renewable. If they make their bottles proprietary more will be returned rather than pirated for reuse saving them money from having to replace bottles. (My thoughts)

But just in case some are very re-usable, would to a few brands so I can use them. I am not having a lot of luck with the Fortune bottles, capping with a hand capper, nor the Colt bench type capper. Buying the bottles new is iffy unless they can be picked up at a brew shop. I can do that but it is 40 miles away. Ordering online is iffy and one never knows if all the bottles will be intact when they arrive.

I can get a 6 pk or 2 of a couple brands and give them a try. Or, if there is a trick to capping the Fortune bottles, would someone clue me in?

I am not even sure how much pressure to exert on the yank down lever to get the cap to seal...any suggestions?

I got a new hand held from Midwest Supplies and I broke the first bottle I tried to cap. So I got the colt and it came with no explanations at all.

I will appreciate any suggestions. :mug:

Ron
 
edited,and text deleted. Where is the button to delete a post?
 
allanmorgan said:
AFAIK, any bottle will work. I can't say for sure if a twist off type bottle will work or not.

I've purchased bottles online several times and have never had any broken ones.
Click to expand...

Sorry but this just isn't true. As the OP said some bottles just don't cap well. You don't really appreciate or spend time looking at the neck and caps of bottles like you do after trying to bottle and they just wont seal!!
 
ronb454 said:
Hi all, this has probably been asked before but I cannot seem to track down any definitive info. I would like to know if there ant "best" commercial beer bottles that will work well with crown caps.

I thought all were the same but I have found Miller Fortune bottles are very hard to cap. I wonder if the breweries have their bottles made so they are more returnable than renewable. If they make their bottles proprietary more will be returned rather than pirated for reuse saving them money from having to replace bottles. (My thoughts)

But just in case some are very re-usable, would to a few brands so I can use them. I am not having a lot of luck with the Fortune bottles, capping with a hand capper, nor the Colt bench type capper. Buying the bottles new is iffy unless they can be picked up at a brew shop. I can do that but it is 40 miles away. Ordering online is iffy and one never knows if all the bottles will be intact when they arrive.

I can get a 6 pk or 2 of a couple brands and give them a try. Or, if there is a trick to capping the Fortune bottles, would someone clue me in?

I am not even sure how much pressure to exert on the yank down lever to get the cap to seal...any suggestions?

I got a new hand held from Midwest Supplies and I broke the first bottle I tried to cap. So I got the colt and it came with no explanations at all.

I will appreciate any suggestions. :mug:

Ron
Click to expand...

I had a similar issue here is a link to my thread has some good advice. https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=571475
 
I started with Miller Fortune bottles, I got maybe 6 months maybe more before the necks started to snap, and they were harder to cap than the brown commercial brands. I now have SA, a few no name stubby, and some 11oz bottles. So far I have not had any problems with commercial brown.
 
allanmorgan said:
AFAIK, any bottle will work. I can't say for sure if a twist off type bottle will work or not.

I've purchased bottles online several times and have never had any broken ones.
Click to expand...

Yep, either buy "new" empty bottles online or start drinking Sam Adams beer and save the bottles. If you buy a bench capper any pop off beer bottle will work. Otherwise SA bottles will fill the bill.
 
allanmorgan said:
AFAIK, any bottle will work. I can't say for sure if a twist off type bottle will work or not.

I've purchased bottles online several times and have never had any broken ones.
Click to expand...

Thanks Allan, I am just afraid I may break the bottle of the capper because of the amount of oomph I have to exert on the lever. After I saved up about 15 sixes of Fortune bottles I did read somewhere that several people posted they too had problems with Fortune bottles, but they named some bottles easy to cap and now I can't find those brands.

How much downward pressure should I place on the lever? I cannot feel the edge of the cap bend in and I thought that would be a way to tell but evidently I am wrong, and may be missing something.
 
Brownalemikie said:
Yep, either buy "new" empty bottles online or start drinking Sam Adams beer and save the bottles. If you buy a bench capper any pop off beer bottle will work. Otherwise SA bottles will fill the bill.
Click to expand...


Thanks,I did get the bench capper...Colt Strong type. Next step up in the manufacturers line up from the Super Agata.
 
I found out early that Lagunitas bottles don't behave very nicely for me. When I was exclusively bottling and hording bottles everywhere I saved the Sierra Nevada ones. They cap easy and the 12 pack boxes are pretty sturdy and easy to store. They also make good beer so no reason to try anything else out.
 
dstockwell said:
I started with Miller Fortune bottles, I got maybe 6 months maybe more before the necks started to snap, and they were harder to cap than the brown commercial brands. I now have SA, a few no name stubby, and some 11oz bottles. So far I have not had any problems with commercial brown.
Click to expand...

