Which capper is the best/easiest to cap bottles, of different shapes too?

[Finlandbrews]

I have a capper but for many bottles it doesn't work and the capper gets hooked to the cork and I have to fight to remove it from the cork. If you have any models from any shop please let me know and tell me about it. Thanks!

 

[kh54s10]

I have a capper but for many bottles it doesn't work and the capper gets hooked to the cork and I have to fight to remove it from the cork. If you have any models from any shop please let me know and tell me about it. Thanks!

Capper? Corks?

I have a 2 handled capper that I got from Northern Brewer 4 1/2 years ago. It looks like the one that is pictured in blue now... Mine is red.

For corks I have a Portuguese floor corker. Well worth the $$

Corks and caps are never together. Caps with beer and corks with wine.

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[MaxStout]

When you say it "gets hooked to the cork" do you mean the capped bottle gets stuck inside the bell of the capper? I used to have a "wing capper" that did that a lot. I would squirt a little starsan up inside the bell every couple bottles or so to keep them from hanging up.

 

[LTBrewer]

Also, not sure what part you're talking about getting stuck. But I can relay MY experience with cappers. I've used the red two handled ones with some success. But mostly when you set it up for one kind of bottle. If you have a collection of bottles that are not all the same dimension, then there is a good chance that you will bust a couple bottles in 50, when the pawls are too tight. Here is a link to one shown in this forum. There are other designs that don't have this three finger pawl feature that may be more forgiving. I've recently broken a couple European bottles that were a little thicker up top. But I think even these would be fine, if again, you had one type of bottle to deal with.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=352502

The bench capper I linked to below operates just like an arbor press, just adjust it for height and go, no issues, and I recommend it. If this doesn't help, try to post a pic of your issue. There are a lot of smart and helpful people here that will help you sort it out. You might have a whole different piece of equipment than we're thinking of.

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/bench-bottle-capper.html

 

[Bigcorona]

I purchase this capper in the early 70s. Used it for a few batches and then stored it. Brought it out of storage 4 years ago when I restarted home brewing. Stored in a very hot garage for 15 years. It works great on all sizes of bottels. These can be found on eBay. I highly recommend them. Likely the foam pad on the bottom will be worn out. I use a rubber jar opener as a replacement, I have capped over 5K bottles with no seal failure. It is easy to use on all bottles with normal crown caps. It can also be used to cork wine bottles.

My son is also trying to brew. He purchased the next one. It does the job, but seems real flimsy to me.

 

[Finlandbrews]

When you say it "gets hooked to the cork" do you mean the capped bottle gets stuck inside the bell of the capper? I used to have a "wing capper" that did that a lot. I would squirt a little starsan up inside the bell every couple bottles or so to keep them from hanging up.

Sorry. My English is not so good. I meant capper for caps nothing to do with cork. And yes exactly, I have to fight with this 2 handled capper every time because the bottle gets stuck in the capper because the cap is hooked and even when trying to open with quick moves it still very hard. I also found that the cap is not well tight all around the bottle and I have to play with the capper to make it better sealed... Weird.

 

[MaxStout]

Sounds like a pain. Bottling should be easy. I now use the Agata capper, cost me about $40. It's the red one you see in Bigcorona's post above. Works great, and adjustable height for different bottles. There are two versions--one that automatically adjusts to the correct height, and one that has to be manually adjusted to height. I have the manual-adjust one, but it only takes about 2 seconds to move it up or down.

 

[Finlandbrews]

Sounds like a pain. Bottling should be easy. I now use the Agata capper, cost me about $40. It's the red one you see in Bigcorona's post above. Works great, and adjustable height for different bottles. There are two versions--one that automatically adjusts to the correct height, and one that has to be manually adjusted to height. I have the manual-adjust one, but it only takes about 2 seconds to move it up or down.

I should definitely check those you mention and that automatic one too even if manual could be more reliable. Here are pictures of mine so you can see. Can the agata capper or bench capper you use also cap these two kinds of bottle with wide neck and different tip of bottle (I don't know how it is called in English the tip of bottle where the cap is put on?

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[MaxStout]

You can get a wider bell (29mm) for the Agata/Super Agata to cap the larger-mouthed bottles.

 

[LTBrewer]

I second the agata capper, the thickness of the glass above the neck of the bottle is not a factor. If you're using the right size caps, and they fit the bottles/bottle capper, the issue may be with the capper tension ring sticking. Yours looks like it has a spring in it, mine just has a bell. Try some steel wool, get all the rust out, and then maybe a coat of wax. The may fall free easy then. Is there an adjustment? If your caps are loose then the bell may need to come down more, that may be your only problem. See if your problem is across different bottles and caps.