Regulator help

[cimirie]

I am slowly putting together kegging equipment. I am interested in drumming up a dual-body regulator. Based on a tip I received here, I went to chicompany.net which sells new and used gas equipment. There, I found these dual-body regulator for $49 which is way cheaper than I've seen elsewhere.

http://www.chicompany.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=92&products_id=1435

http://www.chicompany.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=92&products_id=1431

If you wouldn't mind, if you could take a look at both of the links and let me know if a regulator like this that has been taken out of a soda machine could work in a homebrew setup. Is it possible to strip away all of the "extra" stuff on the first one using simple home tools (I have no welding or soldering ability)?

Thanks!

 

[samc]

You run the risk that it needs to be rebuilt. I'm 50% on buying used regulators and it was not worth fixing the one that leaks.

 

[cimirie]

I didn't even think about that. Thanks for the input. Let's assume for the sake of argument that I got lucky and it was usable right away. Is there a disadvantage to buying/purchasing a regulator that was set up for commercial soda use. Will it connect to a homebrew CO2 tank and homebrew fittings; do the gauges read the same, do you have the same control, etc...

Thanks for the input!

 

[SweetSounds]

Both my single and double regulators are from soda set ups. They work great. My single regulator came from Chi - It's OK. Not a shiny new one... Kinda beat up actually. But it works great and the price was right.

My only word of warning (besides the aforementioned bad regulator possibility) is that the installed fittings/gauges are VERY tight. You'll need a big wrench and a vice to get any of the OEM parts off. Also remember, if you do decide to change gauges or fittings, that the high pressure threads are left-handed, and the low pressure threads are standard. So if you have to replace the high pressure gauge (for instance), it's righty-loosy, lefty-tighty!

One thing I really don't like about soda regulators is the low pressure gauges go to 100+ PSI. So 10 pounds of CO2 is just a tiny bit off of the bottom of the scale. No precision on the pressure if that's important to you. If it is, you can always replace the low pressure gauges with shorter scale ones...