Custom stainless mesh basket for single vessel setup?

[Daniel Ashman]

Hi all,

I'm trying to find someone to make me a custom stainless steel mesh basket to replace my grain bag for my 63L pot. This way I can easily lift the basket out and let it drain and don't need a false bottom to hold the bag off my electric element.

I've found a few places that do custom stainless work but wondering if anyone has had one made before and how it turned out. Hoping not to pay an arm and a leg if I can avoid it!

These guys do custom hangi baskets but they're nickel plated steel which may not be the best. Would also still have to place my grain bag inside:

http://specialwire.co.nz/?product=50-ltr-hangi-baskets

These guys do custom stainless baskets but they're in Christchurch so shipping to Auckland may be expensive:

http://www.coulterwire.co.nz/browse.html

Here's a few pics of a company in the US that make baskets similar to how I imagine mine:

[Ben Dean]

I know I'm digging up an old thread here but keen to hear from anyone using something like this as I'm considering going this route myself.

Cheapest I've found is this one although postage is a killerhttp://www.aliexpress.com/item/Homebrew-hop-filter-stainless-steel-...
It would be great if someone in NZ was making stuff like this. Or even just decent BIAB bags, the ones available in the US and UK are in a different league to the cheap and cheerful options we have on offer here.

[Sam DT]

If you're recirculating you'll want solid sides to get the flow heading down through the grain bed but if you're just standard biabing then something like this should be fine.

I'm about to order a rack from the place in Auckland mentioned earlier in this thread, I think they do wire baskets as well from memory.

If you're after a custom bag flick Paul Finney an email (Finney's homebrew) his wife Laura sews custom bags, I think she uses something a bit more robust than voile, not sure exactly what it is tho.

[Ben Dean]

Thanks for the reply. I'm not planning on recirculating, I'm just doing straight forward BIAB. I'll give Finney's Homebrew a shout as the SS filter idea came about more because of my struggle to find a decent bag than anything else.

Cheers.

[Sam DT]

No worries, brewshop used to have really good ones that would fit a 70l pot (I've been using mine for a year and a half) but from what I've heard they've gone to smaller 50L ones made from voile

[Ben Dean]

My last one from brewshop was pretty disappointing, it was listed as large but is nowhere near big enough for my 50L pot. It's got a really fine weave so I use it to filter out hops when transferring to secondary after a big dry hop.

I'm swaying back towards the basket idea actually as it will enable me to do step mashes without having to put a false bottom in my pot... or stand holding a heavy bag of grain off the bottom of my pot.