What's with that Bobby guy?

So last year I bought a sight glass from Bobby from his website brewhardware.com which has been fantastic but it's badly in need of a cleaning. I just ordered a sight glass scrubber and carboy decals from him which came to about $10 plus $6 for the shipping.

Saturday I get an email saying I'm getting a $3 refund from Bobby because of "cheaper shipping". Who does this! Just had to share my little story about what a damn fine stand-up guy Bobby is. Honest business like that earns you customers for life. Cheers to you

 

What a JERK!

 

bobby is a great vendor

 

it gets him free ads about good service like this

 

See, that was worth the $3 right there.

 

Hey, Bobby.

I'm in the market for a refractometer-- what should I know about them --besides potentially buying from you

 

Nice to hear. I'm waiting to have the extra cash for a couple site glass setups and haven't even bothered to look anywhere else for them since Bobby's look so nice.

 

(I know you asked Bobby... here's my 2¢ anyway) ATC (auto temp correction) is worth having. Also, look for one with a SG scale on it (not just brix).

One of mine is lighted, which is cool for indoor brewing. I don't brew indoors, so that's not a big deal. Frankly, the light switch is a little flakey so I'd skip that next time.

Look at the way the clear flap connects to the body of the refractometer. This is the weak spot of the thing. Metal pins / screws are good, plastic axle is bad. One caveat is that the metal will rust if it is left wet, which is easy to do.

These things are pretty simple, so not a lot can go wrong.

 

Bobby M is my god. He's the main reason my brews have come out so good. It's a good thing he lives in New Jersey or else I might get a restraining order put against me.

"Hey Bobby! Bobby! Whatcha doing today? Brewing any beer? Can I help? I'll wash and sanitize everything for you! I'll just sit in the corner and listen! Don't close the door on me! Come on!"

 

bobby is on my short list of 'things I like about new jersey'.

 

Yea I'd prolly get a restraining order too.

 

He's the only thing on my list of "good things in NJ"...

 

I'm married.

 

You forgot ...to a beautiful woman. Hope your wife doesn't come on here or somebody's going to get in trouble

 

Sorry, I missed this the first time I went through the thread. There isn't much to know except that you should realize that ATC is not a cure all for putting 212F wort on the plate. I only mention this because a lot of people think ATC will compensate for any sample temp. What it actually does is compensate for varied ambient temps for which the instrument is subjected to.

My procedure is to have a cup of icewater handy. I pull a small sample in the Pipette (micro turkey baster), invert and shake the bulb end in the icewater for 15 seconds, then drop the sample on the prism. This is a better way rather than trying to let the instrument act as a big heat sink.

 

I was definitely wondering about this one. Thanks, bobby! Are the refractometers you sell solidly built?

 

i doubt he would sell it if it was not good quality

 

And how much do they go for? I was actually considering one just a couple days ago. I would much rather support one of us HBTer's

 

As far as I'm concerned, the ones I have are as solidly built as any of the Chinese imports that any brew shop sells. In fact, I've bought a few and have used fellow brew club members' refractometers and they all feel about the same in build quality. The main body is aluminum and not plastic as most anti-China import folks claim. In any case, I have no interest in trying to hide the fact that they are imported but I assure you that all the units sold to the homebrewing community are.

Some of them have a slightly skewed conversion between Brix and OG on the scale but the ones I have were verified as accurate at least in the samples I've tested. Even if you ended up with one of the slightly off ones through other vendors or directly from China through Ebay or whatever, you can always print out a handy Brix to OG conversion chart for your brew area or just wing it with the Brix x 4 in your head-able math.

I currently sell them for $35

 

Bobby - I ordered (2) sightglass/thermometers this past Tuesday (the 26th) and they're already here! You're the best! It'll probably take me longer to install and calibrate them than it took for you to get them to me.

 

I just got the brush for same. It's perfect.

Anyone ordering Bobby's sight glass fora boil kettle should get the brush.

 

Damn, you must have caught me at the exact right moment. I try to be quick, but that's nuts.

 

I just wanted to say that I have ordered a few dozen sight glasses from Bobby over the past two years and have never had a problem with any of them. I typically order the welded model that threads directly into a 1/4 inch NPT coupling.

Keep up the great work!