beren
Well-Known Member
Great find!
Extra tall ball lock posts or connectors?
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I ordered a couple each of the smaller ones. Fingers crossed.
OP
OP
Got the parts, but I'm not thrilled with them.
1) It's a non standard O-ring for dip tubes. I can get over this fact, but will have to figure out what size it is and order some. I tried the normal O-rings for this area and they are much too big.
2) My posts bottom out, metal to metal, before the O-ring comes into play. I think I'll try sanding down the bottom of the posts to "shorten" them and get the O-ring to do its job. But I shouldn't need to go through this work.
There was actually an "extra" O-ring, black, on them when they arrived, not shown in the picture on the website. I thought it might be a bonus O-ring for the post itself, but it's too thin. I also thought it might be another way, or perhaps "the" way to create a seal, but don't really think so. There would b no reason then for the orange one, and also when the post is screwed on it just makes this additional O-ring squirm out of the way and not seal anyhow. Not sure what that's about. Yet.
1) It's a non standard O-ring for dip tubes. I can get over this fact, but will have to figure out what size it is and order some. I tried the normal O-rings for this area and they are much too big.
2) My posts bottom out, metal to metal, before the O-ring comes into play. I think I'll try sanding down the bottom of the posts to "shorten" them and get the O-ring to do its job. But I shouldn't need to go through this work.
There was actually an "extra" O-ring, black, on them when they arrived, not shown in the picture on the website. I thought it might be a bonus O-ring for the post itself, but it's too thin. I also thought it might be another way, or perhaps "the" way to create a seal, but don't really think so. There would b no reason then for the orange one, and also when the post is screwed on it just makes this additional O-ring squirm out of the way and not seal anyhow. Not sure what that's about. Yet.
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OP
OP
I knocked my posts down just a touch in height, chucked them on a lathe and hit them just enough at the bottom (where the flats are) to give some daylight between them and the adapter itself. The idea was to allow the post to go on far enough that the O-ring would do it's job.
I'm not sure that will be the case, though - the stainless part of the adapter above the O-ring hits the inside of the post now, and I don't think the O-ring is actually accomplishing a seal. Sigh.
BrewHardware did contact me and suggested to leave the additional O-ring in place. I will give that another go soon, last time it squirmed around but I can try some keg lube. And actually now that I shortened up the posts a bit, they're actually flatter on the bottom as well. Might stay in place this time.
I'm not sure that will be the case, though - the stainless part of the adapter above the O-ring hits the inside of the post now, and I don't think the O-ring is actually accomplishing a seal. Sigh.
BrewHardware did contact me and suggested to leave the additional O-ring in place. I will give that another go soon, last time it squirmed around but I can try some keg lube. And actually now that I shortened up the posts a bit, they're actually flatter on the bottom as well. Might stay in place this time.
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beren
Well-Known Member
So they leak? The o-ring on the new piece works different than a normal post and you still need the dip tube for that seal…
OP
OP
Right. The dip tube sits under the adapter that converts from 19/32 to FFL. The O-ring on the dip tube gets smushed down, spreads out, and makes a seal with that fitting. So far, so good.
Then you put a little plastic flare washer on, and the next fitting (with the orange O-ring) converts it back to 19/32. Still sealing and still working well.
Next you put the standard keg post on. But that metal lip around the fitting with the orange O-ring) collides with the post itself and you get a metal-to-metal seal there. The orange O-ring sits underneath, not actually doing anything. I didn't actually put everything on the keg, that kind of seal is historically not good so I stopped for the moment to see what I might be missing. Maybe that adapter is intended for a different keg post, shaped differently inside? I shouldn't have needed to cut the post down either, also maybe indicating a different post is intended. I started to wonder if it was for the "Firestone" kegs, the posts that have the wide, skinny area for the wrench, but I think those are different threads (very similar but different, and hmm I can't be 100% sure this particular fitting doesn't actually have those threads).
I'm sort of documenting the work in a way, at this point I'm ready to give up. I may raise the keg a half foot and have the taps sitting one over top of the other, there should still be room to get a glass in there. Or have a tap on one keg and the other with classical tubing.
beren
Well-Known Member
Did you ever contact Bobby? The item page says it works with the keg posts they sell. I know there’s multiple different styles of posts maybe you have the wrong one. Also that’s not a dip tube so it Would be unlikely to use a dip tube O-ring.
