How do you open canning jars?

[5030]

Orchard owner next door told me about a gov't alarm and recent proposal to restrict cider sales. He mentioned a young couple who visited a cider mill and didn't realize that a thirsty child was being given too much cider in one afternoon.

The youngster passed away from the excess, and a knee-jerk reaction was to enact some sort of ban on selling and serving cider. The bakery is a big part of Pat's op, but not all of it. Growers don't seem anxious to play along at the expense of such a big part of their biz. If it comes to that, will we see that much more applesauce? :licking:

At least with me, drinking too much fresh cider gives the the hershey squirts...

 

[5030]

I bought my press new online (and it wasn't cheap either). Having said that, I didn't like the imported (as in Chinese) pulpers the place where I bought the press sold so I did some flea market shopping during the summer a fee years ago and happened on a very substantial British made pulper but it needed new bearings so I made a set in the shop and added the electric motor (pulping is hard work and I'm old). The pulper I bought for 75 bucks is all cast iron and has 2 sets of drums with cast on teeth that turn into each other via gears and you can control the consistency of the mash by spacing them.

I bet it's at least 100 years old. 'Made in England' is cast right into sides.

Nice thing about living here is Applewood Orchards is right around the corner. Applewood is the largest commercial grower in the country and if I don't have enough from my trees, they let me pick up drops in the orchard which is huge as in at least 500 acres. I could (if I was inclined to) make hundreds of gallons. I'm not. Just too much work and I only hve so many cattle to eat the squeezed mash.

Cider freezes very well btw. We put it in ziplock plastic bags and freeze it. The bags stack nicely in the freezer and turn into bricks when frozen

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

Heres dad using the cider mill. Grinder on one side fills the tub, then slide over to the press side.juice runs off the bottom into a bucket.

Dad sold cider at farmers market in the 80s and 90s.

2 legs rotted some, it was stored in a barn on dirt floor. I need to fix, and sanitize it.View attachment 617553

That is so cool BEF, and worthy of restoration. Project!

I bought my press new online (and it wasn't cheap either). Having said that, I didn't like the imported (as in Chinese) pulpers the place where I bought the press sold so I did some flea market shopping during the summer a fee years ago and happened on a very substantial British made pulper but it needed new bearings so I made a set in the shop and added the electric motor (pulping is hard work and I'm old). The pulper I bought for 75 bucks is all cast iron and has 2 sets of drums with cast on teeth that turn into each other via gears and you can control the consistency of the mash by spacing them.

I bet it's at least 100 years old. 'Made in England' is cast right into sides.

Nice thing about living here is Applewood Orchards is right around the corner. Applewood is the largest commercial grower in the country and if I don't have enough from my trees, they let me pick up drops in the orchard which is huge as in at least 500 acres. I could (if I was inclined to) make hundreds of gallons. I'm not. Just too much work and I only hve so many cattle to eat the squeezed mash.

Cider freezes very well btw. We put it in ziplock plastic bags and freeze it. The bags stack nicely in the freezer and turn into bricks when frozen

Any chance you could post a picture of it, or a similar unit?

My wife uses a lot of apple cider vinegar. Not sure how that gets processed.

 

[Jstpssng]

Heres dad using the cider mill. Grinder on one side fills the tub, then slide over to the press side.juice runs off the bottom into a bucket.

Dad sold cider at farmers market in the 80s and 90s.

2 legs rotted some, it was stored in a barn on dirt floor. I need to fix, and sanitize it.View attachment 617553

That would cost a bundle to buy today... if you could find one. All that I've been able to find is cheap Chinese presses... and they still have a hefty price tag on them.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

Surprised no one mentioned my favorite jar lid opener -View attachment 617559

Too bad it didnt work on the rounded off drain plug.

 

[the old grind]

...My wife uses a lot of apple cider vinegar. Not sure how that gets processed.

Just try to make apple wine. You'll have lots of vinegar just from doing that.

 

[Alan W.]

TnAndy Ive been meanin to ask you if pictures of your setup have ever been in a magazine. I couldve swore ive seen some of your pics before.
Ifn Im wrong just blame it on the meds

 

[MossRoad]

Heres dad using the cider mill. Grinder on one side fills the tub, then slide over to the press side.juice runs off the bottom into a bucket.

Dad sold cider at farmers market in the 80s and 90s.