Thanks DS, Sam Adams it is. I can get that a few blocks away. Any certain style you suggest? I never had it. I have heard a lot of good things though.
 
jerbrew said:
I found out early that Lagunitas bottles don't behave very nicely for me. When I was exclusively bottling and hording bottles everywhere I saved the Sierra Nevada ones. They cap easy and the 12 pack boxes are pretty sturdy and easy to store. They also make good beer so no reason to try anything else out.
Click to expand...

Thanks Jer,

I will try that brand also.
 
I have never had a problem capping any bottles with either a bench or hand capper. Don't use twist off. They will not work.

Not sure if it was just a choice of words or commentary on how you are using your cappers but there is no " yanking" involved. No pressure adjustment. With the hand capper place the capper on top and just pull the handles down evenly. Don't rush. Just pull evenly and smoothly. Once the handles are down it is done. No additional squeezing needed. With the bench capper again apply smooth even pressure.don't slam it down. It will pop into place. Don't try to crush it. You should feel it when the cap is mounted.
 
TexasDroughtBrewery said:
Sorry but this just isn't true. As the OP said some bottles just don't cap well. You don't really appreciate or spend time looking at the neck and caps of bottles like you do after trying to bottle and they just wont seal!!
Click to expand...

Thanks Tex,
I did order a case of 12 oz'ers . I want to do em small for the neighbors who invite themselves to the bench this summer.

I do use a lot of PET bottles too and have an abundance of them both 1/2 lt. as well as 1 lt. The 1 lt bottles are for me.:tank:
 
Silver_Is_Money said:
Who's got the best price on cases of standard tall neck 12 ounce bottles?
Click to expand...

Get this on Amazon if you have Prime, no shipping cost.

Monster Brew Home Brewing Supp Amber Beer Bottles (24 Pack), 12 oz

I tried to post the link but they also showed my personal info. Just copy/paste the bold text in Amazon's search.
 
Twist off will work but they're usually thinner. I bottle kombucha from the keg in Labatts apple ale bottles (twist). We only drank 1 and dumped the rest of that crap.
 
ericbw said:
Twist off will work but they're usually thinner. I bottle kombucha from the keg in Labatts apple ale bottles (twist). We only drank 1 and dumped the rest of that crap.
Click to expand...

Well, I won't be using twist tops anyway. Thanks.
 
allanmorgan said:
My own personal experience. To each his own. Never had a problem with sealing any bottle. I have never used any twist off bottle types, so can't offer anything in that respect.

Cheers!
Click to expand...

Allan, have you used Miller Fortune bottles?
 
Brownalemikie said:
Good choice. I almost bought a Colt myself. I ended up buying a Grifo capper. Very similar to the Colt but only $45 shipped.
Click to expand...

Never heard of that one. I may like the Colt if I can feel secure using it. I think this will work. I just tried a Fortune bottle filled with some brew from the fridge and it seemed to seal ok, but who knows how many will seal well and how many will miss the mark. I had to lean on the lever to get it to lay the sides down a bit better but they still felt a little like they were stuck out a bit. I will try one more thing...

I have read where sometimes bottles are hard to remove from the collar unless a little lube is applied inside the bell. The lube may help me slide the bell on better and smoother...I may have something here.
 
ronb454 said:
Allan, have you used Miller Fortune bottles?
Click to expand...

I have reused many bottles that I have bought over the course of time. Cleaned, removed the label, cleaned, sanitized and what not. It has worked for me. However, I have not tried or used Miller Fortune bottles.
 
allanmorgan said:
I have reused many bottles that I have bought over the course of time. Cleaned, removed the label, cleaned, sanitized and what not. It has worked for me. However, I have not tried or used Miller Fortune bottles.
Click to expand...

I had read somewhere that a little lube inside the bell on a bench capper helps until the bell gets used a bit. I have some food grade silicone grease I use in my grinders and sausage stuffers so I put a dab inside the bell and gave the inside a thin coating.

That added enough slickum to the equation and I capped another bottle and the goose grease allowed me to feel it bottom out. The cap edge (don't remember what the jagged edges are called) squeezed in better this time and felt almost like the commercial ones. I have to really lean on it as my countertop is a bit high but it worked ok. Now I am satisfied.

Thanks
ron
 
allanmorgan said:
As I said, As Far As I Know. :mug:
Click to expand...

I slicked up the inside of the bell on the capper and it does work well on these bottles. But, it is very tight probably because it is new. It could be that the ones who lubed their bell had good luck and others who did not, experienced what I did at first..."should I be using this much pressure to bend down these edges?" I remember when the metal caps were all you could get on glass bottles...before twist tops even, we used to bend the caps in half with our fingers and toss them into the can.

