A cork pusher
A cork pusher
I have long wanted a cork pusher. Something to loosen a sticky cork, such that it would then release easily with a corkscrew or other device.
Latest proposal (subject to updates). Volume ≈ 5970 mm³. Aluminium density ≈ 2710 kg m⁻³ ⟹︎ weight ≈ 16.2 g.
Please comment.
Potential purchasers:
Latest proposal (subject to updates). Volume ≈ 5970 mm³. Aluminium density ≈ 2710 kg m⁻³ ⟹︎ weight ≈ 16.2 g.
Please comment.
Potential purchasers:
Re: A cork pusher
As of 1915 on Sun 02 Jan 2022, the proposal is that this be made of steel. By whom, how, etc, I know not yet.
Re: A cork pusher
I like the idea.
Have you measured hundreds of bottles across many decades to identify 15mm as the optimum diameter of the pusher or is it a guess?
Is 1mm thick enough to be durable when used by clumsy middle-aged men?
Are the pistons also to be made of steel or perhaps something more forgiving and less likely to chip the edges of very old bottles?
Have you measured hundreds of bottles across many decades to identify 15mm as the optimum diameter of the pusher or is it a guess?
Is 1mm thick enough to be durable when used by clumsy middle-aged men?
Are the pistons also to be made of steel or perhaps something more forgiving and less likely to chip the edges of very old bottles?
"The first duty of Port is to be red"
Ernest H. Cockburn
Ernest H. Cockburn
Re: A cork pusher
Good.
Almost hundreds. Let me count. OK. Nearer, err, two. Please measure some bottles.
Using the rigorous engineering of a wild speculative guess, err, I hope so. Seems about right. Would 2mm make you happier? Do you want that extra weight in your pocket?
Hard and unforgiving is the game here. User control requires no slack. If smaller than internal diameter, then that should be enough.
Different question. What piston heights are wanted?
- Alex Bridgeman
- Fonseca 1966
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- Joined: 13:41 Mon 25 Jun 2007
- Location: Berkshire, UK
Re: A cork pusher
I often choose to push a cork into a bottle, so I can later bag it out and have a good chance to retrieving it intact and whole. Less often I just ease the cork down a few millimetres to make it easier to extract.
I use a cork pusher to do this. My cork pusher is made of brushed stainless steel. It has slightly rounded edges on the pushing end of the cylinder and a handle / stop at the other end to prevent the cylinder dropping into the bottle. It is 155mm long and 16mm diameter.
Top Ports in 2023: Taylor 1896 Colheita, b. 2021. A perfect Port.
2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.
2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.
Re: A cork pusher
Is 155mm longer than needed? How do you control it such that the cork never goes too far?Alex Bridgeman wrote: ↑22:07 Sun 02 Jan 2022I often choose to push a cork into a bottle, so I can later bag it out and have a good chance to retrieving it intact and whole. Less often I just ease the cork down a few millimetres to make it easier to extract.
I use a cork pusher to do this. My cork pusher is made of brushed stainless steel. It has slightly rounded edges on the pushing end of the cylinder and a handle / stop at the other end to prevent the cylinder dropping into the bottle. It is 155mm long and 16mm diameter.
Is 16mm the optimal diameter?
Re: A cork pusher
As of 22:45 Sun 02 Jan 2022.
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- Fonseca 1980
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Re: A cork pusher
I would say there is no circumstance in which 2mm will make a difference. I would go 4mm and 8mm and 16mm.
In terms of width - 12mm. Do not risk not being able to get it into the necks of narrow bottle. Physicists can argue about optimal newtons per square millimetre and whether that makes a difference but I doubt it.
This is the next Durand. Patent.
In terms of width - 12mm. Do not risk not being able to get it into the necks of narrow bottle. Physicists can argue about optimal newtons per square millimetre and whether that makes a difference but I doubt it.
This is the next Durand. Patent.
Re: A cork pusher
I would want to try 2mm before 4mm, particularly if the inner neck is not cylindrical. And 16mm would cause it to fall in. Note: we are not restricted to three pistons. I might impose an upper limit of five.
