Meheen users unite!

[Meheen]

Replacement parts

Hi Jamie-
Mine's a 2000. It's got issues that we have overcome. I've modified it with a bar that stands the bottles up straight. I also added CO2 and air ballast tank that helped speed it up. Faster= less fob-over. The main problem we've had with it is lack of replacement parts. I've had to have parts fixed/rebuild locally because proprietary parts are unavailable. Specifically the capping cylinders are an ongoing issue. I've come to know my tool and die guy and stainless
That said, we have run tens of thousands of cases through it successfully over the past 7 years and commonly achieve speeds of 70+ cases/hour.
You are welcome to come bottle with us anytime
Joe Katchever
Pearl Street Brewery
608.784.4832x7

Crowner cylinders are available for your machine, but are obsolete in our system, so we can special order them for you, but expect a 6 week lead time. We do stock reseal kits for some of these, but not all. Best thing to do is call when you need parts and we will help as much as we can to get you what you need.

Dave

https://www.meheen.com

[sks]

Capping cylinders

Crowner cylinders are available for your machine, but are obsolete in our system, so we can special order them for you, but expect a 6 week lead time. We do stock reseal kits for some of these, but not all. Best thing to do is call when you need parts and we will help as much as we can to get you what you need.

Dave
www.meheen.com

Thanks, Dave. I believe last time we looked into that they were proprietary and obsolete so they would be custom made and very expensive. Is that still the case?
Joe

[sks]

Hi Jamie-
In your post, you mentioned something about a video? Do you have one of the the malfunctioning filler?
Joe Katchever

[J.M.Martin]

Got it

Thanks Joe I think I got it!

[EduSampaio]

Questions about Meheen M4 or M6

Hi guys,

I´m a brazlian brewer and I have interest to aquire a Meheen filler system for my brewery. I have basics questions about it and I will get happy for collaboration here.

1) Before fill up the bottles the system realizes pre evacuation and makes the oxygen purge. CO2 enters and the pressure into the bottles is stabilized (same pressure of the beer tank?) and filling is accomplished by gravity, RIGHT??? I need to better understand the mechanisms.

2) After filling, what keep the beer flow into the hoses without leaking? It´s the counter pressure of CO2??? or a mechanic retention?

Thanks for all my friends brewers!

[BandedHorn]

Jerky bottle pushing

Hey guys,

Love this thread. I've definitely read it through at least 4 times as we've been gearing up to revive/repair a 97 Meheen.
We've spend 2 solid days getting our Meheen up and running, making adjustments, and getting to know it pretty well.
Just as we had sorted out the crowner and a bunch of smaller issues, the bottle pusher plate started acting very jerky.. About 1 out of every 4 times it hesitates then jerks forward faster pushing the bottles too far, and if someone isn't on the stop button within a second the capper head smashes some or all of the bottles. Other times it pushes nice and slow and smooth, positioning the bottles perfectly..
We've toyed with side rail adjustments, made sure the feed ramp is clean and lubed, as well as the bed, and dialed in the are control screws on the mac valve so it feeds and retracts at the perfect speeds.
Is this an air cylinder issue? That's what my intuition tells me. Has anyone had luck cleaning/lubing these and getting them back together? This problem definitely didn't happen when we did several test runs in the past at 5-10 cases each.

We're going to rebuild the valve and look in to the air cylinder, but I wanted to see if anyone had experienced a jerky bottle feeder before and what the problem was?

[sks]

jerky cylinder

I'd say you're on the right track. I'd look at the push cylinder itself. You can order parts from Meheen, although he doesn't stock parts for the older machines; or directly from the cylinder manufacturer or it's outlet. On my 2000 it's a Bimba cylinder, you can find an outlet here: http://www.bimba.com/Support/Commerc...-Distributors/
In my neck of the woods, it's these guys:

John Henry Foster Minnesota, Inc.
IntelliSense®, Bimba, Mead, MFD, TRD, Pneumadyne & Acro Products
3103 Mike Collins Drive
Eagan, MN 55121
US
(Phone) 651-452-8452
(Fax) 651-681-9368
fluidpower@jhfoster.com

https://www.jhfoster.com

[GlacierBrewing]

Hey guys,

Love this thread. I've definitely read it through at least 4 times as we've been gearing up to revive/repair a 97 Meheen.
We've spend 2 solid days getting our Meheen up and running, making adjustments, and getting to know it pretty well.
Just as we had sorted out the crowner and a bunch of smaller issues, the bottle pusher plate started acting very jerky.. About 1 out of every 4 times it hesitates then jerks forward faster pushing the bottles too far, and if someone isn't on the stop button within a second the capper head smashes some or all of the bottles. Other times it pushes nice and slow and smooth, positioning the bottles perfectly..
We've toyed with side rail adjustments, made sure the feed ramp is clean and lubed, as well as the bed, and dialed in the are control screws on the mac valve so it feeds and retracts at the perfect speeds.
Is this an air cylinder issue? That's what my intuition tells me. Has anyone had luck cleaning/lubing these and getting them back together? This problem definitely didn't happen when we did several test runs in the past at 5-10 cases each.