2 legs rotted some, it was stored in a barn on dirt floor. I need to fix, and sanitize it.View attachment 617553

NICE! Don't let that get away. :thumbsup:

 

[oosik]

Fresh apple cider........ah, I better be close to a rest room. My desires totally outstrip my systems ability to handle. """right thru the eye of a needle and no stains""""

 

[the old grind]

NICE! Don't let that get away. ..

Guys, save "BEF's" pic of premier parental unit and press. :thumbsup: (Note ball-bat-sized Johnson-bar in pic to turn press screw.)

btw, and OT, but spacebook only wishes it was a 'social networking' site on par with TBN.*

*(polite and informative threads, IMO an uncommonly wholesome online membership body. Props to Muhammad, vBulletin, and TBN's mods (!!) go without saying. )

 

[goeduck]

Eddie, this one mounted under a cabinet or shelf in the pantry is the best. My wife can open any jar with it.
https://www.amazon.com/EZ-Off-Opene...coding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=207VE19J60ABWD8GSP1Q

Five stars from over 2800 customers!!!

Interesting, I have never seen one of those :thumbsup:

 

[goeduck]

My parents pressed cider by the truckload and gave it to church bazaars, any other charity they could think of. At one point they started to worry about ecoli and started rinsing the apples in a bleach solution. Then quit altogether. Me, for a quick snack I will pick windfall apples out of the orchard which doubles as a cow pasture. But I always look to see where the apple fell. :shocked:

 

[buckeyefarmer]

NICE! Don't let that get away.

Ive had it 2 yrs, i keep wanting to make cider and i never seem to have time. Dad had a nice orchard with a variety of trees so he used his own apples. Cider is best with a mix of apples.
he still has a few apple trees.

 

[TnAndy]

TnAndy Ive been meanin to ask you if pictures of your setup have ever been in a magazine. I couldve swore ive seen some of your pics before.
Ifn Im wrong just blame it on the meds

Alan,

Not that I know of.....but I've posted them varied places on the net before, including here, so maybe that's where you've seen them.

 

[Alan W.]

Alan,

Not that I know of.....but I've posted them varied places on the net before, including here, so maybe that's where you've seen them.

That could be where Ive seen them before. An awesome setup.
But dont be surprised if somebody puts your pics in a magazine.
When I was a construction superintendent I received a lot of trade mags. My neighbor was doing the curbing for flower beds and I saw a pic of his place in one of the mags. The landscape mag had got the pic somehow from his website and used it in an article. I gave him the mag and he was just giddy that his house and business was used.

 

[EddieWalker]

Maybe this will help:

JAR OPENER BUYING GUIDE: how to choose jar opener that works Jar and Can Openers % %

Thanks for this link. I should have thought to do a search for something like that myself, but figured everyone on here would know the best ways to open those things.

I already have a Loop Strap Wrench, but never thought of using it. It's been sitting out on a shelf with all my oil changing tools for years, so we put it in the dishwasher to get the dust off of it and I'll give it a try the next time I can't get it done by hand. We opened two over the weekend and both came off easily.

I think I might buy the under the cabinet opener. I like how it's held in place and I can use two hands to turn the jar.

Neither of us ever heard of storing the jars without the ring on them, but my wife said that she might do that the next time she cans.

Thank you for all the great advice!!!

 

[MossRoad]

If you're worried about bumping the lids while stored or transporting when there's no ring on them, you can always take the rings off after they are sealed, wash the rings and wipe down the lids and jars, then loosely put the rings back on for protection of the lid. Just don't crank them down and risk breaking the lid's seal.

 

[jjp8182]

chanellocks work good

Glad to seem I'm not the only one who uses one, yet to find a lid small or large that won't come off when using the chanellocks

 

[txdon]

In case anyone ask, Yes you can turn the lid with you hand hard enough to break the top of the bottle off and have to get stitches in your hand at the urgent care.

(That was before I got the under the counter lid remover.)

 

[the old grind]

In case anyone asks, Yes you can turn the lid with you hand hard enough to break the top of the bottle off and have to get stitches in your hand at the urgent care. .. (That was before I got the under the counter lid remover.)

So true. .. and ..

... Because I'm not Reg Park either.

(suede leather welding/fireplace gloves up to my 'chicken-guts'-elbows .. )