I am a home brewer and I am looking at kegging equipment. I really like the prices at KegConnection but I have a few questions.I see a nice starter set up but it comes with a 20oz CO2 bottle vs a 5# bottle. Is a 20oz bottle going to be effective when carbing a homebrew and dispensing or am I going to be running to the store every 3 days for co2 refills? I guess what I really want to know is if it would be ok to start with the 20oz bottle and upgrade later. or will the 20oz bottle be a source of frustration and make me wish I spent the extra money on a 5lb bottle? Also what are the draw backs or advantages with the 2 types of kegs pin lock vs corny is one style better or preferred over the other style and why?
A few things- Get the 5 lbs cylinder. It will last 10-20 kegs, enough you don't feel like your replacing gas every week. Don't buy a cheap regulator. I work in a large homebrew shop and we get two or three Keg Connection/beverage factory/sub 40 dollar regulators walk in a week. Most of the time we can't fix them because parts are glued in, threads are mangled, or they use total oddball parts. Buy a good regulator and it can be fixed, rebuilt, and last for decades. Plastic ball valves, no gas check valves, and slotted stems abound in the cheap ones. Ugh.
definately get the 5# bottle, you will not be happy with the smaller one. If you check homebrewtalk.com, keg cowboy usually runs a coupon for 5-7% off