Strongly disagree. A corkscrew, because it applies its force to the centre, rips corks. On the edge, the force must be.
- JacobH
- Quinta do Vesuvio 1994
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Re: A cork pusher
I presume the holes in the end are for a key ring? In which case would it not be possible to have a set machined with different diameters, if you are concerned to apply force to as close to the edge of the cork as is possible?
Re: A cork pusher
Or to hang on a nail.
One could have three heights of each of multiple diameters. Is that really necessary? Surely 16mm, or even 17mm, would fit 99% of use cases.
Re: A cork pusher
As of 23:25 Sun 02 Jan 2022.
- JacobH
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Re: A cork pusher
Another way of doing this would be to add a drill depth collar to something like Alex's solution. That would allow you to set how much of the "piston" is exposed and therefore how deep into the bottle you are pushing the cork. 16mm ones seem readily available and I bet the tolerances would fit a 15mm piece of steel rod, too. They usually lock with a set screw which could easily be swapped out for a thumb screw.
Re: A cork pusher
Space efficiency could be improved by having the pistons alternate sides. Thoughts?
Re: A cork pusher
Low and flat improves control, so it can’t be a long piston. Also, instead of a “drill depth collar”, there could be a series of holes through which a second rod goes, the rod acting as the depth limiter.JacobH wrote: ↑00:32 Mon 03 Jan 2022Another way of doing this would be to add a drill depth collar to something like Alex's solution. That would allow you to set how much of the "piston" is exposed and therefore how deep into the bottle you are pushing the cork. 16mm ones seem readily available and I bet the tolerances would fit a 15mm piece of steel rod, too. They usually lock with a set screw which could easily be swapped out for a thumb screw.
But I like the pocketability of my design.
Re: A cork pusher
I have a bottle opener which is a flat piece of metal with appropriate holes. It feels absolutely rigid, and is 2mm thick. Upgrading.
Re: A cork pusher
As of 23:45 Sun 02 Jan 2022.
- Alex Bridgeman
- Fonseca 1966
- Posts: 15036
- Joined: 13:41 Mon 25 Jun 2007
- Location: Berkshire, UK
Re: A cork pusher
Remember I will frequently push a cork fully into a bottle. Often this requires quite a length of push since some old bottles have a double constriction around the cork. 155mm is a convenient length for my purposes.jdaw1 wrote: ↑23:11 Sun 02 Jan 2022Is 155mm longer than needed? How do you control it such that the cork never goes too far?Alex Bridgeman wrote: ↑22:07 Sun 02 Jan 2022I often choose to push a cork into a bottle, so I can later bag it out and have a good chance to retrieving it intact and whole. Less often I just ease the cork down a few millimetres to make it easier to extract.
I use a cork pusher to do this. My cork pusher is made of brushed stainless steel. It has slightly rounded edges on the pushing end of the cylinder and a handle / stop at the other end to prevent the cylinder dropping into the bottle. It is 155mm long and 16mm diameter.
Is 16mm the optimal diameter?
Top Ports in 2023: Taylor 1896 Colheita, b. 2021. A perfect Port.
2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.
2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.
Re: A cork pusher
Is 7mm between pistons truly sufficient? That does seem plenty for a normal bottle, but might required a full cleaning of the top of a bottle before use if the bottle has a thick rubber/wax capsule.
Glenn Elliott
Re: A cork pusher
At roughly 3 a.m. this morning I awoke with an idea about this.
Is the device to be made from a single piece of milled stainless steel? If so, perhaps a combination of AHB's "rod" and JDAW's "bar" could be devised to save some space in the pocket. I am picturing a rod of stainless steel of 100/155mm in length and 15/16mm in diameter with one half of the length milled into a 2mm thick bar with two pistons opposite one another on each side of the bar, perhaps 4mm and 8mm in height, with a rounded end with a hole for a keyring or nail. The device could be used flat as intended by JDAW or as a plunger as currently used by AHB.
