StillSmart

Although I have mentioned these liebigs before this may be of use to some folks.

I like this version, it takes a bit longer to build but is certainly doable. OK it is a bit more expensive due to the extra fittings but I think it is well worth doing for boilers up to 3 kW. Anything over that I would switch to a shotgun or a coiled liebig.

It is basically a liebig inside another tube so that both cooled walls are exposed to vapour.



Just build the first end of your liebig exactly the same as normal. 15 mm tube inside 22 mm tube.

Now the thing is you are going to put that liebig inside a length of 28 mm tube, and to make life easy you also need two 35 mm Ts and two 35/28 reducers. You need to grind out the depth stop on the reducers.

So you have one end of a 15/28 liebig. You have to put that through the 28 mm tube and the two 35/28 reducers BEFORE you put on the second end of the 15/28 liebig.



Then with the inner liebig partially complete



Note that the coolant branches are not fitted yet but the inner liebig is soldered up. You now have to cut or grind down the coolant branches so that the T on the inner liebig can get through the 35 mm end of the outer T. Just keep grinding until you can just squeeze it in.

Just slide the reducers to the end of the 28 mm tube and put on the two 35 mm Ts. Use a length of 15 mm coolant branch just to help line up the inner liebig into the outer T



Note I used 35/22/28 Ts but this is for ease of building.

CAREFULLY so nothing moves, solder the reducer onto the 28 mm tube only

Your next operation is to cut the 15 mm coolant branch to a very slight point and push that into the (now shorter) socket on the inner liebig. You can now quickly heat the inner liebig and apply solder to the coolant branch. It is a bit tight but it is not that hard.

Last job is to slide a 15/22 reducer down the coolant branch into the T and to solder the T to the reducer and the coolant branch reducer into the T.

You end up with this.



Now bear in mind that the outer tube of this will be HOT. If like me you are an idiot and forget - you may burn an ear.

That was the main reason I made mine a bit less pretty by wrapping a coolant coil around it.

The coil was their for my safety even if it doesn't look so nice. Just use some small Ts to connect the coolant lines.



Mine is also a bit shorter but if you go for the longer length of about 25" or 26" it looks quite nice left clean. Just remember it is hot on the outside.

My head's still shaking in admiration. Lovely work!

There are other variations of the 2 vapour path concentric condenser, but IMO this is the neatest and most tidy version. Many folks wont even realise and will think it is a conventional liebig.

I always "dial in" my coolent rate by seeing where is hot and where I can still place a hand on.
Every give you problems? Or is it just so efficient that as long as waters coming out, it'll knock down what ever it throw at it?

That looks awesome, but is the a good reason why it's not the reverse of that ie water in centre and outside?

edit, a quick google reveals I'm implying a strange mix between graham and shotgun, I think?

I have done the version with a cold finger inside a liebig condenser as that gives you a cold outer to the condenser. It is just a little bit bigger in diameter.

Its entirely up to you which type you use. They are both more convenient than the equivalent longer standard liebig.

The other thing to consider is positions of the vapour and coolant inlet. ie at 90 degrees or on the long axis. You can do either.

@Curmudgeon I've built a liebig with a cold finder down the centre, it also works really well. Not as compact as myles (or as shiny)

There are as many ways to build one of these as there are builders, and they are all right. That looks fine to me.

I put a 15 mm cold finger inside a 22 mm liebig and it had the coolant in line with the vapour in and out at 90 degrees.



At the time I was winding a coil as the outer jacket, and was also regulating the coolant flow to get the same flow rate in the cold finger as the jacket. Not really needed.

I don't use that liebig any more and salvaged the parts.

I have seen a number of your great builds and posts on other forums as well as here and just want to say Thanks.

Myles,
Curmudgeon said almost verbatim what was in my mind, "Ditto!"
I have appreciated your creativity and craftsmanship for years. Thanks much for your posts and please never get bored and quit pushing the envelope!
Just Sayin'