Sanke spiral ring very stuck

[Ilikethebeer]

A local bar owner requested that I provide a batch in a 1/6 BBL sanke to be given away at an upcoming event. Rule bending aside, I'm excited. He lent me an empty keg and coupler, and I watched a few videos on how to remove the spiral ring and spear. I fully depressurized, and began trying to wedge out the spiral in the gap closest to its end. The spiral didn't budge at all and within seconds the tip of my screwdriver was broken and lodged in the gap firmly. I spent a while trying to pry it out and trying the other gap, and I have yet to see any component so much as wiggle. I also continued to depressurize regularly. Any advice on how to approach? Really appreciate any suggestions!

Broken screwdriver tip is on the left, gap on the right seems to far from spiral edge, won't budge.

 

[poislb]

Yeah they can be a pain sometimes..but why even remove the tube at all, just attach the coupler and do all your sanitizing and transfer with co2 via corny keg..ya just gotta rig the coupler up a bit but it's a piece of cake ..

1. Siphon beer in corny keg
2. Purge corney keg with co2
3. Transfer beer from corny to sanke..using provided coupler.

Do the same steps (first with starsan)

If ya don't have a corney keg then I'd suggest putting it in hot water, maybe it's just gummed up..

 

[Jim_Holmes]

see where the seam is on the ring, in the picture it is at the bottom, this is where you want to put the screwdriver in. get the screwdriver behind the ring there and work that edge out, once you get the end of the ring out then work around the circle

 

[wegz15]

What I did was hit that part where it overlaps at the bottom and turned it so it was at that gap. Then you do the screwdriver in the gap thing.

 

[AT-JeffT]

I had an issue with one keg. I ended up using the can opener part of a pocket knife(left most in picture). Slide it where the end of the ring is on top and try and pull the end out. It was actually easier than the screwdriver/slot method.

Best tool for removing lock rings (far left):

 

[Ilikethebeer]

Yeah they can be a pain sometimes..but why even remove the tube at all, just attach the coupler and do all your sanitizing and transfer with co2 via corny keg..ya just gotta rig the coupler up a bit but it's a piece of cake ..

1. Siphon beer in corny keg
2. Purge corney keg with co2
3. Transfer beer from corny to sanke..using provided coupler.

Do the same steps (first with starsan)

If ya don't have a corney keg then I'd suggest putting it in hot water, maybe it's just gummed up..

I was thinking about that and my one hesitation is that I don't know how deep the spear goes, and how much liquid is left behind when the keg runs dry. I can hear a little slosh in there and from the depressurizing smell there appears to be a Belgian yeast slurry. It would be nice to be able to open it up and clean it well. I'm open to pumping sanitizer in and out a few times if not too much is left behind. Any idea how much liquid is roaming around down there?

 

[Ilikethebeer]

What I did was hit that part where it overlaps at the bottom and turned it so it was at that gap. Then you do the screwdriver in the gap thing.

This makes so much sense, thanks. I used a hammer / flat screwdriver to try to tap it around and it is slow going. It rotated about a centimeter over 5 continuous minutes of tapping. The good news is that it popped the broken metal shard out of the gap. I'm planning to keep tapping and hopefully it will make it all the way around.

 

[Ilikethebeer]

I had an issue with one keg. I ended up using the can opener part of a pocket knife(left most in picture). Slide it where the end of the ring is on top and try and pull the end out. It was actually easier than the screwdriver/slot method.

Thanks! If all else fails tonight I'll look for a similar can opener tomorrow. Even rotating the ring is proving to be a real challenge.

 

[iaefebs]

Is it possible you are going too deep with the screwdriver and trying to pry two layers of the coil out? Using something to push down the stem, (think large socket that fits between the ball and lip.) Makes it a lot easier.

 

[RoundKid]

Similar to the can opener, I use a hook knife (from laying sod) to pull the end of the ring out. Then grab it with needle nose pliers and work it loose. As said, this is much, much easier than a screwdriver. The slot you are trying to use is not for that purpose, it Is for the notch on the spear to go through.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000HSCMF6/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

 

[Ilikethebeer]

Finally got it! Thanks everyone. I was tapping the ring to rotate into better position and the screwdriver slipped under the top layer. From there I was able to grab the top with a pliers.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Is it possible you are going too deep with the screwdriver and trying to pry two layers of the coil out?.

Yes! You need to be careful to only be prying the top half of the ring, Sanke kegs can be tricky to you get some skills w/ them, then it's butter!

 

[LordUlrich]

You could always clean it like the pros do, flip it upside down drain out the gas line and pump in cleaner through the beer line. They are designed to be cleaned without taking out the spear. There will be very little liquid left after draining out the gas line.
As for using the coupler, there is a check valve inside which is not difficult to remove, Just take that out and you can pump beer into the sanke.