Is the device to be made from a single piece of milled stainless steel? If so, perhaps a combination of AHB's "rod" and JDAW's "bar" could be devised to save some space in the pocket. I am picturing a rod of stainless steel of 100/155mm in length and 15/16mm in diameter with one half of the length milled into a 2mm thick bar with two pistons opposite one another on each side of the bar, perhaps 4mm and 8mm in height, with a rounded end with a hole for a keyring or nail. The device could be used flat as intended by JDAW or as a plunger as currently used by AHB.
"The first duty of Port is to be red"
Ernest H. Cockburn
Ernest H. Cockburn
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- Dalva Golden White Colheita 1952
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Re: A cork pusher
I will very occasionally push a cork perhaps 3-4mm into the bottle to free a stuck cork, but I only ever do it using a screwpull corkscrew, so that the worm is in the cork (preventing the cork from falling into the bottle were it minded to do so); winding the handle/worm until ~3mm short of fully wound then allows you to pressure on the worm, and the cork will only move the max of 3mm, enough to release a stuck cork (I've only ever had one stuck-yet-spongy cork which would flex but not push when trying this).
I only do the above if it the cork feels stuck to the side and that the centre would otherwise pull out. I (almost) never push the cork all the way in since the top of the cork can often be grubby and I would be concerned about potentially contaminating the wine, and would use tongs if possible instead in that scenario.
I only do the above if it the cork feels stuck to the side and that the centre would otherwise pull out. I (almost) never push the cork all the way in since the top of the cork can often be grubby and I would be concerned about potentially contaminating the wine, and would use tongs if possible instead in that scenario.
Re: A cork pusher
A possible improvement:DRT wrote: ↑10:48 Mon 03 Jan 2022 At roughly 3 a.m. this morning I awoke with an idea about this.
Is the device to be made from a single piece of milled stainless steel? If so, perhaps a combination of AHB's "rod" and JDAW's "bar" could be devised to save some space in the pocket. I am picturing a rod of stainless steel of 100/155mm in length and 15/16mm in diameter with one half of the length milled into a 2mm thick bar with two pistons opposite one another on each side of the bar, perhaps 4mm and 8mm in height, with a rounded end with a hole for a keyring or nail. The device could be used flat as intended by JDAW or as a plunger as currently used by AHB.
The pistons could be separate coin-shaped components, the larger of which would have a threaded hole going part way through the centre and the smaller with a countersunk hole through the centre into which a flat-headed screw could be used to screw two pistons together on opposite sides of the bar. The device could be supplied with multiple pistons of differing heights that were interchangeable by the user.
"The first duty of Port is to be red"
Ernest H. Cockburn
Ernest H. Cockburn
Re: A cork pusher
Alex Bridgeman wrote: ↑01:14 Mon 03 Jan 2022Remember I will frequently push a cork fully into a bottle.
I want to loosen a sticky cork, which can then be extracted with a corkscrew. Hence the varying depths. Push in 2mm. If it pings back, if the 2mm has been absorbed by the cork’s elasticity, then I’ll push 4mm. If the cork is very elastic, 8mm.PhilW wrote: ↑11:00 Mon 03 Jan 2022I will very occasionally push a cork perhaps 3-4mm into the bottle to free a stuck cork, but I only ever do it using a screwpull corkscrew, so that the worm is in the cork (preventing the cork from falling into the bottle were it minded to do so); winding the handle/worm until ~3mm short of fully wound then allows you to pressure on the worm, and the cork will only move the max of 3mm, enough to release a stuck cork (I've only ever had one stuck-yet-spongy cork which would flex but not push when trying this).
I only do the above if it the cork feels stuck to the side and that the centre would otherwise pull out. I (almost) never push the cork all the way in since the top of the cork can often be grubby and I would be concerned about potentially contaminating the wine, and would use tongs if possible instead in that scenario.
Re: A cork pusher
Custom engineering is £$€-tastic. A simple piece of rigid hard metal, no threads, no screws, no moving parts, might well be more economical. This leans against DRT’s more complicated arrangements.