Bottle necks breaking!?!?

[brewguyver]

Do you guys get dents in the top of your caps from the bench cappers? I've been using the colona (sp?) capper/corker and I'm afraid I might crush the bottles.

 

[Varmintman]

I don't get the dents with mine but I have seen plenty of dented caps here in the forum. I think you are fine.

My capper I lean on pretty hard when I cap and have never broke a bottle yet. I say that as I knock on wood :cross:

 

[LBussy]

The dents are not an issue. Some cappers make them and some do not. I have the Colonna capper/corker and it makes those little circles on top. Not a big deal.

 

[WissahickonBrew]

When we cap with the wing capper we give a little extra umph at the end in order to produce the indentation, thinking that was the assurance that a tight seal was achieved. That extra squeeze might be stressing the bottle neck, but then just the fact the neck is getting pinched below the cap might be enough to cause the weakness. Bench capper with just downward force sounds like the solution. Good to know the indentation in the cap is NOT necessary!

 

[thadius856]

The dents are not an issue. Some cappers make them and some do not. I have the Colonna capper/corker and it makes those little circles on top. Not a big deal.

This.

I have the red wing capper that comes in NB's starter kits. Two of them.

No matter how hard I press down, I've never gotten a ring or dot.

 

[VampireSix]

I've broken a few bottles while capping, using the 'black beauty' wing capper. The trick is to just be gentle, and don't force it. I usually have to rotate bottles once or twice to get the capper to work smoothly.

The dents are not an issue. Some cappers make them and some do not. I have the Colonna capper/corker and it makes those little circles on top. Not a big deal.

LBussy, I've been seriously considering getting that capper/corker. How do you like it?

 

[fizgig]

I've had newer Founder's bottles do this, are they normal longnecks or a different kind? Also, hold by the neck to uncap, not the base.

 

[LBussy]

LBussy, I've been seriously considering getting that capper/corker. How do you like it?

I'm a kegger so take this FWIW:

It is new to me so I have not had a chance to wear it out. There are no instructions but possibly enough moving parts to need them.

For capping, it's a no-brainer. It is n excellent and very sturdy bench capper. It is large enough and the base is firm enough that securing it to a counter was not needed for the couple of six packs I have run through it. I capped both champagne bottles and beer bottle and it had no issues with either. It does leave those little dimples people seem to be so concerned about. I believe it's just an artifact of how the bells are made.

For corking I had some issues. I am NOT a wine maker so this may reasonably be attributed to me not having experience. It was relatively easy for me to get the ram off-center. Since the ram is smaller than the cork it leaves a small dimple as well that mostly goes away after about a week. Since it leaves the dimple a couple of my corks are "ugly" having been rammed off-center. There's probably some simple way to ensure this does not happen and I'll play with it some more. (if anyone has some hints here I am all ears) It does have a sort of tapered funnel thing that drops down on the bottle that I am guessing prevents this - and I am sure it is my ham-fisted operations preventing it from helping me.

All in all it is a BEEFY piece of equipment. The mechanical advantage is as good as any I have used. The adjustments available are more than I will ever need. I am pleased with the investment and I am looking forward to learning to use it better.

 

[beersk]

I had a bottle break on me as I opened it once, cut up three of my fingers something good. It was a New Belgium bottle. Needless to say, I don't use those bottles anymore, they use cheap glass.
If you want to avoid bottles breaking and want good, strong glass, get yourself some Sammy Smith's bottles. Those are the ****!

 

[Puddlethumper]

I had a bottle break on me as I opened it once, cut up three of my fingers something good. It was a New Belgium bottle.

+1 on the New Belgium bottles. If you have a benchtop capper they'e OK, otherwise throw them into the recycling bin.

 

[discokid2k]

I utilize a variety of bottles and handle them all the same regarding cleaning, storing and sanitizing. Last night when cracking open a few to taste our latest batch of Imperial IPA, I literally broke off 3 bottle necks in a row! I almost started to cry by the third one since again I had to dump the contents down the drain for fear of glass shards!

Has this happened to anyone else with any frequency? When popping the cap off, the whole neck breaks!

Thanks!

I had a batch I made for Xmas that had 10 or so casualties like this. I have noticed certain brands are OK to use and others are not. Any Sierra Nevada bottle works well for instance but Real Ale Fireman's#4 does not. Neither do any from the Blanco Brewery, which is local to Central TX. Redhook is another great brand to use, have bottled at lest 20 different batches using the same 5 12pcks and it helps that they have cool looking bottles. After having lost beers myself to this issue, I only use bottles from a brand I know will work so for your next batch, enjoy the Ruthles Rye Sierra Nevada and save on the worries of broken necks.

 

[SNL19067]

I just finished bottling a Pumpkin Ale and had the same problem using a metal-framed, two handle capper. I had gotten through almost a case of bottles when one broke, then 6 of the next 7 broke. I am not sure what caused the first one but I think it left minute glass shards inside the capping mechanism which then put excess pressure on the subsequent bottles. I ran the capper under a full stream of water and finished capping without incident. Anyway, that's my 2 cents!

 

[WissahickonBrew]

Makes you want to cry... I threw away the wing cappers, switched mostly to kegging, but when we bottle, use the ferrari lever capper! Problem solved, so far!

I just finished bottling a Pumpkin Ale and had the same problem using a metal-framed, two handle capper. I had gotten through almost a case of bottles when one broke, then 6 of the next 7 broke. I am not sure what caused the first one but I think it left minute glass shards inside the capping mechanism which then put excess pressure on the subsequent bottles. I ran the capper under a full stream of water and finished capping without incident. Anyway, that's my 2 cents!