Anyone still using antique draft towers from the early 1900s?

[beerBAHAMA]

Hello everyone, I'm the owner of a small beer bar in Japan.
We are still using a German draft beer tower from around the year 1900 — it’s fully functional and serving customers every day.

I'm wondering if there are any other bars, breweries, or collectors who are still actively using antique draft towers from that era.
Have you seen similar equipment still in use?

(If allowed, I’ll share a photo in the comments.)

Thanks in advance!

 

[BrewerofBeers]

This sounds interesting. Yes, please post photos -- it's allowed.

 

[worlddivides]

What part of Japan? Ichikawa, Chiba, perhaps? Post photos, please!

 

[beerBAHAMA]

興味を持ってくれてありがとう!

こちらはアンティークのドラフトタワーの写真です。今でも毎晩活躍しています。

あなたの考えを教えてください—質問に答えてうれしいです!

 

[beerBAHAMA]

Thanks for the interest!

Here's a photo of the antique draft tower. It's still in active use every night.

Let me know what you think — happy to answer questions!

 

[Kickass]

That’s beautiful!

 

[vandalay]

Hello everyone, I'm the owner of a small beer bar in Japan.
We are still using a German draft beer tower from around the year 1900 — it’s fully functional and serving customers every day.

I'm wondering if there are any other bars, breweries, or collectors who are still actively using antique draft towers from that era.
Have you seen similar equipment still in use?

(If allowed, I’ll share a photo in the comments.)

Thanks in advance!

Here from Argentina.
I used to collect antique serving equipment. Here are some photographs. I found most of it discarded and restored it myself.
I find great pleasure in pouring my own beer on that old equipment.

 

[beerBAHAMA]

That’s beautiful!

Thank You！

 

[beerBAHAMA]

Here from Argentina.
I used to collect antique serving equipment. Here are some photographs. I found most of it discarded and restored it myself.
I find great pleasure in pouring my own beer on that old equipment.

Hello. This is a wonderful collection. By the way, is the faucet in the third picture quite large? Also, our faucet leaks little by little. I'm thinking of using a compound to smooth it out.

 

[beren]

That looks amazing. Where do you find this stuff?

 

[beerBAHAMA]

That looks amazing. Where do you find this stuff?

I found it on a German private sale website!

 

[vandalay]

That looks amazing. Where do you find this stuff?

I found some other items at antique shops, but it's unbelievable how much stuff you find at metal foundries.
Here, at some junkyards, they stockpile metals to melt them down and make ingots for resale.
They have large bins divided by metal: aluminum, bronze, copper... I used to spend afternoons rummaging through the bronze bins and salvaged many taps, regulators, connectors, and beer towers.
About 10 or 15 years ago, homebrewing became very popular, and those who had these devices started selling them at any price, and the junkyards were emptied of all these items.

Hello. This is a wonderful collection. By the way, is the faucet in the third picture quite large? Also, our faucet leaks little by little. I'm thinking of using a compound to smooth it out.View attachment 880455

There are different types of these taps.
The tile in the photo below measures 20 cm, so the tap should be about 19 cm (7-1/2") from the spout to the top.
It's very common they leak, and it's not always easy to get them to seal perfectly. I've had very good results with metal polishing paste.
The taps seal with a male and female cone, and sometimes the metal has deep marks, requiring more aggressive methods, such as using a lathe or at least rotating the male cone with a drill and sandpaper. Only after grinding the cone can you move on to the polishing paste.
Grinding the female cone is much more difficult.

 

[beerBAHAMA]

I found some other items at antique shops, but it's unbelievable how much stuff you find at metal foundries.
Here, at some junkyards, they stockpile metals to melt them down and make ingots for resale.
They have large bins divided by metal: aluminum, bronze, copper... I used to spend afternoons rummaging through the bronze bins and salvaged many taps, regulators, connectors, and beer towers.
About 10 or 15 years ago, homebrewing became very popular, and those who had these devices started selling them at any price, and the junkyards were emptied of all these items.



There are different types of these taps.
The tile in the photo below measures 20 cm, so the tap should be about 19 cm (7-1/2") from the spout to the top.
It's very common they leak, and it's not always easy to get them to seal perfectly. I've had very good results with metal polishing paste.
The taps seal with a male and female cone, and sometimes the metal has deep marks, requiring more aggressive methods, such as using a lathe or at least rotating the male cone with a drill and sandpaper. Only after grinding the cone can you move on to the polishing paste.
Grinding the female cone is much more difficult.

I found some other items at antique shops, but it's unbelievable how much stuff you find at metal foundries.
Here, at some junkyards, they stockpile metals to melt them down and make ingots for resale.
They have large bins divided by metal: aluminum, bronze, copper... I used to spend afternoons rummaging through the bronze bins and salvaged many taps, regulators, connectors, and beer towers.
About 10 or 15 years ago, homebrewing became very popular, and those who had these devices started selling them at any price, and the junkyards were emptied of all these items.



There are different types of these taps.
The tile in the photo below measures 20 cm, so the tap should be about 19 cm (7-1/2") from the spout to the top.
It's very common they leak, and it's not always easy to get them to seal perfectly. I've had very good results with metal polishing paste.
The taps seal with a male and female cone, and sometimes the metal has deep marks, requiring more aggressive methods, such as using a lathe or at least rotating the male cone with a drill and sandpaper. Only after grinding the cone can you move on to the polishing paste.
Grinding the female cone is much more difficult.

Thank you for your reply.
Since Japan has a relatively short beer history, unfortunately we have no choice but to search for old faucets overseas.
I’m honestly a bit envious of your story about finding them lying around in a scrap shop!


The faucet we use was originally active in Bonn, Germany. It still works, but it's not so much that it constantly leaks — rather, the previous owner's habits left their mark. After disassembling and cleaning it, even the slightest difference in assembly settings or the torque on the lower ring can cause it to drip.


We use it daily at the bar, so it’s difficult to give it proper maintenance.
By the way, I also own the larger type of faucet — I got it via eBay from Australia.

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

A few German restaurants and rare bars are using towers similar to these.

 

[beerBAHAMA]

A few German restaurants and rare bars are using towers similar to these.View attachment 880512View attachment 880513

Thank you. I see this type of taps a lot in Europe. However, I would like to know how many taps made around 1900 are still in use in stores, including faucets.