We're going to rebuild the valve and look in to the air cylinder, but I wanted to see if anyone had experienced a jerky bottle feeder before and what the problem was?

We had similar issues with the bottle feed and fill head: fine for a few cycles then hurkey-jerky. I removed all the mufflers (look like little brass thimbles) on the machine and de-greased them. That made a huge difference. Also make certain there isn't any little pieces of glass traveling under the bottle pusher.
My two cents, your mileage may vary.

Prost!
Dave

[LaveryBrewing]

Yo!
This thread has helped us SOO much.
Still a couple issues though with our 2010 6 head.
We can't get it to fill lower.. We have been getting 12.5 to 13 oz in each botlle.
Beer is cold and properly carbed..
Tried raising and lowering the fill sensitivity..nothing..

All I can think to do is raise the fill heads to get more foam in the bottle...

Any advise?

Thanks

[GlacierBrewing]

Yo!
This thread has helped us SOO much.
Still a couple issues though with our 2010 6 head.
We can't get it to fill lower.. We have been getting 12.5 to 13 oz in each botlle.
Beer is cold and properly carbed..
Tried raising and lowering the fill sensitivity..nothing..

All I can think to do is raise the fill heads to get more foam in the bottle...

Any advise?

Thanks

I had this issue after we got a six head. The beer lines from the distribution manifold to the fill tubes were chewed through (it was stored in an old warehouse). I replaced these lines but the ID of the replacement hose was smaller than the hose I replaced. Got the correct hose from Meheen and I've been living the dream every since!
Prost!
Dave

[LaveryBrewing]

Replaced the lines with house from meheen. Same issue. Any other ideas?
I know I should have the fill tube as close to bottom as possible but could this be the issue?? Maybe I need a little more foam?

[lhall]

You may not have the right off-gas tubes for your bottle. The beer will fill the bottle until it reaches the off-gas tubes, where it will start going out the off-gas tubing. You might try lowering your fill sensitivity to see if that helps, but I bet the off-gas tubes on your Meheen are not the correct height (length).

[sks]

Foam!

You need more foam-over. Lower your bottle-pressure level to below 5 and increase the speed valve speed to wide open. Fill sensitivity has more to do with an even fill than it does foaming over.

[hillseythekiwi]

Compressor

Hi,

We have just opened a Cidery in Colombia South America and have acquired a 2009 6 head Merlin. The problem we are having is what cant find a compressor big enough to meet the requirements laid down by Meheen. Does anyone have any experience of using a compressor that produces more than the 95psi but not the 15 SCF?

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Dan
Golden Lion Colombian Cider
Cachaco - Kiwi S.A.S

[sks]

possible solutions

The Meheen will not function properly without adequate air flow. Until you find the right compressor, here are some things that you can do to help:
1. If your compressor is some distance away from the filler, you can add a ballast tank right at your Meheen. We use an air compressor tank mounted directly below the bottle deck. This provides air quickly at times during the cycle when it needs air, like when the filling and capping heads are in motion; but allows your compressor to keep filling the tank when it is not requiring air, like when the bottles are filling.
2. Oversize your lines. Make sure you have 3/4" (20mm) or wider lines running from your compressor to the ballast tank and from the ballast tank in to your machine. Also, make the lines as short as possible and remove any restrictions.
3. Run your compressor at it's maximum PSI and don't regulate the pressure down to the required delivery pressure until it reaches the machine. This will increase flow.
4. Use a high-flow regulator. it should have at least 12mm inlet and outlet size and exceed the airflow required by the filler.

While the above two fixes will provide air more quickly when it is needed, it will not increase the over all air production of your compressor. You can run your filler more slowly by restricting the speed valve, giving your compressor more time to build up air pressure. You can also increase the amount of air flow by adding a second or even third compressor to the same line.
I have done the above things to my Meheen, not because my air was inadequate but because I want to fill as quickly as possible. I have also shortened the cycle time by adding a ballast tank for the CO2. There is a 12mm line running from the CO2 tank to the machine. We are able to run 1800 355ml bottles per hour through our 2001 six-head.
Hope this helps.
buena suerte!
Joe