I expected that with the leverage of a 2 1/2 foot handle it should be easy to squeeze those edges in. And it is, if the bell has some lube inside so the friction is reduced.

These Fortune bottles do work, but whether it is the new bell, or the bottles themselves, it is a tight squeeze to git er did.:rockin:
 
BrewInspector said:
I have never had a problem capping any bottles with either a bench or hand capper. Don't use twist off. They will not work.

Not sure if it was just a choice of words or commentary on how you are using your cappers but there is no " yanking" involved. No pressure adjustment. With the hand capper place the capper on top and just pull the handles down evenly. Don't rush. Just pull evenly and smoothly. Once the handles are down it is done. No additional squeezing needed. With the bench capper again apply smooth even pressure. Don't slam it down. It will pop into place. Don't try to crush it. You should feel it when the cap is mounted.
Click to expand...

I think this is a DUH! moment.

However, a little grease inside the bell was needed and I took care of that.
 
Just a note that Bass Ale bottles are a bit of a pain to cap with a wing capper... They will seal but they're a bit more fiddly than others. Something to do with the size of the little collar part at the top of the neck.

Sam Adams is also my bottle of choice for re-use.
 
jtratcliff said:
Just a note that Bass Ale bottles are a bit of a pain to cap with a wing capper... They will seal but they're a bit more fiddly than others. Something to do with the size of the little collar part at the top of the neck.

Sam Adams is also my bottle of choice for re-use.
Click to expand...

I think the lip on a Fortune bottle is the same way...just enough bigger to cause one to have to use extra pressure. Kind of proprietary bottles.
 
I frequently re-use New Glarus bottles. My sister and bro-in-law saved some Sam Adams bottles I was able to re-use as well.

New Glarus bottles are great for the homebrewer, most of the label and adhesive comes off without a cleanser. I usually just heat some water in a kettle, rinse out the bottles, fill them with hot water, and stand them up in the kettle, and top off with more hot water to get the water level above the neckerd. Neckerd? Neckard? Neck Label? Whatever. Once the temp settles and cools off to about 115F to 120F (preferably after at least 15 minutes) the bottles are cool enough to handle and whatever labels didn't just float off should peel off no problem.

Something just seems wrong with buying clean bottles from the homebrew supply when I can re-use, but I am finding that my belgian style cork-finished bottles are very handy. I can use them for beer I want to age, but I've been using them more for mead that I suspect hasn't completely fermented. Not exactly something I find at my local craft brew store.
 
Kent88 said:
I frequently re-use New Glarus bottles. My sister and bro-in-law saved some Sam Adams bottles I was able to re-use as well.

New Glarus bottles are great for the homebrewer, most of the label and adhesive comes off without a cleanser. I usually just heat some water in a kettle, rinse out the bottles, fill them with hot water, and stand them up in the kettle, and top off with more hot water to get the water level above the neckerd. Neckerd? Neckard? Neck Label? Whatever. Once the temp settles and cools off to about 115F to 120F (preferably after at least 15 minutes) the bottles are cool enough to handle and whatever labels didn't just float off should peel off no problem.

Something just seems wrong with buying clean bottles from the homebrew supply when I can re-use, but I am finding that my belgian style cork-finished bottles are very handy. I can use them for beer I want to age, but I've been using them more for mead that I suspect hasn't completely fermented. Not exactly something I find at my local craft brew store.
Click to expand...

Thanks. All good info.
 
May or may not be a reason the Fortune bottles are hard to cap: Mic ing the lip thickness of a Fortune bottle and a 12 oz bottle from Home Brew Supply, the Fortune lip is .2345" and the HBS bottle is .230". Fortune lip diameter is 1.049; HBS bottle is 1.044". Not a lot of difference but I can see how there would be a tighter fit in the bell with the Fortune bottle.


I capped a HBS bottle just for S&G and it is not much easier than the Fortune bottle to cap. I think it has a lot to do with the counter height. I have a lower table that I will attach the capper to. It is about 4" lower and gives me better leverage.


Now, that I have satisfied myself that I can cap empty bottles, I will have to wait for 10-12 days or so for this batch of IPA to be ready to bottle.


I noticed a crescent dent, not a circle on the Fortune cap and not even a dent on the HBS cap. I felt the handle settle and the sides were flat so maybe this capper style does not dent like the Super Agata. O well. Onward and upward.
Cheers.
 
Bottling went well and all caps held. No bottle bombs and now I know I do not like the hop bitterness in an IPA...at least in this batch. I have a friend who does though and he will be getting it tomorrow.
 
Ron,

Glad to hear you are getting the caps on successfully now and with little difficulty.

Allan
 

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