bargainfittings.com cam locks disappointment

[bruin_ale]

Does the QF8 series even have hose barbs? I think you'd need to fit all of your tubing with Barb => NPT

At those prices, buying an extra barb is the least of your worries. YIKES!
I think one pair of those QDs would cost more than I spent for all the camlocks and 3 piece ball valves in my system.

 

[longke]

really happy i read this thread. bobbys video was super helpful

placed my order w pro flo last night

if anyone is interested in buying my poly disconnects. give a holler. but beware of the cross-section will easily clog.

 

[day_trippr]

At those prices, buying an extra barb is the least of your worries. YIKES!
I think one pair of those QDs would cost more than I spent for all the camlocks and 3 piece ball valves in my system.

+1

That's just stupid expensive stuff, and for what gain?

Cheers!

 

[Irrenarzt]

At those prices, buying an extra barb is the least of your worries. YIKES!
I think one pair of those QDs would cost more than I spent for all the camlocks and 3 piece ball valves in my system.

You'd cringe at the prices on the 3 piece ball valves. I won't even bring it up to save you the stress.

 

[Irrenarzt]

Does the QF8 series even have hose barbs? I think you'd need to fit all of your tubing with Barb => NPT

Of course they have barbs. They have everything.

 

[Irrenarzt]

+1

That's just stupid expensive stuff, and for what gain?

Cheers!

They work very well hot or cold. One handed operation is nice when dealing with a hot QD. I don't even have to put on gloves most of the time I'm transferring hoses. I know money is a major consideration and yeah these are the Ferrari of QD's but damn they work good.

 

[day_trippr]

They work very well hot or cold. One handed operation is nice when dealing with a hot QD. I don't even have to put on gloves most of the time I'm transferring hoses.

With female camlocks on my hose ends, I can say all those same points apply.

I know money is a major consideration and yeah these are the Ferrari of QD's but damn they work good.

Price wise, they're more like the Space Shuttle of QDs...

Cheers!

 

[bruin_ale]

agree w/ day_trippr for the most part, although they are a little hard to do with one hand (at least for me). Never had to wear gloves, even when circulating boiling wort.

 

[Bobby_M]

For that price, I could hire the neighbour kid to swap the tubing around every time I brew.

 

[nbolmer]

Of course they have barbs. They have everything.

That's not a QD hosebarb, that's just a hosebarb to straight. I have their whole QD list opened, and see no hosebarb, just every permutation of NPT. It's purely academic, because I'd never buy these. I do have swagelok fittings in my kettles (St. Pats system... back when they made brewing equipment).

 

[Irrenarzt]

You need the above part to tube/QD or tube/stem and you're solid.

The only NPT ones you need are for the ball valves on your kettles. The rest use tube.

Obviously this solution is not for everyone. I never said it was. But some people have Porsches, others have Geo Metros. Just a fact of life...

 

[rack04]

Anyone know what the ID of the barb is on these camlocks?

http://store.proflowdynamics.com/modules/store/Type-C-Coupler-Stainless-Steel_P354C68.cfm

 

[nbolmer]

You need the above part to tube/QD or tube/stem and you're solid.

The only NPT ones you need are for the ball valves on your kettles. The rest use tube.

Obviously this solution is not for everyone. I never said it was. But some people have Porsches, others have Geo Metros. Just a fact of life...

Be that as it may, Porsches are usually better than Geo Metros. I can't find any advantage with these over camloks, can you?

 

[Irrenarzt]

Longevity is the advantage. The Swagelok parts are machined/forged 316 SS and will last upwards of 25 years of use. The camlocks may function as well, but they appear to be cast and therefore will not last as long.

 

[mattd2]

Longevity is the advantage. The Swagelok parts are machined/forged 316 SS and will last upwards of 25 years of use. The camlocks may function as well, but they appear to be cast and therefore will not last as long.

Really for our purposes you actually mean something more like:
Swaglock QDs will last for 1000 years unless you break them by doing something stupid,
Camlocks will last for 992 years unless you break them by doing something stupid

 

[BargainFittings]

Anyone know what the ID of the barb is on these camlocks?

http://store.proflowdynamics.com/modules/store/Type-C-Coupler-Stainless-Steel_P354C68.cfm

The 1/2" sized C is the same one we sell.

0.325" ID

The picture on that link is one of the bigger sizes.

 

[nbolmer]

Really for our purposes you actually mean something more like:
Swaglock QDs will last for 1000 years unless you break them by doing something stupid,
Camlocks will last for 992 years unless you break them by doing something stupid

This.

For the purposes of homebrewing, the difference is price. You're more likely to break anything else in your system before you break a cast stainless fitting. It will probably outsurvive all of us.

 

[AnthonyC]

BTW, a good use for the type C fitting is stepping down to 3/8" from 1/2" for feeding a counterflow chiller. 3/8" silicon tubing fits the 1/2" type C quite well. Then clamp the other end of the tubing to refrigeration tubing on your counterflow chiller.

 

[Dgonza9]

I've made a note on the description in bold red lettering the inner diameter of the C camlocks and a note about the different options.
I'm always happy to talk out options on parts and tell the advantage and disadvantage of different setups.

Well, as the OP I've had some time to reconsider this thread. First off, my issues with priming turned out to have nothing to do with the type C hose barb. Full bore fittings didn't solve these issues. A bottom drain keggle did, although recirculating from my mash tun still takes some work to get going.


Bargainfittings.com is a great outfit and I've bought a lot of stuff from them, even after starting this thread. In fact, in the end, I went to them for a different style camlock and I have no complaints.

I do, however, think it's very cool of them to update the product description so bozos like me will at least have a fighting chance to know what I am ordering and what its limitations are. Some of us tend to be impulse shoppers, or like me, often wind up doing their brewery planning/purchasing on the tail end of a 16 hour day, etc.. needless to say, I've made some interesting purchases, but it's about all the time I get to plan the brewery these days.

Anyway, thanks for adding that description.

 

[jeffmeh]

Dgonza, I'm happy it worked out for you. Perhaps you should get a mod to rename the thread, "Beware the small bore of the type C camlock fittings," lol.

 

[Dgonza9]

Dgonza, I'm happy it worked out for you. Perhaps you should get a mod to rename the thread, "Beware the small bore of the type C camlock fittings," lol.

Will do.

 

[l3asturd]

Pretty sure you can change it yourself. If you can still edit your first post click Advanced and you should be able to change the title. It takes awhile for it to change on the server but I've done it before.

 

[kincade]

Agreed. Bf is hands down one pf the best vendors ive ever dealt with, and this thread makes it sound as though THEIR cam locks are at fault.

 

[Dgonza9]

Agreed. Bf is hands down one pf the best vendors ive ever dealt with, and this thread makes it sound as though THEIR cam locks are at fault.

I changed the title to better reflect the disappointment in the bore of those type C fittings and not the camlocks themselves.

Again, hats off to www.bargainfittings.com for noting in red on their site that the "C" type fittings have a small bore.

Cheers!

 

[day_trippr]

I changed the title to better reflect the disappointment in the bore of those type C fittings and not the camlocks themselves.[...]

Really? My browser doesn't think so...

Cheers!

 

[tasq]

A mod or admin has to do it.

 

[Dgonza9]

A mod or admin has to do it.

I'm only able to change the title of my post, not the title of the thread.

If there's a mod lurking out there who wouldn't mind changing the title for me, much obliged.