[BrewArk]

Amazon has the 70 qt blue one for $36 and free shipping.

Woo Hoo! I got one!

[tygo]

Yep, me too  

I was going to get the 52 qt but the 70 was cheaper.

[tygo]

These are the instructions I followed:

http://brewing.lustreking.com/gear/mashtun.html

Just got mine in the mail today.  Looks like I'm going to have to follow these instructions.  I was hoping to just pop in a new mini-keg bung and move the assembly from the old mash tun but the walls on this one are a lot thicker and that's not going to work.  Good news that this one is better insulated but I guess I'm heading out to Lowe's again.

[valicious]

I just got mine in the mail today.  I'm leaving Thursday for CO, but I'll make sure to stop by Home Depot for parts when I get back.  This is going to be a lot easier than trying to make an IPA with a 23lb grain bill in my tiny 5gal converted Igloo.

[BrewArk]

Mine was there when I got home from work last night.  Looks like time to move from 5 to 10 gallon batches

[tygo]

Got all the hardware I needed and attempted to turn this thing into a mashtun tonight.  I understand what the guy said about having trouble with the inside washer.  For this cooler its a little too wide to fit into the slightly recessed drain.  I don't have the tools to grind it down like he recommends so I omitted the washer inside.  And without it, I can't get it tight enough to prevent a very slow, but steady drip when I add water to the cooler.

I might try to find a friend with a grinder to square off the washers a bit.  Another thought I had was to add some food grade silicon sealant before tightening everything up.  Anyone have any thoughts on that idea?

I was thinking of something like this:

http://www.emisupply.com/catalog/silicones-unlimited-su5005-food-grade-silicone-clear-103oz-p-2283.html

[dean]

When I made my tun from the 70qt I had to grind the washer because the actual drain hole seemed to be off-center to one side of the trough in the bottom of the cooler... I thought everybody else must have had normal coolers and I had grabbed one that might have slipped in the mold or something.     So I guess I'm not the only one that had to modify something.   

[tygo]

Got the washers ground down on three sides and slapped this together.  Brewed with it today and it worked great.  Couldn't feel any heat on the top or other areas outside the cooler with one exception.  Right where the indent is to open the cooler there was some heat loss.  I noticed it easily when I was preheating the mash tun with boiling water in 20 degree weather since vapor was pouring out.  I just put a think towel over that and that seemed to work.