OP
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I did, the reply was to use the 2nd o-ring as a backup plan. It would probably work, almost certainly, but I wasn't thrilled with how the O-rings squirmed and wrinkled and generally not using the fittings as they were designed.
I have considered getting posts from there, I did see differences in the ones I have. I was going to write and see what his posts looked like, but didn't want to bug him too much. Also I may have found another solution which is to not have the taps poke out between the 2 handles, but finagle them to actually just manage to fit *over* a handle. I'd need to add a picture for that. If it works, I'm done, and don't have to bug him nor buy any more parts. I still need to try it and see.
For the posts, see below. The left side post hits the new adapter fitting, and the o-ring at the top doesn't seal to the post. The right side post is shaped perfectly for it that new adapter. And yeah if he's got posts like the right side in stock, I do bet it works. I'd assumed a post was a post, pin locks excluded of course, but - I guess not. Different times, companies, sellers, etc. - different products.
Eh since I have paint up, here's the idea for skipping this altogether. The tap seems that it can be rotated so that it actually just fits over the handle, if lined up just right.
I have considered getting posts from there, I did see differences in the ones I have. I was going to write and see what his posts looked like, but didn't want to bug him too much. Also I may have found another solution which is to not have the taps poke out between the 2 handles, but finagle them to actually just manage to fit *over* a handle. I'd need to add a picture for that. If it works, I'm done, and don't have to bug him nor buy any more parts. I still need to try it and see.
For the posts, see below. The left side post hits the new adapter fitting, and the o-ring at the top doesn't seal to the post. The right side post is shaped perfectly for it that new adapter. And yeah if he's got posts like the right side in stock, I do bet it works. I'd assumed a post was a post, pin locks excluded of course, but - I guess not. Different times, companies, sellers, etc. - different products.
Eh since I have paint up, here's the idea for skipping this altogether. The tap seems that it can be rotated so that it actually just fits over the handle, if lined up just right.
OP
OP
I've ordered some fittings from BrewHardware, great customer service! I did propose this question and got a reply right away that their fittings are more like the right side of the picture, that could actually make use of the fitting in the way the fitting was intended. I'd imagine that this kind of keg post is the "right way" to do it. I can see where it makes more sense with the standard dip tube arrangement, to have that little bit of vertical wall contacting the O-ring. If things look good with the new fittings (I got one of each, gas and liquid) I'll order a bunch more and possibly ditch the cheap stuff I have now that's threaded up to the very end.
Even though I'd still swap and upgrade (in my eyes) the posts, it turns out I may no longer care about this little project. There is a 2nd spot that the taps will fit, they barely make it but do actually work like this.
Even though I'd still swap and upgrade (in my eyes) the posts, it turns out I may no longer care about this little project. There is a 2nd spot that the taps will fit, they barely make it but do actually work like this.
beren
Well-Known Member
Always the way. Finally get a solution and it’s moot.
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OP
A couple posts up, #48 it seems, I had the picture of the bad and good posts. The bad ones are similar from a variety of sources, Amazon but also others (I don't recall which specifically any more). The style on the right is what Brew Hardware sells. They are better. Even if you aren't trying to use an adapter like I was which kicked this all off, you'd still benefit from checking out your posts. 1) A flat in this section will help get a better seal against the dip tube O-ring than does being fully threaded all the way to the end. And 2) Their particular fittings are just a tiny bit shorter than some others, and so this means they don't bottom out on the surface of the keg, leading you to think that you have compressed the dip tube O-ring when really you barely actually have at all. This latter point may be keg dependent - some old 5 gallons I have are fine but some 3 gallons have this issue.
I'll be getting more of these posts from BrewHardware. It may open me up to using this adapter fitting after all, but it'll definitely help me solve some minor random leaks I had never understood until now.
I'll try the adapters again, even though I managed a way without them, I would still like the 2 taps to come to the middle of the open space between the kegs, it'll be easier to fill a glass.
I'll be getting more of these posts from BrewHardware. It may open me up to using this adapter fitting after all, but it'll definitely help me solve some minor random leaks I had never understood until now.
I'll try the adapters again, even though I managed a way without them, I would still like the 2 taps to come to the middle of the open space between the kegs, it'll be easier to fill a glass.
I've got a few of the bad ones that I bought long before I realized that "universal" posts aren't really universal at all. I've had mixed results with doubling up the dip tube o-rings. But after looking at you pictures I'm wondering if putting the second o-ring on top of the dip tube might work better.
